A step-by-step guide to adding web hosting resource records.

This guide explains how to add A, AAAA, ALIAS and CNAME records to a Squarespace-managed domain, or a third-party domain connected to a Squarespace website via Nameserver Connect.

Tip: If you're not sure which of these applies to you, visit Nameserver Connect vs. DNS Connect for domain connections to learn if your domain is using DNS Connect or Nameserver Connect.

Note: Our scope of support for DNS records is limited. We can help with showing you where to add records to your DNS settings. We can’t provide technical advice about DNS records or information about how DNS records work with other services. If you need more help, you can get peer-to-peer help in the Domains section of the Squarespace Forum or contact the service you're trying to connect, using our sample message.

Before you begin

To start editing your DNS records, you'll open your domains dashboard and click the domain name. If you have multiple Squarespace domains, you'll manage their DNS records separately.

A records

A records point a domain name to the IP address of the hosting server.

Tip: If you’re using an A record to point a Squarespace subdomain, follow the steps in our pointing guide.

To add an A record:

1. Click DNS, and then click DNS Settings.
2. Scroll down to Custom Records.
3. Click Add record.
4. In the Type dropdown menu, select A.
5. In the Host field, enter the host record you’re pointing to.
6. In the Data field, enter the IP address you’re pointing to.
7. Click Save to add the record to your settings.

AAAA

An AAAA record points a domain name to an IP address. You'll need an AAAA record to point to a specific IPv6 address of a server.

To add an AAAA record:

1. Click DNS, and then click DNS Settings.
2. Scroll down to Custom Records.
3. Click Add record.
4. In the Type dropdown menu, select AAAA.
5. In the Host field, enter the host record you’re pointing to. If you don't have a host value, you can leave the field blank or enter @ to point the AAAA record to your domain.
6. In the Data field, enter the IPv6 address you’re pointing to.
7. Click Save to add the record to your settings.

Tip: If you see an error stating that your IPv6 address is invalid, it may be compressed. You can use AAAA record lookup tools (like dnschecker.org) to find the full record.

ALIAS

An ALIAS record points one domain to another domain.

To add an ALIAS record:

1. Click DNS, and then click DNSSEC.
2. Ensure the toggle beside DNS Security Extensions is switched off.
3. Click DNS Settings.
4. Scrol down to Custom Records.
5. Click Add record.
6. In the Type dropdown menu, select ALIAS.
7. In the Host field, enter @.
8. In the Data field, enter the domain name you're pointing to, like example.com.
9. Click Save to add the record to your settings.

CNAME

A CNAME record points a subdomain — which is anything that appears before your root domain, including “www” — to another domain name. CNAME records should always point to a URL. The URL can't contain special characters such as slashes (/) or colons (:).

You might need to add a CNAME record if:

• You’re running special services (such as an FTP)
• A third-party service requires a CNAME to verify domain ownership

If you’re using a CNAME record to point a Squarespace subdomain, follow the steps in our pointing guide instead.

To add a CNAME record:

1. Click DNS, and then click DNS Settings.
2. Scroll down to Custom Records.
3. Click Add record.
4. In the Type dropdown menu, select A.
5. In the Host field, enter the host record you’re pointing.
6. In the Data field, enter the IP address you’re pointing to.
7. Click Save to add the record to your settings.

Troubleshooting

For help resolving DNS record issues, visit Troubleshooting issues with DNS records.