What is a gTLD (generic top-level domain)?

A generic top-level domain (gTLD) is a category of TLD that isn't tied to a specific country or territory. Examples include the legacy .com, .org and .net, plus hundreds of newer strings like .app, .shop and .best introduced through ICANN's new gTLD program.

The distinction that matters is administrative, not linguistic. A ccTLD is delegated to a country and run under that country's policy; a gTLD is delegated to an operator under a contract with ICANN, and the same global rules apply wherever the registrant lives.

The kinds of gTLD

• Legacy gTLDs — the original set from the 1980s: .com, .org, .net, .int, .edu, .gov, .mil. Only the first three are open worldwide without restriction.
• New gTLDs — everything delegated through ICANN's application rounds, from .app and .shop to .best. Several hundred are in the root zone today.
• Sponsored and community gTLDs — restricted to a defined community with eligibility checked at registration, such as .bank or .museum.
• Brand gTLDs — run by a single company for its own use rather than sold to the public.
• Geographic gTLDs — city and region strings such as .paris or .berlin, which require support from the relevant public authority even though they are not country codes.

How a gTLD comes into existence

New gTLDs are not created on demand. ICANN opens an application round, evaluates applicants on technical, financial and operational capability, resolves competing applications for the same string, and then signs a registry agreement and delegates the string into the root zone.

Once delegated, the registry operates the TLD and sells through accredited registrars rather than directly. That separation — registry runs the namespace, registrars run the storefronts — is a condition of the contract, not a commercial preference.

Rounds are rare: the last one was in 2012, and the next opened in 2026 and closed with more than 1,600 applications. A string that misses a round waits years for another chance, which is why each window resets what the namespace can express for a decade.