Website language and country data
Where is a website based, who reads it, and in which language? These look like simple questions, yet each has traps. This guide explains how country is attached to domains, how language differs, and how to use both for targeting, research and security.
Country and language are different questions
People often treat them as one field. Keeping them apart avoids most of the errors in market lists, because the overlap is large in some markets and small in others.
Country
- Where the site, or the business behind it, is based.
- Or the market where most of its visitors are.
- Drives legal context, currency and campaign markets.
- One site usually has one main country, or none.
Language
- The language of the text on the pages.
- One site can offer several languages.
- Drives which readers can use the site.
- Crosses borders freely, especially English and Spanish.
What our database carries: a country for each domain where one can be attributed, a country level popularity band, and a global popularity band. Language is best handled by combining country and domain ending with your own page checks, as described below.
Why domain endings mislead
A country code ending looks like a free country label. It helps, but it is only one hint, and the most common endings carry no country at all. Our top level domains list shows how domains spread across endings.
| Ending pattern | What it suggests | Why it can mislead |
|---|---|---|
| Generic, such as .com, .net, .org | Nothing about country. | By far the largest group. Sites in every country use them. |
| Country code used locally, such as .de, .fr, .pl | A strong hint of that country. | Foreign companies also register local endings for local sites. |
| Country code used as a word, such as .io, .co, .tv, .ai, .me | Very little. | These are marketed worldwide for their meaning, not their country. |
| Second level local, such as .co.uk or .com.br | A strong hint of that country. | Still used by international brands for local sites. |
| Regional, such as .eu or .asia | A region, not a country. | Needs other signals to narrow down. |
| Newer generic endings, such as .shop or .online | Nothing about country. | Popular with small and new sites worldwide. |
In our data, .com alone covers a large share of all domains, and the next biggest ending is .de. A filter on endings alone would miss most sites in almost every market.
How country is attached to a website
Country attribution weighs several kinds of evidence, then leaves the field empty when they disagree or are too thin. Our country labels are attributed from site content and popularity among real users, then reviewed and validated.
Business details on the site
Addresses, phone formats, company registration details and legal notices point to where a business is based.
Where real users are
Popularity among real users in each country shows which market a site actually serves, whatever its ending.
Currency and prices
Prices in a local currency and local delivery terms tell you which market a shop is selling into.
Domain ending
Used as supporting evidence, weighted by how locally each ending is used in practice.
Language of the content
Helpful for single language markets, weak for English, Spanish or other languages spoken across many countries.
When to leave it empty
Global platforms, sites built for many markets and thin sites often have no single country. An empty field is better than a guess.
Country popularity bands
Knowing a site's country is half the picture. The other half is how much it matters there. A country level popularity band places a domain among the most visited sites in that country, separate from its global position.
Local leaders
A regional news site may be modest worldwide but among the top sites in its own country. Country bands surface it for local campaigns.
Global giants
Large platforms rank highly in many countries at once. Country bands show where they are strongest.
Long tail
Most domains do not reach any popularity band. They still carry categories, so niche lists can include them where useful.
Ranking within a list
Sort a country list by band to put the most visited sites first, which helps sales teams and media planners start with what matters.
For global positions, see our top websites ranking. For the most visited sites per topic, see top 100 websites by category.
The largest country groups in our data
Among domains with a country attributed, these are the ten largest groups, in order. The ranking reflects how many registered and active sites each market has, not only population.
Why Germany leads: German sites use the local .de ending very heavily, so country is easier to attribute there. Many US sites sit on generic endings with fewer local clues, so the United States group is likely understated compared with its true web presence.
Multilingual markets need extra care
In these markets, country alone does not tell you the language. Lists for a single language group need page level checks or local knowledge on top of the country field.
Switzerland
Many Swiss sites offer several languages. A campaign for French speaking Switzerland needs a language check per site.
Belgium
Regional media and services split by language, while national brands run both main languages side by side.
Canada
Quebec focused sites are often French only, while national sites offer both. Country alone mixes the two audiences.
India
English dominates many business sites, while news and entertainment run in Hindi and many regional languages.
Spanish speaking world
Spanish language sites serve readers in Spain, Latin America and the United States. Country separates the markets that language joins.
English language web
English sites exist in almost every country. For English campaigns, country is the field that keeps a list on target.
Building a market list step by step
A practical sequence for media planners, sales teams and researchers who need sites for one market or one language.
Filter by country
Start with every domain attributed to the target country. This catches local sites on generic endings that an ending filter would miss.
Add local endings with no country
Add domains on the country's own ending where the country field is empty, as candidates for review rather than confirmed members.
Narrow by category
Apply the IAB or web filtering categories that match your topic. See database of websites by category for the full approach.
Rank by country popularity
Sort by the country level band so the most visited local sites come first, then decide how deep into the long tail to go.
Check language where it matters
In multilingual markets, or for single language campaigns, run your own language check on the shortlisted sites.
Remove risky and parked domains
Drop parked, malware and any categories outside your policy, as covered in parked domain detection.
Language signals you can check yourself
When a list needs a language filter on top of country, these page level signals are easy to read on a shortlist. Use more than one, because each can be wrong on its own.
| Signal | Where to find it | Reliability |
|---|---|---|
| Declared page language | The language attribute in the page's HTML. | Useful, but often left at a template default. |
| Alternate language links | Links pointing to translated versions of the same page. | Good evidence that a site is multilingual. |
| Language folders or subdomains | Paths such as /fr/ or hosts such as fr.example.com. | Strong, and lets you target one language section. |
| Visible body text | The main text of the home and inner pages. | The most reliable signal when sampled across pages. |
| Language switcher | A menu offering other languages. | Shows which languages exist, not which is default. |
Keep it proportionate: most campaigns only need language checks on a few hundred or a few thousand shortlisted sites. Run the country and category filters first, then spend checking effort where it changes the result.
