Your own domain
Point a domain from GoDaddy, Namecheap, Google or Squarespace
Point your own domain at your site covers the shape of this for any domain. This page is the per-company version: the screens people actually go looking for, and the one place each company differs.
Go where the records are, not where you bought it
The company answering for your domain is often not the company you bought it from. A domain bought at GoDaddy and later moved to Cloudflare is changed at Cloudflare.
You do not have to work this out. Type your domain on your site's Domain page and we look up who is answering, then show you that company's own steps with the exact records filled in. If this page and the portal disagree, follow the portal — it knows who is answering for your particular domain, and this page does not.
What the record has to end up as
Every panel below is the same three boxes wearing different labels. Whatever it looks like, you are creating one record that says this:
| The box | What goes in it |
|---|---|
| Type | CNAME — or ALIAS where that is the only thing that works on a bare name |
| The name box | @ for the bare domain, which some panels want left blank; or the first word for anything else — www, shop |
| The value box | Your site's own yourname.lemonhosted.com address, copied exactly, dots and all |
You are offered a second, optional record for the other half of the pair, so that whichever way somebody types your domain they land on your site. It is worth doing.
Do not touch anything marked MX. If your email is on this domain, adding the records above does not affect it.
GoDaddy
- Sign in at godaddy.com, then My Products.
- Next to your domain click DNS, then Add New Record.
- GoDaddy labels the name box Name, and
@means the bare domain.
The three boxes are Type, Name and Value.
GoDaddy may refuse a CNAME on the bare domain. If it does, either use its Forwarding feature (Domain → Forwarding → Add), or point www instead and let the bare name redirect to it — see www or not, which is one click here and no second charge.
Namecheap
- Sign in at namecheap.com, then Domain List.
- Click Manage next to your domain, then Advanced DNS.
- Under Host Records click Add New Record.
The three boxes are Type, Host and Value.
Namecheap handles the bare domain with an ALIAS Record — some panels call the same thing ANAME. It does the job a CNAME does on any other name, so the bare domain works here without any redirect.
Google Domains / Squarespace
- Sign in. Google Domains customers now land in Squarespace.
- Open the domain, then DNS, then DNS Settings.
- Scroll to Custom Records and add a record.
The three boxes are Type, Host and Data — the value box is the one called Data here, which is the step people miss.
The bare domain may be refused. If it is, use Forwarding, or point www and let the bare name redirect.
Squarespace
- Sign in, then Domains, then your domain.
- DNS, then DNS Settings.
- Under Custom Records click Add Record.
The three boxes are Type, Host and Data, the same as above.
The bare domain may be refused here too. Forwarding is the way round it, or point www.
Cloudflare
The three boxes are Type, Name and Target. Cloudflare accepts a plain CNAME on the bare domain and flattens it for you, so there is nothing special to do and no redirect to set up.
The rest of the companies we recognise
We show steps in their own words for all of these. What differs between them is only the bare domain.
| Company | The bare domain |
|---|---|
| Cloudflare | A CNAME works; Cloudflare flattens it |
| Namecheap, Porkbun, DNSimple, Vercel, Netlify | Use their ALIAS record — some say ANAME |
| GoDaddy, Google Domains / Squarespace, Squarespace, Wix, Shopify, Hover, IONOS, Network Solutions, AWS Route 53, DigitalOcean, DreamHost, Bluehost, HostGator | May refuse it. Point www instead, or use that company's own forwarding feature |
Not on the list? The portal still gives you the two records to add, and assumes the cautious answer about your bare name. The boxes will be called something close to Type, Host and Value wherever you are.
When the bare name will not point
This is common, it is not your mistake, and it is not ours either — some companies do not offer a record that points a bare domain at a name.
The fix takes one click: type www.yourdomain.com on the Domain page instead. That flips which name is the real address, the bare name redirects to it, and there is no second record to add and no second charge. www or not explains the trade.
After you have added it
Come back to the Domain page. It checks by itself while you watch, and you can close the tab and come back later. Four stages: waiting for the records, waiting for them to spread, issuing your certificate, live. Usually a few minutes; occasionally a few hours, depending on how quickly your domain company publishes the change.
If it has been an hour and nothing has moved, the list of things it usually is — a typo in the value, the wrong domain, an old record from a previous website — is on point your own domain at your site.
What it costs
99¢ a month, on the same schedule your site is already on, and you are charged only once the domain is actually working. Setting it up costs nothing and an unfinished attempt is never billed. Certificates are included on every address your site answers on. Up to five domains per site.
Site, domain and everything else that has a price is set out on the pricing page.