The 2026 new gTLD application round
ICANN published the applications on Reveal Day, 7 October 2026: the first expansion of the namespace since the 2012 round, which produced most of the TLDs the rest of this site counts. None of these strings exists yet. Nothing on this page is a TLD, has a zone file, or has a domain registered under it, and the contested ones mostly never will.
Source: ICANN 2026 round application data
The round over time
One day of history so far. ICANN's application data is published as a live view that is overwritten in place — there is no archive and no change feed — so the record of what was withdrawn, and when, only exists if someone keeps it. This page starts keeping it today, and the chart appears once there is more than one point to draw.
Most contested strings
Strings with more than one live application. None can be delegated until the set resolves, by agreement between the applicants or at auction.
Largest applicants
By live applications filed. The round is far more concentrated than its application count suggests: the five largest applicants account for a large share of it between them.
What kind of string
ICANN's own designations, as filed. A brand application is for a registry that will not sell names to the public; the categories are not exclusive.
Where the applicants are
ICANN's five regions, by live applications and by how many organisations filed them.
Applications per applicant varies enormously by region: a handful of portfolio applicants in one jurisdiction can outweigh a hundred single-string applicants in another.
Applicants who already run TLDs
Applicants whose name matches a registry operator in our existing data, with the size of the estate they already hold. Matched on the exact organisation name, so this under-counts: several groups file under a different legal entity from the one that signed their 2012 agreements, and those are not linked here rather than linked on a guess.
| Applicant | 2026 applications | TLDs today | Existing estate |
|---|---|---|---|
| XYZ.COM LLC | 139 | 35 | registry page |
| Registry Services, LLC | 77 | 36 | registry page |
| Intercap Registry Inc. | 71 | 4 | registry page |
| Charleston Road Registry Inc. | 39 | 46 | registry page |
| Aruba PEC S.P.A. | 20 | 1 | registry page |
| Knock Knock WHOIS There, LLC | 16 | 1 | registry page |
| Cam Connecting SARL | 11 | 1 | registry page |
| Amazon Registry Services, Inc. | 8 | 51 | registry page |
| Public Interest Registry | 8 | 6 | registry page |
| Internet DotTrademark Organisation Limited | 7 | 2 | registry page |
| Elegant Leader Limited | 4 | 1 | registry page |
| Hong Kong Zhongze International Limited | 4 | 1 | registry page |
Flags ICANN has attached
Published alongside each application. These change as the round proceeds — an objection filed and later resolved comes off the application entirely upstream, so the dates below are recorded here rather than inferred later.
| Flag | Applications |
|---|---|
| Applicant Support | 68 |
| CoC Exemption | 10 |
| Variant Included | 7 |
| Variant Only (Existing TLD) | 6 |
| RVC | 5 |
| Reserved Name | 1 |
What happens next
- Evaluation
- Every application is reviewed against ICANN's string, technical and financial criteria. Applications that fail can be amended or withdrawn; those that pass move on.
- Objections and advice
- Governments may issue advice through the GAC, and third parties may object on string confusion, legal rights, community or public-interest grounds. Both appear here as flags on the application as they are published.
- Contention resolution
- The 263 contested strings must come down to one applicant each, by agreement or at auction. In 2012 this took years and produced the largest sums ever paid for a TLD — .web went for $135M.
- Contracting and delegation
- The survivor signs a registry agreement, passes pre-delegation testing, and enters the root. At that point the string becomes a TLD and starts appearing in the rest of this site: upcoming first, then the TLD data as soon as it has a zone.
Data currency. Domain counts on this page are from zone files dated and refresh daily. Registrar figures are from ICANN's monthly registry reports for June 2026, which ICANN publishes about three months in arrears; zone files contain no registrar information, so no fresher source exists. Full detail on methodology and live pipeline status.