Domain Availability Skill
An agent skill that teaches Claude Code, Codex and other agents to brainstorm names, check which domains are free and recommend the ones worth registering.
1. Install the skill
npx skills add plusye/domain-availability-skillWorks as it is: no account needed, within a per-address limit.
2. Optional: a free API key
Sign in and create a key: calls then count against your account rather than your network address, with a larger allowance, as when you sign in on this site.
3. Ask
“Find a short name for a budgeting app and check which .com and .ai domains are still free.”
A domain availability skill for coding agents
An agent skill is a folder of instructions and scripts that an agent loads when a task calls for it. The Namechan domain availability skill teaches Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and other agents how to name something and find a domain for it: brainstorm candidates, check them against live registry data, and come back with a shortlist of names that can actually be registered.
It needs nothing but a shell. The skill calls the Namechan API with a small script, so it works in any agent that can run a command, with or without MCP support.
What the skill does differently from a plain lookup
A lookup tells you whether one name is free. The skill carries the judgement that turns lookups into a decision.
- Checks in batches
- It generates a wide set of candidates and checks them in one call instead of one name at a time, so a naming session costs a few calls, not fifty.
- Reads results correctly
- Premium names are flagged with their real price and renewal, reserved names are dropped, and an unknown result is re-checked rather than reported as free.
- Looks past .com
- When the .com is taken it tries the extensions that fit the project, such as .ai, .io or .app, and checks whether a taken name is about to expire.
- Ends with a shortlist
- The output is a short ranked list with first-year and renewal prices and a register link for each name, not a wall of raw results.
Installing it
Install the skill with the command for your agent and it works straight away, no account needed, within a limit per network address. The skills CLI installs it for Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and others in one step; Claude Code can also add it as a plugin. For a larger allowance tied to your account, sign in and create a free API key above; the snippet then also saves it to ~/.config/namechan/api-key, where the skill reads it.
After that there is nothing to call by name. Ask the agent to "find a domain for this project" or "check if these names are available", and it loads the skill on its own.
Skill or MCP server?
Both are free to use without an account and share the same limits; an API key works for both. Pick by how your agent works.
Connecting a client over MCP instead? See the domain availability MCP server.
- Skill
- Best for coding agents with a shell, such as Claude Code and Codex. It brings the naming workflow along with the lookups.
- MCP server
- Best for clients without a shell, such as Claude Desktop, or when you want the lookups as tools in any MCP-capable app.
Frequently asked questions
Is the domain availability skill free?
Yes. The skill is open source and works without an account, within a limit per network address. A free API key gives you a larger allowance tied to your account instead.
Which agents can use it?
Any agent that supports the SKILL.md format and can run shell commands: Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and others.
Does the skill need the MCP server?
No. The skill calls the HTTP API directly with Node.js or curl. If the MCP server is also connected, the skill uses its tools instead.
Where is the API key stored, if I use one?
In the NAMECHAN_API_KEY environment variable, or in ~/.config/namechan/api-key on your machine, readable only by you. The skill never writes the key into your project.
Can the skill register a domain for me?
No. It only checks and recommends. Each free name comes with a registrar link where you complete the purchase yourself.