Setting up your custom domain
Connect links.yourbrand.com (or yourbrand.com) to your LinkStacked profile with step-by-step DNS instructions, SSL provisioning, and troubleshooting.
Before you begin
- Active Pro plan or above
- Access to your domain registrar's DNS settings (Namecheap, Google Domains, Cloudflare, GoDaddy, Route 53, etc.)
- A domain name you already own — we don't sell domains, you'll need to register one separately if you don't have one
- About 20 minutes (5 to configure, 15 to wait for DNS propagation)
Step 1 of 7
· 2 minWhy a custom domain matters
Before we get into the configuration, let's quickly cover why this is worth the 20 minutes. A custom domain isn't just about looking professional — it changes the way your audience perceives your brand and, crucially, how portable your audience is.
What a custom domain gets you
- A memorable, brand-owned URL: links.mariakovac.com instead of linkstacked.com/mariakovacphoto
- Higher direct typed traffic — people remember branded URLs
- Portability — if you ever leave LinkStacked, your QR codes and printed materials still point to a domain you control
- SEO benefits — search engines index the custom domain as your brand, not as a subpath of ours
- Social platform algorithm advantages — some platforms suppress link-shortener URLs, but rarely suppress branded subdomains
- Email signature gravity — a links.yourbrand.com URL in your signature is more clickable than a generic platform URL
You can use any subdomain (links.yourbrand.com, bio.yourbrand.com, hi.yourbrand.com, etc.) or your root domain (yourbrand.com). Subdomains are easier to set up and don't affect your existing root-domain website. Root domains require a few extra DNS considerations covered later in this guide.
Step 2 of 7
· 1 minConfirm you're on Pro
Custom domains are available on the Pro plan and above. Go to Settings → Billing to confirm your plan. If you're on Free, you'll see an upgrade prompt with the current Pro pricing and a button to switch.
Your data stays the same when you upgrade or downgrade. Switching plans only changes which features are available — your links, themes, analytics, and subscriber list are unaffected. If you downgrade later, your custom domain stops resolving but the configuration stays saved for when you upgrade again.
Pro is billed monthly or annually. Annual saves about 20%. If you're only using Pro for a custom domain on a launch month, monthly is fine — there's no contract. Cancel any time from the same Billing page.
Step 3 of 7
· 3 minPlan your domain strategy
Before you touch any DNS settings, decide what you actually want. The three common patterns each have trade-offs:
Option A: A subdomain like links.yourbrand.com
The most common choice. Easy to set up (one CNAME record), no impact on your root domain, easy to debug if anything goes wrong. Recommended for almost everyone.
Option B: Root domain like yourbrand.com
Cleanest possible URL. Requires a DNS provider that supports CNAME flattening, ALIAS records, or ANAME records (Cloudflare, Route 53, DNSimple, and a few others). If you currently host a website at yourbrand.com, this option will replace it — your link page becomes the home page.
Option C: Path on your existing site (yourbrand.com/links)
Not directly supported as a custom domain. If you need this, set up a redirect from yourbrand.com/links to your linkstacked.com/username URL on your existing host. Less elegant but workable.
If you currently use yourbrand.com for email (e.g. you@yourbrand.com), pointing the root domain to LinkStacked does NOT affect your email — only HTTP traffic. Email goes through MX records, which we don't touch. But: if you do point your root, double-check that your MX records remain configured before saving.
Step 4 of 7
· 2 minGet your CNAME target
Navigate to Settings → Custom Domain in the LinkStacked dashboard. You'll see the CNAME target you need to point your domain to. Copy it — you'll paste it into your DNS provider in the next step.
CNAME target: cname.linkstacked.com
The CNAME target is the same for every LinkStacked custom domain. We use a single edge endpoint and route based on the Host header. This means SSL provisioning, edge caching, and traffic routing are all handled automatically once your DNS resolves.
If you're using a root domain, our setup screen will instead show an A record (or AAAA for IPv6). Use whichever record type the dashboard tells you to — different DNS providers expose CNAME flattening with different mechanics.
Step 5 of 7
· 5 minAdd the DNS record at your registrar
Log in to your domain registrar (Namecheap, GoDaddy, Google Domains, Cloudflare, Route 53, Porkbun, Hover — every reputable registrar exposes a DNS manager) and find the DNS settings for your domain. The exact menu names vary, but you're looking for something like 'DNS records', 'Manage DNS', 'Advanced DNS', or 'Zone editor'.
