Types of domains

According to Verisign, there were over 360 million registered domains in 2019. The types you can buy vary greatly. To make the best choice, you need to first understand the anatomy of a domain, which is made of two main parts — a second-level domain (SLD) and a top-level domain (TLD). Second-level domains (SLDs) A second-level domain is what most people think of when they think of the name of a website. It’s the unique name that you choose to represent your brand because it’s the part that people will remember the most.

In a web address, an SLD appears just to the left of the extension, or top-level domain. It can contain as many letters, numbers, and special characters as you want, but it’s best to keep them short and easy. Top-level domains (TLDs) Top-level domains (TLDs) are also referred to as domain extensions. They’re the series of letters that appear at the right of your SLD, after the dot. The most popular ones include: .com: Short for “commercial,” this was the first TLD launched, initially meant for business and commercial use. It’s still the most popular. .net: Short for “network,” this was created for technology organizations, but it has become another common option for business website owners of all types. .edu: Short for “education,” this TLD was created for universities, colleges, and other educational institutions. Today, it’s mostly associated with U.S. schools. .org: Short for “organization,” this was developed for non-profit organizations but soon became popular among schools, communities, and for-profit enterprises. .gov: Short for “government,” this was created strictly for U.S. government agency use. .mil: Short for “military,” this TLD was developed solely for use by branches of the U.S. military. There are also TLDs for different countries (.ca for Canada, for example) as well as niche domains like .coffee, .cheap, and .ninja. In all, there are more than 1,500 different TLDs to choose from, and the list continues to grow. But the cost for different TLDs vary. Some carry more "weight" than others, which should impact your decision when buying a domain.