.com vs .it vs .eu: which domain to use when you sell in Italy and Europe
If your customers are in Italy or across Europe, .com isn't your only option. Who can own a .com, a .it or a .eu (a US company can't hold a .it directly), what each one tells customers, how Google reads them, and a simple rule for choosing.
For most American businesses the domain question has one answer: get the .com. It gets harder when your customers are in Italy or spread across Europe. Maybe you import Italian wine, run a fashion label with a Milan showroom, or sell software to European companies. Then a country-code domain like .it, or the European .eu, starts to look attractive. This guide compares .com vs .it vs .eu: who can own each one, what each says to customers, what Google does with them, and how to choose.
.com vs .it vs .eu at a glance
| .com | .it | .eu | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Verisign, under ICANN rules | Registro .it (CNR, Pisa) | EURid |
| Who can own it | anyone, anywhere | people and organizations based in the EEA, the UK, Switzerland, San Marino or Vatican City | residents and organizations in the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway, plus their citizens living anywhere |
| Can a US company own it? | yes | not directly | not directly |
| What it tells visitors | international, or American | Italian business, Italian product | European business |
| Short, meaningful names left | almost none | few | some |
The eligibility rules come straight from the registries: Registro .it for .it and EURid for .eu. A .com has no residency requirement at all.
Why .com is still the default for US businesses
When people can't remember a web address, they try the .com. Email addresses, business cards and voice assistants all assume it. That's why .com and .net together hold 179.1 million registrations, according to Verisign's Domain Name Industry Brief for the second quarter of 2026. The downside: nearly every short, meaningful .com was registered decades ago, so a good one usually has to be bought from its current owner.
When a .it domain makes sense
A .it is the address an Italian customer types first. It says "we're here", and for a business that sells mostly in Italy it's the natural choice. It also works as a selling point abroad when the product is Italian: food, wine, fashion, design, travel. To an American shopper, a .it on an olive oil brand reads as "the real thing".
The flip side: outside Italy, .it reads as "Italian website". That's a plus for Italian products and a minus for software or services where origin doesn't matter.
Can a US company own a .it domain?
Not directly. The Registro .it only accepts registrants with citizenship, residence or a registered office in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, San Marino or Vatican City. A company incorporated in Delaware or California doesn't qualify on its own. You have two ways in:
- An Italian or European entity: a subsidiary, branch or partner company in the EEA, the UK or Switzerland can be the registrant. This is the clean option, because the domain belongs to your group.
- A trustee service: some registrars hold the .it in their own name on your behalf. It works, but legally the domain isn't yours, which is a risk for a main brand.
This is why the .it domains in our catalog mostly go to Italian businesses, while our .com domains can be registered in your name wherever your company is based.
When a .eu domain makes sense
A .eu says "European company" without picking a country. It fits businesses selling across several EU markets, especially B2B, logistics and consulting. Two limits: it's little known in the US, and a US company can't register one without a European entity. One exception worth knowing: a citizen of an EU country can register a .eu wherever they live, so an Italian-born founder in New York qualifies.
Do country-code domains help SEO?
Google calls a country-code domain "a strong signal to both users and search engines" that a site targets a specific country, in its guide to multi-regional sites. The same guide lists the trade-off: a ccTLD targets one country only. If you sell in several markets, a single .com with country folders (example.com/it/, example.com/de/) and hreflang tags is simpler to run and can rank in each country. Pick the structure for your customers, not for a ranking trick.
A simple rule for choosing
- Your customers are mostly in the US or worldwide: .com as your main domain. Add a .it only if you have an Italian entity and an Italian audience.
- Italy is a main market and you have an Italian entity: .it for the Italian site, .com for everyone else, same name on both.
- You sell to businesses in several EU countries: .com with country folders, or .eu if you have a European entity.
- You sell an Italian product in the US: .com for the US store, and let the Italian story live in your content.
Whatever you pick, use the same name on every extension you own, and redirect the extras to your main site. Some names in our catalog come as a bundle, the .com and the .it together at a lower combined price; if there's a pair you want, ask us for a price.
The name matters more than the extension
Choose the name first: short, easy to say, no hyphens, connected to what you do. A great name on .it beats a forgettable one on .com.
What each extension costs to keep
Yearly renewal prices vary by registrar, but the scale is steady: a .com or a .it costs roughly €10–€20 a year, and a .eu is often cheaper. On SeeURL the first year of renewal for the domain and its DNS is included in the price. Prices are in euros (EUR) and include 22% Italian VAT; businesses outside Italy with a VAT or tax ID pay no VAT (details in our VAT guide). We own every domain we sell, so there's no broker and no commission in between.
Made your choice? See .com domains for sale, .it domains or .eu domains. Not sure? Call +39 02 500 427 87, Monday–Friday 9 AM–7 PM and Saturday 9 AM–4 PM, Italian time (CET/CEST).