Choosing a website domain is like deciding on a baby's name. Everyone wants the best name for their website. In the United States, most companies use a generic top-level domain (gTLD), dot-com. Some websites become creative with top-level domains (TLDs) to complete names such as "time.is". But did you know that the top-level domain you choose can affect your website? There are six different types of top-level domains. Infrastructure Top Level Domain (ARPA) Generic top-level domain (gTLD) Restricted generic top-level domain (grTLD) Sponsored Top Level Domain (sTLD) Country Code Top Level Domain (ccTLD) Test the top level domain (tTLD) This article focuses on the two most popular TLDs, ccTLDs and gTLDs.
Note: If you would like to know more about TLDs in general, please visit IANA and ICANN for information. ccTLD and gTLD: What's the difference? What is the difference between ccTLDs and gTLDs? A ccTLD , or country code top-level domain, is a top-level domain commonly assigned photo color correction services to a country or territory. A domain consists of two characters that represent a country or region, such as ".us" for the United States and ".ca" for Canada. gTLDs , or generic top-level domains, are also top-level domains, but they are not assigned to a particular country or have no restrictions. ".Com" and ".net" are the most commonly used gTLDs.
Advertisement Continue reading below Some gTLD domains, such as ".edu" and ".gov", are called sponsored top-level domains and are designated by a particular institution or organization, but not by a particular region or country. Hmm. Impact of using ccTLD There are several reasons to choose a ccTLD over a gTLD. Perhaps the most important SEO benefit of using a ccTLD for your website is the benefit of regional targeting because it sends a clear message to search engines that your site is designed for a particular country or region. ccTLDs also have challenges when targeting other countries and regions. For example,