Put your site live on your own domain

Your site is built and you’re happy with it. Now you want customers to find it at your own address, like yourbusiness.com, instead of a long link from the tool that built it. This guide walks you through publishing it and connecting your domain, without needing to understand the technical side.

Before you start

• A finished site in a tool like Lovable, Bolt, Replit, Wix, Squarespace, or Shopify, with a saved version you’re happy with.
• Your domain name, or a few ideas for one if you haven’t bought it yet.
• The login for the company you bought your domain from, if you already have one. That company is called your domain registrar. GoDaddy, Namecheap, Squarespace Domains, and Cloudflare are common ones.
• An hour to set it up, and a day of patience for it to start working everywhere.

Want to do it yourself?

Difficulty

6 out of 10

Estimated completion time

45–90 minutes, plus domain and certificate propagation

Skills you’ll need: Use your hosting dashboard and edit domain DNS records carefully. You need to verify the live domain and HTTPS.

I’ll do it myselfI’d rather get help

How this helps your brand

An owned web address gives your profiles, printed materials, and referrals a consistent destination. Checking the live site, contact route, and email protects that first experience when you share the link.

1. 1

   Step 1: Find out where your domain lives

   A domain is your web address. You rent it each year from a domain company, separately from the tool that built your site.

   If you already own one, search your email for the company’s name or for “domain renewal”. Log in and check two things: that the domain is in your name or your business’s name, and when it’s due to renew. Turn on auto-renew so it never lapses.

   If you don’t have one yet, many website tools let you buy a domain inside the tool. That’s the simplest route, as it connects automatically. You can also buy from a domain company and connect it in step 3.

   Tip: If a web designer or relative bought your domain for you, make sure the account is yours. A domain in someone else’s account is a common reason businesses lose their web address.

2. 2

   Step 2: Publish your site

   Open your site in the tool that built it and look for a Publish, Deploy, or Go live button. Usually it sits in the top right corner.

   Most tools give you a free address first, something like yourbusiness.toolname.app. Open that link on your phone and check the site works before you connect your own domain. If something’s wrong here, fix it now.

   Tip: Putting a site on your own domain is often a paid feature. Check your tool’s pricing page so the upgrade isn’t a surprise.

3. 3

   Step 3: Connect your domain

   In your website tool, find the domain settings. They’re usually called “Domains”, “Custom domain”, or “Connect domain”. Type in your domain and follow the steps on screen.

   If you bought the domain inside the tool, it may connect by itself. If you bought it somewhere else, the tool will either log in to your domain company for you, or show you a few settings to copy across. Those settings are called DNS records. They’re just instructions that tell the internet where to find your site.

   • Copy each setting exactly, letter for letter. One wrong character stops it working.
   • Change only the records your tool tells you to. Leave everything else alone, especially anything mentioning “MX”, which keeps your email working.
   • If you get stuck, search your domain company’s help pages for “connect domain to [your website tool]”. Most have a step-by-step page for each popular tool.

   Illustrated examplePoint the website to its new home. Keep email working.

   Your website tool gives you the records

   Illustrative values only. Use the exact ones in your own tool.

   Copy to your domain company’s DNS settings

   Type / nameValueWhat to do

   AName @

   Value192.0.2.10

   Copy exactly

   CNAMEName www

   Valuesites.example.com

   Copy exactly

   MXName @

   ValueYour existing email provider

   Leave alone

   MX records deliver your email. Keep them as they are.

4. 4

   Step 4: Wait, then check it properly

   The change can take anywhere from a few minutes to a day or two to reach everyone. Your tool will usually show a status like “Connected” or “Verified” when it’s ready. If it still isn’t working after 48 hours, recheck the settings from step 3 for typos.

   Once it’s connected, check these:

   • Your site opens at yourbusiness.com and at www.yourbusiness.com.
   • There’s a padlock next to the address. That means the connection is secure. Most tools add it for you, but it can take a few hours to appear.
   • Every page and button works, and any contact or booking form sends to you.
   • It works on your phone, using mobile data rather than your Wi-Fi.
   • Your email still sends and arrives as normal.

   Illustrated exampleA connected domain is the start of your final check

   Example: Northline Studio

   northline.example

   Northline StudioA home that feels like you.

   northline.example www.northline.example

   4G

   Try mobile data

   Turn Wi-Fi off and open your real domain on your phone.

   • Both addresses open your site
   • Secure connection is ready
   • Pages and buttons work
   • A test form reaches your inbox
   • Email still sends and arrives

   Still connecting? Allow up to 48 hours, then recheck the records for typos.

5. 5

   Step 5: Tell people and keep the details safe

   Update your Google Business Profile, social media profiles, email signature, and printed materials with the new address.

   Then write down where everything lives: which company holds your domain, which tool hosts your site, the logins for both, and when each one renews. Keep it somewhere safe, like a password manager. Whoever helps you next will need it.

I’ve built my website with [your website tool] and I want to put it live on my own domain. I’m not technical, so please explain each step in plain English.

My domain: [yourbusiness.com]
Where I bought it: [the domain company, or “not bought yet”]
Do I use email on this domain? [yes or no, and which email provider]

Please give me a step-by-step checklist for:
1. Publishing my site in [your website tool].
2. Connecting my domain, including exactly which settings to change at my domain company and which to leave alone so my email keeps working.
3. Checking it all works once it’s live.

If a step depends on menus that change often, tell me what to search for in the official help pages instead of guessing.