.africa
.africa is a generic extension, run by ZA Central Registry NPC trading as Registry.Africa since 2017. Anyone can register a .africa name through a registrar that sells it.
| Type | Generic |
|---|---|
| Registry operator | ZA Central Registry NPC trading as Registry.Africa |
| Who can register | Anyone |
| In the root zone since | 15 February 2017 |
| DNSSEC | Signed |
| RDAP server | https://rdap.nic.africa/rdap/ |
| WHOIS server | whois.nic.africa |
| IANA record | iana.org/domains/root/db/africa |
Registrars that sell .africa
| Integrated | |
| Integrated | |
| Integrated | |
| Integrated | |
| Integrated | |
| Integrated | |
| Integrated | |
| Integrated | |
| Blocked |
From the list of domain registrars. Other registrars may sell it too.
Look up a .africa domain
The .africa registry publishes registration data over RDAP. The free domain report reads it and shows a .africa domain's registrar, dates, status and DNS in one place. For the raw record, use the WHOIS lookup.
New to extensions? The guide to how domain extensions work covers generic, country-code and brand extensions. For who sells extensions in general, see the list of domain registrars.
Sources: the IANA root zone database and the ICANN list of generic extensions (refreshed 2026-10-24). Something out of date? Tell us.
Frequently asked questions
Who runs the .africa extension?
ZA Central Registry NPC trading as Registry.Africa is the registry operator for .africa. The registry keeps the list of every .africa name; registrars sell the names to the public.
Can anyone register a .africa domain?
Yes. Anyone can register a .africa name through a registrar that sells it.
When was .africa created?
.africa was added to the DNS root zone on 15 February 2017, according to IANA.
How do I look up who owns a .africa domain?
The .africa registry publishes registration data over RDAP at https://rdap.nic.africa/rdap/ and over WHOIS at whois.nic.africa. The free domain report on lemon.domains reads it for you and shows the registrar, dates and status.
Is .africa signed with DNSSEC?
Yes. The .africa zone is signed, so a .africa domain can turn on DNSSEC once its registrar adds a DS record.