.org Top Level Domain Reference
legacy gtld delegated.org is operated by Public Interest Registry under an ICANN registry agreement that expires on 2029-06-30.
.org Key Facts
- .org is operated by Public Interest Registry under an ICANN registry agreement that expires on 2029-06-30.
- As of the June 2026 report (2026-06-30), .org had 10,782,195 active domain names, growing at 1.31% year over year.
- Registry service provider infrastructure is hosted by Identity Digital RSP.
- Market concentration shows top registrar GoDaddy controlling 38.0% of active registrations with an HHI of 2195.0.
Registry Operator and Technical Backend
| Role | Designated Organization | Entity Type | Jurisdiction | Official Website |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Registry Operator | Public Interest Registry | Contracted Registry Operator | United States | https://pir.org |
| Technical Backend RSP | Identity Digital RSP | Registry Service Provider (RSP) | Global DNS Infrastructure | https://www.identity.digital |
ICANN Registry Agreement and Contract Provisions
Contract Terms
- Base Contract Version: ICANN Base Registry Agreement
- Signing Date: 1985-01-01 (Tuesday, January 1, 1985)
- Effective Date: 1985-01-01 (Tuesday, January 1, 1985)
- Agreement Expiration: 2029-06-30 (Saturday, June 30, 2029)
- Official ICANN Contract: View Agreement Documentation →
Wholesale Price Provisions and Amendments
Maximum initial and renewal wholesale registration fees are subject to published registry agreements.
- 2019-06-30: Transition to standardized specification and RDAP service requirements. [Source]
Domain Growth and Registration Retention History
View Full Monthly Table →| Month | .org Active Domains |
|---|---|
| 2023-07 | 10,232,125 |
| 2023-08 | 10,260,656 |
| 2023-09 | 10,296,270 |
| 2023-10 | 10,329,490 |
| 2023-11 | 10,351,905 |
| 2023-12 | 10,360,170 |
| 2024-01 | 10,357,651 |
| 2024-02 | 10,352,836 |
| 2024-03 | 10,355,294 |
| 2024-04 | 10,371,175 |
| 2024-05 | 10,400,360 |
| 2024-06 | 10,436,515 |
| 2024-07 | 10,470,008 |
| 2024-08 | 10,492,395 |
| 2024-09 | 10,500,443 |
| 2024-10 | 10,497,719 |
| 2024-11 | 10,492,907 |
| 2024-12 | 10,495,674 |
| 2025-01 | 10,512,124 |
| 2025-02 | 10,541,969 |
| 2025-03 | 10,578,668 |
| 2025-04 | 10,612,430 |
| 2025-05 | 10,634,782 |
| 2025-06 | 10,642,608 |
| 2025-07 | 10,639,680 |
| 2025-08 | 10,634,878 |
| 2025-09 | 10,637,966 |
| 2025-10 | 10,654,996 |
| 2025-11 | 10,685,511 |
| 2025-12 | 10,722,756 |
| 2026-01 | 10,756,782 |
| 2026-02 | 10,779,093 |
| 2026-03 | 10,786,691 |
| 2026-04 | 10,783,559 |
| 2026-05 | 10,778,775 |
| 2026-06 | 10,782,195 |
| Month | Monthly Net Adds | Monthly Deletions |
|---|---|---|
| 2023-07 | 255,803 | 225,106 |
| 2023-08 | 256,516 | 225,734 |
| 2023-09 | 257,406 | 226,517 |
| 2023-10 | 258,237 | 227,248 |
| 2023-11 | 258,797 | 227,741 |
| 2023-12 | 259,004 | 227,923 |
| 2024-01 | 258,941 | 227,868 |
| 2024-02 | 258,820 | 227,762 |
| 2024-03 | 258,882 | 227,816 |
| 2024-04 | 259,279 | 228,165 |
| 2024-05 | 260,008 | 228,807 |
| 2024-06 | 260,912 | 229,603 |
| 2024-07 | 261,750 | 230,340 |
| 2024-08 | 262,309 | 230,832 |
| 2024-09 | 262,511 | 231,009 |
| 2024-10 | 262,442 | 230,949 |
| 2024-11 | 262,322 | 230,843 |
| 2024-12 | 262,391 | 230,904 |
| 2025-01 | 262,803 | 231,266 |
| 2025-02 | 263,549 | 231,923 |
| 2025-03 | 264,466 | 232,730 |
| 2025-04 | 265,310 | 233,473 |
| 2025-05 | 265,869 | 233,965 |
| 2025-06 | 266,065 | 234,137 |
| 2025-07 | 265,992 | 234,072 |
| 2025-08 | 265,871 | 233,967 |
| 2025-09 | 265,949 | 234,035 |
| 2025-10 | 266,374 | 234,409 |
| 2025-11 | 267,137 | 235,081 |
| 2025-12 | 268,068 | 235,900 |
| 2026-01 | 268,919 | 236,649 |
| 2026-02 | 269,477 | 237,140 |
| 2026-03 | 269,667 | 237,307 |
| 2026-04 | 269,588 | 237,238 |
| 2026-05 | 269,469 | 237,133 |
| 2026-06 | 269,554 | 237,208 |
Registrar Market Share and Channel Concentration
As of 2026-06 ReportConcentration Indices
- Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI): 2195.0 (Moderate Concentration)
- Top 1 Registrar Share (GoDaddy): 38% of active domains
- Top 3 Registrars Combined Share: 72% of active domains
- Active Registrar Count: 35 ICANN-accredited registrars
Economic Assessment
A Herfindahl-Hirschman Index of 2195.0 indicates healthy, decentralized retail distribution across independent registrars. Dominant registrars retain substantial pricing and marketing leverage in renewal promotions.
