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# Connect a custom domain

A two-step setup at your domain registrar that takes 2–5 minutes. Your existing email keeps working.

**Two ways to connect.** This page covers the **CNAME** method (works with every registrar). For ~30% faster image loading, our recommended path is **Full DNS**, which involves changing your nameservers. See [Full DNS vs CNAME — which should I pick?](/docs/full-dns-vs-cname) for the trade-offs.

## What you’ll do

1. Add **one DNS record** at your registrar so `www.yourdomain.com` points to your site.

1. Set up **URL forwarding** at your registrar so `yourdomain.com` (without the www) redirects to `https://www.yourdomain.com`.

That’s it. We handle SSL certificates automatically once DNS propagates.

**Where to get the value for Step 1.**
The exact `CNAME` target for your site is shown in your dashboard under
*Domains → Your Domains* when your domain status is *AWAITING DNS*.
Copy and paste it from there — every site has its own unique target.

## Step 1 — Add the CNAME record

In your registrar’s DNS panel, add one record:

```
Type:  CNAME
Name:  www
Value: <the value shown in your dashboard>
TTL:   Automatic (or 300 / 5 minutes)
```

Save the record. Don’t add anything for the bare domain (`@`) here — the forwarding step handles that.

## Step 2 — Set up URL forwarding

In your registrar’s *Web Forwarding*, *URL Redirect*, or *Domain Forwarding* panel (the exact name varies by registrar), add a forward:

```
From: yourdomain.com
To:   https://www.yourdomain.com
Type: 301 (Permanent)
```

This makes `yourdomain.com` redirect to the www version. Visitors who type the bare domain in their browser still land on your site — the redirect happens before they see anything.

## Step 3 — (Optional) clean up old records

If you previously had an `A` or `ALIAS` record on `@` (the bare domain), you can delete it now. The Step 2 forwarding handles that route.

Leave any `MX`, `TXT`, `SPF`, `DKIM`, and `DMARC` records alone — those handle your email and stay exactly where they are.

## Registrar walkthroughs

### Hostinger

1. Log into Hostinger → **Domains** → click your domain.

1. **DNS / Nameservers** → **Manage DNS records** → *Add new record*. Fill in `CNAME` / `www` / the value from your dashboard. Save.

1. Back on the domain page, find **Web Forwarding** (in the left sidebar) → *Add new forwarding*. Forward your bare domain to `https://www.yourdomain.com`, type 301. Save.

### GoDaddy

1. Log into GoDaddy → **My Products** → **DNS** next to your domain.

1. Under *DNS Records*, click **Add**. Choose `CNAME`, name `www`, value from your dashboard. Save.

1. Scroll to **Forwarding** → click *Add* under *Domain*. Forward to `https://www.yourdomain.com`, type *Permanent (301)*. Save.

### Namecheap

1. Log into Namecheap → **Domain List** → *Manage* next to your domain.

1. Open the **Advanced DNS** tab. *Add new record* → `CNAME Record` → host `www` → value from your dashboard. Save.

1. Open the **Domain** tab. Under *Redirect Domain*, click *Add Redirect*. Source: bare domain. Destination: `https://www.yourdomain.com`. Permanent (301). Save.

### Squarespace Domains / Google Domains

1. Open the **DNS** tab. Add a `CNAME` record: host `www`, value from your dashboard.

1. Open the **Website settings** or **Forwarding** tab. Forward the bare domain to `https://www.yourdomain.com` with a 301.

### Cloudflare (you already use Cloudflare for DNS)

Cloudflare flattens CNAMEs at the apex automatically, so you don’t need the forwarding step:

1. Add a `CNAME` record: name `www`, target from your dashboard. Make sure the proxy (orange cloud) is **off**.

1. Add a second `CNAME` record: name `@`, target from your dashboard. Proxy **off**.

## When will it go live?

Most setups go live within **5–30 minutes**. The dashboard shows `AWAITING DNS` until DNS propagates, then switches to `LIVE`. SSL certificates are issued automatically as soon as the DNS record is verified — you don’t buy or install anything.

If it’s been more than an hour, see [Troubleshooting](/docs/troubleshooting-domain).

## Why www and not the bare domain?

It’s a technical limitation that affects every modern hosting platform — Squarespace, Vercel, Netlify, GitHub Pages, all of them. The bare domain (`yourdomain.com` with no `www`) can’t accept the same kind of DNS record that the www version can. The universal workaround is URL forwarding, which is why Step 2 exists.

From your visitors’ perspective it doesn’t matter — they type whichever form they want, and they end up on the same site.

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