At Openprovider, we give our customers access to 1,900+ TLDs at cost price through our Membership. That means you always have the flexibility to adapt your portfolio to new trends without being limited by high margins or narrow selections.
Here’s what the latest industry reports tell us about where the domain market is heading – and how a domain reseller like you can turn those shifts into opportunities.
.com is losing ground
For the first time in decades, .com is no longer the engine of domain growth. In Q3 2025, .com and .net combined reached 171.9 million names (DNIB Q3 2025), showing modest quarterly growth, but the numbers are still flat compared to a year earlier. Renewal rates hover around 75%, stable but far from the 80%+ levels of the past.
The reasons for this are structural. Short, meaningful .com names are scarce, and often only available for premium prices on the aftermarket. Verisign, the registry behind com, has also increased its prices repeatedly. This has made .com domains less attractive for some buyers, leading to lower registration and renewal rates. And for many new businesses, securing a workable .com is either too expensive or simply unrealistic.
As a result, .com is increasingly a legacy choice, especially for newer businesses. It still carries weight, but it is no longer the automatic default it once was.
While .com still dominates the aftermarket, demand is spreading to TLDs like .ai, .org, and strong ccTLDs, creating new opportunities beyond .com.
Reseller takeaway: don’t rely on .com volume alone. Customers increasingly select alternatives when .com is unavailable or too expensive.
ccTLDs remain steady performers
Country-code TLDs continue to show resilience, particularly where trust, jurisdiction, and accountability matter.
Globally, ccTLDs grew by around 1.9% in 2024 – but with big regional differences. Europe is stagnating in domain volume, with .nl and several other ccTLDs in contraction. By contrast, the U.S. and Asia-Pacific ccTLDs are showing stronger growth. Latin America and Africa are emerging as resilient growth regions too.
Despite this, Europe still hosts the majority of large ccTLDs and shows some of the highest retention rates in the industry, typically around 85%.
In 2026, “place” is returning as a key factor in an increasingly online world (DNJournal). Even in a remote world, businesses want to look and operate locally. Strong ccTLDs act as digital trust signals, showing customers, partners, and banks that a company is present and credible.
CENTR data also highlights that content-rich ccTLD domains are more likely to use SSL, DNSSEC, and other security measures. As regulations tighten and users become more cautious, ccTLDs are increasingly seen as carrying a more secure brand image compared to gTLDs, especially novelty ones.
Reseller takeaway: highlight ccTLDs in your offer, especially for small businesses and startups that want to underline local trust or community identity. Or, what about a .com + ccTLD bundle for customers who want the best of both worlds?
New TLDs (nTLDs) break through, but churn is high
The global market share of new gTLDs passed 10% in 2024, and the DNIB Q2 2025 data shows 14% annual growth with 39.5 million active domains. However, renewal rates sit around 32%, reflecting a market still heavily driven by discounts and promo cycles.
An Identity Digital study of over 4,000 startups confirms the trend: 54% of startups now use nTLDs as their primary domain. Exact brand match availability is far higher with nTLDs (85% vs 54% for .com), making them especially attractive to young companies that want a clean, affordable name. The clear winner is .ai, used by 28% of startups in 2025 after tripling in five years, but .io, .pro, and .global are following closely behind.
Reseller takeaway: nTLDs perform best when positioned strategically, not as cheap alternatives to a legacy TLD – as we will see in the next point.
Semantic relevance is reshaping domain choices
One of the strongest cross-report trends is the rise of semantic domain naming. Businesses increasingly want their domain to explain what they do, not just where they exist.
Research from the Global Domain Report and Identity Digital shows that more than half of tech startups now use a non-.com domain as their primary address. Extensions like .tech, .studio, .online, .shop, and .pro offer clearer messaging and far higher success rates for exact brand-name matches.
Domains are increasingly becoming part of the brand narrative, helping companies signal relevance, focus, and intent directly in the URL.
Meanwhile, the rise of AI and “vibe coding” is making it easier than ever for solopreneurs to launch websites and businesses (DNJournal). This trend is also helping drive demand for brandable domains with non-traditional TLDs, as new founders look for affordable ways to stand out online.
Reseller takeaway: highlight attractive, keyword-rich nTLDs in your offer to appeal to this new segment of customers looking beyond .com and .net
.ai has moved from trend to category
The rise of .ai deserves special attention. Originally the country-code TLD for Anguilla, .ai has become a global marker for artificial intelligence and innovation.
- 89% growth in 2024 alone (Afnic, 2024).
- Strong adoption by startups and enterprises alike.
- High aftermarket demand, with average resale prices above $6,500 (Global Domain Name Report).
For AI-focused businesses, the domain itself now acts as a strong positioning signal.
At the same time, this popularity is increasing competition and prices. This means that businesses that want to invest in an .ai domain should plan forward and prepare to pay increasingly higher prices.
Reseller takeaway: .ai is here to stay – if you are not offering it yet, this domain needs a spot in your portfolio in 2026.
Consolidation and regulation reshape the market
The Afnic report also underlined ongoing consolidation, with major registrars and back-end providers acquiring portfolios of TLDs and preparing for ICANN’s next new gTLD round in 2026. For resellers, that may mean fewer registry partners but more consistent offerings.
On the regulatory side, Europe’s NIS2 directive will enforce stricter data verification and abuse-handling rules. Registrars and resellers that build compliance and security services into their offering will be more competitive than those who don’t.
Reseller takeaway: prepare customers for a tighter compliance landscape, and frame it as a value-add service rather than a burden.
The bottom line for success going forward
- .com is flat to declining → diversification is essential.
- ccTLDs remain a growth anchor, especially outside Europe.
- new gTLDs are mainstreaming, with startups leading adoption.
- Regional opportunities differ → match your campaigns to market realities.
- Regulation and consolidation will favor professional, compliance-ready resellers.
At Openprovider, we make it simple to follow these shifts. With access to 1,900+ TLDs at cost price, you can always offer your customers the right extension at the right price – whether it’s a booming ccTLD, a trending nTLD like .ai, or a trusted legacy domain. As a Member, you enjoy the peace of mind that you always pay the best possible price, leaving the chaos of retail pricing and tier-based models behind.
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