.chic
Is .chic a real TLD? Who’s applying to run it?
.chic is not contested. One application for it is on ICANN’s Reveal Day list, as of 7 October 2026. It is Phoenix Domain Partners. Radix named .chic as a backup string for its .atelier application. ICANN deactivated it, because another applicant applied for the same string or named it as a backup.
A stylish word for fashion and lifestyle sites, but few serious brands would make it their main web address.
fashion boutiques, beauty and lifestyle creators, and style-focused e-commerce shops wanting an evocative secondary address or campaign domain
One of 13 strings Phoenix Domain Partners published as applied-and-paid in the ICANN 2026 round, reported by Domain Name Wire on 2026-08-17.
Named on the ICANN gTLD application list, 7 October 2026 as a replacement (backup) string of the applicant's .atelier application, shown as deactivated: another applicant applied for the same string or named it as a backup
The 2012 applications making the most similar bet. Chosen by AI from every string in that round, without being told what happened to any of them.
Same bet almost exactly: a short French-derived aspirational aesthetic adjective a boutique or salon claims about itself rather than a category it belongs to, monetized as a premium vanity descriptor rather than a volume registry.
Same job and same buyer, a fashion/aesthetic quality word sold to apparel, beauty and interiors businesses as self-description, working only if registrants will define themselves by a vibe instead of by what they sell.
Also a bare desirability adjective the registrant asserts about itself with connotation carrying the whole sale, though its edgier register recruits nightlife and adult-adjacent buyers rather than chic's boutique-fashion crowd.
What a .chic domain is
.chic is not a TLD yet. It is a string on our record of the ICANN 2026 new gTLD round, filed under Culture. One application for it is on ICANN’s Reveal Day list.
Is the .chic domain extension real yet?
.chic is not yet a domain extension you can register: nothing resolves under it, and no registrar sells names in it. It is a string applicants have put forward in the ICANN 2026 new gTLD round, the process that decides whether it becomes one.
When can you buy a .chic domain?
You can’t yet. A .chic name can only be registered once the string is delegated (added to the DNS root) and its registry opens. Last round's closest parallel to .chic was .luxe, delegated on 15 May 2014.
Is .chic a real TLD?
Not yet. .chic is not in the DNS root, so nothing resolves under it. It’s here because .chic is on ICANN’s Reveal Day list of applied-for strings. Every entry on this page links to its source.
- Radix · first recordedICANN
- Phoenix Domain Partners · now confirmedICANN
- Phoenix Domain Partners · first recordedDomain Name Wire
“MLG2688T-T65329 · 101130013 Saskatchewan Ltd. · primary RTIS2674T-T81788 · Radix Technologies Inc SEZC · replacement string of .atelier · Deactivated”ICANN
“MLG2688T-T65329 · 101130013 Saskatchewan Ltd. · primary”ICANN
“Phoenix Domain Partners published 13 strings for which it says it has applied and paid the application fees.”Domain Name Wire
- Band 10-29 (vanity/narrow), near its top. By analogy — flagged as such — adjective and style-adjacent TLDs like .style, .fashion, .boutique, .cool, and .sexy have seen thin adoption: registrations driven by promotions, little sustained primary-identity use, and shallow aftermarkets, which suggests .chic would follow the same path. It is not in the 30-49 band because there is no evidence of volume demand for style adjectives even on price, and fashion brands overwhelmingly anchor on .com or their own brand TLDs; it is above the 1-9 band because the word is short, positive, works in both English and French, and plausibly attracts boutique and creator vanity registrations. Main market uncertainty: whether the fashion/beauty creator economy shifts toward descriptive TLDs for primary identity at all in the next 5 years — if it does, an evocative adjective like .chic could outperform this estimate. Applicant fact (neutral): Phoenix Domain Partners reported it applied and paid fees for 13 strings in the ICANN 2026 round, per Domain Name Wire on 2026-08-17; no per-string details were published, so operator go-to-market plans are unknown.