Most .eth registration errors trace to one of four causes — not enough ETH on Mainnet, an expired commit, a leftover commit that didn't clear, or a replaced commit that stranded the registration on "Almost there". "Almost there" is the most common stuck state, so start there if your registration won't move past Step 3.
Good to know
Registration is 3 steps: commit (Step 1) → wait 60 seconds (Step 2) → register (Step 3). The commit and the register are two separate transactions.
You need ETH on Ethereum Mainnet for the registration fee and gas — no other cost.
You have 24 hours to complete Step 3 after Step 1. After that, you need to start over.
Don't speed up the commit transaction (Step 1). Replacing it strands the registration on "Almost there".
Stuck on "Almost there"
"Almost there" means the ENS App can't find a code it saved in your browser when you did Step 1. It needs that code — the commit hash — to finish Step 3. Work through the steps below in order: the first is free, the last means registering again from scratch.
Important: don't clear the site data or switch browsers yet. That's how you start over, not how you get your registration back — and if the app still has your commit code, clearing it wipes the one thing that lets you finish.
First, reset the app. Disconnect your wallet, close the page, reopen app.ens.domains in the same browser, and reconnect. This is free, and it often unsticks a page that's stopped responding properly. If your registration comes back at Step 3, finish it.
If that didn't bring it back, find the commit transaction in your wallet's activity log — it's the first of the two — and paste the hash into Etherscan.
What your commit transaction shows | What it means | What to do |
Still Pending | The commit hasn't confirmed yet. The app is waiting for it. | Wait it out. Don't speed up, replace, or cancel it — that changes the hash and strands the registration. |
Success, under 24 hours | Your commit went through and is stored on the blockchain. But the app has lost the matching code in your browser, and it can't use the commit without it. That code can't be brought back. | Start over from Step 1 (below). |
Success, over 24 hours | The commit has expired. | Start over from Step 1 (below). |
You sped it up, replaced it, or cancelled it — or there's no matching transaction | The hash the app was tracking no longer exists. | Start over from Step 1 (below). |
To start over cleanly:
Clear the ENS App's site data — cache and local storage for
app.ens.domains— or open the app in a different browser.Reopen
app.ens.domainsand reconnect the same wallet.Search for the name and register from Step 1.
Your old commit stays on the blockchain and expires by itself. It won't block the new one, so there's no need to wait before you start again.
You won't get back the gas you paid on that first commit, and starting over means paying it a second time.
Still stuck? If reconnecting didn't work and you'd rather we took a look before you start over, send us what the app has stored. Open your browser's developer console — Control + Shift + I on Chrome or Edge, Option + ⌘ + J on Safari — and run localStorage.getItem("registration-status"). Then start a chat and send us three things: your wallet address, the name, and whatever the console printed out.
"Insufficient balance"
Your wallet doesn't have enough ETH on Ethereum Mainnet to cover the registration fee and gas.
Add more ETH to your wallet on Ethereum Mainnet and try again.
"Commitment Too Old"
More than 24 hours passed between Step 1 (commit) and Step 3 (register). The commit window is 24 hours.
Clear the ENS App's site data (or open the app in a different browser), then start over from Step 1.
"UnexpiredCommitmentExists"
The app sees a previous commit transaction that's still active but didn't get fully tracked in your browser:
Disconnect your wallet from the ENS App.
Close the page.
Reopen
app.ens.domainsand reconnect.Try the registration again.
If it still fails, the commit was probably sped up or replaced — go back to "Stuck on Almost there".
The first transaction went through but the second one failed
Registering a .eth name takes two transactions: the commit (Step 1) and the register (Step 3), with a 60-second wait in between. If the commit went through but the register failed — or you rejected it in your wallet — your name isn't registered yet. The good news: your commit is usually still valid, and you have 24 hours from Step 1 to finish.
To pick up where you left off, reopen app.ens.domains, connect the same wallet, and search for the name again. The app should let you finish from Step 3.
If it won't move past "Almost there", work through the Stuck on "Almost there" checklist above. And if more than 24 hours have passed, your commit has expired ("Commitment Too Old") — clear the site's data and start over from Step 1. Either way, the gas you paid for the commit isn't refundable.
Still stuck? Send debug info to support
If your registration is stuck on "Almost there" and none of the three causes above apply, send the app's stored state to support so engineering can take a look:
Open your developer console:
Chrome / Edge:
Control + Shift + ISafari / Mac:
Option + ⌘ + J
Run
localStorage.getItem("registration-status")in the console.Open a chat with support and share: your wallet address, the ENS name, and the text the console returned.