CHOOSING A DOMAIN EXTENSION
Almost everything written about choosing a domain extension is written by somebody who sells domain extensions, which is why it reads as a list of options rather than a set of consequences.
The choice is an operational decision more than a branding one. Extensions differ on renewal cost, eligibility rules, recovery windows after expiry, deliverability reputation, and in two cases whether your site loads at all without a valid certificate.
This guide covers what actually differs, what it costs you later, and which considerations are real versus which are marketing.
In this guide you will learn:
Six things vary between extensions, and none of them are aesthetic.
The rules that can cost you a domain independently of renewal.
First-year discounts, premium renewals, and the gap.
Some registries are forgiving. Several are not.
Some extensions cost you inbox placement.
Where a certificate failure means total unavailability.
What is worth holding and what is superstition.
What it costs, and what you keep.
Chapter 1
Six things vary between extensions, and none of them are aesthetic.
This chapter is not written yet. Drop the prose into
guide-bodies/<body>.html and rebuild.
Chapter 2
The rules that can cost you a domain independently of renewal.
This chapter is not written yet. Drop the prose into
guide-bodies/<body>.html and rebuild.
Chapter 3
First-year discounts, premium renewals, and the gap.
This chapter is not written yet. Drop the prose into
guide-bodies/<body>.html and rebuild.
Chapter 4
Some registries are forgiving. Several are not.
This chapter is not written yet. Drop the prose into
guide-bodies/<body>.html and rebuild.
Chapter 5
Some extensions cost you inbox placement.
This chapter is not written yet. Drop the prose into
guide-bodies/<body>.html and rebuild.
Chapter 6
Where a certificate failure means total unavailability.
This chapter is not written yet. Drop the prose into
guide-bodies/<body>.html and rebuild.
Chapter 7
What is worth holding and what is superstition.
This chapter is not written yet. Drop the prose into
guide-bodies/<body>.html and rebuild.
Chapter 8
What it costs, and what you keep.
This chapter is not written yet. Drop the prose into
guide-bodies/<body>.html and rebuild.
Check yours
Everything in this guide, checked on your domain in about ten seconds. Free, no account, every finding shown in full.