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.ad or .com domain: which suits an Andorran company

Criteria for choosing between .ad and .com: audience, local trust, SEO on Google, availability and brand protection, with the official .ad requirements.

Published By BDR Group7 min read

For most Andorran companies, the safest option is to register both: the .com as the main one if you have customers outside Andorra, or the .ad if the business is local, with the other redirected to protect the brand. For Google, the .ad gives no automatic ranking advantage: it treats it as a generic domain.

What you need to know about .ad today

The .ad is Andorra’s official domain and is managed by Andorra Telecom as the registry operator. The general regulation governing the registry was approved by the Govern on 20 March 2024 and has been in force since 22 May 2024. According to the registry, the .ad is open: any individual or legal entity can register an available .ad domain name, without having to demonstrate any specific right or hold an Andorran trademark or trade name. Applications are handled automatically, on a first-come basis, without prior validation.

There are practical conditions. The registry does not register directly: you have to go through an accredited registrar, which sets the final price. Domains are registered for annual periods of 1 to 10 years. And the name must comply with the regulation: it must be generally accepted as legitimate, must not harm the image of Andorra and must be proportionate to what it designates, and the use must be in good faith. Geographic names of the territory, emblematic places and names of public institutions can only be registered by Andorran public institutions (Article 7). You can use Catalan characters (à, ç, è, é, í, ï, l·l, ò, ó, ú, ü), up to 63 characters, and the name cannot start or end with a hyphen.

If you have a .ad from before June 2024, the registry explains that it must be assigned to an accredited registrar; the deadline it gives was June 2026. Check who appears as registrar in WHOIS (whois.nic.ad).

Audience and local trust

The .ad says "Andorra" in two letters, and that has value for a business that sells to residents: a shop, a restaurant, a professional firm or a clinic. The .com is what a foreign customer types by default. We have not found reliable public data measuring whether users trust a .ad more than a .com, so this is a branding criterion, not a matter of evidence.

Think about who will write to you and who will find you. A hotel or a ski resort serving tourists from abroad, a company that exports or a website in four languages avoid confusion by using a .com. A gestoría (administrative and tax advisory firm) or a shop that mainly serves the Principality can solve it with the .ad.

International SEO: what Google says

Google explains that country-code domains (ccTLDs) are a strong signal of the country a website targets. There is, however, an exception that directly affects the .ad: Google treats some ccTLDs as generic, and the .ad is on its list (documentation updated 10 December 2025). For the search engine, a website on .ad has no more geographic signal than a .com.

For a generic domain, Google says you need to indicate the country with other signals: local language and currency, the address and telephone number on the site, links from other local websites, the Business Profile and, on sites with several versions, hreflang annotations and separate URLs per language. Server location is a signal, but not a decisive one. The old method of setting the country in Search Console is no longer supported: Google stopped offering it.

Practical conclusion: ranking depends on content, local signals and the business profile. The .ad, on its own, neither raises nor lowers you.

Availability, changing domain and email

First check the availability of both names. If the .com you want is already taken, a free .ad is a good way out, but check that it cannot be confused with another brand. Changing domain later is costly in work: you have to 301-redirect all the old addresses to the new ones (the method Google recommends for permanent changes) and change the email addresses. Decide from the start which one will be the main one.

Protecting the brand: register both

Because the .ad is open to anyone, anywhere, and names are assigned on a first-come basis, if you do not register your .ad someone else can. The registry has a dispute resolution policy (PRDad), but it is simpler and cheaper to register it than to have to claim it. If you have a main .com, also register the .ad; if the main one is the .ad, register the .com. Make the secondary redirect to the main one with a 301 redirect, and switch on automatic renewal so you do not lose it through oversight.

Typical situations

These are examples, not real cases.

  • A shop or restaurant in Andorra la Vella serving mainly residents and tourists in the country: .ad as the main domain is coherent; the .com redirects.
  • A hotel taking direct bookings from tourists from France, Spain and the United Kingdom: .com as main; .ad redirected.
  • A Catalan company with a subsidiary in Andorra: the group’s .com as main; the .ad serves a section or website for Andorra with local content, telephone and address.
  • A professional firm or clinic in Andorra: .ad or .com depending on whether the clients are in the Principality or elsewhere; in both cases, also register the other one.

Our interest in this topic

BDR Group appears on the registry’s list of accredited .ad registrars, and Hosting Andorra offers registration of .ad, .com, .cat, .es and .net domains, so we have an interest in this decision. We give no prices here, because each registrar sets its own and they change: compare them before deciding.

What to do now

  1. Decide which will be the main domain according to who needs to find you: residents of Andorra or people from outside.
  2. Check the availability of both names (the .ad at whois.nic.ad) before printing anything.
  3. Register both and make the secondary one redirect to the main one with a 301.
  4. If you have a website in several languages, add hreflang, a local address and telephone number, and a business profile.
  5. Note the renewal date, switch on automatic renewal and check that the domain’s contact email works.

Frequently asked questions

Can a .ad be registered from outside Andorra?

Yes. The registry states that any individual or legal entity can register an available .ad name, as long as they comply with the usage rules and go through an accredited registrar.

Do I need a company or a trademark in Andorra?

No. The registry says the domain is open without having to demonstrate a specific right and without any requirement for an Andorran trademark or trade name.

Does the .ad rank better in Andorra?

Not automatically. Google treats the .ad as a generic domain, so local ranking depends on other signals: content, language, address and telephone number, local links and business profile.

How long does a .ad take to activate?

According to the registry, it depends on the registrar, but it is normally operational a few minutes after the registration is completed.

Sources

Want to register or protect your domain?

If you want to register the .ad, the .com or both, or check who holds your name, start with Hosting Andorra: hostingandorra.com

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