Global adoption of dotBrand domains
Are companies using “dotBrand” domains for their websites? The simple answer is yes, they are—but to what extent on a global scale?
DotBrands (.brands) refer to top-level domains (TLDs) owned separately by companies (eg, .GoDaddy, .Nike, .Google, .Amazon, etc.) which enable organisations to stake a claim to their brand names to the right of the dot.
In fact, some companies have migrated their entire global web presence to their .brand TLD, leaving the comfort zone of the ubiquitous .com for the myriad advantages .brands offer.
Initially introduced in the 2012 round of new generic TLDs (gTLDs), .brands have evolved significantly. As anticipation for the next round (currently scheduled for Q2, 2026) builds, owners of .brands are exploring innovative ways to gauge market interest, although not on a large scale.
Others are still determining their strategic use of .brands, while a contingent is dropping them due to limited adoption, a lack of them being developed, or because their intellectual property (IP) legal department applied for the TLD to protect the company’s trademark without a clear plan to use it.
GoDaddy Corporate Domains (GCD), in collaboration with GoDaddy Registry, is an active observer of .brand adoption on a global scale. Many companies either use .brands or are considering it.
The research shared here was compiled by consulting various sources, including the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, GoDaddy Registry, and GCD’s Brandsight domain management platform. Shared below are benchmarked research and observations spanning from the end of 2019 to Q3 of 2023.
Total domains registered over time are increasing
GCD and GoDaddy Registry research revealed more than a 25% increase in total .brand domains registered between late 2019 and late 2022. In Q1, 2020, there were just under 20,000 registered .brand domains which climbed to more than 23,000 by Q3, 2023.
While this growth may seem modest considering the global potential, it points to a steady increase of .brand usage as evidenced by domain registrations. This is likely due to owners finding more varied uses for .brand domains as time goes on.
With each successful use, .brand owners may be more likely to consider a .brand domain for future domain needs.
Companies that own delegated .brands are under no obligation to use them. However, those who do choose to leverage them will register specific domain names using their branded TLD (eg, registry.godaddy).
Some benefits of using .brands versus generic TLDs include:
