{"id":3771,"date":"2022-09-16T07:35:20","date_gmt":"2022-09-16T07:35:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/?p=3771"},"modified":"2025-06-02T07:35:12","modified_gmt":"2025-06-02T07:35:12","slug":"future-of-domains","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/future-of-domains","title":{"rendered":"The Future of Domains: TLD Trends for 2022 and Beyond"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>As a hosting provider and <a href=\"\/domain-name-search\">domain registrar<\/a>, Hostinger aims to help online business owners and independent contractors succeed with their websites.&nbsp;<\/p><p><a href=\"\/tutorials\/how-to-choose-the-right-domain-name\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Choosing a domain name<\/a> is very important when building your online presence. Besides serving as an address for users to visit your site, it&rsquo;s also an essential branding element, shaping how your target audience sees your business.<\/p><p>That&rsquo;s why we&rsquo;ve identified the most significant trends and developments in the domain name industry. We&rsquo;ll cover which <a href=\"\/tutorials\/what-is-tld\">top-level domains (TLDs) are<\/a> most popular and which ones are emerging.<\/p><p>Most importantly, we&rsquo;ll answer whether it is essential to have a .com URL for your website.<\/p><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-table-of-contents\">Table of Contents<\/h2><p>\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_75 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/future-of-domains\/#com_Still_Leads_the_Market_While_New_gTLDs_Keep_Surfacing\">.com Still Leads the Market, While New gTLDs Keep Surfacing<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/future-of-domains\/#The_Growth_of_ccTLDs_and_geoTLDs\">The Growth of ccTLDs and geoTLDs<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/future-of-domains\/#How_Crucial_Is_a_com_Domain\">How Crucial Is a .com Domain?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/future-of-domains\/#More_TLD_Trends_to_Watch_Out_For\">More TLD Trends to Watch Out For<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/future-of-domains\/#Key_Takeaways\">Key Takeaways<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<\/p><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-com-still-leads-the-market-while-new-gtlds-keep-surfacing\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"com_Still_Leads_the_Market_While_New_gTLDs_Keep_Surfacing\"><\/span>.com Still Leads the Market, While New gTLDs Keep Surfacing<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2><p>Research has shown that <strong>.com<\/strong> remains the strongest contender among <a href=\"\/tld\">all domain extensions<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p><p>As of June 2022, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.statista.com\/statistics\/265677\/number-of-internet-top-level-domains-worldwide\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>52.8%<\/strong> of the internet use <strong>.com<\/strong> domains<\/a> &ndash; far more than other generic top-level domains (gTLDs). For comparison, <strong>.org<\/strong>, which is the second most popular gTLD, only makes up around <strong>4.4%<\/strong> of all registered domain names.&nbsp;<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1069\" height=\"924\" src=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/most-popular-top-level-domains-worldwide-as-of-june-2022.png\/public\" alt=\"Infographics showing the most popular top-level domains worldwide as of June 2022, with .com leading the market\" class=\"wp-image-3774\" srcset=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/most-popular-top-level-domains-worldwide-as-of-june-2022.png\/w=1069,fit=scale-down 1069w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/most-popular-top-level-domains-worldwide-as-of-june-2022.png\/w=300,fit=scale-down 300w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/most-popular-top-level-domains-worldwide-as-of-june-2022.png\/w=1024,fit=scale-down 1024w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/most-popular-top-level-domains-worldwide-as-of-june-2022.png\/w=768,fit=scale-down 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1069px) 100vw, 1069px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><p>To better illustrate the massive market, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.verisign.com\/en_US\/domain-names\/dnib\/index.xhtml\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Verisign<\/a> reports that over <strong>161.3 million<\/strong> <strong>.com<\/strong> domain names have been registered as of the first quarter of 2022. That&rsquo;s more than eight times the number of domains using <strong>.cn<\/strong>, China&rsquo;s country-code top-level domain (ccTLD).<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1603\" height=\"1392\" src=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/Top-10-Largest-TLDs.png\/public\" alt=\"Infographics based on Verisign's report that shows the top ten largest TLDs by the number of reported registrations\" class=\"wp-image-4240\" srcset=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/Top-10-Largest-TLDs.png\/w=1603,fit=scale-down 1603w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/Top-10-Largest-TLDs.png\/w=300,fit=scale-down 300w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/Top-10-Largest-TLDs.png\/w=1024,fit=scale-down 1024w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/Top-10-Largest-TLDs.png\/w=768,fit=scale-down 768w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/Top-10-Largest-TLDs.png\/w=1278,fit=scale-down 1278w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1603px) 100vw, 1603px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><p><strong>.com<\/strong> itself stands for commercial, as it&rsquo;s intended to represent business entities.