How to Check Domain History?

Domain is the name given to the domain name owned by our website. For example, the domain name/domain of the https://analyticahouse.com website is "analyticahouse.com". Domains are used by renting them for a certain period of time from domain registrars (hosting/domain companies).

When we are considering opening a new website or want to find out whether our existing website was used in the past, we need to check the domain history. We have compiled 2 great methods for you to check domain history!

Why is Domain History Important?

Knowing what purposes the domain name of the website we use was used for in the past, and whether it was exposed to any search engine penalties, will enable us to be more conscious and productive in the SEO optimizations we will apply on our website.

In addition, analyzing the extent to which our website was affected by Google algorithm updates in the past will give us an idea for the SEO studies we plan to apply on our site.

For this reason, checking domain history, knowing what purposes the website was used for in the past and how it was affected by Google algorithms will shed light on our future work.

How to Check Domain History?

You can apply the two different methods we mentioned in our video to check domain history. Thanks to these methods, you can learn both how your domain looked in the past, what it was used for, and to what extent it was affected by Google algorithm updates.

Checking Domain History with WebArchive

If you are wondering what your website looked like in the past, all you have to do is go to the WebArchive website, paste your site's main URL and press enter.

WebArchive provides us with a chronological bar showing on which dates the website has been active since 1996 and the snapshots it has taken.

From this section, you can select a year when your domain was active, and by clicking on the saved snapshots from the calendar below, you can find out what your domain looked like and what it was used for on that date!

Learning How the Domain is Affected by Google Algorithm Updates with Website Penalty Indicator

You can use the Website Penalty Indicator tool to learn how much our domain name/domain has been affected by past Google algorithm updates and whether it has lost its indexes/SEO visibility by receiving a penalty.

After entering the website, all you have to do is write your domain name and select the Google extension for your country. Then, by saying "check domain", you can see how the domain name was affected by past Google algorithm updates.

The Website Penalty Indicator tool is a completely free tool and shares with you how your website has been affected by Google algorithm updates. To examine in more detail and get information about what these algorithm updates are, you can also use SearchMetrics, a paid tool.

To learn more about the Google algorithm updates and changes that may have affected your domain in the past, you can check out our blog post titled Important SEO Updates From Past to Present!