Also called second-level domain
SLD, explained
Some country extensions add a fixed second level, as in .co.uk or .com.au. There, co or com is technically the second level, and the name you register sits at the third. The UK and Australian registries now also accept direct registrations such as example.uk or example.au, which put the registrant's label back at the second level. Anything added to the left of a registered name, such as shop.example.com, is a subdomain the owner creates freely.
Investors analyze the SLD separately from the extension. The same string usually commands the most in .com, and the number of other extensions in which it is already registered, a figure many drop-list tools display, is a rough demand signal. When comparing sales, compare like with like: length, real words, spelling and commercial meaning. A strong SLD in a weak extension and a weak SLD in .com are different problems: the first is capped by the extension, the second by the string.
Example. In shop.example.co.uk, uk is the top-level domain, co is the second level, example is the registered third-level label and shop is a subdomain.
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