Usually, no. A web designer may need to connect your domain to a new website, verify it for a service, or update DNS. Those tasks are different from transferring the domain registration to another registrar or account. Ask which action they need and why before approving it.
Your domain is the address customers already know. It may also support your business email. Keeping control of the registrar account makes later changes easier, even when you hire someone else to do the technical work.
Three requests that sound similar but do different things
“Point the domain at the new website.” This generally means changing website-related DNS records, such as an A or CNAME record, or changing nameservers. The domain can stay registered in your existing account. Cloudflare's DNS reference describes the different record types.
“Give me access to manage DNS.” Some registrars or DNS providers let you invite a collaborator with limited permissions. If yours does, this is often cleaner than sharing your main password. If it does not, you can ask the designer for the exact records and have your registrar or an administrator you trust apply them. Record who made each change.
“Transfer the domain.” A registrar transfer moves the registration from one provider to another. An account transfer can change who controls it at the same provider. Neither is automatically required to build a new site. A provider may recommend a transfer for convenience, but convenience alone does not answer whether it benefits your business.
What to ask before any change
Send your designer these questions:
- What exact change is needed: a website DNS record, nameservers, access to the existing account, or a registrar transfer?
- Who will be the registrant and billing contact afterward, and which business-controlled email will receive renewal and recovery notices?
- Which existing DNS records will be preserved, especially those used by business email?
- Can the change be made with delegated access or a written list of records instead of sharing my main login?
- What will be tested after the change, and who can reverse it if the site or email fails?
These questions are useful even if the designer is trustworthy. ICANN's guidance on protecting domain registration accounts treats access to the registration account as a security and continuity issue.
A clear instruction you can send
“Please tell me which domain or DNS changes this website needs, why each is required, and whether my domain can stay in my current registrar account. I want the business to retain registrar control and receive a record of the changes. Please include an email-continuity check in the launch plan.”
A competent proposal should be able to answer this in plain language. If a transfer really is necessary for your chosen setup, agree on the receiving account, registrant details, renewal responsibility, and exit path in writing before it happens.
If you are still planning the site, ARCHV's website estimate can help turn the project into a clearer scope. Add domain ownership, DNS work, and email testing to the written brief so every provider prices the same job.