How to choose a domain name for your Jamaican business (.com or .com.jm?)

Your domain is your address on the internet — yourbusiness.com. You'll say it out loud, print it on things and type it into WhatsApp a thousand times. Choose it once, well.

.com, .com.jm or .jm?

.com is what people type by default and what overseas customers trust. If it's available, take it. .com.jm signals Jamaica strongly and is good for local-only businesses, but it's more paperwork to register and some customers will still type .com. .jm is short and local but less familiar. Our usual advice: get the .com; add the .com.jm later if you want to protect the name.

Keep it short and sayable

If you have to spell it out on the phone, it's too long or too clever. Avoid hyphens and numbers. "keishaskitchen.com" beats "keishas-kitchen-mandeville-876.com".

Match your business name

Use the name on your sign and your Google profile. If the exact name is taken, add your town or what you do: "keishaskitchenja.com", "keishaskitchenmandeville.com".

Check it's really free

Search the name on Google and Instagram too — you don't want to share a name with a bigger business or something unfortunate.

Own it yourself

Register the domain in your own name and email, even if someone else sets up the site. Too many Jamaican businesses have lost their domain when a developer disappeared. (With IslandSites, the domain is yours — we just manage it for you, from J$3,000/year.)

Email on your domain

hello@yourbusiness.com looks far more credible than a Gmail address on an invoice. It's an easy add-on (from J$1,500/month) once the domain is yours.