Domain zone

Register a .app domain

A .app address tells visitors right away that they are looking at software. Every site in the zone has to be served over HTTPS.

About .app

.app is a generic top-level domain that opened for general registration in 2018. It was one of the first zones where secure connections were built in at the top level: the entire zone is included in the HSTS preload list that ships with major browsers.

Its users are mostly app developers and product teams. A .app domain is a common home for the landing page of a mobile app, the web version of a service, a sign-up page linked from app stores, or a progressive web app that runs directly in the browser.

The best names here are the app's own name, ideally the one it carries in the store, so people searching for it land in the right place. Short verbs and two-word names like “plan.app” or “tidyhome.app” read naturally, because the ending already says what the product is.

Good for

Mobile app landing pages

A page with download links, screenshots and a privacy policy, under the same name the app has in the stores.

Web applications and PWAs

Services that run in the browser get an address that matches what they are, with HTTPS enforced from the first visit.

Product sign-in and dashboards

Teams often put the app itself on .app and keep marketing pages on another domain, so users always know where to sign in.

Registering a .app domain

Anyone can register a .app name; there are no requirements for the owner.
The whole .app zone is on the HSTS preload list: browsers open .app sites only over HTTPS, so a valid SSL certificate is required before the site will load.
Plain HTTP links to a .app address are switched to HTTPS by the browser automatically, and there is no option to click through a certificate error.
The HTTPS rule affects websites only; email, API calls from your own code and other DNS records work as on any domain.

With every domain at Rivervo

DNS management in the Rivervo panel
WHOIS privacy free where the zone allows it
Point it at Rivervo hosting or any other server
Renewal reminders before it expires

Questions about .app

Browsers know in advance that every .app domain must use HTTPS and refuse to load it without a valid certificate. Install a certificate on the server the domain points to — a free Let's Encrypt one is enough.

No. Nothing is checked, and the domain can host any kind of site. In practice it makes the most sense for software, because visitors will expect one.

Yes. The HTTPS requirement applies to websites opened in a browser, not to mail. Add MX records in the DNS zone and the domain can receive email like any other.