Note: The ENS App and ENS Explorer are both currently on Sepolia testnet. Behaviour and available features may change before mainnet.
Name expiry
.eth Names are Registered and have an expiry date. They can be Renewed an unlimited number of times while active, to extend that date. If they reach expiry, they move into Grace Period.
Grace period
The grace period is a 28-day window that starts the moment your .eth name expires. During the grace period:
The name doesn't resolve — anything pointing at it stops working.
The name can't be transferred or registered.
The name can be renewed by anyone, back to the previous owner only.
90 or 28 day grace period?
Names not yet upgraded to v2 keep the 90-day grace period as part of their name lifecycle. The grace period end date is the same whether a name is on v1 or v2 — the shorter v2 grace is balanced by the one-time 62-day renewal added at upgrade — so there's no advantage to staying on v1.
Once the grace period ends, the name becomes available to anyone — it enters Price Cooldown, an additional fee that decays to zero over the next 21 days.
To renew before losing a name, find the name in app.ens.dev and click Extend.
Common Questions
Can I renew during the grace period?
Yes — renewal of any length works during the grace window. Renewing into active registration restores the name to the previous owner. Renewals apply to the expiry date - not the grace period end date. The flow is the same as extending an active name.
How long does the grace period last?
28 days from the expiry timestamp. During those 28 days, the name cannot be registered by anyone else — it's reserved for the previous owner. After the 28 days are up, the name enters Price Cooldown, where it's available to the public.
Can someone else register my name during the grace period?
No. The name can only be renewed, not registered. And renewing, from any wallet, will only return the name to the previous owner.
Do records and resolution still work during the grace period?
No — the name does not resolve during the grace period. Renew the name to active registration to restore it.
What happens if I miss the grace period?
If a name passes through grace period without being renewed, it enters Price Cooldown, where a one-off additional fee sits on top of the normal registration price. The additional fee reduces to $0 over 21 days. Anyone can register the name by paying the base price plus any additional fee.
If it passes through Price Cooldown without being registered, it will reduce to the normal base price only.