Ranks Research
Reviewed September 18, 2026
Domain name statistics for 2026
Registration and sales figures worth checking before buying a domain.
By the time a business settles on its name, someone else may already own the matching domain. A registration search tells you whether you can register it. Finding out whether the owner would sell takes a conversation.
The Domain Name Industry Brief counted 401.6 million registered domain names at the end of June 2026, up 8.1% from a year earlier.1
A domain name is an address in the Domain Name System, such as ranks.com. Its extension, or top-level domain, is the ending: .com in this case. A domain can support a website or email, point somewhere else, or remain registered without a public website.
This report brings together registration figures and domain sales data, with renewal research that helps explain why a name can stay taken for years. The distinction between a registration and a sale matters when you're trying to work out what to pay.
registered domain names
At the end of June 2026, per the Domain Name Industry Brief.1
.com share of total
June 30, 2026. Shares calculated by Ranks from DNIB's rounded figures.1
How many domain names are registered?
Registered domains by extension group
Figure 1
Registered domains by extension group
Worldwide, June 30, 2026. Counts in millions.
| Extension or group | Registered domains | Share of total |
|---|---|---|
| .com | 166.6 million | 41.5% |
| .net | 12.5 million | 3.1% |
| Country-code extensions | 148.6 million | 37.0% |
| New generic extensions | 52.9 million | 13.2% |
| Other legacy generic extensions | 21.0 million | 5.2% |
| All groups | 401.6 million | 100.0% |
Source: DNIB, Q2 2026. Groups are mutually exclusive. New generic extensions grew 34.0% year over year, compared with 3.6% for country-code extensions.1
The .com share measures registrations. It doesn't measure website traffic or tell you what buyers will pay for a particular domain.
Country-code extensions include .ai, which IANA identifies as Anguilla's country code. Its use by AI businesses doesn't make it a new generic extension.2
How have domain registrations changed?
DNIB reported 362.4 million registrations in June 2024 and 371.7 million in June 2025. Its June 2026 total reached 401.6 million. Comparing the same quarter each year gives the current figure some context.891
Registration history at the end of June
Figure 2
Worldwide registrations at the end of June
Millions of registered domains. Each column uses that year's Q2 DNIB edition.
| Extension or group | June 2024 | June 2025 | June 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| All groups | 362.4 | 371.7 | 401.6 |
| .com | 157.6 | 157.9 | 166.6 |
| .net | 13.0 | 12.6 | 12.5 |
| Country-code extensions | 140.0 | 143.4 | 148.6 |
| New generic extensions | 34.6 | 39.5 | 52.9 |
| Other legacy generic extensions | 17.2 | 18.3 | 21.0 |
Sources: DNIB Q2 editions for 2024, 2025 and 2026.891 Figures are rounded as published. DNIB can revise earlier periods, so this table compares published snapshots rather than a fully restated historical series.7
The growth is uneven. New generic extensions expanded considerably across these snapshots, while .net's registration base became smaller. A growing worldwide total doesn't mean every extension is gaining registrations.
For buyers, this is a starting point for asking where an extension fits. Registration growth alone cannot establish demand for the specific name you want.
How many new domains are registered?
Verisign processed 12.7 million new .com and .net registrations during April through June 2026, compared with 10.4 million in the same quarter of 2025.3
New registrations and net growth measure different things
| Measure | Result |
|---|---|
| New registrations, Q2 2026 | 12.7 million |
| New registrations, Q2 2025 | 10.4 million |
| Net increase in the registration base, Q2 2026 | 3.05 million |
| Average new registrations per day, Q2 2026 | About 139,600 |
Source: Verisign's Q2 2026 results. Daily average calculated by Ranks as 12.7 million divided by 91 days, rounded to the nearest hundred.3
The registration base also loses names, so new registrations can substantially exceed net growth. Dividing the quarterly net increase by the number of days would answer a different question from how many new names were registered.
These figures also cover .com and .net only. Calling that daily average the number of domains registered worldwide would leave out every other extension.
What do domains sell for?
Escrow.com's Q2 2026 release reports $160 million in domain transaction volume through its platform, including $37.7 million for .ai. Those are platform figures, not an estimate of every domain sale worldwide.4
The price comparison below shows why the measure matters as much as the headline number.
Average and median prices can move in opposite directions
| Measure | Result |
|---|---|
| Mean price, Q2 2026 | $289,000 |
| Change in mean price from Q1 | Up 64% |
| Median price, Q1 2026 | $14,400 |
| Median price, Q2 2026 | $8,000 |
Source: Escrow.com's August 11, 2026 release. These figures describe its exact-English-word category across extensions, not all domains or .com alone.4
A mean divides the total sale value by the number of transactions. A median identifies the middle of the ordered prices. A few enormous transactions can pull the mean upward while the middle price falls.
For a buyer, I'd start with names that resemble the target and inspect the individual deals. An English dictionary word and a long invented brand name belong in different comparisons, even when both end in .com. The buyer's intended use also matters when deciding what an acquisition is worth to that business.
