Explaining .uk domains

Posted February 7, 2017 by Unlimited

There are a number of options available to you when choosing your UK TLD (Top Level Domain). In this blog post, we will be explaining which domains are available to you, and what they mean.
You can use our domain checker to see which domains are available to you.

.co.uk

This is the most well known and commonly used UK domain. It is primarily intended for use by companies, however there are no checks or formal restrictions on its use, so there is nothing to stop you registering a personal site with .co.uk.

.uk

You can get a domain that just ends in .uk, such as example.uk, which can cause some confusion. It’s recommended that if you decide to get a .co.uk domain name, then you should also buy the .uk, in order to prevent someone else from registering it. The opposite applies too of course, if you want to go with a .uk domain then you should buy the .co.uk domain also.

.org.uk

This domain type is usually used by non-profit organisations and charities. Again, there are no checks or formal restrictions on using a .org.uk domain, but people are going to assume your business is a non-profit.

.me.uk

This domain type is for personal use, and can usually be seen being used for sites that use somebody’s name, such as tomsmith.me.uk for example. There are rules for using a .me.uk domain, and you run the risk of losing your .me.uk domain if you register a business with it.

.ltd.uk

This type of domain is intended for UK limited companies only, and not plc’s. The domain name has to match your company name at companies house exactly, and it is manually checked before it is registered.

.plc.uk

The same rules apply for .plc.uk domains as for .ltd.uk domains, except that a .plc.uk domain can only be used by a public limited company.

.net.uk

A .net.uk domain can only be registered by an ISP (Internet Service Provider). Applications for a .net.uk domain are checked, and you need to have an AS number and a LIR tag in order to register. You may need to provide further evidence to Nominet to prove that you are an ISP also.

.ac.uk

This domain type is reserved for universities and colleges, although there are some societies which provide education and training that also qualify. The rules for registering an .ac.uk domain are fairly complicated, and you should contact Nominet if you need to know more.

.sch.uk

This domain type is available to schools only, and is chosen by the school’s local education authority.

.police.uk

This domain type is only available to the police force.

.gov.uk

All .gov.uk domains are only available to government bodies.

.mod.uk

All .mod.uk domains are only available to the Ministry Of Defence.

.nhs.uk

All .nhs.uk domains are only available to the National Health Service.

.parliament.uk

These domains are only available to the UK parliament.

.judiciary.uk

This domain type has yet to be introduced at the time of writing, but they will only be available to courts.

.nic.uk

This domain type is used by Nominet exclusively.

If you have any questions about registering your domain name then you can get in touch with us on our website.

Categories: Domain Names