Beginner Blogging

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Domain Name Extensions Explained

by Tom Ewer on

URLThere are lots of different ‘domain extensions,’ as they are called.

The most common domain extensions are .com (‘commercial’), .net (‘network’) and .org (‘organization’). These are called ‘top level domains.’ They are available to use by anyone, but .orgs are typically used by organizations such as non-profits, schools, communities and so forth.

Ideally, you’ll have a .com, as it is instantly recognisable by all Internet users. If not, a .net is absolutely fine. I would advise against a .org unless you feel it is relevant to your blog.

There are other top level domains (such as .gov for government and .mil for US military), but they won’t be of interest to you.

There are also country code top level domains, which as you might expect, are relevant to a specific country. Popular examples of these are .co.uk (for the UK) and .com.au (for Australia). It’s good to pick one of these if your target audience is a particular nation. Alternatively, you can pick from one of the many country code top level domains and use it as a ‘generic’ domain extension, because many of them are recognized as such by Google.

So in conclusion, a .com is ideal, but if you’re really struggling to find a good .com, there are many other options.

If you’re ready to grab a domain name, you can follow our simple instructions here to purchase a domain name and hosting through Bluehost. Even better, take advantage of our free blog installation and setup service and let us do the lion’s share of the work for you!

Image Credit: Laura Reen