Business name checker

Score the name you're considering before you print it on anything.

Scored live as you type. The rewrite is written by AI and takes a few seconds.

Your score appears as you type

Start writing your business name above and every check below updates live.

What your score checks

Memorable

–
  • Easy to remember after one look
  • Not a generic description

Easy to say and spell

–
  • Spelled the way it sounds
  • Obvious how to pronounce

Fits the business

–
  • Hints at what you do, or evokes it

Short and clean

–
  • Three syllables or fewer
  • 15 characters or fewer
  • No digits or hyphens
  • No obvious unfortunate meaning

Good to know

What the name checker looks at

Type a name and, if you like, a line on what the business does and the domain you'd use. The checker scores four things a naming studio would ask about: is it memorable and distinctive rather than a generic description, is it easy to say and spell after hearing it once, does it hint at what you do or evoke the right feeling, and is it short and clean, with no digits, hyphens, cute misspellings or obvious unfortunate meaning.

Every line in the checklist is a yes/no check, and the score updates as you type, so you can try a variant and watch which checks turn green.

The radio test

Most customers will hear your name before they see it: from a friend, on a podcast, over the phone. If they can't spell it after hearing it once, they can't find you. "Flight Club" passes; "Phlyte" makes everyone guess. Clever spellings and swapped letters feel distinctive on a logo but cost you every word-of-mouth search.

Distinctive beats descriptive

"Best Quality Plumbing Services" says exactly what you do, and so could a hundred competitors. It's hard to remember, hard to trademark and hard to rank for. The strongest names either invent something short and ownable (Notion, Zola) or borrow a word that evokes the offer (Bloom for flowers, Sproutly for toddler meals). That's why being memorable counts most in the score and hinting at the offer counts least: a good abstract name only needs to feel right.

How to use it

Check your whole shortlist, one name at a time, with the same description. Read the failing checks first and decide which ones matter for you: a local bakery can live with a descriptive name, an app can't. If you don't have a shortlist yet, the business name generator drafts brandable ideas you can bring back here to score.

Once a name scores well, check the parts no AI can: whether the domain is free, the USPTO trademark database for your industry class, and your state's business registry.

Frequently asked questions

What makes a good business name?

Short, easy to say and spell after hearing it once, distinctive rather than a generic description of the category, connected to what you do or the feeling you sell, and free of obvious bad meanings. It also has to be legally available, which this checker can't tell you.

What counts as a good score?

70 and up is a strong name. 40–69 usually means one problem stands out, most often a generic name or a spelling people will get wrong. Under 40 means it will be hard to remember, say or find.

How is the score calculated?

Each check is a yes/no question answered by an AI scoring model with a probability. Checks are averaged into four dimensions; memorable counts most and fit with the business counts least, because abstract names like Notion are strong names that only loosely hint at what they do.

Does it check bad meanings in other languages?

Only the obvious ones. It catches well-known unfortunate associations, but it misses slang and sound-alikes in many languages. If you'll sell abroad, ask a native speaker in each market.

Does it check if the name or domain is available?

No. It scores how good the name is, not whether it's free. Add the domain you'd use and it checks that it's a .com, matches the name, is short and has no hyphens or digits, but not whether it's taken. Check the domain at a registrar, the USPTO trademark database, and your state's business registry before you commit.

Do you store the names I check?

No. Your name and description are sent to our AI providers (Anthropic and TypeSafe) to score them; we don't save them. Free, no sign-up.

More free tools