I created a rule almost ten years ago that I won't buy the domain until I actually have something to host, and it's done me reasonably well.
I however have a similar but more expensive problem, I develop side projects to an MVP and leave them up for literal decades with no one but myself using them, paying for the domain and hosting. I can't let things go.
I rewrote a number of things in Go recently so they could scale down to zero on Fly.io and save me some money.
For example though I have been developing a note keeping SaaS for fifteen years. It fits my own needs perfectly and I use it every day, but everyone I have ever had try it has bounced in a couple minutes. I literally removed the sign up after GDPR scared me in 2018 and never put it back. I should put it back, everything is client side encrypted and I don't keep any PII.
I have an ad free emojipedia-esq tool, a tool for making API controlled README badges, a tool for converting MIDIs into print outs of colored sheet music for children's keyboards, a joke API, so much more.
I did accidentally let the domain expire for my Wordle knockoff where you guess the soup based on the ingredients. It never worked very well anyway.
I have similar problem, but even more expensive. I have developed products that have lots of users so I cannot (and don't want to) abandon it, but monetization will require lots of investment -- actually setting up a different business altogether because the monetization I would like to buy as a service does not exist.
As many pointed out: you could simply use subdomains for all the services that you use for yourself only.
I mean the goal though is always for the service to be popular
if i search for a domain and it's available, i feel unreasonable pressure to buy it IMMEDIATELY.
I'm paranoid that some squatter can tell which domains i'm searching for and they'll swoop in and get it as soon as they know there's one interested party
I do the same.
And FWIW, your (our) paranoia is justifiable. As mentioned in another comment, GoDaddy is historically-notorious for front-running domain searches. ICANN tried to make that a bit less practical, but I just assume that they (and other sketchy registrars) still do it.
If you search directly through whois (i.e. from the command line), you should be OK. That's been my strategy, and I think it works.
I decided for myself that there’s no need to buy a domain up front. I don’t even let myself look for potential domain names or start asking ChatGPT to provide me with some naming ideas. Most of the time, the project don’t even reach MVP state. During development and research I also learn more about my project and similar products thus helping me decide on a good name.
I agree that there's no need, and that yours is the reasonable approach.
That said, I often have project/product ideas at times when I cannot work on them. In fact, always. But I enjoy noodling on names and branding, and if I come up with a really good name that's available in .com, I register it.
I have revived project ideas 15-20 years later, and have been happy to have a great domain for it which would absolutely not have been available "now".
Of course I have many more domains that are patiently awaiting their prioritization.
The registration fees add up (and I do feel bad about reserving them for myself, although I've given a few away to persuasive requesters, and I've sold a few which, in aggregate, more than cover all of the registration fees).
> I'm paranoid that some squatter can tell which domains i'm searching
Don't search on GoDaddy. I read somewhere GoDaddy raises the prices of high value domains by choosing them from searches