My custom domain isn't connecting

When you're done, your domain says Connected and your Chirps open on it.

Who this is for: the account owner, who adds and fixes domains in Settings, under Custom domains. Team members, workspace admins included, don't have this card: domains stay with the owner. Visitors who see "This domain isn't showing any Chirps right now" should tell the domain's owner.

What you see

On the Custom domains card, each domain has a status (1), Check now (2), and a line under it (3) that says what's happening. Until it's connected, a checklist follows: Record added at your domain provider, Vercel sees the record and Secure HTTPS address ready, then "Last checked 2 minutes ago. We keep checking for two weeks after you add it and email you when it's connected. While this page is open we check every minute, or click Check now."

Status, and the line under it	Why, and the fix
Waiting for DNS: "We can't see the record yet. Add it at your domain provider exactly as shown below; it usually shows up within minutes. On Cloudflare, set the record to DNS only (grey cloud)."	The record isn't visible yet
Connecting: "Add the TXT record below to prove you own the domain, then it continues by itself."	A TXT record is needed too
Connecting: "Your record is set up correctly. Vercel, which runs the domain, may still remember the old "nothing here" answer for up to about 1 hour. It connects by itself, and we email you when it does."	The record is right, and it's still connecting
Connecting: "Almost there: the secure (HTTPS) certificate is being issued. This usually takes a few minutes."	The record is right, and it's still connecting
Problem: "This domain is still connected to another website on Vercel. Remove it there, then click Check now."	The domain is still on another website
Not in your plan, next to the status	Your plan's domains are used up
Connected: "Connected. Your Chirps work on this domain with HTTPS."	Done. If visitors still see no Chirps, see Connected, but no Chirps show.

When you click Add domain, a red message can say:

• "You've already added this domain." or "That domain is connected to another Chirp Builder account.": see The domain is in another workspace or account.
• "Use your own domain, not a Chirp Builder address", ""my bike shop" isn't a domain. Enter something like chat.yourbusiness.com", "That domain is too long" or "That domain can't be used. Check the spelling and try again.": check what you typed. Type only the domain, like chat.yourbusiness.com.
• "Couldn't add the domain. Please try again.", "Couldn't connect the domain right now. Please try again in a minute." or "Couldn't reach the domain service just now. Please try again in a minute.": nothing was added. Wait a minute and add it again.

No box to add a domain: you have no plan, or you've used your plan's domains. See Your plan's domains are used up.

Visitors on your domain can see:

• "This domain isn't showing any Chirps right now", with "If it's yours, check it in Chirp Builder under Settings, Custom domains. It may still be connecting, or be outside your plan." The browser tab says "No Chirps here".
• "Nothing to show here yet." on the domain's home page.
• "Chirp not found" on a Chirp's page.
• Their browser's own error page, or a warning about the connection, before the domain is connected.

When the domain is checked

A domain that isn't connected yet is checked:

• in the background, about every 15 minutes for two weeks after you add it, even with Settings closed. When it connects, you get an email, "chat.yourbusiness.com is connected";
• every minute while Settings is open on the domain's workspace, and only while its tab is the one in front. A domain marked Not in your plan isn't checked this way, even though its line says so;
• when you click Check now.

Once it says Connecting with "Your record is set up correctly" or the TXT line, a visit to the domain checks it too, at most every 2 minutes. After two weeks, a domain that still isn't connected waits until you click Check now.

When it connects while Settings is open, Chirp Builder says, for example, "chat.yourbusiness.com is connected!"

The record isn't visible yet

Waiting for DNS, with "We can't see the record yet". Check these at your domain provider, then click Check now:

1. Add the record where your domain's DNS is managed. That isn't always where you bought the domain. If another company runs your domain's DNS, such as Cloudflare or your web host, add it there.

2. Copy the type, name and value exactly as the card shows them. Click a value on the card to copy it.

   • For a subdomain like chat.yourbusiness.com: CNAME, name chat, value cname.vercel-dns.com.
   • For a whole domain like yourbusiness.com: A, name @, value 76.76.21.21.

   Type only what's in the Name column. Most providers add your domain to the name by themselves, so chat.yourbusiness.com there would become chat.yourbusiness.com.yourbusiness.com.

3. Remove any other record with the same name, such as an older A, AAAA or CNAME record that points to your website host. The card says "If it still waits after a few hours, make sure there's no other record with the same name."

