A top-level domain (TLD) is the last label of a domain name, the part after the final dot, for example com in example.com. TLDs sit directly below the root of the Domain Name System, and IANA maintains the list of them in the root zone database.
At a glance
- Type
- domain ending, last label of the domain name
- Affects
- country association (for country-code TLDs)
- Values
.com,.de,.org,.edu
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Which types of TLDs exist?
IANA’s root zone database sorts TLDs into these types:
- Generic (gTLD): descriptive endings such as
.com,.org,.info, plus newer ones such as.photography. - Country-code (ccTLD): two-letter endings for countries and territories, such as
.deor.jp. See the entry on ccTLDs. - Sponsored (sTLD): restricted to a community, for example
.eduor.museum. A sponsoring organization sets the eligibility rules. - Generic-restricted: endings such as
.bizand.namewith registration requirements. - Infrastructure:
.arpa, which is used for technical purposes such as reverse DNS lookups.
ICANN sets policy for TLDs and delegates operation of each one to a registry. The registry decides who may register names and at what price.
TLDs and search
Google treats the TLD as a geographic signal in one case only. Country-code TLDs are tied to a country and, according to Google, signal to users and search engines that a site is meant for that country. Generic TLDs such as .com carry no location, so sites on them need other signals for country targeting, such as hreflang annotations. Google also lists a few country-code endings, such as .co and .io, that it treats as generic.
| Structure | Example | Target country recognisable? | Pros according to Google | Cons according to Google |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country-code domain (ccTLD) | example. | yes, a strong signal to users and search engines | clear geotargeting, server location irrelevant, easy separation of sites | expensive and sometimes limited availability, more infrastructure, strict ccTLD requirements in some cases, one country only |
| Subdomain on a gTLD | de. | not always clear from the URL alone (is "de" the language or the country?) | easy to set up, allows different server locations, easy separation of sites | users might not recognise the targeting from the URL alone |
| Subdirectory on a gTLD | example. | not always clear from the URL alone | easy to set up, low maintenance (same host) | users might not recognise the targeting from the URL alone, single server location, harder to separate sites |
| URL parameters | example. | not always clear from the URL alone | – (not recommended by Google) | URL-based segmentation difficult, users might not recognise the targeting from the URL alone |
Generic endings such as .com or .org aren't tied to a country. Google also treats .eu, .asia and some country codes such as .io, .ai, .me or .tv as generic. The country targeting setting in Search Console (International Targeting report) no longer exists. Today, a site on a gTLD is targeted through locale-specific URLs and hreflang (in tags, headers or sitemaps). Google also considers server location and other signals such as local addresses, language and currency. Sources: Google Search Central: Managing multi-regional and multilingual sites (last updated 2025-12-10); Search Console Help: International Targeting report (deprecated). Last checked: .
Example
| URL | TLD | Type |
|---|---|---|
example.com |
com |
generic |
example.de |
de |
country-code |
example.edu |
edu |
sponsored |
Common mistakes
- Treating country endings such as
.ioor.coas a country signal. Google lists, among others,.ad,.ai,.co,.io,.meand.tvas ccTLDs it treats as generic. - Relying on
.euor.asiafor country targeting. Google treats both like.comor.org, so the country has to be signaled by other means such as hreflang.
Sources
- Root Zone Database – IANAiana.org
- Top-level domain – Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- Managing multi-regional and multilingual sites – Google Search Centraldevelopers.google.com
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