Industry-Specific TLDs: .tech, .law, .health Guide

## Industry-Specific TLDs: .tech, .law, .health Guide Among the 1,200+ New gTLD extensions delegated since 2013, a subset was specifically designed for industries: .tech, .law, .health, .bank, .insurance, .doctor, .pharmacy, .accountant, .engineer, and dozens more. The theory was elegant — a .bank domain signals financial institution; a .law domain signals legal authority; a .health domain signals medical credibility. The reality is more complicated. Some industry TLDs have become genuine signals of professional credibility. Others have become spam magnets or marketing gimmicks. This guide tells you which is which. ## The Case For Industry TLDs ### Built-In Credibility Signal In heavily regulated industries, domain extension can signal compliance and professional standing. Consider: **.bank** — Operated by fTLD Registry Services with strict eligibility. Only FDIC-insured banks, credit unions regulated by NCUA, and equivalents in other countries can register .bank domains. The vetting process includes verification of regulatory status, security requirements (DNSSEC, DMARC, extended validation SSL), and ongoing compliance monitoring. When you see brand.bank, you know it's a verified financial institution. This is a genuinely valuable TLD Trust Signal — phishing sites cannot register .bank domains. **.insurance** — Similarly restricted to licensed insurance entities by fTLD Registry Services. **.pharmacy** — Operated by National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP), restricted to verified pharmacy operators. These restricted New gTLD extensions with regulatory backing are arguably the most trustworthy domain extension category in existence — more verifiable than .com. ### Descriptive Clarity An unrestricted industry TLD adds immediate category context. brand.tech tells visitors "this is a technology company." brand.health tells them "this is health-related." This can reduce the brand explanation burden. For directory sites, comparison resources, and reference tools, the industry extension often makes strong sense: compare.law, info.tech, guide.health. ### Namespace Availability The best names on .com are taken. Many are available on .tech, .law, and .health at standard pricing. If your brand name is generic or descriptive, you may find excellent availability on these extensions. ## The Case Against Industry TLDs ### Adoption Gap Despite a decade of availability, most industry TLDs have failed to achieve mainstream adoption. Brand.law looks professional if you know .law exists; it looks suspicious if you've never encountered it. The Domain Memorability benefit of the descriptive extension is undermined when users don't recognize the extension. Typical adoption rates by extension (approximate): | Extension | Registrations | Active Sites | Brand recognition | |-----------|--------------|--------------|-------------------| | .tech | 500,000+ | ~150,000 | Growing | | .law | 30,000 | ~10,000 | Niche | | .health | 25,000 | ~8,000 | Niche | | .bank | 6,000+ | ~4,000 | Strong (restricted) | | .doctor | 8,000 | ~3,000 | Niche | | .pharmacy | 2,500 | ~2,000 | Strong (restricted) | | .insurance | 3,000 | ~2,000 | Strong (restricted) | Compare these to .com's 160 million registrations. The namespace is thin, which means search engine authority accumulation from inbound links is limited. ### Spam Association (for unrestricted TLDs) Unrestricted industry TLDs like .tech, .health, .law, and .business have been registered heavily by spammers and low-quality content farms. The TLD Trust Signal for these extensions is mixed at best. Spamhaus Reputation data shows significantly higher spam rates for: - .tech (popular with tech support scam operations) - .accountant (phishing) - .bid (auction scam operations) - .review (fake review sites) This doesn't mean your legitimate business can't succeed on .tech. But you're fighting against a statistical headwind in email deliverability and security tool classification. ## Industry TLD Deep Dives ### .tech — The General Technology Extension Operated by Radix, .tech is the most widely adopted industry gTLD (Generic Top-Level Domain) for general technology companies, newsletters, and resources. Notable users: CES (ces.tech), Startup Grind (startupgrind.tech), and thousands of tech blogs and tool sites. **Best for:** Tech news sites, newsletters, product landing pages, conference brands **Avoid if:** You need strong enterprise trust or email deliverability is critical Registration: $30-50/year ### .law — The Legal Professional Extension Several competing registries operate law-related extensions: - .law (operated by Registry of Australia — unrestricted) - .lawyer, .attorney (unrestricted) - .legal (unrestricted) - .esq (Esquire — Google Registry, restricted to US lawyers) The lack of a single, authoritative, restricted legal TLD means these extensions don't carry the same trust signal as .bank. Any entity can register a .law domain. **Best for:** Law firm directories, legal information resources **Avoid if:** You want the extension to signal bar membership or professional verification Registration: $50-100/year (premium positioning) ### .health — The Healthcare Extension **.health** is unrestricted — anyone can register. This limits its trust value compared to the restricted alternatives. **Alternative with restrictions:** Donuts operates several health-adjacent extensions that require professional credentials or are monitored for healthcare compliance. Notable consideration: The WHO (World Health Organization) actively uses .health (https://who.health in development) — this may increase the extension's legitimacy over time. **Best for:** Health content sites, wellness brands, health technology companies **Avoid if:** You want the extension to signal medical licensing ### .doctor — For Healthcare Providers Operated by Donuts, .doctor has informal community expectations around use by medical professionals but is not technically restricted. **Best for:** Physician personal branding, medical practice websites **Caveat:** No verification that registrant is actually a doctor ### .bank — The Gold Standard Restricted TLD Already discussed above — this is the best-executed industry TLD. Required SSL/TLS Certificate certificates (Extended Validation), DNSSEC, DMARC, and WHOIS verification make .bank registrations the most trustworthy in existence. If you're a financial institution, .bank should be part of your domain strategy. ### .insurance — Financial Services Credibility Same restricted registry as .bank. Legitimate insurance companies can use this to signal regulatory compliance and differentiate from insurance-adjacent sites. ## The Restricted TLD Advantage The pattern is clear: **restricted industry TLDs create genuine trust; unrestricted ones do not.** | Type | Examples | Trust Value | Spam Risk | |------|---------|-------------|-----------| | Restricted + verified | .bank, .insurance, .pharmacy | Very high | Very low | | Restricted informal | .law, .health | Moderate | Moderate | | Unrestricted | .tech, .business, .accountant | Low-moderate | Higher | For industries with regulated, licensed practitioners — banking, insurance, pharmacy, healthcare — the restricted TLDs are worth adopting alongside your .com. For general technology and other less-regulated industries, .tech and similar extensions are viable but carry moderate trust baggage. ## Decision Framework TLD Knowledge Quiz can guide your specific situation, but the logic: **Use a restricted industry TLD (.bank, .insurance, .pharmacy) if:** - Your organization is eligible - You want the strongest possible trust signal - Security is a priority (these TLDs require strong security baseline) **Use an unrestricted industry TLD (.tech, .law, .health) if:** - .com is unavailable - You're building a directory or content resource, not a primary brand domain - Your audience is industry-insider (they'll recognize the extension) **Use .com instead if:** - Email deliverability is critical - Enterprise customers are your audience - You can acquire brand.com at reasonable cost For pricing comparison between standard and premium domain options, see Premium vs Standard TLD Pricing: Is It Worth It?. For the broader framework, see TLD Decision Framework: A Step-by-Step Guide.