Top Level Domains TLD

A top-level domain (TLD) represents the highest level in the hierarchical Domain Name System (DNS) of the Internet, following the root domain. These domains are installed in the root zone of the name space. In a fully qualified domain name, the top-level domain constitutes the final segment, such as .com in www.example.com. The ICANN, an Internet multi-stakeholder community, typically manages most TLDs through the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA), which is responsible for maintaining the DNS root zone.

Here are some key points about TLDs:

Most registered TLDs: As of January 2023, the top 5 most registered TLDs are:

.com (VeriSign) - 158.9 million domains
.de (DENIC) - 16.4 million domains (specific to Germany)
.net (VeriSign) - 13.1 million domains
.org (PIR) - 10.7 million domains
.uk (Nominet) - 10.5 million domains (specific to the United Kingdom)

Sponsored TLDs: Some TLDs are sponsored by organizations or governments, such as:

.mobi (mTLD Top Level Domain Limited) - intended for mobile services
.arpa (IANA) - used for Address and Routing Parameter Area, with DNSSEC support

Unsponsored TLDs: Others are not sponsored, such as:

.bit (Namecoin project) - a pseudo-TLD not recognized by ICANN
.onion (Tor project) - used for hidden services, not part of the DNS

Top-Level Domain Types:

There are two primary divisions of TLDs. Firstly, generic TLDs (gTLDs), which aren't tied to a specific country or region, are commonly utilized for diverse purposes. Examples of these are .com, .net, .org, and .info. Secondly, country-code TLDs (ccTLDs), which are associated with a particular country or region, are often employed for geographical indications. Examples of these include .de for Germany, .uk for the United Kingdom, and .fr for France.

TLDs Perform Various Roles:

Top-Level Domains (TLDs) play different roles, including specifying a website's purpose, like .com for businesses or .edu for educational entities. They also help identify the entity managing the website, such as .gov for government bodies or .mil for military organizations. Moreover, TLDs can reveal the geographical location of a website, for example "SimplePay.us", .us for U.S.-based sites or .ca for Canadian sites.

Overview of the Internet's Top-Level Domains:

