Domain Name Market

Global Domain Name Market Size (2024 to 2029)

The global domain name market is predicted to reach USD 2.4 billion in 2024 and USD 3.0 billion by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 4.5% during the forecast period.

Current Scenario of the Global Domain Name Market

The domain name market is growing strongly year over year. The primary reasons behind this upward trend are the rise of digital marketing, the surge in e-commerce, and the expansion of internet-based businesses. Moreover, as of March 2024, there are about 628.5 million registered domains worldwide, and within these, 43 percent have generic top-level domains (TLDs), which makes it the biggest sub-class. The most frequent domain extension is .com with more than 37 per cent of these. And, the United States, with 21.5 per cent of overall registrations, remains at the top spot.

The market expanded significantly due to the increased internet penetration worldwide, especially in Europe and Asia Pacific regions. Also, during the COVID-19 period in 2021, this market shot up dramatically, likely because of the countrywide lockdowns, offices closed, and customers spending more time online. Consequently, internet traffic grew considerably, and a huge number of new websites were built to take advantage of this.

Market Drivers

The major factors driving the growth of the domain name market are the increasing number of internet users, the rising need for registration services, and the growing frequency of hostname cyber thefts.

The surging online population is believed to generate demand for internet site enrollment services as more players wait to register and make a digital presence. This uprising need for these services will propel the expansion of the market.

Moreover, the incidence of domain name cyber stealing is also on the rise, which is influencing organizations to register their URLs with reputed players. Therefore, it pushes forward market growth.

Other factors, such as the extensive application of social media apps and sites, the greater reach of the mobile internet, and the higher necessity to safeguard brand identity and image, are also playing a vigorous role in the advancement of the domain name market. Furthermore, the progressive trend towards cloud computing is anticipated to elevate the value of the market in the coming years.

The rapid application of the .ai extension is another major contributor to the domain name market's growth. It has securely placed itself in the vanguard of technological innovation and is moving forward at a 162 percent year-on-year growth rate. This important upward pattern shows the heightening interest in and incorporation of AI technologies into digital platforms. As a result, .ai has risen as one of the most desired TLDs in the digital universe.

Market Restraints

The high charges and related prices and limited knowledge and understanding of the available choices are some of the main constraints of the domain name market.

Presently, this process has become quite costly as it comprises several steps like application, verification, and execution. The expenditure for registration depends on the domain category, its length, and the registrar concerned, and the enrolment cost may surpass its value. Hence, this makes it tough for companies to invest in domain names.

Market Opportunities

New gTLDs are presenting potential prospects for the domain name market as they build an original and unique digital frontier. The launch of new gTLDs has created huge possibilities, providing the domain sector to explore niche industries with exceptional creativity and particularities. Moreover, in 2023, new gTLDs experienced strong growth of 14.7 percent year-on-year. This increase shows the progress of internet usage patterns to encourage unique branding opportunities and the evolving mindsets in digital identity and online navigation.

Further, the growth .xyz stands out as the most prevalent option, especially preferred by organisations within the Web3, blockchain and cryptocurrency industries in recent times. In 2024, the new gTLD ranking has a few latest entries, namely .cfd, .app, and .click.

Market Challenges

The limited availability of hostnames is likely to derail the growth of the domain name market. Another factor obstructing the industry from expanding is complications in transferring internet sites. Shifting a registration from one registrar to another is a prolonged and complex procedure. It generally includes a waiting time, and the registrant may also demand additional charges. This leads to a tough process of changing registrars to take leverage of improved rates or services. Consequently, the market is severely hurt by the substantial amount of time and resources required to transfer a domain name registration.

REPORT COVERAGE

SEGMENTAL ANALYSIS

Global Domain Name Market Analysis By Deployment

The cloud-based segment holds the maximum market share of domain names and will only expand during the forecast period. This can be mainly due to the growing adoption of cloud-based solutions, increasing demand for secure and reliable DNS services, rising digital transformation, and e-commerce. Other factors include higher internet penetration, scalability, and cost-effectiveness. Moreover, all sorts of companies have progressively transitioned into cloud-based products because of their adaptability, ease of use, and lower maintenance.