Worked example: French speaking Belgium
An invented brief shows how the steps fit together. A food brand wants French language sites read in Belgium, in cooking and family topics.
Start with Belgium
Take every domain attributed to Belgium, including those on .com and .eu, not only .be names.
Apply the topics
Keep Food & Drink, Restaurants & Dining and family related IAB categories. The list shrinks to the relevant share.
Rank by Belgian popularity
Sort by the country band so the sites Belgians visit most sit at the top of the plan.
Check language on the shortlist
Check the top few hundred for French content. Bilingual national sites stay in, with their French sections targeted where possible.
Add nearby French sites with Belgian readers
Large French sites popular in Belgium can be added from the country band, even if their country is France.
Quick glossary
Short definitions for the terms used in this guide, for readers who work with domain data less often.
ccTLD
Country code top level domain, a two letter ending such as .de or .jp, assigned to a country or territory.
gTLD
Generic top level domain, such as .com, .org or .shop, with no country attached.
Country attribution
Assigning a site to the country where it is based or mainly used, from several kinds of evidence.
Second level domain
A local pattern under a country ending, such as .co.uk or .com.au, used much like a country code ending.
Hreflang
A tag that tells search engines which language and region each translated page is for. A useful hint for multilingual sites.
Long tail
The very large number of small sites with few visitors each. Most domains in any country sit here.
Country popularity band
A range placing a site among the most visited in one country, such as the top 10,000 or top 100,000.
Who uses country and language data
Different teams need the same fields for different reasons. The table shows the most common uses we see among data buyers, from media planning to model training.
| Team | Main use | Fields that matter most |
|---|---|---|
| Contextual advertising | Site lists per market and topic. | Country, country band, IAB category. |
| Sales and lead generation | Finding companies in a territory. | Country, category, popularity. |
| Market research | Counting sites per topic per country. | Country, category, parked flag. |
| Security teams | Spotting unusual destinations by country. | Country, risk categories. |
| Compliance teams | Mapping which jurisdictions users visit. | Country, category. |
| AI and data teams | Balancing training data across regions. | Country, category, popularity. |
More on these uses: audience segmentation and targeting, lead generation and sales intelligence and category data for market research.
Common mistakes with geographic web data
These errors show up again and again in market lists and research reports. Each one has a simple fix.
Using endings as country
Filtering only on .fr misses French sites on .com and includes foreign sites on .fr. Use the country field first.
Using language as country
A German language site may be Austrian or Swiss. Language groups markets that campaigns and laws keep separate.
Forcing a country on global sites
Large platforms serve everyone. Assigning them to one market distorts counts and targeting alike.
Ignoring popularity
A list of every site in a market is mostly long tail. Country bands keep the focus on sites people actually visit.
Comparing raw counts across countries
Attribution is easier in some markets than others. Compare shares within a country rather than raw totals between them.
Treating data as permanent
Sites move, rebrand and close. Monthly refreshes keep country lists from drifting out of date.
Questions to ask about any geographic web data
Whichever source you use, these questions reveal whether its country fields will hold up in your work. Ask them before a list goes into a media plan, a sales territory or a research report, because errors in geography spread quietly into every number built on top of it.
Does it leave unknowns empty?
A source that gives every domain a country is guessing for many of them. Empty fields are a sign of care.
Is country separate from ending?
If the country simply copies the domain ending, you gain nothing over reading the ending yourself.
Is popularity per country?
A global rank alone hides local leaders. Country level bands are what market lists need.
How often is it refreshed?
Monthly refreshes plus daily new domains keep lists current as sites launch, move and close.
Country data and privacy rules
Domain country data describes websites, not people. That makes it a useful tool for market work that should not rely on personal data.
No personal data
Each row describes a domain: its topics, country and popularity bands. Nothing in it identifies a visitor.
Context instead of tracking
Country plus category lets advertisers reach a market by where ads appear, not by following users. See cookieless contextual targeting.
Local rules still apply
Advertising, gambling and alcohol rules differ by country. Category plus country helps apply the right rule set to each list.
Frequently asked questions
Is a website's country the same as its language?
No. Country describes where a site is based or mainly used; language describes the words on its pages. A Swiss site may be in German, French or Italian, and an English site may serve readers in dozens of countries.
Can I tell a website's country from its domain ending?
Only partly. Country code endings are strong hints, but many are used worldwide for other reasons, and most sites use generic endings such as .com that say nothing about country.
Which country data does the database include?
Each row can carry a country, where one can be attributed, plus a country level popularity band and a global popularity band. You can check a domain to see them.
Does every domain have a country?
No. Global services, thin sites and sites aimed at many markets may not have a single country. Those rows leave the field empty rather than guess.
How do I build a language based list?
Start with the country field and local endings for single language markets, then add your own page checks for multilingual markets and generic endings. Category filters narrow the list to your topics.
Why is country data useful for contextual advertising?
Campaigns are bought by market. Country data builds site lists that match where the audience lives, and country bands show which sites matter most there.
Build market lists that match real markets
Country, country popularity bands, IAB and web filtering categories for over 120 million domains, delivered as files with a lookup API included.
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