.ae, .abogado, .ac, .accountant, .accountants, .actor, .adult, .ae, .aero, .africa, .africacom, .ag, .agency, .airforce, .al, .amsterdam, .apartments, .app, .ar, .archi, .army, .arpa, .art, .asia, .associates, .at, .attorney, .au, .auto, .autos, .auction, .audio, .ax, .baby, .band, .bank, .bar, .barcelona, .bargains, .bayern, .be, .beer, .berlin, .best, .bet, .bible, .bid, .bike, .bingo, .biz, .biz.id, .biz.ua, .black, .blog, .blue, .bond, .boats, .boston, .boutique, .brcom, .broker, .brussels, .build, .builders, .business .buzz, .bz, .bzh, .ca, .cab, .cafe, .camera, .camp, .capetown, .capital, .car, .cars, .cards, .care, .careers, .casa, .cash, .casino, .catering, .cc, .center, .ceo, .ch, .charity, .chat, .cheap, .church, .city, .claims, .cleaning, .click, .clinic, .clothing, .cloud, .club, .cm, .cn, .co, .coach, .code, .codes, .coffee, .co.id, .coit, .cologne, .com, .com.ua .community, .company, .computer, .comse, .condos, .construction, .consulting, .contractors, .cooking, .cool, .coop, .co.tz, .co.uk, .country, .coupons, .courses, .cr.it, .credit, .creditcard, .cricket, .cx, .cymru, .cz, .dance, .date, .dating, .de, .deals, .degree, .delivery, .democrat, .dental, .dentist, .desi, .design, .dev, .diamonds, .diet, .digital, .direct, .directory, .discount, .dk, .doctor, .dog, .domains, .download, .dp.ua, .durban, .earth, .edu, .education, .eco, .ee, .email, .energy, .engineer, .engineering, .enterprises, .equipment, .es, .estate, .eth, .eu, .eus .events, .exchange, .express, .ею, .fail, .faith, .family, .fans, .farm, .fashion, .fi, .film, .finance, .financial, .fish, .fishing, .fit, .fitness, .florist, .flowers, .fm, .fo, .football, .forex, .forsale, .fr, .frl, .fun, .fund, .furniture, .futbol, .fyi, .gal, .gallery, .game, .games, .garden, .gb, .gdn, .ge, .gent, .gift, .gifts, .gives, .glass, .global, .gold, .golf, .gop, .graphics, .gratis, .green, .gripe, .gs, .guide, .guitars, .guru, .hamburg, .haus, .health, .healthcare .help, .hiphop, .hiv, .hockey, .holdings, .holiday, .homes, .hospital, .horse, .host, .hosting, .house, .how, .ht, .icu, .im, .immo, .immobilien, .in, .in.ua .industries, .inc, .info, .institute, .insure, .int, .international, .investments, .io, .irish, .ist, .istanbul, .tel, .it, .je, .jetzt, .jewelry, .jobs, .joburg, .jp, .juegos, .kaufen, .kiev.ua .kim, .kitchen, .kiwi, .koeln, .kr, .kyiv.ua .la, .land, .lat, .law, .lawyer, .lease, .legal, .lgbt, .li, .life, .lighting, .limited, .limo, .link, .live, .loan, .loans, .lol, .london, .ltda, .lu, .luxe, .maison, .management, .market, .marketing, .markets, .mba, .me, .media, .melbourne, .memorial, .men, .menu, .mexcom, .miami, .mn, .mobi, .moda, .moe, .mom, .money, .monster, .mortgage, .moscow, motorcycles, .movie, .mu, .museum, .mx, .my.id, .nagoya, .name, .navy, .net, .net.ar, .net.ua, .network, .news, .ninja, .nl, .nu, .nz, .okinawa, .one, .onl, .online, .ooo, .org, .org.ua, .organic, .orke, .osaka, .ovh, .page, .paris, .partners, .parts, .party, .pet, .photo, .photography, .photos, .physio, .pics, .pictures, .pink, .pizza, .pl, .place, .plumbing, .plus, .poker, .porn, .press, .pro, .productions, .properties, .property, .protection, .pub, .qpon, .qpon, .рус (.xn--p1acf), .racing, .radio, .radio.fm, .realestate, .realty, .recipes, .red, .rehab, .reise, .reisen, .ren, .rent, .repair, .report, .republican, .rest, .restaurant, .review, .rich, .rip, .rocks, .rodeo, .ruhr, .run, .ryukyu, .saarland, .sale, .sarl, .sc, .school, .schule, .science, .scot, .se, .security, .services, .sex, .sexy, .sg, .shiksha, .shoes, .shop, .shopping, .show, .si, .singles, .site, .ski, .soccer, .software, .solar, .solutions, .soy, .space, .sport, .srl, .st, .storage, .studio, .style, .sucks, .supplies, .supply, .support, .surf, .surgery, .sydney, .systems, .taipei, .tattoo .tax, .taxi, .tc, .team, .tech, .technology, .tel, .tennis, .theater, .tickets, .tienda, .tips, .tires, .tl, .to, .today, .tokyo, .tokyo, .tools, .top, .tours, .town, .toys, .trade, .trading, .training, .travel, .tv, .tw, .uk, .university, .us, .vc, .vegas, .versicherung, .vet, .viajes, .video, .vin, .vision, .vlaanderen, .vodka, .vote, .voting, .voto, .voyage, .wales, .webcam, .web.id, .website, web.za, .wed, .wedding, .win, .wine, .work, .world, .ws, .wtf, .xin, .xxx, .xyz, .yoga, .yokohama, .za, .zabz, .zone, .网店 (xn--hxt814e) .健康 (xn--nyqy26a) .МОСКВА (xn--80adxhks), .онлайн (Online), .сайт (Site), .みんな (Everyone), .بازار (xn--mgbab2bd), .شبكة (Web), .世界 (xn--rhqv96g), .中文网 (Website), .在线 (Online), .我爱你 (xn--6qq986b3xl), .集团 (xn--3bst00m) .УКР (idn of .UA), .广东 (xn--xhq521b), .佛山(xn--1qqw23a), .भारत, .商店, .コム