When you visit a website, you may notice the URL in the search bar changes slightly based on your location on the site or which page you’re viewing.

For example, you can visit https://avantyplc.com/ to view and access the tools and services offered there. Or, you can visit https://blog.avantyplc.com/ to access the section of our website that serves our value packed blog content. Although the URL changes slightly, you’re still on Avanty’s website, under Avanty’s domain.

In today's blog we’ll discuss the part of the URL that does change, called the subdomain, and why exactly that is.

What is a subdomain?

Let's start with what a domain is. A domain name is the address used to visit a website. Now, a domain name typically has two parts: The top-level domain (TLD) is the extension, such as .com or .org, and the second-level domain (SLD) is the unique part of the domain name, often the name of the business. In the https://avantyplc.com/ example, co is the TLD and Avanty is the SLD.

The subdomain is what goes before the SLD. The most common subdomain we see is www, which stands for World Wide Web. The www subdomain is so widely used that most domain registrars include it with domain name purchases. Subdomains are also commonly used, as mentioned before, to separate a section of a website from the main site. For example, https://blog.avantyplc.com/ directs you to our blog section on the Avanty website.

And when we group our domain name and subdomain with a protocol at the beginning, such as HTTP or HTTPS, and an optional file path at the end, we have a complete URL. Please find below an image that clearly represents each section of the URL.

What is a subdomain used for?

But why should you use subdomains in the first place? Well, subdomains make it easier for you to organise the various different functions of your website, while also making it easier for your audience to find what they are looking for on your site.

Think about it this way: If you’re hosting a dinner party at your house, you need to provide the guests with your address, right? So look at it this way, the TLD would be the village you live in while the SLD would be your house number and street name. 

If you plan to add more functions to your website (i.e. a store or blog) you might add a subdomain to your domain to separate these functions off from your main website too. Again, making it easier for you to organise whilst also being a great convenience for your target audience.

You can also use subdomains to create localised content if you wish. For example, if you run a clothing brand with multiple locations, customers can visit your website (www.myclothes.com) for all your content. Or, customers looking for an item at your Glasgow location can access this information via glasgow.myclothes.com.