Domain registry

A domain registry is the organization that operates a top-level domain and maintains its master database of registrations.

Format
Domains & DNS
Updated
Updated
Glossary Domains & DNS
Domain registry Aliases: registry, registry operator.

Definition

A domain registry is the organization that operates a top-level domain and maintains its master database of registrations.

How it works

Each extension has exactly one registry — Verisign runs .com, for example — which operates the TLD's authoritative infrastructure, sets its policies and wholesale pricing, and records every registration. Registries rarely deal with the public directly. That is what registrars are for: they sell registrations and pass the data up to the registry.

Example: Register a .com domain through any registrar and the registration ultimately lands in Verisign's registry database.

Often confused: The registry runs the extension; the registrar is the retailer you actually register through.

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Sources

Last reviewed 2026-07-19.