The brief
A home-grown domain registrar, search, register, and manage in one place
Aussie Domains wanted to offer Australian businesses a simple, fast, and locally-focused way to find and register domain names. No upsell gauntlets, no confusing dashboards, just search for a domain, see if it's available across every major TLD, and register it in under a minute.
The platform needed to feel premium and trustworthy while being technically simple under the hood. A Next.js 16 + SQLite architecture meant zero external infrastructure to manage, while Stripe handled payments and EmailJS took care of transactional emails, a lean, production-grade stack that kept complexity low and reliability high.
The approach
A lean stack engineered for reliability
Next.js 16 for the frontend and API routes, SQLite for zero-config data persistence, Stripe for payments, and TypeScript for end-to-end safety. The domain registrar API integration slotted in cleanly as a server-side service, keeping credentials secure and search results lightning fast.
- 01
Real-time domain availability
Users type a domain name and instantly see availability across .com.au, .com, .co, .net, .org, and 50+ other TLDs. Server-side API calls keep the search fast and the registrar credentials secure.
- 02
Zero-infrastructure backend
SQLite handles user accounts, order history, and domain watchlists. No external database to provision, no connection pooling to configure, the entire app deploys as a single unit.
- 03
Stripe-powered checkout
Domain purchases flow through Stripe's hosted checkout, PCI compliant, supporting Apple Pay and Google Pay, with automatic receipt emails and order tracking.
- 04
Australian-first design
The brand, imagery, and copy are unapologetically Australian. The .com.au TLD is prioritised in search results, and the entire UX is tailored for local business owners registering their first domain.
The timeline
From concept to live registrations
Discovery and Domain API Research
Mapped the domain search flow, registration process, and pricing model. Evaluated registrar APIs and chose the integration approach that would give the fastest availability lookups across .com.au, .com, .co, .net, and 50+ other TLDs.
Search Engine and Storefront
Built the real-time domain search with instant availability checks, TLD filtering, and pricing display. Designed the clean, Australian-focused storefront with hero imagery and mobile-first layouts.
Checkout, Auth and Stripe
Integrated Stripe for secure domain purchases, built user authentication with bcrypt, and wired up the order management system with SQLite for account history and domain watchlists.
Polish, SEO and Launch
Final responsive pass across all breakpoints, structured data for search engines, email notification flows via EmailJS, and production deployment. Aussie Domains was live and accepting registrations.
The stack
Modern tools, zero infrastructure overhead
App Router with React Server Components for instant page loads, built-in SEO metadata, and server-side domain availability checks, no client-side spinners.
The latest React with the new compiler, automatic memoisation, and concurrent rendering for a snappy search experience across thousands of TLDs.
Secure checkout for domain purchases and renewals. PCI-compliant payments, saved cards, and subscription billing, all handled by Stripe's hosted checkout.
Embedded database for user accounts, order history, and domain watchlists. Zero infrastructure, the entire backend ships as a single deployable unit.
End-to-end type safety from the domain search API through to the checkout flow. Strongly typed registrar responses mean fewer surprises in production.
Transactional emails for order confirmations, domain expiry reminders, and welcome sequences, no backend mail server required.
We needed a domain registration platform that felt genuinely Australian — not a white-labelled overseas product. Breeze delivered exactly that, and the search speed blew us away.
The result
Aussie Domains launched on time and on budget, processing real domain registrations via Stripe from day one. The clean, Australian-focused design, lightning-fast domain search, and zero-infrastructure backend delivered exactly what was needed: a premium registrar experience without enterprise complexity.
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