To learn more, check out Going Live on Duda University.
Your site's domain is like its street address; it lets other people find it. Setting up your site domain is very important as it allows people to visit your sites.
While our site builder does not host domains, you can purchase a domain either during the publishing process (from our partnering domain provider) or prior to publishing. To connect your domain to your new Duda site, there are just a few records that will need to be added in the DNS settings for your domain.
The first step to making your site live is publishing.
To publish your site:
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In your editor, on the top right, click Publish.
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A payment page appears. Select a plan, and continue.
For more information on site plans and management, see Site Management: Subscription and Deletion.
Once a plan has been selected, you are prompted to select from one of the following three domain options:
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Default Domain. This is a domain hosted by Duda, and is not good for your site’s SEO. The URL will be a subdomain of Duda's with your custom naming. You may use the original default domain.
Note
There are 2 original default domains. Which one your dashboard uses is dependent on the plan you are currently on.
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sitename.dudasites.com (Basic, Team, and Agency)
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sitename.multiscreensite.com (Trial and White Label)
After upgrading from Trial to Basic, Team, or Agency, your default original domain will change to sitename.dudasites.com, this includes live sites.
SSLs aren't provided for Default or White Label Site Domains, unless they are on custom. To automate this process on a large scale, head to our Contact Our Sales Team page.
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Purchase a new domain for your site. Purchase a domain from IONOS. When you type your domain into the field, a menu appears with suggestions. This domain will already be set up to work with Duda. For more detailed instructions, see Purchase a Custom Domain.
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Use a domain you already own (make sure you added "www." to the URL). You may use a domain that you already own from the domain host you purchased it from. Ensure you add "www." to the URL. If you choose to use your own domain, continue to Set up your Domain in your Domain Host.
Note
If you are assigning a subdomain (for example, store.domain.com), "www" is not needed. Simply enter in the subdomain (for example, store.domain.com). For more information see Subdomains.
You can generate an SSL certificate for your subdomain.
If you selected to use the Default Domain or Puchase a new domain for your site options, your site should be live and no further steps are needed to connect it.
For the Use a domain you already own (make sure you added "www." to the URL option, continue on to Step 2: Connect Your Domain.
Note
To change your domain at any time after publishing your site, in the side panel, click SEO & Settings, Site URL, and then click Change site URL.
This step is only needed when the Use a domain you already own (make sure you added "www." to the URL) option is selected.
There are two ways to connect your domain, depending on your account plan and your domain provider (registrar).
Note
If your domain registrar doesn’t allow Advanced DNS editing, you may only be able to change nameservers. In this case, you can use an Advanced DNS Manager like Cloudflare. Cloudflare automatically detects your DNS records and provides nameservers for you to use. This allows you to add the necessary A and CNAME records to point your domain to your site (note: disable the proxy for the CNAME and A records in Cloudflare).
Note
This option may not be available due to certain factors, including:
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Account plan.
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Domain provider.
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Name servers the domain is currently using (if a domain isn't using the domain providers default name servers, Duda may not be able to correctly add the records.)
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After selecting Save, a box will come up that says Connect your domain to your website. Select Continue
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Duda searches for your domain host provider, and prompts you to log in with your provider (for example, GoDaddy).
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Type your login credentials for your domain host provider, and click Continue.
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Alternatively, if you do not own the login credentials, click Forward login to a colleague. Copy the link provided and send to a colleague to complete the setup.
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You will receive a confirmation message that your domain is now configured. Click Done.
Note
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Changes to your domain typically take less than a few hours to go live. However, it may take up to 48 hours.
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If your domain host provider was not found, you must configure your domain manually by adding a few records to your domain. Follow the prompts in the editor or see Option 2: Manual Connection.
The following records will need to be added to connect the domain to your Duda site. How they are added will depend on the domain provider.
