.ru and .rf domain zones: Number of owners growing faster than number of sites

13:28 / 16.07.2026·25·Technology

An interesting trend is being observed in the Russian segment of national domain zones — .ru and .rf addresses. According to the results of the first half of 2026, the number of domain owners (administrators) in these zones has increased much faster than the number of directly registered sites. This situation is explained by the activation of new market participants and changing requirements for digital identification. This is reported by Ixbt.com reports .

According to the Kommersant newspaper, citing data from the Coordination Center for .RU/.RF domains, the number of domains in the .ru zone reached 6.1 million in the first six months of this year. Although 81.5 thousand new addresses were added within half a year, the growth rate slowed down to 1.3% compared to the same period last year. Conversely, growth in the Cyrillic .rf zone accelerated, with the total number of domains reaching 803 thousand.

A sharp jump in the number of administrators

Statistical analysis shows that the number of individuals and legal entities owning domains is growing at a much higher rate. Specifically, the number of administrators in the .ru zone increased by 188.6 thousand (+9.15%), and in the .rf zone by 34.3 thousand (+10.28%). Experts believe that these new registrations are not due to the expansion of large domain portfolios, but rather due to the entry of new entrepreneurs into the market.

Several factors are causing these changes:

Preparation for new legal requirements regarding ownership identification;
Small and medium-sized businesses reserving separate addresses for their brands;
The practice of creating special domains for specific marketing campaigns and short-term projects.

These processes are also significant for users and entrepreneurs in Uzbekistan. For local exporters and IT specialists collaborating with the Russian internet segment (Runet), the fact that short and memorable addresses in the .ru zone are becoming scarce, while the .rf zone offers a wider range of choices, serves as an important signal.

Growing interest in Cyrillic domains

The acceleration of growth rates in the .rf zone is linked to the development of online stores in the Russian language. Since Cyrillic addresses are understandable and easy to remember for the local audience, many companies are reserving space in this zone in addition to their main sites.

At the same time, the slowdown in growth in the .ru zone is explained by market saturation. The most attractive and short domains have already been taken, forcing new users to choose alternative zones or longer names. In the future, the increase in the number of domain owners indicates that competition among entities providing services in the digital economy will intensify further.