At No-IP, you can choose from a number of Top Level Domains when registering for a domain name. Many people however don’t know exactly which one to pick. So what are they and what are they used for?

.com – This TLD was designed specifically for commercial use. It quickly has become the most popular TLD available and most people try to register a .com domain first. .com is what most people will add to the back of a domain name when looking for a specific site as it is the most commonly used.

.net – This TLD was designed for network use. It was intended to be used by companies like Internet service providers. However, it was not regulated and became a general purpose domain space and the preferred alternative to .com.

.org – Originally this TLDS was created for organizations or non-profits. However, like .com and .net it was not regulated and is now used by many different types of websites including, Craigslist.

.biz – Introduced in 2001, .biz was created for business use. It was an attempt to lessen the demand for .com domains as well as help companies whose business name was already taken on the .com TLD.

.info – This unrestricted domain is intended for use by informative Internet websites. These sites should be non-commercial in use.

.tv – This domain, originally the country code for Tuvalu, is now used for media content. These domains are often created to feature original video content for companies. They cannot be transferred to a different registrar once registered.

.mobi – Introduced in 2005, this TLD is intended to be used by mobile devices to access sites via the mobile web.

.me – Originally delegated as the country code for Montenegro, the .me TLD is now used for a wider range of websites. Currently .me is widely used for personally sites like blogs or family sites.

.co – Like .me, and .tv, .co is used as both the country code for Columbia and for other purposes. .co is a business alternative to .com and .biz and used widely amongst major corporations. Many such as Amazon and Google have registered single letter .co domains including (a.co Amazon) and (g.co Google).

Country Codes (.us, .de, .uk) – These codes are usually restricted for use by the country’s citizens or businesses that have a presence in that country. Certain companies may cross over and have websites with many different country codes. Ebay is a good example of this as they do business worldwide.

Want to see if the domain you want is available? Just click here and enter your domain name to find out!