Top-Level Domain is the full form of TLD and is a very important part of the domain naming system. It helps determine how websites are classified on the internet.
What is TLD?
TLDs (also known as domain extensions) are the final part of a domain name — the portion following the last dot. When you access a website like mywebsite.com, .com is the domain extension. .com is one of the most generics top-levels domains.
It’s utilized to assist in identifying the purpose, location, or type of business. For instance a business based in the UK may choose to use a .uk top level domain to make it easier for its customers to know its location.
How Does TLD Work?
When a user types a domain into their browser (for example, www.mywebsite.org), the DNS (registering and managing system for domains) converts this human-readable address into a machine-readable IP address.
The browser then makes a request to a DNS resolver, which queries the root name servers to find the exact servers that are responsible for the specific domain extension (.org in this case). Finally, the request is referred to the TLD name servers, which direct to the domain’s authoritative name servers.
Types of TLDs
- gTLDs (Generic Top-Level Domains) like .com, .net, .org, .info
- ccTLDs (Country Code Top-Level Domains) like .uk, .de, or .au
- sTLDs (Sponsored Top-Level Domains) like .gov, .edu, or .mil
- Newer generic TLDs (new gTLDs) such as .tech, .app, .store, or .xyz
Why TLD Matters
The domain extension you choose can affect your SEO performance, trust & credibility, geotargeting success if you were focusing on a specific country, memorability, and also determines how easy it is for users to know the specifics of your businesses
Examples
There are some generic top level domains such as .com, .org, or .biz. There are also some newer TLDs available such as .ai, .online, .store, and more. As you might expect, .com is still the most liked and common top level domain.