how to get a domain on a popular extension totally free?

like .org or .com without something like .eu.org

[jacklancer]

i am not interested in paying for a domain, and neither will i settle for one of those noob things like something.officelive.com all the sites i found, claim to do it free, only first you must pay for 'membership' obviously this totally defeats my goal can someone help me?

[encyclo]

Can't be done. All major domain extensions (.com, .net, etc) have a fixed per-domain yearly cost, payable to the registry. You cannot get them for free, and any offer of "free" domains must have a catch - the most common being a "fee" domain with a hosting contract (the cost of the domain is covered by the hosting fees).

[jacklancer]

so i might settle for a subdomain as long as the main domain isn't getting in my way, such jacklancer.i-shot-the-sheriff.com

[encyclo]

Many hosting companies offer a free subdomain option, but again those offering "free" hosting have a catch - often placing ads in or over your content, and often poor service and server uptime.

A domain costs about $10 a year - if you care about your site, or if it hase any value at all, then buy a real domain - the cost is minuscule.

[jacklancer]

i'd have no problem with that, money is not an issue. but i'm too young to own a credit card and there is no one who will do it for me

[piatkow]

Get a pay as you go card.

[StoutFiles]

i'd have no problem with that, money is not an issue.

Money is always an issue.

Also, the $10 a year is just for the domain, it won't cover hosting. You'll need to find a hosting company which will run you $5-$10/month for a basic shared-server hosting plan.

[dailypress]

Use your parents credit card!

[piatkow]

I think he already said that parents wouldn't let their card be used.

"Free" hosting is readily available if you can put up with the ads (shop around, some hosts are more intrusive than others). Most, if not all, will provide a free subdomain.

I do recall one company giving free domain names but they simply put the site in a frameset with their own ads in the other frame. IIRC they dropped that offer a couple of years ago.

PAYG cards can be expensive but they are a good way for minors to get access to any aspect of ecommerce.

[callivert]

the bottom line is you can't get a top level domain like a .com for free- you'll have to pay $10 per year or so.
Of course it's better to have your own domain.
However, there's nothing wrong with a free subdomain at wordpress or blogspot or other locations; plenty of people have them including some high traffic sites. They're not just for noobs.
It would be a good way for you to learn the ropes, tinker a bit with site design, and try to build something up; and it wouldn't cost anything. Then one day, when you can get a domain + hosting, you can put up a message saying "thanks for visiting! I've moved here" with a link to new location.
I've seen it a thousand times. (well, not really a thousand. but lots.)