Connect your own domain after publishing your website

A free website address lets you check your work before investing in a domain. When your site is ready to share with clients, an address you own can make it easier to recognise and put on your business cards, proposals and profiles.

In Unshift, you can build and publish up to three sites free on Unshift addresses. Connecting your own domain requires Pro and a domain that you own. Domain registration is separate from the subscription. Check current pricing and the capacity selected in your account before subscribing.

Publish and check the site first

Your site must have been published at least once before adding a custom domain. Open its free address and check your pages, mobile layout, contact links and form delivery. Replace any sample names, testimonials, project results and legal details included in your starting template.

You can keep using the free address while preparing the domain. You do not need to move your domain before the site is useful.

Add the domain in the Editor

Open your site in the Editor. Click the site's name, choose Settings, then Domains. Choose Add domain and enter the domain you own, for example www.yourbrand.com.

If an upgrade prompt appears, See plans opens the available plans. A Pro level covers one site on a custom domain. If your existing capacity is already assigned, review the additional capacity before changing the subscription.

The Add domain dialog explains any correction needed. Keep the domain in the dialog while fixing it rather than repeatedly submitting different addresses.

Copy the DNS record shown for your site

The Domains pane shows the CNAME record to create, including its name and target. Copy the values from your own site. Do not use a target from a screenshot or another person's setup.

Open the service managing your domain's DNS and add that record. This might be your registrar or a separate DNS provider. Change only the relevant website record. Your email service can depend on other records, so preserve those settings.

For a straightforward setup, connect www.yourbrand.com in the Editor and use your DNS provider's forwarding option to redirect the bare domain, yourbrand.com, to www.

Wait for connection and check the result

After the record resolves, the domain status becomes Connected and a certificate is issued. This can take time. The Domains pane includes Re-check validation for a record that has not resolved yet.

Open your domain in a separate browser tab. Check that the correct site loads over HTTPS, then follow a second page and test the contact action. Check the free address too: when your own domain serves the site, the free address forwards visitors to the corresponding page on that domain.

If validation stays pending, compare the exact record name and target with the values in the Editor. Check which provider actually manages the domain's nameservers. Avoid making unrelated DNS changes while waiting.

If your site still uses pictures hosted on the domain you are moving, Unshift can copy those pictures before adding the domain. In that case, follow the Editor's message, publish again after the copy and then add the domain.

Keep the upgrade tied to a real need

You can continue using the free address if it meets your needs. Consider Pro when your own domain or code export solves a specific problem for you. A domain alone does not bring visitors: share the finished site where prospective clients already encounter your work.

Review the available plans or return to your sites.