&nbsp;<\/p><p>That said, according to Dataprovider.com, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dataprovider.com\/insights\/domains\/a-comprehensive-overview-of-the-.com-top-level-domain\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>33% <\/strong>of websites that use <strong>.com<\/strong> domains<\/a> are content publications. The second largest share belongs to business sites at <strong>24<\/strong>%, while eCommerce stores account for <strong>4%<\/strong>.&nbsp;<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1603\" height=\"1268\" src=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/What-Websites-Are-Behind.png\/public\" alt=\"Infographics based on Dataprovider.com's report showing types of websites that use .com\" class=\"wp-image-4242\" srcset=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/What-Websites-Are-Behind.png\/w=1603,fit=scale-down 1603w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/What-Websites-Are-Behind.png\/w=300,fit=scale-down 300w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/What-Websites-Are-Behind.png\/w=1024,fit=scale-down 1024w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/What-Websites-Are-Behind.png\/w=768,fit=scale-down 768w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/What-Websites-Are-Behind.png\/w=1403,fit=scale-down 1403w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1603px) 100vw, 1603px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><p>According to InternetX&rsquo;s 2022 Global Domain Report, legacy gTLDs like <strong>.com, .net, .org, <a href=\"https:\/\/hostinger.com\/tld\/biz-domain\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">.biz<\/a><\/strong>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/hostinger.com\/tld\/info-domain\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">.<strong>info<\/strong><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.internetx.com\/fileadmin\/files\/whitepaper_reports_pdfs\/gdr-2022.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">make up <strong>more than half<\/strong> of all registered domains<\/a> on the world wide web.<\/p><p>While these older domain extensions dominate the industry, <a href=\"https:\/\/newgtlds.icann.org\/en\/about\/program\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">new gTLDs<\/a> are expanding the TLD market.<\/p><p>Our data reveals that <strong>.online<\/strong> and <strong>.xyz<\/strong> are two of the most registered top-level domains at Hostinger after .com. This trend has been consistent since August 2021.<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1310\" height=\"588\" src=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/hostinger-most-registered-domains.png\/public\" alt=\"Infographics showing the most registered top-level-domains at Hostinger\" class=\"wp-image-3786\" srcset=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/hostinger-most-registered-domains.png\/w=1310,fit=scale-down 1310w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/hostinger-most-registered-domains.png\/w=300,fit=scale-down 300w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/hostinger-most-registered-domains.png\/w=1024,fit=scale-down 1024w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/hostinger-most-registered-domains.png\/w=768,fit=scale-down 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1310px) 100vw, 1310px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><p>At the beginning of 2022, all new gTLDs made up around<strong> 7.5%<\/strong> of all websites. Today, <strong>.xyz<\/strong> is leading the pack with over<strong> <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/ntldstats.com\/tld\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>4.8 million<\/strong> registered domains<\/a>.<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1069\" height=\"503\" src=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/new-gtld-market-share.png\/public\" alt=\"Infographics showing the market share of new gTLDs, with .xyz leading the competition at 16.2%\" class=\"wp-image-3775\" srcset=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/new-gtld-market-share.png\/w=1069,fit=scale-down 1069w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/new-gtld-market-share.png\/w=300,fit=scale-down 300w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/new-gtld-market-share.png\/w=1024,fit=scale-down 1024w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/new-gtld-market-share.png\/w=768,fit=scale-down 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1069px) 100vw, 1069px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><p>Although the combined market share of all new gTLDs is small in comparison to <strong>.com<\/strong>, newer gTLDs have a much more significant year-on-year growth.&nbsp;<\/p><p>For instance, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.internetx.com\/fileadmin\/files\/whitepaper_reports_pdfs\/gdr-2022.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>.xyz<\/strong> registrations rose <strong>23.5%<\/strong><\/a><strong> <\/strong>last year, whereas <strong>.shop<\/strong> saw a <strong>31.4%<\/strong>. growth Contrast this to <strong>.com<\/strong>, which only grew by<strong> 4.5%<\/strong>.