If SEO is going to part of your strategy and it's an exact match domain, then you could reasonably spend 4, 5, or even 6 figures. Internships.com is a good exam

If SEO is going to part of your strategy and it's an exact match domain, then you could reasonably spend 4, 5, or even 6 figures. Internships.com is a good example of an expensive domain that was bought for a startup - here's a Mixergy interview with the founder that tells part of the story: http://mixergy.com/robin-richards-interview/ http://mixergy.com/robin-richards-interview/ I also wonder why startups never seem to consider buying existing sites. Yes, your app is different from what's already there, but you could stand to gain a lot from the existing content, traffic, and incoming links that the site already has.