Get your .gov domain

Registering and managing your government domain name.

About .gov

The .gov registry program is the service where U.S. government entities — from federal agencies to local municipalities — can obtain and manage .gov domains. The program is managed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

Why .gov

  • Verifies an official U.S. government website
  • Helps the public identify official, trusted information
  • Governments at all levels are eligible for .gov domains

  • It's free!

Frequently asked questions

How much is a .gov domain?

Registering a .gov domain with the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency is free to all U.S. based government entities.

There is a one-time service fee for ProudCity DotGov set-up and configuration.

Who is eligible to receive a .gov domain?

  • Only U.S.-based government and public sector organizations are eligible to obtain a .gov domain.
  • This includes any federal, state, local, or territorial government entity, or other publicly controlled entity.
  • Also includes any tribal government recognized by the federal government or a state government.
  • Eligibility is determined by the DotGov Program, which will be informed by the United States Census Bureau’s criteria for classifying governments.

What are prohibitive activities of a .gov domain?

Commercial purposes

A .gov domain must not be used for commercial purposes, such as advertising benefitting private individuals or entities.

Political campaigns

A .gov domain must not be used for political campaign purposes.

Illegal content

A .gov domain must not be used to distribute or promote material whose distribution violates applicable law.

Malicious cyber activity

.gov is a trusted and safe space. .gov domains must not distribute malware, host open redirects, or otherwise engage in malicious cyber activity.

How do I check if the .gov domain I want is available?

Search for available .gov domains at the .gov domain name registration service website.

Who hosts the .gov domain name?

The Domain Name System (DNS) is an internet service that translates your domain name (i.e. yourname.gov) into an IP address. This makes it possible for people to access your website by typing in the domain name instead of the website’s IP address.

This is often done through your domain registrar, like GoDaddy or NameCheap. Since DotGov is managing the top level domain, local governments need to host their own DNS. We recommend CloudFlare for this because they are best in class and have a generous free tier that many of our customers find more than sufficient.

Who manages the .gov program?

The .gov program is managed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

What is the official website of the .gov program?

The official website of the .gov program is https://get.gov.

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