What is a .gg domain, and who can register one?

Guernsey, the island behind .gg

Guernsey is the main island of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown Dependency in the Channel Islands. The Bailiwick also includes Alderney, Herm, Jethou, Brecqhou and Sark. Guernsey governs itself and is not part of the United Kingdom.

The code .gg entered the internet's root on 7 August 1996. Two people lobbied for it: Nigel Roberts, who lives in Alderney, and his colleague Laurie Brown. The Crown Dependencies were first meant to sit under .uk, and the pair argued that each deserved its own ending. They also secured .je for Jersey and .im for the Isle of Man, according to the Bailiwick Express. In those years registration meant faxed forms, postal invoices and cheques.

IANA lists Island Networks Ltd as the sponsoring organization of .gg, with Nigel Roberts as administrative contact at an address in Alderney.

Gaming came later and by accident. Because gg is shorthand for good game, gamers, streamers and esports teams adopted the ending, and the Bailiwick Express calls that popularity unplanned. The result is an unusual mix: an island registry in a Crown Dependency, selling to a worldwide gaming audience. The ending stays under Guernsey's rules, and names that break the laws of the British Islands are not allowed.

Who uses .gg, and why?

Gaming is the main reason. In many games players type gg at the end of a match, so players, streamers, clans, studios and tool makers use the ending. Discord uses discord.gg for its server invite links. The Bailiwick Express's anniversary article in August 2026 also names fortnite.gg among gaming sites on the extension.

Guernsey uses it too. The island's government services are at gov.gg, and food.gg takes food orders, according to the same article. So a .gg name can speak to gamers, to Guernsey locals, or to both.

Because the ending is popular, short and common-word names are often taken. Try several candidates in the search above. If you need your own name out of public lookups, read the rules below first: .gg has no WHOIS privacy service, and the optional Domain protection is the way to keep your name out of the record.

.gg rules: who can register, privacy and refusals

Who can register. Anyone, first come first served. OpenSRS says no local presence is needed, and GoDaddy says anyone can register.

Email check. The registrant email must be verified to activate the domain. If it is not, the domain is suspended and then deleted by the registry.

Privacy. No WHOIS privacy or proxy service is available for .gg, so registrant details can appear in public lookups. The optional Domain protection registers the domain in our company name instead.

Terms. We sell .gg one year at a time. Sources disagree on the registry's maximum term, from one year to ten, so we promise no longer term. A transfer in adds one year.

Refusals and content. The registry terms let Island Networks refuse an application. Names contrary to the laws of the British Islands are prohibited.

Registration time. Registrars quote anything from real time to one day. We do not promise an instant registration.

Late renewals. A .gg runs on a continuing contract rather than a fixed expiry date. If unpaid, a short redemption period follows, which Gandi lists as 12 days at the registrar and 12 at the registry. Registrars differ, so renew early.

Premium names. The registry prices some names higher; see why some .gg names cost more.