What a second sales dataset shows
Dynadot's Q2 2026 report covers more than 54,000 completed aftermarket sales. Expired-domain orders made up 71.0% of orders, so its results reflect a market heavily weighted toward lapsed registrations.10
| Provider and sample | Period | Reported median |
|---|---|---|
| Dynadot expired-domain orders | Q2 2025 | $18.85 |
| Dynadot expired-domain orders | Q2 2026 | $18.87 |
| Escrow.com exact-English-word domains | Q2 2026 | $8,000 |
Sources: Dynadot's pricing table and Escrow.com's release.104
A median near $19 for expired-domain orders gives you little guidance on what the owner of an established business's name might accept. Equally, the exact-word figure can't stand in for an ordinary auction purchase. Pooling them would hide the differences that make the data useful.
A sensible comparison begins with the kind of name being bought and how the transaction happened. Even then, a comparable sale provides evidence for an offer. It doesn't require the next owner to accept the same price.
How often do domain owners renew?
Verisign reported a final combined .com and .net renewal rate of 76.3% for Q1 2026, compared with 75.5% for Q1 2025. That's an increase of 0.8 percentage points. Final renewal rates lag the quarter because Verisign needs 45 days after its end to measure them fully.3
The age of the registration changes the picture. A CENTR taskforce analysis published by SIDN Labs in March 2026 covered 40 million domains scheduled for renewal in 2024 across 10 country-code extensions. First-year registrations renewed at an average of 22 percentage points below their respective registry averages. Norway's .no was an exception, with first-year registrations renewing above its average.5
That research describes differences among groups. It doesn't assign an expiration probability to a particular name, and the sample excludes .com.
If you're waiting for an established domain to expire, the overall renewal rate is a poor basis for planning your launch. The owner may have been renewing it for a decade and have every intention of continuing.
How many domain disputes are filed?
WIPO handled more than 6,200 domain name cases in 2025, its highest annual caseload. It also reported having resolved more than 80,000 cases over the preceding 25 years.6
Those are case counts handled by WIPO. They shouldn't be presented as the number of all disputed domains worldwide, or used to calculate the likelihood that an arbitrary domain will face a claim. They also aren't a count of findings against domain owners.
Which statistics help when buying a domain?
The market figures become useful when you match them to the decision in front of you.
| Question | Evidence worth examining | What remains unknown |
|---|---|---|
| How widely is this extension registered? | Registration totals and their measurement date | Use by the audience you want to reach |
| What might this name cost? | Completed sales of closely comparable names | The current owner's acceptable price |
| Could the name expire? | Registration history and renewal research | Whether this owner intends to renew |
| Will acquiring it help my business? | The name's fit with your brand and its documented history | The business results after acquisition |
Ranks uses owner research and direct negotiation to investigate the purchase itself. A domain can be registered and still be available through a negotiated sale. The absence of a sales page leaves the owner's position unanswered.
For an acquisition decision, I'd want the owner's response and a defensible set of comparable sales before letting a market-wide average determine the budget.
How Ranks compiled this report
Ranks selected primary sources to cover registration scale and change over time, then examined sales evidence from two providers. Renewal research and WIPO's caseload reporting address ownership retention and disputes. We calculated the registration shares and daily average shown above. We didn't conduct a registrant survey or audit individual domain transactions.
DNIB is sponsored by Verisign, so its reports and Verisign's results aren't independent confirmation of the same registration figures. DNIB's counts depend on available data and its stated exclusions. Its .com and .net base includes registered names that aren't configured for use, as well as names on hold. DNIB also revises historical data, so figures from different editions may not be directly comparable.7
Escrow.com's figures come from its published Q2 release. Its linked report PDF wasn't accessible during this review, so the transaction sample couldn't be examined beyond the release. Dynadot provides a separate sales sample. Its expired-domain median is identified separately from its broader marketplace figures, which include other listing types. Neither provider supplies a complete record of worldwide sales. The renewal study covers selected country-code registries and an earlier measurement year.
Ranks provides domain acquisition services. Our contribution here is the selection and explanation of published evidence, with the calculations identified beside the tables. Original providers retain credit for their data.
Cite this report
Ranks. "Domain name statistics for 2026." Research reviewed September 18, 2026. Credit the original provider when quoting its figures and Ranks for the calculations presented here.
Sources and references
- DNIB. The DNIB Quarterly Report Q2 2026. June 30 registration base and annual growth. Report. ↩ a b c d e f g h
- IANA. Delegation Record for .AI. Country-code classification and manager. Record. ↩
- Verisign. Second Quarter 2026 Results. July 23, 2026. Business highlights, including Q1 final renewal rates. Release. ↩ a b c
- Escrow.com. Q2 2026 Domain Investment Index release. August 11, 2026. Transaction totals and exact-English-word price measures. Release. ↩ a b c
- SIDN Labs. Analysing domain name renewals across ccTLDs. March 18, 2026. Study of registrations scheduled for renewal in 2024. Research. ↩
- WIPO. 2025 Marks Record-Breaking Year for WIPO Domain Name Disputes. January 14, 2026. Report. ↩
- DNIB. Methodology and Data Update Notes. Coverage, registration-base definitions and revisions. Methodology. ↩ a b c
- DNIB. The DNIB Quarterly Report Q2 2024. June 30, 2024 registration snapshot. Report. ↩ a b c
- DNIB. The DNIB Quarterly Report Q2 2025. June 30, 2025 registration snapshot. Report. ↩ a b c
- Dynadot. Domain Intelligence Report Q2 2026. Methodology, domain pricing and listing-type analysis. Report. ↩ a b