Note
Most domain hosts have instructions on creating CNAME records and A records in their help center. If you cannot find this information, please contact your domain host.
|
Record Type |
Record Information |
Notes |
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CNAME |
Host: www Points to: s.multiscreensite.com |
This record will forward the naked domain (yourdomain.com) to the 'www' version (www.yourdomain.com). If you are assigning a subdomain (for example, store.domain.com), replace the "www" for the host with the subdomain value (in the example of store.domain.com, the value would be "store"). See Subdomains. |
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A Records |
First A Record: Host/Alias: @ Target/Destination: 35.172.94.1 Second A Record: Host/Alias: @ Target/Destination: 100.24.208.97 |
Two A Records are used for server balance and redundancy. Some domain hosts will not allow you to set up multiple records for the @ domain. If this is the case for your domain host, then simply add one record for the @ domain and include both IP addresses. |
Note
AAAA and CAA records can prevent issuing an SSL certificate. Please ensure you do not have these records configured.
If you previously took your site live with instructions involving a 301 Redirect and CNAME, you will need to re-create your SSL certificate. For more information, see Add SSL or HTTPS. In addition, you will need to remove the previous settings for the 301 Redirect.
Changes to your domain typically take less than a few hours to go live. However, it may take up to 48 hours. If it has been longer than 48hrs, please see I published my site, why isn't it live?.
For a visual guide, see the video below on setting up DNS with GoDaddy. The steps may be similar for other domain providers.
The table below includes links to instructions for configuring DNS settings in common domain hosts (registrars).
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Domain Host |
Support Links |
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GoDaddy |
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NameCheap |
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HostGator |
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Squarespace Domains |
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Register.com |
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Network Solutions |
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Cloudflare |
NoteMake sure the proxy option is turned off to avoid potential connection and SSL issues. |
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Bluehost |
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IONOS |
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registro.br |
Registro.br DNS Settings Configuration (Article provided by Duda to assist with Registro.br due to the unique requirements of this registrar) |
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Azure |
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If you would like to use the custom domain option, but don't have a domain you own yet, you will need to purchase one.
Note
If you are on a custom plan, see Purchase Site Domain (Custom Plans).
Tip
Is your site already published, but want to assign or purchase a custom domain?
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Open the editor for the desired site.
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ClickSEO & Settings.
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Click Site Domain.
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Click Change site URL.
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Select one of the following options:
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Purchase a new domain for your site and follow the prompts.
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Use a domain you already own (make sure you added “www.” to the URL) and follow the steps in the section Step 2: Connect Your Domain.
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Through Duda's partnership with IONOS, you can opt to purchase a domain from within the editor during the publishing process. Not only will the domain be free for the first year, there is no need to configure CNAME records or 301 redirect setup as IONOS will automatically configure the needed DNS settings.
Note
When purchasing a domain from IONOS through our integration, IONOS will be your point of contact. For any questions or complications, please reach out directly to IONOS support (www.ionos.com/contact).
While we strongly recommend buying your domain from the editor, you can purchase your new domain name from any domain registrar (for example, GoDaddy.com).
When you purchase your domain from a different registrar, you need to follow additional steps noted in this article to connect the domain to your website. See the section in this article, Step 2: Connect Your Domain.
A subdomain functions as an entirely separate website from the primary one. It is configured as a prefix for the primary domain. For example, if your primary domain is domain.com and you want a separate site for your store, you could configure the subdomain as store.domain.com.
Note
Technically, 'www' is a subdomain (e.g., www.domain.com). When configuring other subdomains, 'www' is not needed because it is typically already set up as a default subdomain for your main website.
Assigning a subdomain
When assigning a subdomain, do not include 'www'. Simply enter the subdomain as is (for example, store.domain.com).
Configuring a subdomain
Configuring subdomains in you DNS settings is similar to setting up a primary domain, with one exception: you only need a CNAME record (the A records aren't needed).
In step 2 above (Connect your Domain), the automated process will only add the CNAME.
When manually adding the record in your DNS settings, the CNAME would be as follows using the example store.domain.com:
Record type: CNAME
Host: store
Points to: s.multiscreensite.com
If your site isn't live, if it's not working without 'www' (the naked domain), or not working with the 'www', the issue might be with the DNS settings at your domain provider.
The common records to check are:
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CNAME and A (to ensure they are Duda's).
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AAAA and CAA (these records can interfere and need to be removed).
Changes to your domain typically take less than a few hours to go live. However, it may take up to 48 hours. If your site still is not showing up after 48 hours, something may be happening. The first step to see what might be going on is using an online tool that can check DNS records and propagation, such as www.whatsmydns.net.
