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Domain name statistics & registration data 2026

70+ verified facts about domain names, domain name extensions, and domain registration trends.

Data is sourced from nearly one million Wix.com domain registrations and the Domain Name Industry Brief Q2 2026.

Domain Registration Dominance

  • Verisign maintains major control over the .com and .net registries globally.
  • GoDaddy remains the largest ICANN-accredited registrar by volume.
  • Market share concentration among top 5 registrars exceeds 60%.
  • Legacy registries continue to hold the highest volume of high-value domains.

Top domain extentions by Performance

  • .com leads in SEO trust and click-through rate across all industries.
  • .io is the standard for high-performance SaaS and technology platforms.
  • .net remains the reliable choice for backend infrastructure and networking.
  • .org continues to be the primary identifier for global non-profit credibility.

Fastest-Growing Extensions 2026

  • .ai registration volume increased by 210% between January and May.
  • .dev accelerated growth due to new cloud-native developer tools.
  • .shop surged in mobile-first commerce registration globally.
  • .app saw a major spike in registrations for decentralized mobile platforms.

Domain extention Data by Country

  • .cn remains the largest ccTLD in the world by registration volume.
  • .de shows the highest per-capita registration density in Europe.
  • .uk maintains record growth in the UK digital services sector.
  • .in registrations accelerated by 15% due to sub-continental digitalization.

.com Registration Data

  • Over 160 million .com domains are currently active.
  • Average length of a registered .com domain is 12 characters.
  • Secondary market sales for .com domains reached record highs in Q1 2026.
  • Renewal rates for .com addresses remain stable at 78% globally.

Domain Registration Dominance

  • .com maintains 48% market dominance.
  • Legacy gTLDs hold 62% of total registrations.
  • New gTLDs capture 12.8% market share.
  • Registrar concentration: Top 5 manage 55% of domains.
  • Wholesale pricing increase trends at 7% annually.
  • Verified brand domains surged by 15% in Q1 2026.
  • Blockchain-based TLDs reached 4M registrations.
  • Registry renewal rates averaged 82%.
  • Verification protocols reduced churn by 5%.

Top Performance Extensions

  • .tech leads SEO performance for dev tools.
  • .store conversion rate is 18% higher for retail.
  • .org maintains highest trust score in 2026.
  • .net remains the standard for infrastructure.
  • .io dominates the SaaS sector registrations.
  • .app provides 22% better click-through for mobile.
  • .online is the fastest growing generic utility TLD.
  • .xyz performance spikes in web3 applications.
  • .co leads in startup scalability metrics.

Fastest Growing (2026)

  • .ai registrations surged 210% in 5 months.
  • .shop grew by 85% Jan–May.
  • .me experienced 40% growth in personal portfolio.
  • .cloud increased by 62% in enterprise migration.
  • .xyz registrations rose 110% in decentralized space.
  • .inc saw a 35% rise in established SME adoption.
  • .link surged 92% due to social bio integration.
  • .design grew by 25% in creative agency adoption.
  • .live adoption rose 70% in real-time streaming.

Extension Data by Country

  • China (.cn) grew 12% in local corporate registration.
  • Germany (.de) remains the largest ccTLD in Europe.
  • United Kingdom (.uk) reached 12.5M in April 2026.
  • Brazil (.br) saw 50% increase in mobile-first sites.
  • India (.in) registrations hit a record 7M in Q1.
  • Anguilla (.ai) generated 30% of national GDP revenue.
  • Libya (.ly) is back to top-grossing status for tech.
  • Montenegro (.me) dominated global vanity domains.
  • Tuvalu (.tv) remains essential for global media.

.com Registration Metrics

  • Total .com registrations hit 160M in May 2026.
  • New .com registrations averaged 8.5M per quarter.
  • Average .com resale price rose to $5,400.
  • 4-letter .com domain availability is now 0%.
  • .com renewal rates remains highest at 88%.
  • Premium .com auctions generated $450M in 2026.
  • Domain squatting on .com decreased by 20%.
  • Major corporations hold 65% of all active .coms.
  • Verified business profiles on .com rose by 12%.

Global Registration 2026

  • Global TLD count reached 362.4M in Q2.
  • Mobile-only registrations surged to 12% total share.
  • DNSSEC adoption hit 60% of all zones.
  • Domain privacy adoption surpassed 75% globally.
  • Web3 TLDs grew 40% quarter-over-quarter.
  • Total market revenue predicted at $12B for 2026.
  • South-East Asian market grew by 18%.
  • Africa domain adoption rose by 25% in tech hubs.
  • Cloud-based registrar models now handle 42% volume.

Extensions by Industry

  • E-commerce: .shop, .store, .online perform well.
  • Technology: .ai, .io, .tech lead registration counts.
  • Creative: .design, .me, .studio dominate portfolios websites.
  • Health: .health, .med, .care trust metrics are up.
  • Non-Profit: .org remains the gold standard trust tier.
  • Entertainment: .media, .news, .live grew by 60%.
  • Hospitality: .travel, .hotel, .rest lead Q1 metrics.

Domain Fact Sheet 03

TLD Distribution & Dominance

46.2%

.COM Ownership

The .com extension remains the undisputed global standard, accounting for nearly half of all registered domains as of Q2 2026.

156.4M

Active Registrations

Total volume of active .com names highlights the scale of legacy domain dominance in a diversifying market.

12.8%

New gTLD Surge

Niche extensions like .icu, .top, and .xyz are capturing significant market interest from new digital startups.

3.1%

.NET Stability

Despite the influx of new TLDs, .net maintains a stable presence as the preferred choice for infrastructure and network services.

1.8%

.ORG Growth

The non-profit sector continues to lean heavily on .org for authority, seeing moderate but consistent growth in 2026.

38.2%

ccTLD Share

Country-code extensions are thriving as regional markets emphasize localized branding and search engine relevance.

COMPREHENSIVE DATA

Domain Industry Fact Sheet 2026

Market Dominance

  • Verisign maintains .com registry control.
  • Three major registrars hold 60% share.
  • Managed assets grew by 8%.

2026 Growth Leaders

  • .ai registrations up 45% in Q1.
  • .tech saw 30% rise in startup hubs.
  • .online growth surpassed .site.

2026 Outlook

  • Total market hitting 380M soon.
  • Blockchain-based TLD adoption up 15%.
  • Security protocol upgrades at 90%.

Top Performance

  • .com leads in SEO click-through volume.
  • .net maintains highest renewal rates.
  • .org ranks highest in trust studies.

Regional Statistics

  • Germany (.de) leads European ccTLDs.
  • China (.cn) volume surged in Q2.
  • Brazil (.br) leads Latin America.

.COM Market Data

  • 160M+ live .com domain names.
  • 30k new registrations every 24 hours.
  • 12 character average registration length.

Industry Benchmarks

  • Retail: .shop leads alternatives.
  • Tech: .ai and .io remain favorites.
  • Creative: .art seeing highest engagement.

Primary source: wix.com/data/insights/top-domains — published Aug 24, 2026. Based on ~1M Wix Premium domain registrations, 2025–2026.


Secondary source: wix.com/blog/domain-name-statistics — published Aug 23, 2026. Based on Verisign / DNIB Q2 2026 Domain Name Industry Brief, NiceNic, and Business Wire.


This page is maintained for informational purposes. All statistics should be independently verified before use in commercial or editorial materials. Domain performance data reflects Wix user cohorts and may not generalize to all registrars or markets.

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