There are a few things to think about when choosing a domain name for your business, personal blog, or portfolio website. To begin, select a simple domain to remember and free of misspellings, numbers, or hyphens. Second, look for domain names that reflect your brands, such as your name, slogan, or keywords related to your niche. Finally, consider which top-level domain — also known as a domain extension — is best suited to your needs. It’s helpful to know the five most common domain extensions for this one.
In a web address, a domain extension is the string of characters after the period.
It’s used to designate a website’s category or country code. For example, GoDaddy.com has a.com domain extension, which indicates that the website is for commercial purposes.
What are the five most common domain extensions?
Choosing a recognizable domain extension may aid in the branding of your online business. Here are the top five domain extensions to think about.
- .com
- .net
- .org
- .co
- .us
The domain extension you choose matters a lot more than you might think. Let’s look at the five most common domain extensions and why you should use one for your new website.
2. .com
If you’re wondering what the five most common domain extensions are,.com is without a doubt the most popular (TLD). It was first used to designate for-profit businesses, but it has since evolved into the standard for domain extensions. If you’re looking for a domain extension, you should almost always go with.com if it’s available.
Because users are familiar with the.com TLD, it is simple to understand.
Humans are creatures who stick to their routines. Many visitors have been visiting websites with.com extensions for the past decade or more. As a result, when they hear new domain names, they are used to hearing this extension and almost expect it. If your domain has a.com extension, there’s a good chance that visitors are landing on that domain instead of yours due to human error.
The.com extension isn’t just popular because it’s the most well-known. Many SEO firms claim that using the.com extension will improve your search rankings. A domain with the.com extension has far more authority than one with a new or unfamiliar extension in terms of backlinks. When conducting outreach for backlinks, a domain ending in.com is more likely to generate interest and credibility than a domain ending in another TLD.
The benefits of using.com are obvious, but there are some drawbacks as well. The main reason you wouldn’t choose.com for your new website is that it’s almost certainly already taken. When the internet and web development were first taking off, many entrepreneurs bought domain names to resell them for a profit. If your.com domain isn’t being used, you may have to pay a premium to buy it from the current owner.
If you have the chance to get a.com, take advantage of it. There are several other viable options if you can’t find a good.com or don’t want to spend a lot of money to buy the rights.
2. .net
.net, like the.com extension, is available to anyone. What started as a domain for internet service providers or networks has evolved into a fantastic alternative to.com. Because it implies network and technology,.net could be a good choice for a tech or application-based businesses.
Many people think of.net when they think of web-based apps and services.
If your company works in those fields,.net makes sense and can help you validate and communicate your services. Furthermore, because.net is less popular than.com, and there is a better chance that your desired domain will be available.
Because so many people associate.net with technology, businesses that aren’t in the tech or web-service industries risk falling behind their customers’ expectations. For example, if you run a bakery and needed a.net domain, you might think Cookies.net would be ideal. On the other hand, users may believe your company specializes in web cookies rather than edible baked goods. This discrepancy could deter people from visiting your site and confuse those who do.
SourceForge.net is an example of a company that makes good use of.net. They’re web-based services that connect people who need help with open-source web projects to an online community. It’s a community dedicated to networking and technology-based business. SourceForge is aware of how their.net extension affects their brand, and they’ve used it to their advantage to increase their credibility and community in the IT industry.
3. .org
Even though it was designed to represent not-for-profit organizations, the.org extension is open to anyone or any entity. Many non-governmental organizations, nonprofits, politicians, and political parties, and online communities use it.
Because the.org extension is one of the first TLDs, it has a lot of the same search power as the.com extension. Furthermore, because.org is less popular than.com, and you have a good chance of securing your ideal domain. These are just two of the many reasons why.org domains are so popular on the internet.
While.org is appropriate for nonprofits and information-based businesses, it is not suitable for everyone. For example, many people associate.org with communities and knowledge bases, so if you run an eCommerce store and want to convert all of your visitors into sales,.org isn’t the best choice.
The best.org websites are those that focus on community building and cultivation. Wikipedia, Craigslist, and WordPress, for example, are all.org brands. They all offer different services, but they all rely on their communities to grow their brands and share information and knowledge.
4. .co
If you’re looking for the top five most popular domain extensions, the.co extension is a good choice. It was created to be the country code for Colombia, but it has since become a popular choice for global domains. The.co TLD stands for “companies, corporations, or commercial ventures,” and it’s a well-known acronym. Because of this familiarity, many forward-thinking businesses have chosen to build their brands on a.co domain.
If you’re a company, registering a.co domain makes sense, especially if you’re a young startup that prides itself on being original or unique. While.com is the most well-known and widely accepted,.co is newer, shorter, and more in line with younger generations’ brevity. This youthfulness could be a great way to broaden your brand’s appeal and appeal to a younger demographic.
Because of the availability of.co domains, you might want to consider registering one. Premium.com domains are hard to come by, as previously stated. If they are, you will have to pay a higher price than you would like. .co domains, on the other hand, are less popular, giving you more flexibility and options.
Despite this,.co is less recognizable than.com and thus carries less credibility and familiarity. You risk losing the reputation that comes with a.com extension, and if another.com is using your existing domain, you may be sending traffic their way. Adding the “m” is sometimes just a habit, so even if a visitor is attempting to visit Cookies.co, the force of habit may send them to Cookies.com.
500.co (also known as 500 Startups) is a well-known brand that uses the.codomain. It’s a seed accelerator and venture fund that focuses on early-stage startups. Because their target audience is innovative and unique businesses, they exemplify.co.
Recommended: Using Multiple Custom Domains To Control Your Online Identity
5. .us
.us is another popular domain extension. Unlike the other domains, which are available to anyone,.us is only available to citizens and businesses in the United States. You can apply as an individual, corporation, or nonprofit organization, but you must be a permanent resident of the United States or have your company registered there.
The.us TLD, like the.gov extension, was once associated with the United States government. It is, however, now available to the general public and businesses. The websites that really shine with a.us extension are those that try to evoke patriotism and brand themselves with an American identity.
Vote.us, for example, is a website that provides nonpartisan voting information in the United States. Other companies cleverly use.us to end a phrase or word, such as whos.among.us, which is a play on the phrase “Who’s among us?”
While the.us extension is ideal for creative brands and patriotic websites, it isn’t appropriate for businesses that don’t promote patriotism or operate in the United States.
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Other domain extension options
The domain extensions listed above are a good place to start, but they aren’t your only choices. In fact, in addition to the five most common domain extensions listed above, there are over 1,500 different TLDs available. Here are a few more popular choices:
- .gov — Limited to government agencies
- .edu — Limited to educational institutions
- .info — An open extension that is short for information
- .xyz — An open extension available for general use
- .ly — Country code for Libya, but used by many tech startups for creative spellings
There are numerous factors to consider when selecting the ideal domain name. You must also ensure that the domain extension matches your needs, in addition to finding a name that reflects your personal or brand identity and is easy to remember and type.
GoDaddy is a good option if you want to register a domain with one of the most popular extensions. They have a large domain marketplace where you can find the perfect domain for your new website. What’s the best part? You can also use their WordPress Website platform to host your website, set it up quickly, and promote your business using their Digital Marketing Suite. You can also use our free Domain Name Generator to come up with a new domain name.