Global Domain Name Market Analysis By Type

The generic TLD (gTLDs) segment is the most preferred choice in the domain name market. Its widespread popularity across the five regional markets is driving the segment forward. For instance, in France, gTLDs hold 48 per cent of all the domains and 6.8 per cent by the new gTLDs. In the United States, gTLDs captured 81. 7 per cent and new gTLDs 6.5 per cent.

Global Domain Name Market Analysis By End-User

The enterprise segment is believed to grow at a significant pace during the domain name market's forecast period. This is mostly due to the industry’s requirement for hostnames to accelerate business activities and build a strong digital presence. Today, a customer’s first step towards buying a product is visiting its online website, which has substantially influenced the segment’s market growth.

REGIONAL ANALYSIS

North America is the leading industry and holds around one-third portion of the domain name market share. The regional industry is led by the United States, with 135.2 million hostnames registered, and Canada, in the third position, has 16.4 million registrations. This dominance can be attributed to the large presence of small and medium enterprises. Moreover, the most important market players in the region are Namecheap, Network Solutions, GoDaddy, and Tucows.

Europe is witnessing robust growth in the domain name market with an extremely sophisticated internet infrastructure. The region’s upward trend is propelled by Poland, France and Italy. Individually, for these, major gains were from the national ccTLD, including .pl, .fr, and .it, respectively. Further, its high internet penetration and user base, coupled with a positive administrative and legal environment and strict data protection, is fuelling the regional market size. Additionally, European ccTLDs are predicted to possess about 54 percent (median) market share based on their domestically registered domains.

Asia Pacific is rapidly moving forward in the domain name market owing to the rising demand for hostnames from individuals and businesses. The APAC region is led by China which is also the second-largest country by registered domains globally with 20.5 million i.e. 3.26 per cent after the United States. Japan is in the ninth position with 6.2 million or 0.99 per cent. Besides this, by type, generic top-level domains commanded the regional market.

Latin America is a comparatively smaller industry but is steadily advancing in the domain name market. Brazil is the most prominent player in the regional market with ccTLD .br being the most enrolled TLD, i.e. 75 per cent, in the country as well as in the entire region. Moreover, it experienced an increase in the number of internet users in the previous 5 years by more than 20 per cent. This resulted in growth in LA’s market size.

The Middle East and Africa domain name market grew moderately. However, it is expected to expand swiftly due to the potential shift in economic policymaking, with Israel, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and the United Arab Emirates leading the way. Also, the surge in internet reach and users of around 570 million in 2022 is contributing to the regional market size.

KEY MARKET PARTICIPANTS

• Namecheap
• Bluehost,
• HostGator,
• Hostinger,
• GoDaddy,
• Hover,
• Gandi,
• Dreamhost,
• com,
• 1&1,
• Network Solutions,
• Flippa,
• Google

RECENT HAPPENINGS IN THE MARKET

• In May 2024, it was reported that GoDaddy is utilizing Generative AI to assist users in locating the appropriate domain name for their websites. Its implementation follows the announcement of GoDaddy Studio with AI, which makes professional-lookalike content for a company or personal brand.
• In October 2023, Google introduced a new domain extension, “.ing,” for more innovative URLs. It reported the latest type, which could be another way to cause heightened interest and traffic for certain brands. This extension will allow you to make several adverb-inspired URLs for your company.

DETAILED SEGMENTATION OF THE GLOBAL DOMAIN NAME MARKET INCLUDED IN THIS REPORT

This research report on the global domain name market has been segmented and sub-segmented based on the deployment, type, end-user, and region. 

By Deployment

• Cloud-Based
• On-Premise

By Type

• Generic TLDs
• Country Code TLDs

By End-User

• Enterprises
• Non-profit Organizations
• Others

By Region

• North America
• Europe
• Asia-Pacific
• Latin America
• The Middle East and Africa