Anyone who spends time browsing the internet will inevitably use URLs and domain names to navigate web pages. After all, they’re core parts of the internet structure. But not everyone knows what these two terms mean.
So, what are domain names and URLs? Simply put, they’re addresses for different locations on the internet—like the physical address of your home or apartment.
However, there is a subtle difference between domain names and URLs. If you’re a marketer or a business owner looking to grow or maintain an online presence, this is essential information to know.
Read on to learn the differences between a domain and a URL and why it matters.
What is a domain?
Websites and other locations on the internet are identified by a unique string of numbers called the IP address. The problem is that these seemingly random numbers are very difficult to remember and not very readable.
But thanks to the Domain Name System (DNS), commonly known as “the internet’s phonebook,” you don’t have to try. DNS records essentially remember websites’ IP addresses for you.
A domain name uses human-friendly text to represent an IP address. The DNS then translates the domain name into an IP address, which your web browser then uses to load your desired page.
A domain name like “www.apple.com” is way easier to remember than 17.254.0.91. Not only are domain names shorthand for IP addresses, but they’re also great for marketing.
There’s a hierarchical structure to a domain. Take our example, for instance. The “com” is the Top-Level Domain (TLD), while “apple” is the Second-Level Domain (SLD)—it lets your audience know who you are.
The “www” (short for World Wide Web) is the subdomain, which is basically a prefix that separates different parts of your website.
While the domain may not seem significant, it does make a big difference in marketing campaigns. Maintaining a branded custom domain in all your marketing efforts will enhance brand recognition and awareness.
What is a URL?
A Uniform Resource Locator (URL) is also a website address representing a specific IP address and location on the internet. However, it’s a more complete address of that location.
As touched on in the introduction, if the domain name is like your home’s physical address, the URL is a specific location within your house, like your kitchen or bedroom.
A URL locates specific pages or resources online by providing a unique address for each particular web page. It looks something like “https://www.example.com/glossaries” and consists of various components, including:
- Protocol: This is the “https”—it determines how a web browser and host transfer data.
- Domain: This is the “www.example.com”—it represents your unique website.
- Path: This is the “glossaries” section. It identifies the specific location of the resource you want to access.
Domain vs. URL: Key differences
An internet presence has become nearly essential for businesses that want to remain competitive. In fact, roughly 71% of small businesses have a website.
To stand out from your competitors, who are likely already on the internet, too, you need to know all that goes into creating an effective website. Part of this entails understanding domains and URLs.
By grasping their differences, you can run more effective online branding and digital marketing campaigns. You can also boost your search engine optimization (SEO) efforts, as well as the user experience. Let’s delve into the core differences between the two.
Structure
A domain name has two key parts separated by dots. They act as identifiers that describe the underlying website location, from the most specific (leftmost component) to the most general (rightmost component).
To help illustrate these parts, let’s use this domain: www.example.com
The rightmost part of the domain (.com) is the TLD, also called the domain extension. It can give context to the nature of the website. For instance, “.com” is short for “commercial,” which means the website is for commercial or general use.
Other popular extensions are “.edu” (for educational websites) and “.org” (for nonprofits). Domain extensions can also contain country codes, such as “.uk” (for the United Kingdom) and “.ca” (for Canada).
To the left of the TLD is the SLD or 2LD, which is commonly the name of the brand or organization. In our domain example, the 2LD is “example.”
Like the domain name, a URL has components that help describe the web location it’s pointing to. Let’s use the example:
http://www.example.com/category/page.html
The leftmost part of the URL identifies the protocol for communicating with the server. For web pages, it’s always “http://”—which stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol. Another common one you’ll encounter is “ftp://” or File Transfer Protocol, used for connecting to file servers.
Next is the domain, which we’ve already discussed. In our above example, it’s www.example.com.
URLs technically have to include a port number, which is the specific endpoint in the server your computer connects to. It comes right after the domain name, as in http://www.example.com:80. However, all web servers use port 80 when transferring web pages, so this is often omitted.
Last, you have the path, which specifies the exact location of the web page on the server. It comprises directories and subdirectories, much like a computer. In the above example, the path is “/category/page.html.” “Category” is the directory where the desired page—”page.html“—is located.
