WHOIS — Check a Domain
Look up a domain's owner, registrar and registration date via WHOIS.
Domain
A WHOIS query shows administrative information about a domain: who registered it and when, which registrar, until what date the registration is valid, and which name servers (NS) point to it.
Useful before buying a domain (checking whether it's available and when the current registration expires), when investigating a domain dispute, or just out of curiosity about who's behind a given site.
The tool finds the right WHOIS server on its own: it first asks IANA which registry is responsible for the domain's TLD, then follows the referral to the specific registrar's server if needed — the same way the classic command-line whois tool does.
Frequently asked questions
Many registrars (especially for individuals) hide personal data behind a privacy service (GDPR/privacy proxy) — instead of a real name you'll see "Private Person" or the registrar's own contact details.
For the vast majority, yes — including gTLDs (.com, .org) and most ccTLDs (.ru, .de, and others). A few uncommon zones don't support WHOIS on port 43 or require a web interface instead.
DNS lookup shows technical records (where the domain points); WHOIS shows administrative data (who owns it and which registrar).