Note
If you are using Cloudflare for the domain's DNS settings, you need to disable the proxy for the CNAME and A records.
To check the CNAME and A records:
To check for AAAA and CAA records:
Go to www.whatsmydns.net and select either AAAA or CAA from the drop-down menu and complete the field using the naked domain (for example, domain.com).
If you see records for either of these, they will need to be removed from the DNS settings.
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The DNS records were not setup correctly or with the correct provider (if the nameservers used aren't the default ones provided by the domain provider, the DNS of the nameserver provider will need to be updated. See Nameservers).
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There was a settings change on the domain side.
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DNS settings were reset.
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There was a billing issue with your domain host.
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Caching (if you previously visited the site, your browser may have cached it. Clearing cache or visiting the site on a new browser or device may fix it).
This could be caused by a couple of reasons:
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The site may be cached on your device. To check if this is the issue, clear your browser's cache and try again, or try visiting the site in a different browser or on a device that hasn't visited the site before.
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The DNS records haven't fully propagated or haven't been added.
To check the CNAME and A records:
This error means either that:
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Your domain is not set up and/or propagated appropriately.
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To resolve this, please make sure you have followed the steps in this article and wait up to 24 hours.
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We are expecting a different domain name.
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To resolve this, make sure that the site URL in this interface has a www before it.
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This error means that another site in our system is using this domain.
If you are the owner of the domain and need to disconnect the domain and use it on another site, complete the following:
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On the Use a domain you already own screen, click Yes it is mine.
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Use the Alias/Host/Name and Target/Destination records provided on the screen to create a new TXT record in your hosting provider account.
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Once you have created the new record, navigate back to your website and click Verify & Free Up Domain.
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You will receive confirmation that the domain was disconnected from its previous site. Click Continue to finish connecting your domain.
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If you received an error, first check that there are no errors in how you entered the TXT record information. If there was no errors in how you entered the TXT record, click Try Again. Next, click Verify My Ownership and if our support team can see your changes we will free up the domain for you. Note that it can take up to 48 hours for the TXT records to update.
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If you still cannot disconenct your domain, contact our support team. See Duda Support.
This error typically indicates the DNS records are correct however the domain is not assigned to a site.
To assign the domain to a site:
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In the side panel, click SEO & Settings.
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Select Site Domain.
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Select Change Site URL.
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Enter the correct domain name.
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Click Save.
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If the site is Not published, see step 1 in this article (Publishing).
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If the domain has been assigned, please double-check the spelling. If needed, change the site name and then copy and paste it into the field to ensure it's correct.
If you have published your site and configured your DNS settings correctly, but the site is still not live, you may need to check your nameserver settings.
Nameservers may affect your A and CNAME records when configuring your DNS settings. While typically, the domain provider's default nameservers are used, there may be situations where custom ones are needed. For example, the domain could be registered at GoDaddy, but the nameserver settings at GoDaddy are pointing to Cloudflare. To update your DNS records, you would need to login to Cloudflare to add your DNS settings, not GoDaddy.
If the domain provider's default nameservers are not being used (for example, if the domain is using Cloudflare's nameservers), you need to update your DNS records through the DNS manager where your nameservers are located or revert the nameservers back to your domain provider's default settings.
Warning
Changing nameserver settings should be done with extreme caution, as this changes all your DNS settings at once. For example, if you have an email service set up at domain.com and you change your nameservers, you need to add DNS settings at the new nameserver for your email (MX records) in addition to adding A records and CNAME records to publish your site.
To find your nameservers go to www.whatsmydns.net and select NS from the drop-down menu and complete the field using the naked domain (for example, domain.com).
Examples of possiblenameservers and their providers:
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earl.ns.cloudfare.com - Cloudflare.com
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ns07.domaincontrol.com - GoDaddy.com
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ns1045.ui-dns.org - IONOS.com
To identify the provider of your nameserver, copy the nameserver and search for 'who is the provider for the nameserver NAMESERVER' (for example, 'who is the provider for the nameserver ns-cloud-d1.googledomains.com').
Click the Help button in the lower right corner to contact support. A support agent will respond as soon as possible. For more information, see Duda Support.
Please contact the owner of your site or your domain provider for further assistance.