Set up an email address with your existing Zoho account and custom Squarespace domain.

You can use Zoho Mail to set up custom email addresses using the same Squarespace domain that you use with your site.

Tip: If you don't have email for your domain yet, we recommend signing up for Google Workspace through Squarespace instead. With Google Workspace, you can get custom email addresses for your domains, billed directly through Squarespace. You'll also get access to other Google Workspace features like Google Calendar and Google Drive.

Before you begin

• You need an existing account with Zoho.
• You need to have a custom Squarespace domain. If you're using a third-party custom domain, contact your domain provider for help adding Zoho Mail.
• Your domain can't already be connected to Google Workspace or another custom email account.

Step 1 - Get your unique CNAME

After you've signed up with Zoho, you'll need to verify that you own the domain by adding records to it in Squarespace.

Note: When you first sign up for Zoho, you'll follow a setup wizard that takes you directly to your unique CNAME, so you can skip to Step 2.

1. Go to Zoho's Mail Admin Control Panel and log into your account.
2. Click Domains in the side navigation.
3. Follow Zoho’s steps to add a domain for mail hosting, then generate a unique CNAME. You’ll use this code to help verify the domain through Squarespace, so we recommend copying and pasting it somewhere safe.

Step 2 - Add CNAME

Note: Don't delete other CNAMEs that you may have added previously.

Add the CNAME to your domain:

1. Open your domains dashboard.
2. Click the domain you're linking with Zoho, then click DNS. For detailed steps, visit Accessing your Squarespace domain's DNS settings.
3. Scroll down to Custom records and click Add record.
4. Select CNAME from the Type drop-down menu.
5. Add your CNAME record values:
   • In the Host field, add your unique Zoho CNAME.
   • In the Data field, enter zmverify.zoho.com
6. Click Save.

Step 3 - Add preset MX records

In your domain's DNS settings panel, select Zoho Mail MX from the Add Preset drop-down menu.

You'll now have two MX records in place to send and receive mail from your Zoho account.

Note: It can take 30 to 45 minutes for any DNS changes to process.

Adding MX records to European sites

If you're in the EU or UK, you can manually add the Zoho Mail MX records to your DNS settings panel:

1. Scroll down to Custom Records and click Add record.
2. Select MX from the Type drop-down menu.
3. In the Priority field, enter 10.
4. In the Data field, enter mx.zoho.eu
5. Click Save.
6. Add a second MX record for mx2.zoho.eu with a Priority of 20.

Zoho MX records are typically determined by the location of your account. If you're unsure of the MX records you need to enter, contact Zoho to confirm the correct records.

Note: Don't add MX records for both .com and .eu versions of the Zoho Mail server. Doing so could prevent you from sending or receiving email.

Step 4 - Add DKIM and SPF records

Zoho recommends adding DKIM and SPF records for further authentication of your account. Both records help prove to recipients that your email is genuine and that no one is impersonating your account.

Add a DKIM record

1. In your Zoho account, follow Zoho’s instructions to generate a unique TXT record, which acts as your domain key. This will be a long string of letters, numbers, and symbols.
2. In your Squarespace DNS settings, scroll down to Custom Records.
3. Click Add record.
4. Choose TXT from the Type drop-down menu.
5. In the Host field, enter a name for your text record followed by ._domainkey. For example, if you want to name your record “zoho,” your full host record should look like this:

zoho._domainkey

Note: Zoho asks you to include your full domain name as part of the Host value, but you don’t need to add this. Squarespace adds the domain name automatically on the backend.

6. In the Data field, paste the TXT record that you generated from Zoho.
7. Click Save.

Add an SPF record

1. In your Squarespace DNS settings, scroll down to Custom Records.
2. Click Add record.
3. Choose TXT from the Type drop-down menu.
4. In the Host field, enter @
5. In the Data field, enter v=spf1 include:zoho.com ~all
6. Click Add.

For more help, see Zoho’s documentation on using DKIM records and SPF records.

Step 5 - Verify your domain

Log into Zoho after the records are entered to complete the process:

1. In your Zoho account, click Verify by CNAME at the bottom of the Domain Setup screen.

2. A success message appears when your Zoho DNS Zone is updated.
3. On this page, create the administrator email address you'll use for Zoho. This is the first part of your custom email address, like username@yourdomain.com.
4. Click Create Account to complete the setup.

Getting more help

For more help with settings in your Zoho account, contact their support team. You can also visit their documentation.