Functionality
In addition to varying structures, their role in your browsing experience also differs. A domain serves as a memorable address for a website, as it’s unique to each business. Customers typically input this into their browser address bars to find your website.
A URL, on the other hand, provides a direct path to your individual web pages. Unlike domains, URLs are long because they contain more components. Luckily, you can always shorten a URL to make it easier for customers to remember.
SEO implications
While both domains and URLs impact SEO, they do so in different ways. For optimal rankings, you need to ensure your domain is relevant to your website’s purpose. Ideally, you should maintain a branded short domain specific to your offerings, even when you shorten your URLs, for consistent branding and to boost recognition and traffic.
You can also modify your URLs to improve page-specific rankings. Rather than use generic phrases and numbers, you can include descriptive keywords in your links to make it easier for web crawlers and visitors to understand your pages’ content.
The more relevant your keywords are, the likelier your chances of high domain authority (DA). This metric predicts how a web page performs in the search engine result pages (SERPs).
Technical aspects
There are various technical differences between domains and URLs. The first involves how you create them. You can purchase and maintain domains through domain registrars, but it’s up to you, as the website owner, or your web developer to design and structure URLs.
The second difference lies in how they’re translated. Typically, the DNS translates domains into IP addresses, allowing browsers to load internet resources.
URLs are more complex—the DNS translation process is just one aspect. To retrieve internet resources, URLs must also have their protocols and paths processed by relevant servers and web applications.
User experience
Both components impact the user experience, but again, in different ways. To promote a user-friendly experience, you typically need to maintain a clear and memorable domain and well-structured and readable URLs. Here are some best practices to keep in mind:
- Choose a domain name relevant to your business—typically your business name.
- Use trusted TLDs, like .com.
- Add keywords related to your brand or offerings in your domain and URL.
- Avoid long URLs.
- Use hyphens to separate words or phrases in your URL for readability.
Branding and marketing
Many businesses overlook the benefits of domains and URLs in branding and marketing. But they can impact the success of your efforts.
For effective campaigns, your domain should reflect your business’s name—or at least give your audience an idea about your core business. On the other hand, your URL should be descriptive and highlight specific marketing messages or brand elements.
Practical tips for domains and URLs
Now that you know the differences between the two addresses, how do you create and maintain them to promote your online presence? Read on for some practical tips.
Choose the right domain name
There are over 628.5 million registered domain names across the internet. So, finding the right one for your website can be challenging—but not impossible.
Here are some tips:
- Go for something short and memorable.
- Choose a name that’s relevant to your brand.
- Add keywords strategically whenever possible. For example, if your shoe store’s name is “Fancy,” your domain could be “Fancykicks” or “Fancyfootwear.”
- Use common domain extensions like “.com,” “.co,” “.net,” “.org,” or even country-specific options like “.ca” to boost brand trust.
Structure URLs for better SEO
Your URL’s structure can determine your ranking. To help improve your visibility on results pages, structure your URLs for SEO by keeping them concise and descriptive.
Remember to add keywords without stuffing, use hyphens instead of underscores to separate words, and maintain a logical hierarchy in your path structure. This makes it easier for web crawlers to index your pages, which can result in higher rankings.
Keep URLs consistent
The last thing customers want is to keep up with constant changes to your URLs. It can get exhausting, even for your marketing team.
Strive for consistency in marketing materials, social media, and email campaigns, and double-check your URLs to ensure they’re correct across all mediums. Consistency can improve brand recognition and ultimately build trust.
Review and clean up URLs and domains
The key to maintaining relevant domains and URLs is constant monitoring. Schedule periodic assessments of your domain and URL structures to ensure they keep up with current best practices and remain relevant to your offerings.
Also, regularly clean up outdated URLs and consolidate content to minimize redundancy, improve site structure, and boost SEO efforts.
Solidify your online identity with the right URLs
Understanding the distinction between domains and URLs can help improve your online presence. You’ll better understand which aspects of your links to work on and how to improve them. Investing in relevant domains and descriptive URLs can enhance user experiences and support your SEO efforts.
With Bitly, you can improve your online identity with short descriptive URLs and branded custom domains. Our platform compresses long URLs into more manageable links that are easier to share across marketing mediums while letting you maintain your custom domain.
Improve your online presence with customized, branded domains and URLs—sign up for Bitly today!