Choosing between .COM and .MAISON depends on your target market, brand positioning, and long-term resale strategy. Below is a clear, side-by-side guide to help you decide.
1. Brand Perception & Meaning
.COM
- Universally recognized and trusted
- Neutral and flexible across industries
- Signals scale, credibility, and longevity
.MAISON
- French for house, home, or brand house
- Strongly associated with:
- Luxury
- Fashion & couture
- Interior design
- Architecture
- Premium real estate
- Feels boutique, artistic, and European
Winner
- General business / global brand: .COM
- Luxury, design, lifestyle branding: .MAISON
2. Target Market Fit
.COM
- Global audience
- Works well in:
- Tech
- SaaS
- Finance
- E-commerce
- Consulting
- Default choice outside Europe
.MAISON
- Best suited for:
- France
- EU luxury markets
- Fashion-forward or design-driven audiences
- Less intuitive in the US or Asia unless the brand is clearly premium
Winner
- Mass or international market: .COM
- European luxury niche: .MAISON
3. SEO & Marketing Impact
.COM
- Higher natural click-through rate
- Users instinctively trust .com domains
- Easier brand recall and word-of-mouth
.MAISON
- SEO-neutral technically
- Longer extension may reduce direct type-in traffic
- Strong keyword relevance for luxury/home niches
Winner
- Overall SEO & marketing ease: .COM
- Niche relevance & branding: .MAISON
4. Resale & Investment Potential
(Important for domain investors)
.COM
- Highest liquidity
- Largest buyer pool
- Easier and faster resale
- Strong historical sales comps
.MAISON
- Smaller but higher-end buyer pool
- Fewer buyers, but motivated ones
- Best resale when:
- Keyword is premium
- Buyer is a luxury brand or design house
- .COM is unavailable or priced very high
Winner
- Safe investment: .COM
- Selective, high-end investment: .MAISON
5. Pricing Strategy & Use Cases
| Use Case | Better Choice |
|---|---|
| Startup planning to scale | .COM |
| Luxury fashion label | .MAISON |
| Interior design studio | .MAISON |
| Global SaaS or AI product | .COM |
| Premium real estate branding | .MAISON |
| Domain flipping | .COM (90% of cases) |
6. Best-Practice Strategy (Recommended)
If possible, own both:
- Use .COM as the primary domain
- Use .MAISON for:
- Luxury sub-brand
- Campaigns
- Brand storytelling
- EU-focused marketing
Example:
BrandName.com→ Main businessBrandName.maison→ Luxury / lifestyle division
Final Verdict
Choose .COM if you want:
- Maximum trust
- Global reach
- Strong resale value
- Long-term flexibility
Choose .MAISON if you want:
- Luxury positioning
- French / European elegance
- Strong niche branding
- Boutique or premium perception