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Connect a Custom Domain

Point a domain you already own at a listing's property website. You keep the domain at your registrar; LOTULIS routes the traffic.

Already own a domain like 114adamslane.com? Point it at a listing so the listing's website serves at https://114adamslane.com.

This guide covers domains you already own. To have LOTULIS register a new domain for you, use Get a custom domain on the listing instead: you do not need to touch DNS for that.

What you need

  • A domain you have registered at any registrar (Namecheap, GoDaddy, eNom, HostGator, Cloudflare and so on)
  • Access to wherever the domain's DNS is managed (see the next section: it may not be where you bought the domain)
  • A listing with a generated website. The Custom Domain section shows "Generate a website (above) before you can attach a custom domain." until it has one.

Where is your DNS managed?

This is the most common source of confusion. Where you bought the domain (the registrar) is often not where its DNS records live. Check the nameservers on the domain at your registrar:

  • If the nameservers belong to the registrar itself (for example dns1.registrar-servers.com), add the records at the registrar.
  • If they point somewhere else, for example hgns1.hostgator.com, ns1.bluehost.com, a Cloudflare nameserver or ns1.digitalocean.com, add the records at that provider. Records added at the registrar do nothing.

Example: a domain registered at eNom whose nameservers are hgns1.hostgator.com and hgns2.hostgator.com gets its records in HostGator cPanel, Zone Editor. Records on eNom's Host Records page have no effect until the nameservers point back at eNom.

The records to add

The Connect a domain you already own window shows the exact records for your domain. There are two or three:

  • CNAME, host @, value cname.vercel-dns.com: points the bare domain (no "www") at your listing.
  • CNAME, host www, value cname.vercel-dns.com: points the www address.
  • SSL certificate verification: a TXT or CNAME record unique to your domain. It appears only when the connection asks for one, and the window shows its exact host and value.

If "CNAME at @" is refused

Some registrars do not allow a CNAME on the root (@). If yours refuses to save that row, add an A record instead: host @, value 76.76.21.21. The window shows this under Fallback. Keep the www CNAME and any verification record as they are.

Step by step

  1. Open the listing and find the Custom Domain section under Property Websites.
  2. Click Already own a domain? Connect it →.
  3. Type the domain (no https://, no trailing slash, just your-domain.com) and click Connect.
  4. The window shows your DNS records. Each value has a Copy button.
  5. Sign in wherever your DNS is managed and open its DNS, Zone Editor or Host Records page.
  6. Add each record exactly as shown, then save at your provider.
  7. Back in LOTULIS, click Verify now. If DNS has not spread yet, wait a few minutes and click again.

While the window is open it re-checks every 30 seconds. You can also click Close - I'll come back later: LOTULIS keeps checking in the background every 30 minutes, for up to 7 days. After 7 days without the records, the domain is released and you can connect it again.

While it waits, the section shows Show DNS records / Verify to reopen the records and Cancel to stop.

When verification succeeds, the domain shows as connected, the listing serves at https://your-domain.com over HTTPS, and an email confirms it is live.

Where to add records at common providers

The fields are always the same (type, host or name, and value), even when the layout differs.

HostGator (cPanel)

  1. Sign in to HostGator and open cPanel.
  2. Under Domains, click Zone Editor.
  3. Find the domain and click Manage.
  4. Click Add Record and pick the type.
  5. Enter the name and the record value (HostGator's "Record" field is the value).
  6. Save, and repeat for each record.

eNom (only if the nameservers point at eNom)

  1. Sign in to eNom, click the domain, then Host Records.
  2. Edit the existing @ and www rows to point at cname.vercel-dns.com. Leave * alone unless you need wildcards.
  3. Add a row for the verification record, if the window shows one.
  4. Save.

Namecheap

  1. Open Domain List, click Manage next to the domain, then Advanced DNS.
  2. Click Add New Record: CNAME, host @, target cname.vercel-dns.com.
  3. Repeat with host www.
  4. Add the verification record, if the window shows one.

GoDaddy

  1. Open My Products and click DNS next to the domain.
  2. Click Add: CNAME, name @, value cname.vercel-dns.com.
  3. Repeat with name www.
  4. Add the verification record, if the window shows one.

Cloudflare

  1. Select the domain and open the DNS tab.
  2. Click Add record: CNAME, name @, target cname.vercel-dns.com.
  3. Turn the orange cloud off (DNS only) on both CNAME rows. With the proxy on, the connection does not verify.
  4. Repeat with name www.
  5. Add the verification record, if the window shows one, with the proxy off too.

Troubleshooting

Connected, but the link does not load

The usual cause: the DNS records were changed or removed at your provider after the domain verified. Other causes: the nameservers were switched, or a Cloudflare proxy was turned back on. Check that the records are still there and match what LOTULIS showed, and add back any that are missing.

"Verify now" keeps saying not ready

  • DNS has not spread yet. The usual wait is 5 to 30 minutes; some providers take a few hours.
  • The records are in the wrong place. If the nameservers point at a hosting company, edits at the registrar do not apply.
  • A typo in the value. The CNAME target must be exactly cname.vercel-dns.com, with no trailing dot and nothing extra.
  • Cloudflare proxy on. Both CNAME rows must be DNS only (grey cloud).
  • An old A record at @ pointing elsewhere, such as a parking page. Delete it: two records for the same host conflict.

Swapping to a different domain

Click Remove on the connected domain. This disconnects it from the listing; the domain stays yours at the registrar. Then click Already own a domain? Connect it → and enter the new one.

The domain stopped working months later

Check that the records are still at your DNS provider. They often disappear after an account move at the registrar, a switch of DNS provider, or a "reset records" action in cPanel.

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