Costa Rica Domain Registration: .cr Costs, NIC Process & Hosting

Registering a domain for a Costa Rican business starts with choosing the extension. A .cr or .co.cr name follows NIC Costa Rica’s registration process. International extensions such as .com, .net and .org can be registered through CR Servers.

In either case, keep registration separate from hosting: the domain identifies your website or email service, while hosting provides the resources those services use.

Two registration paths

Domain	Where to register	Who controls the registration
.cr and .co.cr	NIC Costa Rica through dominios.cr	You or your business remain the registrant, called the titular.
International extensions such as .com, .net and .org	CR Servers	Use your own or your business’s registrant details and retain control of the account.

CR Servers does not sell .cr registrations or become the titular of your NIC domain. You register and renew it with NIC. CR Servers can provide hosting and help connect the domain to the services you use.

Choose an extension that suits your business name and audience. Hosting in Costa Rica does not guarantee local search rankings.

NIC fees and registration requirements

NIC’s published regular one-year tariffs, checked on September 27, 2026, are:

Extension	Regular one-year fee
.cr	US$70 + VAT
.co.cr	US$25 + VAT

Personal domains and premium names have separate rates. Check the official NIC tariff table before paying.

NIC allows .cr and .co.cr registrations without a physical presence in Costa Rica. Sector-specific extensions have additional requirements. Review the registration rules before choosing one.

Prepare the intended registrant’s identification and contact information. Enter the person or company that should hold the domain, rather than naming a developer or hosting provider for convenience.

For account recovery, use an email address you already control and can access independently of the domain being registered.

Register the domain and retain account access

For .cr and .co.cr

Create an account at dominios.cr, search for the name and complete NIC’s registration process. Review the titular details and the total before paying.

Keep the confirmation and make sure you can sign back into the account. Record the renewal date and assign someone in your business to maintain the registration.

If a developer assists, agree on the access they need. Technical help should not leave your business dependent on someone else’s personal account.

For international domains

Check availability and the registration terms for your chosen extension. Review both the initial charge and the renewal price, then enter accurate registrant information.

If you already own the name, establish whether you need a registration transfer or only a DNS change. Moving a website does not necessarily require transferring the domain to another provider.

For a new international name, search domains through CR Servers.

Connect the domain with DNS

DNS connects your domain to the systems that serve your website and email. Two settings have different jobs:

• Nameservers identify where the domain’s DNS records are managed.
• DNS records direct individual services, such as the website and incoming email, to their destinations.

NIC specifies at least two nameservers for a .cr domain. Its DNS instructions explain where to enter them in the domain’s control panel.

If your CR Servers service instructions direct you to use its shared-hosting nameservers, preserve all three exactly:

• ns1.crservers.net
• ns2.crservers.net
• ns3.crservers.net

Confirm that the DNS zone is ready before changing the delegation. These nameservers identify the DNS service; they are not mailbox addresses or MX records.

Preserve existing services before changing nameservers

For a domain already in use, save a copy of its current DNS records. Check the website records, mail routing, email authentication and any verification records used by external services.

Prepare those records at the new DNS provider before switching nameservers. Otherwise, a change intended for the website can also disrupt email or another service.

If you keep your existing DNS provider, update the required records there using the instructions for your hosting and email services. You do not need to change every service merely because one is moving.

A DNS change does not transfer website files or mailbox contents. Arrange any data migration separately, then test the website and email after the change. Cached records can cause different users to reach the old and new services during the transition.

Keep renewal separate from hosting payments

Renew .cr and .co.cr registrations with NIC through dominios.cr. Paying a CR Servers hosting invoice does not renew a domain held at NIC.

For international domains, renew through the provider managing the registration. Check that provider’s renewal terms and confirm that payment has completed.

Maintain a short domain record for your business:

• The registration provider and account administrator.
• The registrant’s current details.
• The expiration date and renewal cost.
• The email address receiving notices.
• The payment method and any automatic-renewal setting.
• The DNS provider and people authorized to make changes.

Set your own reminders ahead of expiration. If automatic renewal is enabled, check the payment method and verify the renewal afterward. NIC applies late-renewal charges under its published renewal terms.

Frequently asked questions

Does registering a domain create a website or email account?

No. Registration gives you the domain name for the registration term. Website hosting and mailboxes must be arranged separately unless they are explicitly included in the service you purchase.

Must CR Servers be the titular of my .cr domain?

No. You or your business remain the titular at NIC. Assistance with hosting or DNS does not require naming CR Servers as the registrant.

Can I keep my domain at NIC and host the website elsewhere?

Yes. Keep the registration at NIC and configure DNS for the hosting and email services you choose.

Are nameservers the same as MX records?

No. Nameservers identify the DNS service responsible for the domain. MX records within that DNS service specify where incoming email should be delivered. Changing either setting does not create a mailbox.

Do I need to transfer my domain when I move my website?

Not necessarily. A website move usually involves transferring the site’s data and updating DNS. A registration transfer changes the provider managing the domain registration and is a separate process.

Add hosting when you are ready to publish

Once the registration is under your control, choose where the website will run and who will manage its content, updates and email.

If you need those hosting resources, review the CR Servers web hosting plans. Confirm the included services before ordering; hosting does not include designing your website.

Keep the registration account, DNS configuration and hosting details documented so that future renewals and changes remain under your business’s control.

Related reading

For mailbox setup, mail routing and migration checks, read Professional email on your domain in Costa Rica.