How to choose a business domain name in Africa: .com or a country domain?

When you choose a business domain name in Africa, you are really making two decisions: the name itself, and the ending. The ending is either a global one such as .com, or a country one such as .ng, .co.ke, .co.za or .com.gh. Neither is wrong. The right one depends on who your customers are, how much paperwork you will accept, and whether you want your business email address to sound local or international.

This guide to how to choose a business domain name in Africa compares those five options using each registry’s own pages, read in October 2026, and says plainly where a page was silent or would not load. It is general information, not legal advice. Registry rules change, so check the registry’s current policy before you pay.

What you are choosing between

Before you choose a business domain name in Africa, it helps to know who runs the ending. A domain ending is run by a registry. Registries do not usually sell to you directly. You buy through an accredited registrar, which is a company licensed by the registry. The registry sets the rules, and the registrar sells the name and handles renewal.

Ending	Run by (per IANA)	Who it is for, per the registry’s own pages
.com	VeriSign Global Registry Services, a generic top-level domain	IANA lists it as generic. We did not read any eligibility rule that ties it to a country
.ng	Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NiRA)	NiRA’s policy says open endings such as .com.ng and .ng have no applicant restrictions, and closed endings such as .sch.ng and .edu.ng need documents. It publishes no price. See our .ng domain guide
.co.ke	Kenya Network Information Center (KeNIC)	KeNIC says .co.ke is for e-commerce sites, retail businesses and other commercial ventures. Registration goes through accredited registrars. The pages we read stated no ID, local presence or price rule
.co.za	ZA Domain Name Authority (ZADNA) for .za, with ZA Registry Consortium (ZARC) as operator of the commercial second levels	ZARC calls co.za, org.za, net.za and web.za the commercial second-level domains. The pages we read did not state who may register them
.com.gh	Network Computer Systems Limited, per IANA, registry at nic.gh	The registry policy requires the registrant and its administrative contact to be legal entities registered in Ghana

Everything in the third column, for anyone about to choose a business domain name in Africa, is the registry’s own wording or a close paraphrase. Where it says a page was silent, check with a registrar or the registry before you assume anything.

Choose a business domain name in Africa: the country domains

Nigeria: .ng

IANA lists the Nigeria Internet Registration Association as the sponsor for .ng, with nira.org.ng as the registry site. We read NiRA’s policy documents in October 2026. They put no restriction on who may register an open ending, and they publish no price, so ask a NiRA-accredited registrar for the first-year and renewal cost. Our article on the .ng domain goes into it.

Kenya: .co.ke

KeNIC lists .ke, .co.ke, .or.ke, .ne.ke, .go.ke, .me.ke, .mobi.ke, .info.ke, .sc.ke and .ac.ke. On its products page, it describes .co.ke as for e-commerce sites, retail businesses and other commercial ventures. It describes .or.ke as for not-for-profits, and .me.ke for personal sites. The government, school and higher-education endings (.go.ke, .sc.ke and .ac.ke) say supporting documents are required; for a commercial business, .co.ke is the one to look at. Registration, in KeNIC’s three steps, is to search for the name, register it through an accredited registrar and buy it. The pages did not publish a price list. See the .co.ke domain article.

South Africa: .co.za

ZADNA’s home page explains that .za names can only be registered under a second-level domain, such as co.za or net.za. ZARC’s site says it is the contracted registry operator for the commercial second-level domains co.za, org.za, net.za and web.za, and that it works through accredited registrars. Neither page we read set out who may register a co.za name. The .co.za domain article covers it further.

Ghana: .com.gh

The registry at nic.gh lists .com.gh, .biz.gh, .edu.gh, .net.gh, .org.gh, .gov.gh and mil.gh. It is the one registry here whose policy we could read in full. Its Domain Registration Policy, which the site lists as updated 1 February 2026, says:

• Registration must go through an accredited registrar.
• The registrant and the administrative contact must be legal entities duly registered in Ghana, and the administrative contact or its legal representative must be resident in Ghana.
• Valid company registration documents are part of the application.
• A name can be registered for up to 10 years.
• Names use letters, digits and hyphens only, cannot start or end with a hyphen, and cannot be only numbers. Names that violate an existing Ghanaian trademark are refused unless the owner consents.

If your company is not registered in Ghana, .com.gh is not an option when you choose a business domain name in Africa. See the .com.gh domain article.

How to choose a business domain name in Africa: five questions

These five questions help you choose a business domain name in Africa before you pay for anything.

1. Where are your customers? If most are in one country and you want a local signal, a country domain fits. If you sell across borders or abroad, .com is the more neutral choice.
2. Can you meet the registry’s rules? Ghana’s policy is the clearest example: no Ghana-registered entity, no .com.gh. Check the others before you set your heart on a name.
3. Who will manage it? A domain is a business asset. It should be registered to the company, with at least two people who can log in.
4. What will it look like in an email? Say “info at kestrel-logistics dot co dot ke” out loud. If it is awkward, choose a shorter name. The business email address format article helps with the part before the @.
5. Can you afford both? If the budget allows, register the one you will use, and consider also registering the other so nobody else takes it. Then point both to the same website and mailbox. Registrar prices vary, and none of the registry pages we read published one.

Choose a business domain name in Africa: naming rules that work in any country

These habits help with whichever ending you pick:

• Short and speakable. A name you can say in one breath is easier to give over the phone and fits better in a signature.
• No hyphens if you can avoid them. Hyphens are easy to forget when someone types your address.
• No numbers standing in for words. “4” for “for” invites typing mistakes.
• Check for trademark conflicts. Ghana’s policy mentions it, and it is sensible everywhere.
• Avoid the names of staff, products or places that might change.
• Write it down in lower case. Domains are not case sensitive, but a signature in mixed case, such as KestrelLogistics.com, is easier to read.

After you buy: three tasks that matter

Once you choose a business domain name in Africa and buy it, nothing happens until the name points at something. Three jobs follow, in this order:

1. Choose where the email will live. Zoho Mail, Google Workspace, Microsoft 365 and web-hosting email are the usual options. Our guide to setting up business email in Africa compares them.
2. Add the DNS records. The email provider gives you records to add at your registrar. Our article on SPF and DKIM setup covers the two that protect your mail from being marked as spam.
3. Put the domain in the signature. After you choose a business domain name in Africa, your email address and website in every signature should use the new domain. A shared design, as in emailfooter, means everyone’s signature changes at once when the domain does. The business email signature for Nigeria article shows a worked layout.

Here is a made-up Kenyan company signature that carries its new domain in the email address and website:

Example only. The company, person and number are made up.

Frequently asked questions

Should I choose a business domain name in Africa with .com or a country domain?

If you choose a business domain name in Africa for mostly local customers and can meet the registry’s rules, a country domain gives a local signal. If you sell abroad or want a neutral name, .com is simpler. Some businesses register both and point them to one site.

Can a foreign company choose a business domain name in Africa ending in .com.gh?

Ghana’s registry policy, which we read in October 2026, says the registrant and the administrative contact must be legal entities registered in Ghana, with an administrative contact resident in Ghana. Check the current policy before you apply.

To choose a business domain name in Africa for Kenya, is .co.ke the right ending?

KeNIC describes .co.ke as for e-commerce sites, retail businesses and other commercial ventures. It is the ending its own page points commercial sites to.

Do I need a domain name to have professional business email?

Yes. A business email address is built on a domain you own, such as name@yourcompany.com. A free Gmail address ends in gmail.com, not in your company name.

Where do I buy a country domain?

From an accredited registrar for that registry. KeNIC, ZARC and the Ghana registry each publish a list or describe the accreditation process on their own sites.