What is .to?
.to has a second life online. Because of what the letters suggest, it's picked up a following for action names like "go.to" and "how.to", beyond Tonga's borders. Legally it remains Tonga's ccTLD.
A little context on Tonga: the capital is Nuku'alofa, languages include English and Tongan, the currency is the Tongan paʻanga (TOP) and the international dialing code is +676.
IANA lists Government of the Kingdom of Tonga, H.R.H. Crown Prince Tupouto'a, c/o Consulate of Tonga as the manager of .to, with an address in United States of America. The registry's website is http://www.tonic.to. ccTLD managers set their own policies — who can register, which second-level names exist, pricing to registrars — so those rules differ from country to country.
On the technical side, .to is served by 4 authoritative name servers, every one of them reachable over IPv6. There is no DS record for .to in the root zone, which means the TLD is not DNSSEC-signed at the top level. Registration data is published over RDAP and WHOIS (the WHOIS server is whois.tonicregistry.to).
.to FAQ
What country is .to?
.to is the country-code top-level domain for Tonga, in Polynesia. Online it's also used for action names like "go.to" and "how.to".
What does .to mean?
Officially, .to is simply the ISO 3166-1 code for Tonga. Online, it's also used for action names like "go.to" and "how.to" — a "domain hack" that uses the letters for what they spell.
What does .to mean in an email address?
Only that the sender's domain is registered under .to. Because .to is also used for action names like "go.to" and "how.to", it doesn't necessarily mean the person is in Tonga.
Who owns the .to domain?
IANA lists Government of the Kingdom of Tonga, H.R.H. Crown Prince Tupouto'a, c/o Consulate of Tonga as the manager of .to: it runs the registry and sets the rules for Tonga's ccTLD. Individual .to names belong to whoever registers them.
Can I register a .to domain from the US?
It depends on Government of the Kingdom of Tonga, H.R.H. Crown Prince Tupouto'a, c/o Consulate of Tonga's policy. Some ccTLDs are open to anyone in the world, while others require a local address, company or trademark. Check the registry (http://www.tonic.to) or an accredited registrar before you buy.
Is .to DNSSEC-signed?
No. As of our last data refresh there is no DS record for .to in the root zone.
How do I look up who owns a .to domain?
Query the registry's registration data service: the WHOIS server is whois.tonicregistry.to, and RDAP lookups go to https://rdap.tonicregistry.to/rdap/. Many registrants use privacy services, so personal details may be hidden.
Sources
Data from IANA root zone version 2026102000. Last changed January 7, 2026. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