&nbsp;<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"764\" height=\"678\" src=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/gltds-yoy-growth-internetx.png\/public\" alt=\"Infographics from InternetX's Global Domain Report, showing the year-on-year growth of gTLDs\" class=\"wp-image-3787\" srcset=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/gltds-yoy-growth-internetx.png\/w=764,fit=scale-down 764w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/gltds-yoy-growth-internetx.png\/w=300,fit=scale-down 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 764px) 100vw, 764px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><p>All of this reveals a vital trend &ndash; while <strong>.com<\/strong> is still the market leader, the number of available and attractive domain names with this ending is running out. This has led website owners to look for alternative gTLDs.<\/p><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-growth-of-cctlds-and-geotlds\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_Growth_of_ccTLDs_and_geoTLDs\"><\/span>The Growth of ccTLDs and geoTLDs<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2><p>A country-code top-level domain (ccTLD) represents a country code, like how <strong>.us<\/strong> signifies the United States. It&rsquo;s a popular alternative if you&rsquo;re building an online presence in a specific region or your desired <strong>.com<\/strong> domain name is unavailable.<\/p><p>As of June 2022, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.statista.com\/statistics\/266721\/sales-of-cc-top-level-domains\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">most popular ccTLD<\/a> was <strong>.tk<\/strong> for Tokelau, with over <strong>26 million<\/strong> registered domains. Interestingly, the island only has a population of less than fifteen hundred.<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1069\" height=\"918\" src=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/leading-cctld-as-of-June-2022-by-number-of-registered-domains.png\/public\" alt=\"Infographics showing the top ccTLDs as of June 2022, with .tk, the domain extension for Tokelau, leading the market\" class=\"wp-image-3776\" srcset=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/leading-cctld-as-of-June-2022-by-number-of-registered-domains.png\/w=1069,fit=scale-down 1069w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/leading-cctld-as-of-June-2022-by-number-of-registered-domains.png\/w=300,fit=scale-down 300w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/leading-cctld-as-of-June-2022-by-number-of-registered-domains.png\/w=1024,fit=scale-down 1024w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/leading-cctld-as-of-June-2022-by-number-of-registered-domains.png\/w=768,fit=scale-down 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1069px) 100vw, 1069px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><p>The rest of the domain extensions that top the list are from Europe, like <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/hostinger.com\/tld\/nl-domain\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">.de<\/a>, .uk, .ru<\/strong>, and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/hostinger.com\/tld\/nl-domain\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">.nl<\/a><\/strong>. This trend signifies the prevalence of ccTLDs in the continent compared to the rest of the world &ndash; so much so that they account for<strong> <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.internetx.com\/en\/news-detailview\/these-are-the-top-10-european-cctlds-for-2022\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>61%<\/strong> of domain registrations<\/a> in the region.<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1069\" height=\"1095\" src=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/top-10-cctlds-in-europe.png\/public\" alt=\"Infographics showing the top 10 ccTLDs in Europe, with .de being the most popular\" class=\"wp-image-3777\" srcset=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/top-10-cctlds-in-europe.png\/w=1069,fit=scale-down 1069w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/top-10-cctlds-in-europe.png\/w=293,fit=scale-down 293w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/top-10-cctlds-in-europe.png\/w=1000,fit=scale-down 1000w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/top-10-cctlds-in-europe.png\/w=768,fit=scale-down 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1069px) 100vw, 1069px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><p>Although ccTLDs are intended to denote a specific country, many of them have grown beyond their original function. For instance, <strong>.io<\/strong>, the domain extension for British Indian Ocean Territory, has become popular among tech companies, while a commonly used by media sites <a href=\"https:\/\/hostinger.com\/tld\/tv-domain\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">domain <strong>.tv<\/strong><\/a><strong> <\/strong>was inititally a country-code top-level domain for the Polynesian island nation of Tuvalu.<\/p><p><a href=\"\/tld\/co-domain\"><strong>.co<\/strong> domain name<\/a>, which stands for Colombia, is a widely-used .com alternative. In fact, the <a href=\"https:\/\/hostinger.com\/tld\/co-domain\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">sales volume for .co domains<\/a> has doubled during the pandemic, going from<strong> $800,000<\/strong> in 2020 to almost <strong>$1.5 million<\/strong> in 2021.