A Practical Guide To The Different Types Of Domain Name Extensions

When building websites, one of the most difficult and most important decisions you have to make is choosing the right domain names.

Finding the right domain name, one that is applicable, within your budget, is brandable and available is no small feat. In addition, the domain name that you choose can greatly impact your business’ online performance. You probably are already aware of this but do know that there is more than one type of domain name extension?

Before selecting a domain name and a domain name extension, that is right for your business, it is important that you know the different types available and their functions.

What Are The Types Of Domain Name Extensions (TLDs)?

Top – Level Domains (TLDs)

The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) published six top-level domain names in 1985. They are now referred to as domain name extensions and are at the highest rung in the domain name system ladder.

These top-level domains (TLDs) include:

.gov: short for government: It was initially intended for use by the US federal government personnel and agencies. Today .GOV  is used by Native American tribes, counties, cities, towns, and states.

.com: short for commercial: It is the first top-level domain name designed for common use. Even though.com was first designed for commercial organisations only, the enforcement of the restriction was quite lax. Which is why by 1980, .com became the most widely used domain name extension choice for email addresses, and websites.

.org: short for organisation: This TLD was originally created for use by nonprofits. It, like other top-level domains, is no longer restricted to nonprofits. Today .ORG is used by communities, nonprofits, schools, and for-profit businesses.

.net: short for network: This was originally intended for organisations that are part of network, such as infrastructure company or Internet service providers and was only meant to be only used for networking purposes. However, this restriction was not upheld, which is why it is the second most commonly used top-level domain extension after .com.

.mil: short for military: This domain name extension was crafted solely for use by the US military. This restriction still holds today unlike the other top-level domain name extensions. However, it is commonplace for .mil to be used along with third and second level domain name extensions.

.edu: short for education: It was initially intended for universities everywhere. However, it has become majorly used by educational institutions in America. Educational institutions in other countries use .edu along with country level domain extensions.

Generic Top-Level Domain (gTLD)

This is a subcategory of TLDs in the domain name system’s hierarchy. Currently, there are about 21 gTLDs in the root zone – it is the highest level in the hierarchy of the DNS structure. Even though there are more than 1500 gTLD in use, these 21 gTLDs are used along with major TLDs domain names.

In addition, generic TLDs are further divided into four subcategories:

infrastructure (.arpa) -this was one of the initial top-level domains used to build the DNS infrastructure.

Generic (.info,.com,.org,.net) domain names that have general use.

Sponsored (.jobs, .edu,.tel, .golf, .travel..): domains that is reserved for use strictly by organisations/businesses within an industry.

Generic restricted: domains that can only be used for certain purposes.

Country Code Top-Level Domain (ccTLD)

To help differentiate countries individually – particularly ones that use top-level domains such as .mil or.gov, ccTLDs were created to be associated with geographical locations and countries such as the “.uk” for the United kingdom and “.au” for Australia.

When it was first created, ccTLDs was meant to be reserved for a specific country’s residents – but today, certain countries allow outsiders register domain names with their ccTLD.

Second- Level Domains

In the DNS system, second- level domains come after top-level domains. For instance, in Amazon.com, Amazon is the second level domain of the “.com” TLD. In most cases, second- level domains are names of the vendor or business that had a domain name registered with a domain host.

This brand or company name is the identifying name used by potential customers. Other than these common second level domains, country code second- level domains ( ccSLD) also exist. With ccSLD, the SLD(second-level domain) is on the right hand of the period.

Third- Level Domains

In the DNS system, third- level domains, come before second- level domains. And are usually found on the left-hand side of second-level domain and are also known as subdomains. Subdomains are majorly used by large companies who want to distinguish various departments with unique identifiers. When a company uses more than one third- level domains, they are typically referencing the specific departments within the organisation.

What Is The Relevance Of Domain Names?

Domain names do two major things:

1.Create A Great First Impression: the URL of a domain name is the first contact a prospective customer has with a business. A memorable and unique domain name would inspire site visits and a bad one would have the opposite effect.

2.Brand Building: domain names can be used to tell a brand story -letting customers know up front what your business represents, it’s value offering and products/services. A dynamic domain name can also create a link between product/ business and it’s target audience.

Where Can A Domain Name Be Bought?

Domain names are sold by domain registrars on the web. To purchase one, you would need to pay an annual fee. There are a couple of domain name registrars such as Namecheap, Godaddy and NZ Domain Names from Freeparking(for New Zealand domains), that make domain name registration pretty easy.

Please note, after the registration period elapses, you are typically given a renewal option. If you do not renew the domain name registration within the timeframe allocated, your domain name is made available again.