.com, .net or local: which ending to pick

The ending of a domain, the part after the dot, is called a top-level domain, or TLD. For most small businesses, .com is still the safest choice, because people type it without thinking. This lesson explains what the common endings mean, what a local ending is, how an ending affects trust, email and Google, and how to choose yours in a few simple steps.

What a domain ending is

In yourbusiness.com, the ending is .com. You will also hear it called the extension, the suffix or the TLD. It is the last piece of the address, and it tells people a little about the site before they read a word. More than a thousand endings exist today, and you can group the ones you will meet into five families.

• Classic generic endings: .com, .net, .org, .info and .biz. They are open to anyone, anywhere.
• Newer generic endings: words such as .shop, .store, .online, .site, .tech and .app. They arrived in the last decade to widen the choice.
• Country endings: two letters for a country, like .us for the United States, .ca for Canada or .mx for Mexico.
• City and region endings: a few places have their own, such as .nyc, .miami and .vegas.
• Restricted endings: .gov and .edu are only for government agencies and schools, so a business cannot register them.

The common endings and who they suit

.com: the default

Most people type .com by habit. If you tell a customer your name is "Heyday" and your address is "heyday dot something", they will add .com on their own. It works for any kind of business, it is the ending customers trust most, and it keeps your email address simple. If you can get the .com for your name, take it.

.net: a fair second choice

The .net ending was created for companies that ran networks, but anyone can register it today. It is a respectable choice when the .com is not available and no one in your field uses it. The risk is that customers type .com out of habit and land on another business.

.org: for groups that are not for profit

Anyone can register a .org, but people read it as the ending for nonprofits, churches, clubs and associations. If you run one of those, it is a natural fit. If you sell products or services, it can send the wrong signal.

.us: the American signal

The .us ending belongs to the United States, and registering one requires a connection to the country, such as being a citizen, a resident or an organization based here. It is short and clear, and it shows you are an American business. The trade-offs are that fewer people think of typing it, so customers may still try .com first, and that the registry's rules have required the owner's contact details to appear in the public record, which means a privacy service may not hide them. Check the current rules before you buy.

.co: short, but easy to mistype

The .co ending is the country ending of Colombia, but it is sold worldwide as short for company, and Google has said it treats it as a generic ending. It makes shorter addresses possible. The drawback is the same as with .net: many people will drop the m by habit and reach a different site. Think twice if you serve Spanish-speaking customers who may read it as a Colombian address.

.biz and .info: cheap, with a reputation

These endings are often low priced, and they are also popular with spammers. Some visitors and some email filters treat them with suspicion. Use them only when nothing better is available.

Newer endings: fine when the word helps

An ending like .shop or .store can be clear for an online store. A newer ending is not a problem for Google, but it is less familiar to customers, who may mistype it or assume it is spam. Some, like .app and .dev, work only over a secure https connection, which is good, but it means the secure connection must be in place from day one. Read the renewal price too, because a low first-year price can rise a lot at renewal.

City and country endings: what they do and do not do

A local ending says where you are. A .nyc address says New York City, and a .miami address says Miami. That can be a nice touch for a business that will always serve one place.

Before you pick one, think about the downsides:

• Rules. Some local endings are restricted. The .nyc ending, for example, requires a real street address in New York City, and a P.O. box does not count.
• Familiarity. Customers type .com by habit, and fewer know what a local ending is.
• Growth. If you move or open in another city, the ending no longer fits.
• Email. Your email address inherits the same ending, which can look unusual.

The stronger local signal sits on the page itself: your city in the title and the texts, your address in the footer, a map, and your Google Business Profile. Those tell people and search engines where you are, whatever your ending is.

Country endings tie you to a country. A .mx ending says Mexico, a .es ending says Spain and a .ca ending says Canada. If you serve customers in the United States, those endings point to the wrong place, even when you speak the language. A single .com can hold a site in English and a site in Spanish, so you do not need one ending per language.

The ending has little effect on Google

Google has said that it treats the newer generic endings like .com, so you do not gain rankings by choosing a trendy word as your ending. Country endings are different: Google reads them as a hint that the site is meant for that country. That is one more reason to avoid a country ending that does not match your customers.

What moves a small business up in search results is the same thing on every ending: clear pages, useful content, a fast site that works on phones and good reviews. Choose your ending for people first. The lessons on getting found on Google cover the rest.

How the ending affects trust, email and typing

Three practical things follow from the ending you choose.

• Trust. Customers know .com, .org and .net. An unusual ending makes some people hesitate, especially for an unknown business.
• Email. Your ending becomes part of your email address. Some low-cost endings are heavily used by spammers, so mail from them can face stricter filtering. A familiar ending avoids that extra hurdle.
• Typing. When someone hears your address on the radio, on the phone or from a friend, they will add .com. If your address uses another ending, say so every time and print it everywhere.

Three quick tests for any ending

Before you commit to an ending, run these tests. They take two minutes and they catch most problems.

• The phone test. Say your full address aloud, ending included. If you need to add "that's dot c-o, not dot c-o-m", the ending is costing you customers.
• The typing test. Ask a friend to type the address from memory a day later. Check where they land if they get the ending wrong. If the wrong guess leads to a real business, change the plan.
• The email test. Read your email address aloud, with the ending, to someone who does not know the business. If they hesitate or ask you to repeat it, think again.

How to choose your ending in six steps

Step 1: Check the .com first

Search your plain name with .com at any registrar. If it is free, register it and stop here.

Step 2: If it is taken, see who has it

Visit the address. If an active business in your field and your area uses it, change your name instead of your ending. If the page is empty, parked or for sale, you may be able to buy it. The lesson on where to buy a domain explains how.

Step 3: Add a word before you change the ending

A short word that fits, like your city or your service, keeps you on .com. Keep it easy to say and easy to spell.

Step 4: Consider .net, .org or .us only when they fit

Use .org if you are a nonprofit. Use .us if you want the American signal and the .com is out of reach. Use .net if nobody in your field has the .com. If an active competitor has the .com, none of these is a good idea.

Step 5: Think about where you will be in five years

If you may add cities, hire a team or sell nationwide, choose an ending that does not tie you to a place.

Step 6: Read the price and the rules

Check the renewal price, not only the first year, and read the eligibility rules for any restricted ending. If it is complicated, it is probably the wrong ending.

One domain is usually enough

For most small businesses, one domain is enough. Some owners register a second ending, like .net, to stop copycats or to catch customers who mistype. If you do, point the extra one to your main site with a redirect, and do not build two separate sites. Every extra domain is one more bill and one more renewal date, so buy only what you will really use.

Ending mistakes to avoid

• Picking .net because a competitor has the .com. Their customers, and yours, will end up on their site.
• Choosing a strange ending to keep an exact name. A name with a cheap, unusual ending is harder to trust than a slightly different name on .com.
• Playing with the ending as part of the name. Tricks where the ending completes a word are clever, but they are hard to say and hard to remember.
• Not reading the renewal price. Some endings are cheap the first year and costly after that.
• Using different endings for web and email. Keep one address for both, so customers never have to guess.
• Ignoring the rules. If an ending has eligibility rules and you do not meet them, you can lose the domain.

Your ending and your website

Whatever ending you pick, it has to point to a site that earns the visit. Good Sites Only builds each site in 7 days, with hosting included, a design made for your industry, texts written for you, a mobile version, SEO setup and contact forms. You can see how real names and layouts work together in our designs.

Questions people ask