Business Naming Services Compared: From Free to $50,000
2026-04-06
The naming industry spans five orders of magnitude — from free browser tools to six-figure agency engagements. Here's what each tier actually delivers, and who each one is actually for.
If you're trying to name a business and you've started searching for help, you've probably already noticed the range is absurd. You can use Shopify's name generator for free. You can hire a boutique naming agency for $15,000. You can engage a firm like Lexicon or Igor International for $50,000 to $500,000. The pricing makes no sense without a map of what you're buying at each level.
This is that map. Honest, specific, and organized by what you actually get — not by what the marketing copy says.
Tier 1: Free Generators
Namelix, Shopify, Wix, Canva, Looka, Business Name Generator
What you get:
- A large volume of name suggestions generated by algorithm or AI
- Basic domain availability check (usually .com only, sometimes with affiliate links)
- No trademark screening
- No SEO or search competition analysis
- No phonetic or linguistic analysis
What you don't get: Any sense of whether the names are actually usable. Free generators have no collision awareness. They will happily suggest names that are registered trademarks in your exact class, currently used by competitors in your space, or phonetically identical to something you'd want to avoid. The output is inspiration material, not a shortlist.
Who it's for: Early brainstorming, breaking creative blocks, generating raw input before you start real validation. Not for finalizing a name.
Cost: Free.
Tier 2: AI-Powered Name Reports
NameYourThing and similar
What you get:
- AI-generated name candidates tuned to your category, audience, and tone
- Trademark proximity screening against the USPTO federal register
- Domain availability across multiple TLDs (.com, .ai, .io, .co, .net)
- SEO and search competition analysis per name
- A structured PDF report you can reference and act on
What you don't get: Legal clearance. A report-based tool can flag trademark conflicts and surface risks, but it's not a substitute for a trademark attorney's opinion when you're ready to file. It also won't provide brand strategy, naming rationale depth, or linguistic analysis in non-English markets.
Who it's for: Solo founders, early-stage startups, product launchers, side projects, and anyone who needs a validated shortlist quickly without agency pricing.
Cost: $9.99 to $49 per report depending on the service.
Tier 3: Freelance Naming Consultants
Upwork, Fiverr, independent consultants
What you get:
- A human working through your specific brief
- Variable quality depending heavily on who you hire
- Often includes a discovery conversation and a round of revisions
- Some freelancers include trademark checks; many don't
What you don't get: Consistency. The freelance tier has enormous quality variance. The best freelance naming consultants are former agency strategists who left to work independently — they're excellent and significantly cheaper than agencies. The worst are generalist copywriters who will brainstorm names without any validation infrastructure. There's no reliable way to tell them apart from a listing on a platform.
Who it's for: Founders who want a human collaborator in the process, have a modest budget, and are willing to vet candidates carefully.
Cost: $200 to $2,000 depending on the scope and the consultant.
Tier 4: Boutique Naming Agencies
Specialized firms with 5–20 people, typically handling 10–30 projects per year
What you get:
- A structured naming process with defined deliverables and timelines
- Brand strategy alignment — names are developed in the context of a positioning brief
- Linguistic checks across multiple languages (important for brands with global ambitions)
- Trademark screening, often with attorney partnerships for full clearance
- Multiple rounds of candidates with rationale for each
- Stakeholder presentation materials
What you don't get: Speed or affordability. Boutique agency engagements typically run 4 to 8 weeks and cost $8,000 to $30,000. For most early-stage businesses, that's both more time and more money than the situation calls for.
Who it's for: Established businesses rebranding, funded startups naming a flagship product, companies that need a name to hold up in multiple language markets.
Cost: $8,000 to $30,000.
Tier 5: Enterprise Naming Firms
Lexicon, Igor International, Catchword, A Hundred Monkeys, and similar
What you get:
- Proprietary naming methodology developed over decades
- Linguistic analysis in 20+ languages
- Consumer testing with real respondent panels
- Full trademark clearance in multiple jurisdictions through law firm partnerships
- Executive presentations and change management support for major rebrands
- Track records that include names like Sonos, Dasani, BlackBerry, Febreze
What you don't get: Access, unless you're a large company. Enterprise naming firms typically won't take engagements under $50,000, and most start at $100,000 to $500,000 for a full naming project. The process takes 3 to 6 months. They are not solving your problem.
Who it's for: Fortune 500 companies launching major product lines, public companies undergoing corporate rebrands, private equity portfolio companies being renamed after acquisition.
Cost: $50,000 to $500,000+.
How to Choose
The right tool depends on two variables: your budget and your stakes.
If you're naming a side project, a small local business, or an early-stage startup with limited resources, Tier 1 (free generators for inspiration) combined with Tier 2 (a validated AI report for shortlisting) gives you most of what you need at minimal cost. Add a trademark attorney for the final filing if you're serious about protection.
If you're a funded startup naming your core product or an established company repositioning, Tier 4 is the appropriate level — not because Tiers 1 and 2 aren't good at what they do, but because your stakeholder complexity, brand strategy needs, and legal risk profile justify the investment.
Tier 5 is for enterprise decisions. If you're reading a $9.99 naming tool's blog, you are almost certainly not the target customer for Igor International.
For most founders, Tier 2 is the answer. 50 AI-generated names with trademark, domain, and SEO screening — delivered as a PDF report. No agency retainer. No waiting weeks. Get Your Report — $9.99