We have compiled some insights to review what has happened within the domain world during 2021. Below you can find:

• The most popular domains at the end of 2021.
• TLDs on the rise.
• Other Key Findings.

Most Popular Domains 2021 

All TLDs

At the end of the 2021 there were 1599 different TLDs on offer, with 562,987,418 domains registered across the extensions listed below. As usual, .com remained the most popular extension accounting for 37.43% of all registered domains, with .tk (the ccTLD for or Tokelau, a territory of New Zealand in the South Pacific) remaining in second, due to it being the only TLD that offers free domain names. Other ccTLDs also continued to perform strongly with .cn, .de, .uk and .ru all once again making the top 10 most popular domain extensions. There was two new additions into the top 10 this year, with both .xyz and .top seeing considerable growth that enabled them to be the 9^th and 10^th  most registered TLDs. 

ccTLDs

Of the 1599 TLDs on offer, 338 are ccTLDs. ccTLDs accounted for 224,823,590 of the 562,987,418 registered domains, with the major ccTLDs also being found in the top 10 for all TLDs. There was also significant growth for other ccTLDs this year with .ga, .cf and .ml placing 6th, 7th and 8th in the most popular ccTLDs, overtaking both .nl and .fr. 

Generic TLDs

There are 8 generic TLDs which accounted for 244,457,423 registered domains at the end of 2021. These registered domains are primarily made up of .com registrations, with it accounting for 86.21% of all generic TLDs. The vast majority of the remaining share is made up with .net and .org, with the other generic TLDs having little impact. 

New TLDs

2021 saw a significant rise in the use of new TLDs, with 1253 extensions accounting for 93,833,648 registered domains. .xyz and .top grew considerably over the year to enter the top 10 TLDs for the first time. However, lots of new TLDs saw growth with .icu, .biz, and .club receiving large rises in their registration numbers. 

TLDs On The Rise

.biz

The .biz domain performed strongly in 2021, seeing significant growth in its registration numbers. This was likely a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, as there was a large increase in the number of people entering self-employment, with a study in the UK finding that the number of freelancers went up by 63% over the course of the year. This growth in the number of self-employed, has meant that more business websites have been set up, and the .biz domain seemed to meet freelancers needs, as it provided a professional feel to their site. 

.live

Another TLD that benefited from the pandemic in 2021 was .live, which saw its registrations increase by 100% year-on-year. This is a consequence of events, classes and meetings all having to be moved online due to social distancing restrictions across the globe. .live provided teachers and organisers with the perfect extension to stream their events to the customers and clients live via a website. In some cases .live domains were also being used for nefarious activities.

.eco 

2021 saw the continued rise of sustainable thinking by both consumers and businesses, culminating in the COP26 climate change summit in Glasgow. This rise has seen an increase in domains that contain keywords relating to sustainability and eco friendly practices, as well as an increase in the use of the extension .eco. 

Other Key Findings

The Rise of Meta

In October, Facebook announced the rebrand of its corporate brand to Meta, with the aim of positioning the company as the major player within metaverse technology. Since the announcement domains containing the keyword ‘meta’ have risen exponentially, due to the metaverse being predicted to become the replacement for the current internet. For more information on the metaverse and its impact on domains, keep an eye on our blog as we have a series coming out shortly to explain our thoughts on this in more detail.

The Impact of Descriptive Domains  

Descriptive domains use both sides of the dot in a domain name to make the web address more self-explanatory. Examples of this include car.show or hot.coffee. These domains are easier for consumers to remember and also help contribute to SEO scores, ensuring that users of these domains rank better organically on search engines. One 2021 case study illustrated these benefits with Wrap Life - an African head wrap company - doubling their sales within the space of two months, as a result of changing their domain to thewrap.life 

Demand for Shorter Domains Went Up

The demand for shorter domains went up considerably in 2021, with consumers using alternative domains extensions to produce shorter domains. Research demonstrated that non .com domains were 26% shorter in 2021 than previous years, illustrating how these previously less popular extensions were used to generate shorter domain lengths. This finding also helps to explain the growth seen within new TLDs over the past 12 months. 

Source: Domain Name Stats - https://domainnamestat.com/