Name your app

The perfect name doesn't exist. A good one is available, easy to say, and doesn't confuse people. Everything else is a rabbit hole.

I own approximately 30 unused domain names and my personal brand is called Product Paige. I have opinions about this. Here's what actually matters.

Why naming feels bigger than it is

You're going to say this name thousands of times. You're picturing it on a landing page, in a pitch, in a tweet someone screenshares. No pressure.

Here's the reality: at this stage, your name is not your brand. Your brand is what people say after they've used the thing. The name is just how they find it.

Slack was called Linefeed. Notion launched as Notional. Neither name killed the product. You can rename. It's not painless, which is why it's worth getting right now — but it's survivable.

Spending three weeks in a naming spiral is not. Pick something good enough and ship.

Step 1: Know what makes a name work

Before you generate anything, know the criteria you're filtering against.

Easy to say and spell

If someone hears your name and can't search for it, you've lost them before you had them.

Test it: say your name out loud to five people who haven't seen it written. Ask them to spell it back. Multiple versions = cut it.

Doesn't box you in

Avoid names tied to one feature or one use case. Athletic Greens became AG1 because their name locked them into one product category. Don't do that on day one.

Not trying too hard

Skip deliberate misspellings (Leadzr, Cloudifyr), frankenwords that blur when spoken, and names that need explaining. They create friction before the product even gets a chance.

Actually findable

If a product with massive brand awareness already owns your name, you'll struggle to rank for it — even in a completely different category. Understand the SEO tradeoff before you commit.

Step 2: Know what's working in app naming right now

What's in:

• Everyday objects — Stripe. Loom. Clay. Bolt. Felt. Familiar without describing anything, room to grow. Common words are more likely to have acquirable domains — the .com might be parked and can often be picked up for a few hundred dollars.
• Single syllable — Arc. Cal. Warp. Short, punchy, impossible to misspell.
• Invented words that sound real — Figma. Notion. Retool. Familiar phonetic patterns, unique enough to own in search and trademark.
• Two words made into one — Webflow. Mailchimp. Tapcart. Meaning without being literal. The risk: tipping into clunky — "PaymentFlow" or "UserTrack" — which is just a description with no spaces.

What's not:

• Frankenwords and misspellings — "Instasynk," "Cloudifyr," "Leadzr." 2014 energy. Spelling confusion, SEO problems, try-hard vibes.
• Dropping vowels — Tumblr-style. Had a moment. That moment has passed.
• Descriptive compound names — "InvoiceTool," "LeadTracker." SEO-friendly but impossible to trademark and hard to grow beyond.

Step 3: Generate 20 options without filtering

Don't start by trying to find the name. Start by generating options.

Nouns, household objects, invented words, single syllables, two words combined, abstract concepts — anything. Don't edit while you generate. You need range before you can narrow.

Set a 20-minute timer. Write 20. Move on to the next step.

Step 4: Cut anything that fails the criteria

Run each name through these filters:

• Can someone say it correctly after hearing it once?
• Can someone spell it after hearing it?
• Does it describe exactly one feature or market?
• Is it a frankenword or deliberate misspelling?
• Is it too close to a well-known competitor?

Cut anything that fails. You should be down to 5–8.

Step 5: Check availability

For each remaining name:

1. Domain — check .com first. If taken, check whether it's actively used or parked. get[name].com or [name]app.com are fine at early stage. Don't pay five figures for a domain before you have paying customers. Shorter domains cost more — a workaround is adding a word in front: hey, hello, meet, try.
2. Trademark — check the USPTO database (or your country's equivalent). Launching with a name someone else owns means an expensive rebrand or a legal fight.
3. Social handles — prioritise the platforms your audience uses. B2B tool? Twitter/X and LinkedIn matter more than Instagram.
4. App stores — search the App Store and Google Play if mobile matters.

Use Namechk or Instant Domain Search to check handles across platforms fast.

Prompt: Check if your name is taken

I'm considering the name [YOUR NAME] for my [PRODUCT TYPE]. Can you check: 1. Are there any well-known apps, SaaS products, or companies already using this name? 2. Are there products in a similar category using something close? 3. Is this name associated with any brand with enough awareness to cause confusion in search?

Be direct. Flag anything that would make this name a problem.

Then verify manually — AI knowledge has a cutoff and won't catch something that launched last month.

Step 6: Check for bad associations

If you're building for a global market, run your shortlist through a quick language check. There's a long list of brands that skipped this and regretted it. Five minutes now saves a painful rebrand later.

Prompt: Language check

I'm considering the name [YOUR NAME] for my product. Can you check if this word or phrase: 1. Means something negative, inappropriate, or embarrassing in commonly spoken languages (Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Mandarin, Japanese, Hindi, Arabic)? 2. Sounds phonetically similar to any offensive words in these languages? 3. Has any negative cultural or historical associations worth knowing about?

Be direct and flag anything that could cause problems in international markets.

Step 7: Test the top three with real people

Not friends. People who match your customer profile and have no reason to protect your feelings.

Show them the name — just the word, no context. Ask:

1. How do you say this?
2. How would you spell it?
3. What does it make you think of?

Pick the one with the fewest confused reactions. Not the most excitement. The fewest confused reactions.

Prompt: Rate my name

Rate this product name on a scale of 1–10 and be brutally honest:

Product name: [YOUR NAME] Product type: [BRIEF DESCRIPTION]

Evaluate it on: 1. Pronounceability — can someone say it correctly after hearing it once? 2. Spellability — can someone spell it after hearing it? 3. Memorability — will people remember it after one interaction? 4. Confusion risk — does it sound like anything else? 5. Future-proofing — does it box me into one feature or market?

Give me a single overall score and list any deal-breaker issues. Don't be nice — I need to know if this name sucks before I commit to it.

Below a 7, seriously reconsider. Below a 5, go back to step 3.

The mistakes that cost people the most

1. Using whatever name your AI builder generated — dozens of other founders got the same suggestion
2. Optimising for a name you'd put on a hoodie — optimise for the name that lets you ship this week
3. Skipping the trademark check — launching with a name someone else owns is expensive to fix
4. Too close to a competitor, even a different one — Spotify vs Shopify, different categories, still mixed up constantly
5. Deciding after two days that nothing is good enough — you're over-indexing, pick something and move

Checklist

• I've generated at least 20 candidates without filtering
• I've cut anything that fails the say-and-spell test
• I've cut anything that boxes me into one feature or market
• I've checked domain, trademark, and handles for the top 3
• I've run a language check on any global-market candidates
• I've tested the top 3 with real people who match my customer profile
• I've picked the one with the fewest confused reactions
• I've run it through the AI rating prompt and scored above 7

FAQ

How long should I spend on naming?

A few hours. If you're still deciding after two days, you're over-indexing on a decision that won't make or break your product. Pick something good enough and move on.

Do I need a .com?

It's the strongest signal of legitimacy, but not required at early stage. get[name].com or [name]app.com are fine until you have paying customers. Upgrade the domain when you can afford to.

What if everything good is taken?

It usually means you're looking at too many common words. Go invented — words that follow familiar phonetic patterns but don't exist yet. Figma and Retool were invented. Nobody owned them.

Should I use my own name?

Only if you're building a personal brand product, consulting business, or creator tool. For a SaaS product you want to scale or sell, your personal name limits what the product can become independently.

What about AI-generated names?

Use AI to generate a long list, not to pick the final name. If Lovable or Base44 generated your app's default name, change it — dozens of other founders got the same suggestion from the same prompt.

Does the name matter for SEO?

Yes, but not as much as founders think. Abstract names (Notion, Stripe) start with zero SEO equity and build it through content. Descriptive names (Webflow, Mailchimp) get early organic lift from the category keyword. If SEO is your main acquisition channel in year one, lean toward keyword proximity. If you're doing outbound or community, an abstract name won't hurt you.

What if I want to rename later?

You can. It's annoying but survivable. Slack was Linefeed. Notion was Notional. The product did the work, not the name. That said, it's easier to get it right now than to change it once people know you.

The real bar

A name works if a stranger can hear it, spell it, find it, and not immediately associate it with something else.

That's it. Now move on.