TLD Guide 2026

Domain extension comparison

Every major TLD compared by price, trust level, and the type of business they work best for. Use this to decide which extension to check first.

TLDRegisterRenewTrustBest for
.com$9–12$9–12Everything — the universal standard
.net$9–13$11–14Tech infrastructure, networks, ISPs
.org$9–13$11–14Non-profits, open-source, communities
.io$28–45$28–45SaaS, developer tools, B2B software
.ai$65–90$65–90AI products, ML tools, anything AI-branded
.co$8–28$22–28Startups, .com alternative, Colombia-based businesses
.dev$12–15$12–15Developer tools, open-source projects, portfolios
.app$12–16$12–16Mobile apps, web apps, consumer software
.me$8–20$15–20Personal sites, portfolios, résumés
.xyz$1–12$10–12Experimental, Web3, cheap fallback

TLD breakdown

.comDominant

from

$9/yr

Over 160M registered. Most trusted by consumers worldwide. Default expectation for any business.

Register: $9–12Renew: $9–12Trust:
.netCommon

from

$9/yr

Second most recognised after .com. Good fallback when .com is taken, though lacks the cachet.

Register: $9–13Renew: $11–14Trust:
.orgCommon

from

$9/yr

Strong implied credibility for non-commercial entities. Using it for a for-profit business can feel misleading.

Register: $9–13Renew: $11–14Trust:
.ioPopular in tech

from

$28/yr

Adopted by Linear, Vercel, Replit and thousands of startups. Credible to technical audiences. Country code for British Indian Ocean Territory — some minor geopolitical risk.

Register: $28–45Renew: $28–45Trust:
.aiBooming

from

$65/yr

The hottest TLD of 2024–2026. Country code for Anguilla. Expensive but the branding payoff is real for AI companies right now.

Register: $65–90Renew: $65–90Trust:
.coModerate

from

$8/yr

Widely understood as a .com shorthand. Lower trust than .com but higher than most other ccTLDs. Watch for first-year promo pricing that spikes at renewal.

Register: $8–28Renew: $22–28Trust:
.devGrowing

from

$12/yr

Google-operated. HTTPS required on all .dev domains. Strong signal for developer-focused products. Affordable and credible in its niche.

Register: $12–15Renew: $12–15Trust:
.appGrowing

from

$12/yr

Also Google-operated with required HTTPS. Clear audience signalling. Good for app-centric products.

Register: $12–16Renew: $12–16Trust:
.meModerate

from

$8/yr

Country code for Montenegro. Clever for personal branding (yourname.me). Less suited to companies.

Register: $8–20Renew: $15–20Trust:
.xyzLarge (inflated)

from

$1/yr

Very low trust signal. Heavily used by spam and junk domains. Cheap intro prices spike on renewal. Alphabet used abc.xyz as a novelty move — do not infer credibility from that.

Register: $1–12Renew: $10–12Trust:

Registrar prices for common TLDs

Registration prices. Renewals are often higher — check before you commit to a registrar.

Registrar.com.io.ai.devNotes
Cloudflare$9.15$32.94$79.99$12.98At-cost pricing, no markup. Best for renewals.
Porkbun$9.73$28.88$69.38$12.08Cheapest or near-cheapest on most TLDs. Free WHOIS privacy.
Namecheap$9.98$32.88$69.98$13.06Reliable, good UX, free WHOIS privacy. Strong promo prices.
NameSilo$9.95$34.95$74.99$14.99No-frills, no upsells. Free WHOIS privacy on everything.
Dynadot$9.99$28.99$68.99$12.99Competitive pricing, decent DNS management.

Check if your domain is available

Compare live prices across all registrars instantly — no signup needed.

Check a domainRead the blog