The domain market has realigned itself in several key areas in 2025. After years of strong fluctuations – caused, for example, by pandemic-related over-registrations and subsequent adjustments – the market is increasingly stabilizing. This is an ideal time for resellers, agencies and hosting providers to take stock and draw conclusions for 2026.

Global domain figures 2025: growth continues

According to the data from the Domain Name Industry Brief (DNIB) from Verisign, the global domain registration portfolio achieved steady growth in the first three quarters of 2025:

• End of Q1 2025: 368.4 million registered domains worldwide – 4.2 million more than at the end of 2024 and 6.1 million more than in the previous year
• End of Q2 2025: 371.7 million domains, a further increase.
• End of Q3 2025: 378.5 million domains, a year-on-year growth of 16.2 million domains.

These figures show: The demand for domain names is not declining, but continues to grow steadily – a good environment for resellers and agencies who want to rely on constant demand.

.com and .net: still leading, but differentiated development

The classic domain extension .com remains the dominant namespace on the internet. Even if there are slight fluctuations depending on the quarterly report, the trend over 2025 shows a continuation of the relative strength of .com.

According to DNIB quarterly reports, .com and .net came up together:

• around 169.8 million domains at the end of Q1 2025.
• around 170.5 million domains at the end of Q2 2025.
• around 171.9 million domains at the end of Q3 2025.

This development shows that classic generic top-level domains continue to hold the largest share of the domain market, even if they are no longer growing as strongly as new endings.

Why .com remains so strong

In the domain universe, .com plays an outstanding role for several reasons:

• It is the most trusted TLD for companies, brands and international projects.
• It achieves high renewal rates, which means stable recurring income.
• It dominates many global rankings and user expectations.

Although exact year-end figures for individual TLDs such as .com from Verisign are not available in open quarterly reports, third-party sources show that .com registrations are approaching the 161 million mark again by the end of 2025 – which is also widely reported in the industry context.

New gTLDs and nTLDs: High growth rates – but beware of sustainability

The new generic top level domains (ngTLDs), which have been available since their introduction as part of the ICANN program, have seen significant growth. According to Domain Standard and DNIB data, this area has not only grown in relative terms, but also in absolute terms:

• ngTLD registrations reached 37.8 million domains in the first quarter of 2025 alone, with strong year-on-year growth.
• At the end of the third quarter, ngTLDs are also a growing part of the overall base.

Some new extensions such as .xyz, .top, .store or .info are among the fastest growing. These extensions often benefit from very low registration fees and promotions. This can generate impressive volumes in the short term, but does not automatically mean sustainable value creation as long as renewal rates and actual usage are low.

In addition, industry reports show that new gTLDs are often disproportionately used for fraudulent activities simply because they are cheap and readily available. This is a risk that resellers should be aware of, especially if they have these domains in their portfolio without bad abuse controls.

Classic ccTLDs: stability instead of spectacular growth

Country code top-level domains (ccTLDs) stand for geographical proximity, trust and high renewal rates. The following ccTLDs are particularly relevant for European resellers:

• .de (Germany): stable demand, high trust advantage over many web projects.
• .eu (European Union): consistent but moderate growth.
• .at (Austria): also slightly positive.

Specific figures for these endings at the end of 2025 are usually not available in official Verisign quarterly reports, but industry summaries confirm that these endings are growing slightly, but are not showing or expected to show strong jumps.

But that’s not bad news for you as a reseller: ccTLDs often offer higher renewal rates and lower risks of abuse, which can be more profitable in the long term than short-term promotions for new gTLDs.

TLD ranking: What really counts?

Even if different sources provide different detailed figures, the ranking of the largest TLDs by domain portfolio consistently shows what is stable:

• .com
• Country TLDs such as .cn, .de
• .net, .org
• ngTLDs such as .xyz, .store
  

Important for you: The pure number of registrations is not everything. In addition to the number of registrations, your success depends above all on renewal rates, usage (active websites, e-mail projects) and abandonment rates.

What does this mean in practical terms for resellers, agencies and hosting partners?

The data and trends result in clear fields of action:

1. .com remains central
Even if other TLDs grow faster, .com remains the most important foundation for reputable websites and thus a central revenue driver.

2. new gTLDs can deliver volume – but not automatically profit
New extensions can bring fast registration numbers, but are often associated with higher abandonment rates and lower renewal rates.

3. ccTLDs are long-term assets
For local customers, trustworthy brand presence and regional projects, ccTLDs such as .de, .eu or .at are a stable revenue component.

4. keep an eye on abuse risks
Domain abuse remains an issue. Some analyses show that favorable endings are used especially for spam, phishing or malware domains. This can affect your own abuse rates and support costs.

Conclusion

2025 was a year of stable growth and clear market segmentation. For you as a reseller or agency, this means

• .com remains a must in the portfolio.
• New gTLDs can serve opportunistic demand, but should be used strategically.
• Regional domains are stable and trustworthy.
• Quality, renewal rates and abuse management are more important than pure registration figures.

Those who select domains in a targeted manner and maintain an overview benefit the most. Tools such as ResellerInterface facilitate precisely this work – from portfolio management to promotions and renewal analyses.