.studio is an open extension for any business that works from, or calls itself, a studio: designers, photographers, yoga teachers, musicians, tattoo artists and architects among them. Because so many studios already have that word in their trading name, the domain often reads exactly as the business is known.
PD Hosting is a UK registrar based in London. We register your .studio straight after checkout, put it in your client area with DNS ready to edit, and remind you before each renewal.
Per year. Compare every extension on our domain pricing page.
What is a .studio domain?
- Type
- A generic top-level domain, contracted with ICANN in February 2015, with open registration for lawful registrants. Source
- Registry
- Identity Digital, through Dog Beach, LLC. It was launched by United TLD Holdco and transferred in June 2021. Source
- Added to the internet
- Delegated on 6 July 2015. Source
- Who may register
- Anyone. The registry has committed not to limit eligibility by identity or to the most common meaning of the word. Source
- Email verification
- The registrar must verify the owner's email address after registration and after contact changes, or suspend the name. Source
- Registration data
- Personal details of owners are redacted from public lookups under ICANN policy. Source
- Transfers
- A .studio moves to another registrar with a transfer authorisation code issued by the current one. Source
- Lapsed names
- Renewal notices are required before expiry; a deleted name can be redeemed for 30 days before release. Source
Facts checked against the registry on 9 November 2026.
Who a .studio domain suits
The word covers more trades than almost any other extension. A Brighton branding agency called Saltwater Studio, a Pilates studio in Harrogate, a wedding photographer working from a converted barn, a recording studio in Manchester, a ceramics workshop that runs evening classes, a tattoo parlour, an architecture practice and a game developer can all use it, and each is understood at once. saltwater.studio is shorter than saltwaterstudio.co.uk and reads the way people already say the name.
It also works for individuals. Illustrators, animators, 3D artists and freelance designers often present themselves as a one-person studio, and a portfolio at yourname.studio sounds more established than a page on a social platform. Agencies use it for side projects, and larger companies for an in-house creative team that needs its own identity.
- A portfolio for a designer, illustrator or photographer
- Class timetables and bookings for yoga, Pilates or dance studios
- A recording or rehearsal studio's booking site
- The website of a design, architecture or branding studio
- A games studio's home page and press kit
- Email for the whole team, such as [email protected]
Benefits of a .studio domain
Says what you do
Visitors know before the page loads that they've reached a creative or class-based business, which helps when your name alone doesn't explain it.
Shortens studio names
If your business is already called Something Studio, the extension carries the second word, so the address is shorter and matches your sign.
Fits many trades
Few extensions work equally well for a fitness instructor, a sound engineer and an architect. If your business moves between disciplines, the domain moves with it.
Ready for bookings and mail
DNS is included, so you can connect a booking system, a portfolio host and your email provider to the same name without extra charges from us.
Choosing a .studio name people will remember
Studios are usually found by word of mouth, a sign outside or a social profile, so the domain has to survive being said aloud and read on a flyer. A few rules of thumb help.
Let the extension do the work. If you trade as Fern Studio, register fern.studio rather than fernstudio.studio. The repetition looks like a typing error and adds six characters for nothing.
Add the trade when the name is ambiguous. "Studio" can mean photography, music, fitness or design, so if your name doesn't make the trade clear, a short qualifier can: fernyoga.studio or fernsound.studio. If you are rooted in one town, a place name works too, as in bathpottery.studio.
Say it aloud before you buy. Read the full address over the phone to a friend. If they type .co.uk out of habit, or can't spell the first part, choose something plainer. Avoid hyphens where you can, because people forget them.
Protect the obvious variants. Many customers will still guess a .co.uk first. If the matching .co.uk or .com is free, registering it and redirecting it to your .studio costs a little each year and stops lost visitors. Keep the same name on your signage, social profiles and Google listing, so people meet one consistent address everywhere.
Think about email from day one. An address like [email protected] is short and memorable, but it needs proper setup. Point the domain's MX records at your mailbox provider and add SPF, DKIM and DMARC records, so your booking confirmations and invoices reach clients' inboxes rather than their spam folders.
.studio pros and cons
Works well if
- Your trading name already ends in Studio
- You run a creative, recording or class-based business people visit in person
- You want a portfolio address that sounds established
- The .com or .co.uk of your name has gone
Look elsewhere if
- Your customers search for a local tradesperson and expect a .co.uk: make that your main address and redirect the .studio
- Your business isn't a studio in any sense: a misleading ending causes more confusion than a longer .co.uk
- You want the lowest running cost: renewal sits above the introductory first-year price, so compare it with a .uk
.studio compared with similar extensions
| Extension | Best for | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| .studio | Creative, recording and fitness studios | Open to anyone; often mirrors the trading name. |
| .design | Designers and design agencies | Narrower meaning, aimed squarely at design work. |
| .co.uk | UK studios with local customers | The address British clients guess first. |
| .productions | Film, video and event production companies | Suits project-based output rather than a place. |
Register your .studio domain
- Search for the name you want below.
- Add it to your basket and choose how many years to register it for.
- Check out. Your domain is registered straight away and appears in your client area, ready to point at your website and email.
Every domain includes DNS management, DNS backup and restore, and free mail forwarding.
.studio questions
What kinds of business use a .studio address?
Any business or person that works as a studio: design and branding agencies, photographers, recording studios, yoga and Pilates teachers, tattoo artists, architects, game developers and illustrators. It's a generic extension, so there's no rule about what kind of studio you must be.
Do I have to run a real studio to register one?
Anyone, in any country. The registry's agreement with ICANN commits it to open registration, so you don't need to prove you run a studio. You do need accurate contact details, because we verify the owner's email address.
Will a .studio rank lower in Google than a .co.uk?
Not because of the extension. Google treats new generic extensions like .com, and keywords in the extension give no advantage or disadvantage. A .co.uk does carry a UK signal, which matters most for local businesses, but your content, reviews and business listing count for far more.
Should I get .studio or .co.uk for my studio?
If your name is free in both, many studios hold both: the .co.uk for customers who guess it, the .studio for a shorter address that matches the sign. Use one as the main site and redirect the other to it.
What does a .studio cost from the second year?
From the second year onwards a .studio is £51.95 annually, which is above the first-year offer. We send reminders ahead of the date, and you can renew for several years in one go.
Why did I get an email asking me to confirm my details?
ICANN requires us to confirm that the owner's email address works whenever a .studio is registered or its contact details change. Click the link within the time stated; an owner who doesn't confirm will find the domain suspended until they do.
My studio's domain is with another provider. Can I move it to you?
Yes. Get the transfer authorisation code from your current registrar, make sure the domain is unlocked, and start a transfer with us. Your website and email keep working as long as the DNS settings are carried across.
Sources: IANA .studio delegation record · ICANN .studio registry agreement · ICANN 2013 RAA, WHOIS Accuracy Program Specification · Google on new top-level domains · ICANN Expired Registration Recovery Policy
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