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Country extensionUnder .uk

.net.uk domain registration

The British extension for internet service providers only: a name for a provider’s network and servers, registered only by those Nominet considers providers with a network known to internet address registries.

Score card

.net.uk in six cells

Our score out of five, as we see it when we help a customer choose.

Trust
5 out of 5
Easy to remember
3 out of 5
Global reach
2 out of 5
Price stability
5 out of 5
Short names available
4 out of 5
Local meaning
5 out of 5

Overview

What is .net.uk

.net.uk sits under .uk, the extension that entered the internet’s root in 1985 for the United Kingdom, and its manager in the IANA record is Nominet UK. The part net comes from network, and it is reserved for internet service providers and their network infrastructure: their servers, operations centers and nodes.

Among its narrow conditions: the applicant must be an internet service provider in Nominet’s opinion, and be a local IP registry with a regional registry, or hold an autonomous system (AS) with hosts in Britain. The name matches the applicant’s name or a form of it, and isn’t used for services to other parties.

That is why most of our customers in Saudi Arabia can’t register it, and it doesn’t serve a tech company that doesn’t run its own network. But a provider meeting its conditions gets a name for its network at a price lower than .com and fixed every year, with DNSSEC signing and no names in Arabic.

Type
Country extension (ccTLD)
Parent extension
.uk
In the root since
July 24, 1985, with .uk
Name’s origin
network + United Kingdom
Responsible body
Nominet UK
Who may register
Internet service providers only, for their network infrastructure
DNSSEC
Supported
Names in Arabic
Not supported

Who it suits

For your field: is .net.uk the best fit?

Every field has an extension that says something about it. Here is what .net.uk says in each, and which extension completes it.

  • An internet provider in Britain

    Excellent · The first choice

    The name reserved for providers’ networks and servers, telling whoever sees it in settings they’re looking at a provider’s infrastructure.

    Register it with.net.uk.co.uk

  • A provider’s site for subscribers

    Good · A good fit with .co.uk

    .net.uk stays for your network and servers, while for the site subscribers visit, .co.uk or .uk is closer to them.

    Register it with.co.uk.net.uk

  • A hosting or software company

    Consider another · Consider .co.uk

    Working in tech isn’t enough; the condition is being an internet provider with a known network, and .co.uk is open to you.

    Register it with.co.uk.uk

  • An internet provider in Saudi Arabia

    Consider another · Consider .net

    Its conditions are for a network Nominet knows in Britain; .net says “network” with no conditions, and .cloud covers hosting services.

    Register it with.net.cloud

  • A global tech company

    Consider another · Consider .net

    .net says “network” with no conditions; add .io if you’re a startup building a product.

    Register it with.net.io

  • A personal site or blog

    Consider another · Consider .me.uk

    It’s for a provider’s infrastructure, not a person; .me.uk is for individuals under a British extension, and .me for everywhere.

    Register it with.me.uk.me

What it does for you

What you gain when you register it

  • A name for your network infrastructure

    Your servers and operations centers under one name saying they belong to a provider.

  • Not open to all

    Nominet’s conditions mean whoever holds it is a provider with a known network.

  • Email for the network team

    noc@athir-networks.net.uk is an address telling other providers they’re writing to your network team.

  • Keeps the network apart from marketing

    Your infrastructure on .net.uk and your subscriber site on .co.uk, so the two don’t mix.

And where its value shows

In server names

A stable name for your network’s servers.

In internet address registries

A name matching your registered network.

With other providers

An address saying you’re a provider like them.

In subscribers’ device settings

Addresses written once and kept.

Pros and cons

What you should know before you register

Frankly, as we’d tell a customer who asks us before registering.

Pros

  • 01Says “provider network” to those who know that world
  • 02Its conditions mean whoever holds it is a real provider
  • 03Lower-priced than .com with us, and fixed every year
  • 04Under .uk, which entered the internet’s root in 1985
  • 05Supports DNSSEC signing

Cons

  • 01Only an internet provider meeting Nominet’s conditions may register it
  • 02Most of our customers in Saudi Arabia can’t register it
  • 03For network infrastructure, not services to other parties
  • 04Doesn’t support names in Arabic

Rules

Registration terms for .net.uk

What the registry requires and what we add, in one place.

Who may register
Internet service providers only, for their network infrastructure
Documents
Proof that you are an internet service provider under Nominet’s criteria
Name length
Up to 63 characters
Characters
a–z, digits and hyphens, never first or last
Names in Arabic
Not supported
Registration term
1 to 10 years
DNSSEC
Supported
Privacy protection
Your name and address don’t show in WHOIS unless you agree
Transfer
By a tag change at Nominet, free and with no change to the expiry date; with a transfer code from February 9, 2027

Life cycle

From registration until the name is free again

What happens to your name if it isn’t renewed, and when you can still get it back.

  1. 01Registration1 to 10 yearsThe name is yours from the moment you pay, for the term you chose.
  2. 02After expiryThe first 30 daysThe website and email keep working, and you can renew it.
  3. 03SuspensionUntil day 90The name stops working, but it can still be renewed.
  4. 04DeletionUntil day 95It can’t be renewed after day 90, and is free again on day 95.

Tips

Before you register

  1. 1Have your network number or membership ready before applyingAn AS number or membership of a regional address registry is what Nominet looks at.
  2. 2Make the name a form of your company’sThe name matches the applicant’s name or a form of it, so don’t pick one far from it.
  3. 3A short name, read as it’s writtenIf it needs spelling out on the phone, it’s too long or too complicated.
  4. 4No digits or hyphens that need explainingEvery hyphen or digit has to be said, and what has to be said gets forgotten.
  5. 5Renew automatically, or register for yearsUp to 10 years at once, so you never miss a date.
  6. 6Make sure the name isn’t someone else’s trademarkA registered trademark’s owner can recover the name from whoever registered it first.

Nearby extensions

If your name is taken in .net.uk

FAQ5 questions

Frequently asked questions about .net.uk

Didn’t find your answer? Our technical support team is with you around the clock.

Contact support

  • $15 a year, for the first year and every renewal: the price you see when you search, with no other fees at registration.

  • Internet service providers only, for their network infrastructure: a body registered in the UK that is a local IP registry with a regional internet registry, or runs its own network (AS) with a presence in the UK; Nominet decides.

  • Yes. Until February 9, 2027 a transfer is a “tag” change at Nominet, free and with no change to the expiry date; from that day it takes a transfer code valid for 14 days, with an optional renewal at transfer.

  • Under Nominet’s current rules the name keeps working for 30 days after it expires and can be renewed; then it stops until day 90 and can still be renewed; then it is deleted and is free again on day 95. From February 9, 2027, .uk follows grace periods like the generic extensions’.

  • No. IANA’s repository of internationalized names (IDN) holds no Arabic table for .uk, so names in it use Latin letters, digits and hyphens.

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