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Second Level Domain - SLD

The SLD (Second-Level Domain) is the part of a domain name that appears directly to the left of the Top-Level Domain (TLD).

Example:

In the domain
👉 example.com

  • .com is the TLD (Top-Level Domain)

  • example is the SLD (Second-Level Domain)


Domain Structure (from right to left):

Level Example
Top-Level Domain .com
Second-Level Domain example
Subdomain (optional) www. or e.g. blog.

More Examples:

Domain SLD TLD
google.de google .de
wikipedia.org wikipedia .org
meinshop.example.com example .com

Why it matters:

The SLD is usually the custom, chosen part of the domain—often representing a company name, brand, or project. It's the most recognizable and memorable part of a domain name.

 


Top Level Domain - TLD

A TLD (Top-Level Domain) is the last part of a web address, appearing after the final dot. Examples include .com, .de, .org, or .edu. It is a fundamental part of domain names and plays a key role in internet addressing.

Categories of TLDs:

  1. Generic TLDs (gTLDs):
    These are general and not tied to a specific country, such as:

    • .com: Initially intended for commercial use, now widely used.
    • .org: For organizations (often non-profits).
    • .net: Originally for networks, now broadly used.
    • .info: For informational websites.
  2. Country-Code TLDs (ccTLDs):
    These are specific to a country or region, for example:

    • .de: Germany
    • .uk: United Kingdom
    • .fr: France
    • .cn: China
  3. New TLDs:
    Recently, more specific TLDs have been introduced, such as:

    • .shop, .blog, .travel, .tech
  4. Sponsored TLDs (sTLDs):
    These are reserved for specific organizations or communities, such as:

    • .gov: For U.S. government organizations.
    • .edu: For educational institutions.
    • .mil: For the military.

Purpose:

TLDs help organize domains into a hierarchical structure. They are managed by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) and the ICANN.

Example:

In the domain www.example.com:

  • www: Subdomain
  • example: Second-Level Domain
  • .com: Top-Level Domain