The 20-minute trademark check before you commit to a name

A name can be available as a domain and still belong to someone else. A fast knock-out search catches obvious conflicts before you print the logo.

2026-11-02 · Namelizer

Domain available, handles free, name sounds great. None of that tells you whether someone already owns the name as a trademark. A knock-out search is the quick, free first pass that rules out obvious conflicts. It does not replace a lawyer's clearance search; it stops you from paying for one on a name that was never going to work.

Start with the official databases. In the US, the USPTO's free trademark search covers registered and pending marks. The EU has EUIPO's eSearch, and most countries run a free registry of their own. Search the exact name, then the obvious spelling variants, and read the goods-and-services description on anything close - a match in an unrelated category is a different conversation from a match in yours.

Then search the real world. Google the name in quotes, plus your category word. Check the app stores, the major marketplaces in your niche and the social platforms you plan to use. An unregistered name that is actively used in your field can still create problems, because many legal systems give some protection to unregistered marks that have built up use.

Watch for three knock-out signals: an identical name in your category anywhere in your target markets, a famous brand your name clearly echoes, and a spelling variant so close that customers would confuse the two. Any of the three means drop the name now, while dropping it costs nothing.

If the name survives the knock-out pass and you plan to invest real money in it, that is the moment for a professional clearance search in the markets you will actually sell in. The twenty minutes you just spent makes that search cheaper and faster - you have already removed the dead ends.

When you have a shortlist, Namelizer's availability check handles the domain step in seconds, so you can spend the saved time on the trademark check instead.