<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1069\" height=\"895\" src=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/cctlds-country-of-representation-and-actual-usage.png\/public\" alt=\"A table showing some examples of ccTLDs that have grown beyond representing a country\" class=\"wp-image-3778\" srcset=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/cctlds-country-of-representation-and-actual-usage.png\/w=1069,fit=scale-down 1069w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/cctlds-country-of-representation-and-actual-usage.png\/w=300,fit=scale-down 300w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/cctlds-country-of-representation-and-actual-usage.png\/w=1024,fit=scale-down 1024w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/cctlds-country-of-representation-and-actual-usage.png\/w=768,fit=scale-down 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1069px) 100vw, 1069px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><p>In recent years, we&rsquo;ve also seen a rise in geoTLDs &ndash; a category of domain extensions linked with geographical or cultural communities.&nbsp;<\/p><p>Some examples are cityTLDs, like <strong>.tokyo<\/strong>, <strong>.nyc<\/strong>, <strong>.berlin<\/strong>, and <strong>.london<\/strong>. They&rsquo;re ideal for small businesses and establishments that want to build their brand and attract customers in the area. Reportedly, Japan has the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dataprovider.com\/insights\/domains\/exploring-citytlds-adventures-of-online-travel\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">largest share of business and eCommerce sites<\/a> that use cityTLDs.&nbsp;<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1603\" height=\"958\" src=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/CityTLD-by-Number-of-Active-Websites.png\/public\" alt=\"Infographics based on Dataprovider.com's report, showing the number of active websites of each cityTLD\" class=\"wp-image-4243\" srcset=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/CityTLD-by-Number-of-Active-Websites.png\/w=1603,fit=scale-down 1603w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/CityTLD-by-Number-of-Active-Websites.png\/w=300,fit=scale-down 300w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/CityTLD-by-Number-of-Active-Websites.png\/w=1024,fit=scale-down 1024w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/CityTLD-by-Number-of-Active-Websites.png\/w=768,fit=scale-down 768w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/CityTLD-by-Number-of-Active-Websites.png\/w=1536,fit=scale-down 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1603px) 100vw, 1603px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-how-crucial-is-a-com-domain\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_Crucial_Is_a_com_Domain\"><\/span>How Crucial Is a .com Domain?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2><p>In our <a href=\"\/tutorials\/how-to-buy-a-domain-name\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">buying a domain name tutorial<\/a>, we explain that the right name could boost brand awareness, establish visitor trust, and make it easier to find you online.&nbsp;<\/p><p>Choosing a TLD that is short, easy to remember, and relevant to your niche will help you achieve these goals.<\/p><p>From a memorability standpoint, <strong>.com<\/strong> has become top-of-mind. Growth Badger&rsquo;s survey results show that users can <a href=\"https:\/\/growthbadger.com\/top-level-domains\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">recall <strong>.com<\/strong> domains <strong>44%<\/strong> more correctly<\/a> than those with other TLDs. <strong>.co<\/strong> is second most memorable at <strong>33%<\/strong>, with .org trailing at <strong>32%<\/strong>.<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1069\" height=\"751\" src=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/memorability-of-top-level-domain.png\/public\" alt=\"Infographics showing the memorability of TLDs, with .com being the easiest to remember\" class=\"wp-image-3779\" srcset=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/memorability-of-top-level-domain.png\/w=1069,fit=scale-down 1069w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/memorability-of-top-level-domain.png\/w=300,fit=scale-down 300w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/memorability-of-top-level-domain.png\/w=1024,fit=scale-down 1024w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/memorability-of-top-level-domain.png\/w=768,fit=scale-down 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1069px) 100vw, 1069px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><p>When it comes to credibility, .<strong>com<\/strong> wins with a rating of 3.5 on a scale of 1 to 5. <strong>.co <\/strong>and .<strong>org <\/strong>are again second and third, rated 3.4 and 3.3, respectively.<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1069\" height=\"832\" src=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/trust-ratings-of-top-level-domains_1.png\/public\" alt=\"Infographics showing the trust ratings of TLDs, with .com being perceived as the most credible\" class=\"wp-image-3780\" srcset=\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/trust-ratings-of-top-level-domains_1.png\/w=1069,fit=scale-down 1069w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/trust-ratings-of-top-level-domains_1.png\/w=300,fit=scale-down 300w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/trust-ratings-of-top-level-domains_1.png\/w=1024,fit=scale-down 1024w, https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/09\/trust-ratings-of-top-level-domains_1.png\/w=768,fit=scale-down 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1069px) 100vw, 1069px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><p>It&rsquo;s clear that <strong>.com<\/strong> still immensely helps establish a credible online presence. It&rsquo;s concise, familiar, and highly versatile &ndash; virtually any website can use it.