.example is a reserved top-level domain not intended for real use in the global DNS. It was defined in June 1999 by RFC 2606, along with .invalid, .localhost, and .test.

The stated purpose for the creation of ".example" was to provide TLD's for examples in documentation and other technical writing, such that conflict with global DNS can be avoided. However, it has been criticised for not being "real enough" — if intended to look like a real top-level domain, it should be shorter, making it more convincing (however, the TLD .museum does exist, but is not commonly used).

See also

• example.com

Generic top-level domains

.example | .example