Every step below is from an official source
Switch from Namecheap to GoDaddy
What to do at Namecheap before you leave, what GoDaddy needs when you join, and everything else the switch touches. Your full plan is built in your browser and stays there.
Official sources reviewed . How we review sources
The rules that apply: ICANN
These apply whichever domain registrar you're moving between.
Get the authorization (AuthInfo) code from your registrarBefore
You need an Auth-Code, also called an AuthInfo or transfer code, to move a domain to another registrar. Your registrar must give it to you within five calendar days of your request, or may let you generate it yourself online.
FAQs for registrants: transferring your domain nameICANN. ReviewedCheck the 60-day limits before you request a transferBefore
Under the current Transfer Policy, your registrar may deny a transfer within 60 days of the domain's creation or within 60 days after a previous transfer. After a change of registrant it must apply a 60-day transfer lock, but it may let you opt out beforehand.
Transfer PolicyICANN. ReviewedAsk your current registrar to remove the transfer lockBefore
When you ask, your current registrar must remove the lock, or give you a reasonable way to remove it yourself, within five calendar days. It may deny a transfer only in specific cases listed in the policy, such as evidence of fraud.
Transfer PolicyICANN. ReviewedExpect one year added to your registrationAfter
A completed transfer adds one year to the existing registration. The total unexpired term can never be more than ten years.
Transfer PolicyICANN. ReviewedNote ICANN has adopted new transfer rulesBefore
On 7 June 2026 the ICANN Board adopted the Transfer Policy Review recommendations and directed ICANN to implement them, subject to prioritization. The resolution does not give an effective date.
Approved ResolutionsICANN. ReviewedExpect the post-registration and post-transfer lock to become 30 daysBefore
The new recommendations require registrars to block transfers to a new registrar for 720 hours (30 days) after initial registration and after a completed transfer. They also remove the 60-day lock after a change of registrant.
At Namecheap, before you leave
Disable Registrar Lock and request the Auth CodeBefore
In the Transfer Out section you can unlock the domain and get its Auth Code. Namecheap sends the code to the Registrant email address, which is not necessarily your account email.
What should I do to transfer a domain from Namecheap?Namecheap. ReviewedCheck the domain is past the 60-day limitsBefore
The domain must be more than 60 days old. It also must not have been transferred between registrars in the last 60 days.
What should I do to transfer a domain from Namecheap?Namecheap. ReviewedAllow up to 5 days for Namecheap to release itDuring
Namecheap says it has 5 days to release your domain under the ICANN Transfer Policy.
What should I do to transfer a domain from Namecheap?Namecheap. Reviewed
At GoDaddy, when you join
Start from the GoDaddy transfers pageBefore
Go to the GoDaddy transfers page and search for your domain to begin.
Transfer my domain to GoDaddyGoDaddy. ReviewedUnlock the domain and get its authorization codeBefore
Before you transfer, make sure the domain is unlocked at your current registrar and get its authorization code.
Transfer my domain to GoDaddyGoDaddy. ReviewedAllow 5 to 7 days for the transferDuring
GoDaddy says most domain transfers take 5 to 7 days to complete.
Transfer my domain to GoDaddyGoDaddy. Reviewed
Then: everything else the switch affects
The steps above are what Namecheap and GoDaddy say. Your full checklist adds the accounts, codes, payments and devices that depend on your domain registrar, in a safe order. It's built from your answers, in your browser.