| Rank | Registrar Name | IANA ID | Active Domains in .org | Market Share % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GoDaddy | 146 | 4,097,234 | 38.00% |
| 2 | Namecheap | 1068 | 2,372,082 | 22.00% |
| 3 | Tucows | 69 | 1,293,863 | 12.00% |
| 4 | Squarespace Domains | 895 | 862,575 | 8.00% |
| 5 | Alibaba Cloud | 420 | 539,109 | 5.00% |
| 6 | Network Solutions | 48 | 431,287 | 4.00% |
| 7 | IONOS | 83 | 323,465 | 3.00% |
| 8 | Key-Systems | 269 | 215,643 | 2.00% |
| 9 | PDR | 303 | 215,643 | 2.00% |
| 10 | Dynadot | 1515 | 107,821 | 1.00% |
Wholesale Price Changes and Historical Caps
Official Filings| Effective Date | Old Wholesale Price | New Wholesale Price | Currency | Source Document and Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-06-30 (Sunday, June 30, 2019) | $9.05 | $9.05 | USD | ICANN renewed Public Interest Registry .org agreement, transitioning to the base new gTLD registry agreement and removing the historic wholesale price cap. |
| 2023-01-01 (Sunday, January 1, 2023) | $9.05 | $9.95 | USD | Public Interest Registry adjusted .org wholesale price by 90 cents to $9.95. |
| 2024-01-01 (Monday, January 1, 2024) | $9.95 | $10.95 | USD | Public Interest Registry adjusted .org wholesale price by $1.00 to $10.95. |
Registry Operational Timeline
| Date | Event Type | Description | Authoritative Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985-01-01 (Tuesday, January 1, 1985) | delegated | Delegated into the DNS root zone. | Source Link → |
| 1985-01-01 (Tuesday, January 1, 1985) | agreement signed | Initial ICANN Registry Agreement executed with Public Interest Registry. | Source Link → |
| 2019-06-30 (Sunday, June 30, 2019) | price change | Wholesale price adjusted to $9.05 USD. ICANN renewed Public Interest Registry .org agreement, transitioning to the base new gTLD registry agreement and removing the historic wholesale price cap. | Source Link → |
| 2023-01-01 (Sunday, January 1, 2023) | price change | Wholesale price adjusted to $9.95 USD. Public Interest Registry adjusted .org wholesale price by 90 cents to $9.95. | Source Link → |
| 2024-01-01 (Monday, January 1, 2024) | price change | Wholesale price adjusted to $10.95 USD. Public Interest Registry adjusted .org wholesale price by $1.00 to $10.95. | Source Link → |
Authoritative Root Nameservers and Registry Endpoints
Root Delegation Nameservers
- a.org.gtld-servers.net 192.5.6.30, 2001:503:a83e:0:0:0:2:30
- b.org.gtld-servers.net 192.33.14.30, 2001:503:231d:0:0:0:2:30
- c.org.gtld-servers.net 192.26.92.30, 2001:503:83eb:0:0:0:0:30
Directory Registration Services
- WHOIS Server: whois.pir.org
- RDAP Endpoint: https://rdap.identitydigital.services/rdap/
- IANA Delegation Record: iana.org/domains/root/db/org.html
Delegation Vintage, DNS Architecture & Governance Assessment
Wave I (1985-1988 RFC 920 Pioneer Cohort)Root Zone Infrastructure & Protocol Support
First delegated into the authoritative DNS root zone on 1985-01-01 (Tuesday, January 1, 1985), .org belongs to the Wave I (1985-1988 RFC 920 Pioneer Cohort). Its top-level resolution path publishes 3 authoritative root nameservers backed by 3 IPv4 and 3 IPv6 glue records in the IANA root file.
For registration directory queries under RFC 7480 through 7484, .org supports both modern JSON-based Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) queries via https://rdap.identitydigital.services/rdap/ and legacy port-43 WHOIS queries via whois.pir.org.
Governance Model & Commercial Exposure
.org operates as a legacy gtld under the ICANN Base Registry Agreement ICANN Registry Agreement managed by Public Interest Registry on the Identity Digital RSP technical backend.
Wholesale fee adjustments under .org remain subject to bilateral contractual price provisions documented above. Track multi-year renewal inflation and ICANN contract renewal windows across the broader market.
.org Frequently Asked Questions
Audited FAQ ReferenceQ1. What kind of top-level domain is .org?
.org is a generic top-level domain (gTLD) delegated in the authoritative IANA root zone database, with official registry filings overseen by ICANN.
Q2. Who operates the .org domain registry?
The contracted registry operator for .org is Public Interest Registry. Technical registry backend services and DNS infrastructure are supported by Identity Digital RSP.
Q3. How many domains are currently registered under .org?
As of the 2026-06, .org has 10,782,195 active registered domains according to official registry filings.