4. On Cloudflare, set the record to DNS only (grey cloud). With the orange cloud, the record hides behind Cloudflare's own addresses, and the check never sees it.

New records usually show up within minutes. Some providers take longer.

A TXT record is needed too

"Add the TXT record below to prove you own the domain, then it continues by itself." Vercel, the service that runs custom domains for Chirp Builder, wants proof that the domain is yours, for example because it was used with another Vercel account before.

Add the TXT record from the card's table, as well as your CNAME or A record, then click Check now. Always copy the values the card shows now: they can change while the domain connects.

The record is right, and it's still connecting

• "Your record is set up correctly." Internet services can remember an earlier "nothing here" answer for a while. Your domain's own settings decide how long, and the line says it, for example "up to about 1 hour". There's nothing to fix: it connects by itself, and you get an email when it does.
• "Almost there: the secure (HTTPS) certificate is being issued. This usually takes a few minutes." It says Connecting until the secure address works. Until then, visitors may see a browser warning about the connection.

The domain is still on another website

Problem, with "This domain is still connected to another website on Vercel. Remove it there, then click Check now." Your record is right (Record added at your domain provider is ticked), but the domain is still set up for another website on Vercel, such as an earlier website you or a web designer made.

1. Whoever runs that website removes the domain from it, in their Vercel account.
2. Click Check now.

If this showed right after Add domain, the domain is on your list anyway and keeps being checked, so it connects by itself once the other website lets it go.

The domain is in another workspace or account

• "You've already added this domain." It's in your account, maybe in another workspace: the card lists only the domains of the workspace that's open. Switch workspaces in the Workspace box at the top of the menu, and look in Settings again. A domain shows only the Chirps of the workspace you added it in, so to use it for another workspace, remove it and add it again there.
• "That domain is connected to another Chirp Builder account." Only that account can remove it. If the domain is yours and you can't reach that account, write to us: see Ask us for help.

Your plan's domains are used up

Each plan includes custom domains for the whole account, across all its workspaces: Essentials 1, Creator 3, Academy 3 and Business 10. The card says how many you've used, for example "1 of 1 used".

• No box to add a domain: you've used them all. It says "Your plan includes 1 custom domain. Remove one to add another, or upgrade for more." Remove one with the bin on its row, or move to a bigger plan.
• Not in your plan: your plan now includes fewer domains than you have. The newest ones stop working and the oldest keep working. Remove a domain you don't need, or move to a bigger plan.
• No plan: the card says "Custom domains come with every Chirp Builder plan.", with See plans.

To get or change a plan, email joanaltres@dfydata.com, or write to us from Help about Plan and billing.

Connected, but no Chirps show

• "This domain isn't showing any Chirps right now": the domain isn't connected yet, shows Not in your plan, or your plan has ended. Right after it connects, wait a minute and reload.
• "Nothing to show here yet.": under Home page shows, it's set to A list of your public Chirps, and the workspace has no Public Chirps (Unlisted ones aren't listed). Choose one Chirp under Home page shows, or make a Chirp Public. A change there can take a minute to show.
• "Chirp not found" on https://your-domain/its-web-address: the Chirp is in another workspace, is a Draft or archived, or the address after the slash is wrong.
• A browser error page or a connection warning: the domain isn't connected yet, or HTTPS isn't ready. These pages come from the browser, not from Chirp Builder.

It worked, then stopped

A Connected domain is checked again once a day. If the record was changed or deleted at your domain provider, the next check notices: the card shows what's needed, and you get an email, "chat.yourbusiness.com has stopped working". Until that check, the card can still say Connected while visitors get an error. Put the record back, then click Check now.

Good to know

• A subdomain is easiest, like chat. or ai.: your main website keeps working. Adding a whole domain asks first: "This points all of yourbusiness.com to Chirp Builder, so a website there stops showing. www.yourbusiness.com isn't included. A subdomain such as chat.yourbusiness.com keeps your website as it is. Add it anyway?"
• Main address (Creator, Business and Academy) shows in the editor once a domain in the Chirp's workspace passes Vercel's check: it says Connected, or Connecting while the certificate is being issued. It's ignored while the card shows another status or Not in your plan. A domain that stopped working can say Connected for up to a day (see It worked, then stopped); until a check shows the problem, the Chirp Builder link keeps sending visitors there. See A main address for a Chirp.
• Removing a domain asks "Remove chat.yourbusiness.com? Your Chirps stop working on it." Website code and links that use it stop working too.
• Setting it up from the start: see Use your own domain.