<\/p><p>That said, a <a href=\"\/tutorials\/domain-name-cost\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">.com domain is pricier<\/a> &ndash; it starts at around <strong>$8.99\/year<\/strong>. This is much more expensive than newer gTLDs, costing as little as<strong> $0.99\/year<\/strong>. <strong>.com <\/strong>prices are going to increase by almost 7%, too, due to recent agreements between <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/2022\/04\/09\/website-domain-more-expensive-00023524\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">the US government and Verisign<\/a>.<\/p><p>Paired with the fact that the .com market has become highly competitive, aspiring website owners will have to consider buying domain name alternatives.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p><p>Use <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/tutorials\/domain-name-generators\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">domain name generators<\/a>. They can come up with multiple name options that sound close to the one you want the most.&nbsp;<\/p><p>Secondly, consider buying other TLDs. If you want the same level of familiarity as .com and don&rsquo;t mind paying more, <a href=\"\/tutorials\/com-vs-net\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">.net is a good choice<\/a>. Otherwise, try new gTLDs like .xyz, .online, and .site, which are cheaper but just as versatile.<\/p><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-more-tld-trends-to-watch-out-for\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"More_TLD_Trends_to_Watch_Out_For\"><\/span>More TLD Trends to Watch Out For<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2><p>Here are some other trends that may rock the domain industry in the near future:<\/p><ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Based on Sedo&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/sedo.com\/us\/buy-domains\/market-trends\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">top searched keywords<\/a> in 2022, terms related to NFT, cryptocurrency, and the Metaverse are highly popular. Since these industries may keep getting bigger, we can expect to see this trend continue.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"\/tutorials\/google-domains-review\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Google Registry<\/a> released the .day TLD in early 2022 to celebrate national holidays and raise awareness of important issues. Many large organizations have registered a .day domain for their causes, like Comic Relief for rednose.day.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Since March 2022, Australia&rsquo;s ccTLD .au has been available to register as a direct domain name &ndash; such as example.au. Previously, users could only purchase it as a second-level domain. Only people with verified connections with the country could own this TLD.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-key-takeaways\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Key_Takeaways\"><\/span>Key Takeaways<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2><p>When choosing a domain ending, think about your website&rsquo;s long-term goals.<\/p><p>Getting a <strong>.com<\/strong> domain may be worth it if you plan to grow your business in the future.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p><p>For the new gTLDs, competing with <strong>.com<\/strong> will be tough. On the other hand, they are a great way to establish a unique identity. Furthermore, with .com domains running low, it&rsquo;s safe to say people will gradually become more familiar with these domain endings.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p><p>ICANN published a report on <a href=\"https:\/\/gnso.icann.org\/sites\/default\/files\/file\/field-file-attach\/draft-final-report-new-gtld-subsequent-21sep20-en.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">gTLD application procedures<\/a>, stirring rumors that they will open submissions for new domain extensions soon.<\/p><p>In any case, we can expect to see even more domain endings for various niches down the line. While they may not have a significant domain market share, they have the potential to become major players in the internet landscape of the future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As a hosting provider and domain registrar, Hostinger aims to help online business owners and independent contractors succeed with their websites.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Choosing a domain name \u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":140,"featured_media":3772,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[171],"tags":[],"hashtags":[],"class_list":["post-3771","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"hreflangs":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3771","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/140"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3771"}],"version-history":[{"count":20,"href":"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3771\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7863,"href":"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3771\/revisions\/7863"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3772"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3771"},{"taxonomy":"hashtags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hashtags?post=3771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}