Geographic New gTLDs: City and Regional Extensions

## What Geographic TLDs Are Geographic TLDs (GeoTLDs) are new gTLDs that represent a geographic region — typically a city, but also states, provinces, and territories. They are distinct from country code TLDs (.uk, .de, .jp), which are assigned to sovereign nations and governed under IANA rules predating the new gTLD program. GeoTLDs are operated under the same Registry Agreement framework as other new gTLDs. The 2012 ICANN application round produced several dozen geo TLD applications. Many were contested — multiple applicants claiming rights to the same city name. ICANN required that geographic string applicants demonstrate support from the relevant governmental or intergovernmental body. This requirement filtered out purely speculative geographic TLD applications and ensured that strings like .paris and .london were operated (or endorsed) by entities with genuine ties to the named location. ## The Major Geographic TLDs **North America**: - **.nyc** — New York City. Requires registrant connection (residence, business location, or organization presence in NYC). Operated by Neustar on behalf of the NYC Department of Information Technology. Several hundred thousand registrations; genuine local adoption. - **.miami** — Florida's largest city. Open registration (no connection requirement). Much smaller registration base than .nyc. - **.quebec** — Quebec province, Canada. French-language focus, connection requirement. Modest but stable registration base. **Europe**: - **.london** — Operated by Dot London Domains. Connection requirement to London. Moderate adoption; used by local businesses, cultural institutions, real estate. - **.paris** — Operated by the City of Paris. Strong governmental backing, significant marketing investment, but adoption below projections. Connection requirement. - **.berlin** — One of the better-performing European city TLDs. Operated by dotBERLIN GmbH. Active local business and startup community adoption. - **.amsterdam** — Netherlands capital; connection requirement; modest registration base. - **.barcelona**, **.madrid** — Spanish cities; both operated; limited adoption. **Asia-Pacific**: - **.tokyo** — Japan's capital; operated by GMO Registry; connection requirement; moderate adoption particularly among Japanese businesses. - **.sydney** — Australia's largest city; operated by ARI Registry Services; connection requirement. - **.okinawa**, **.ryukyu** — Japanese regional extensions; niche but functional. **Africa / Middle East**: - **.capetown**, **.joburg**, **.durban** — South African cities; connection requirements; operated by ZA Central Registry; limited but genuine local adoption. - **.dubai** — UAE commercial hub; operated by Telecommunication and Digital Government Regulatory Authority; moderate adoption in business sector. ## Eligibility and Connection Requirements Unlike most new gTLDs, geographic TLDs often impose registration restrictions requiring a demonstrable connection to the named location. Requirements vary by registry but typically include: - A postal address within the city or region - A registered business entity located in the jurisdiction - Membership in a recognized local organization - Citizenship or permanent residence (for individual registrants) These requirements serve multiple purposes: they ensure the extension represents genuine local presence, they reduce speculative registration by outsiders, and they fulfill political commitments made to local governments that supported the application. The practical implication for buyers: if your business has genuine operations in a major city, the corresponding GeoTLD may be available for registration at standard prices. If you lack a connection, you are typically ineligible regardless of your willingness to pay. ## SEO and Geographic TLDs: The Reality A common misconception drives some geographic TLD registrations: the belief that a .nyc or .london domain will rank higher in local search results than a .com. This belief is largely unfounded. Google has stated that geographic TLDs are treated as generic TLDs for search ranking purposes — they receive no inherent local ranking boost. Geo-targeting in search is determined by factors like Google Search Console geotargeting settings, the location of servers, the content of the page, links from locally relevant sites, and Google My Business data — not by the TLD string itself. Country code TLDs (.de, .fr, .jp) do receive geotargeting signals in Google's ranking systems. GeoTLDs do not receive equivalent treatment. This distinction matters: a business in Berlin might benefit more from a .de domain for German-language search visibility than from a .berlin extension. ## When a Geographic TLD Makes Sense Despite the SEO caveat, geographic TLDs have legitimate use cases: **Local identity signaling**: A .nyc domain communicates local presence to human readers regardless of search algorithm treatment. "Restaurantname.nyc" implies a New York establishment intuitively. **Community organizations**: Cultural institutions, local nonprofits, neighborhood associations, and civic organizations benefit from the identity clarity a geo TLD provides. **Availability at standard prices**: If a business's desired name is unavailable as a .com but available as .berlin or .london at standard registration prices, the geo TLD may offer good value when the business genuinely operates in that city. **Secondary domain strategy**: Large businesses with established .com presence sometimes use geo TLDs for region-specific campaigns or microsites — "newyork.brand.com" becomes "brand.nyc." Use TLD Finder to check availability across major geographic extensions. See Industry-Specific New gTLDs for non-geographic niche extensions.