- 1Click "Add record" or "New record"
- 2Set Type to CNAME (or "Alias" if your provider doesn't use the word CNAME)
- 3Set Host / Name to "links" (for subdomain) or "@" (for root, if your provider supports flattening)
- 4Set Value / Points to / Target to: cname.linkstacked.com
- 5Set TTL to 3600 (one hour) or leave the default — TTL only affects how fast future changes propagate
- 6Save the record
Type Host Value TTL CNAME links cname.linkstacked.com 3600
Common registrar quirks
- Namecheap: use "CNAME Record" under "Advanced DNS". Don't add the trailing dot to the value — Namecheap adds it automatically and rejects the form if you double up.
- GoDaddy: under DNS Management → Records → Add. The "Name" field is the subdomain, not the full domain.
- Cloudflare: see the next paragraph — there's a critical proxy setting to disable.
- Google Domains: now Squarespace Domains. The DNS section is under 'DNS' → 'Default name servers'. Add custom records below.
- Route 53: create a record set, type CNAME, value is the target with trailing dot.
Cloudflare users: when you add the CNAME, make sure the proxy status (the orange/grey cloud icon) is set to "DNS only" (grey cloud), NOT "Proxied" (orange cloud). Proxied mode breaks SSL certificate provisioning because Cloudflare intercepts the validation challenge before it reaches us.
If your registrar's DNS interface is hostile or unfamiliar, consider transferring DNS management to Cloudflare (free) and pointing your registrar's nameservers to Cloudflare. The Cloudflare DNS UI is the cleanest in the industry and unlocks features like analytics and DDOS protection at no cost.
Step 6 of 7
· 5 minVerify and activate the domain
Return to LinkStacked Settings → Custom Domain. Enter your full custom domain (e.g. links.yourbrand.com — without the https:// prefix) and click "Verify & activate".
We attempt to resolve the DNS, validate the CNAME, and provision an SSL certificate. The whole process usually takes 1–5 minutes. If the verification fails immediately, your DNS hasn't propagated yet — wait 15 minutes and try again.
Check DNS propagation manually
You can check whether your DNS change has reached the global resolvers using whatsmydns.net (web tool) or the dig command (terminal):
dig links.yourdomain.com CNAME +short # Should return: cname.linkstacked.com.
If the dig command returns the right CNAME but LinkStacked still says "verification failed", wait another 5–10 minutes and retry. Sometimes specific DNS resolvers between us and your provider have stale caches that take a few extra minutes to clear.
DNS propagation typically takes 5–30 minutes but can take up to 24 hours in rare cases. The vast majority of cases resolve within 15 minutes. If you've waited an hour with the right DNS values and still see verification failures, contact support — there's likely a registrar-specific quirk we can help diagnose.
What happens during SSL provisioning
Once DNS verifies, we automatically request an SSL certificate from Let's Encrypt. This step takes 30–90 seconds for most domains. Your visitors will see the secure HTTPS lock icon from the moment the domain is fully active — there's no insecure-HTTP grace period.
Once active, your custom domain becomes the canonical URL. QR codes generated after activation use your custom domain. QR codes generated before activation continue to point to linkstacked.com/username — both work, but the new ones are visually slicker.
Don't change your DNS records after activation unless you intend to disable the custom domain. Changing the CNAME target will break SSL renewal, which happens automatically every 60 days. If you ever need to migrate, contact support first so we can coordinate the cutover cleanly.
Step 7 of 7
· 5 minTroubleshooting (when things go sideways)
Most setups complete on the first try. When they don't, the issue is almost always one of these. Check them in order — they're listed roughly by frequency.
1. Verification fails immediately
Your DNS change hasn't propagated yet. Wait 15 minutes and try again. Use whatsmydns.net to check global propagation status.
2. SSL certificate stuck "provisioning"
Almost always Cloudflare proxy mode. Set the orange cloud to grey (DNS only), wait 5 minutes, retry. If you're not on Cloudflare, your DNS provider may be returning multiple records for the same hostname — check that there isn't a stale A record competing with the new CNAME.
3. Site loads on www. but not bare links.yourdomain.com (or vice versa)
You only added a record for one. Add a CNAME for the other variant pointing to the same target, or set up a redirect at your DNS provider.
4. "This site can't be reached" in the browser, but dig confirms the CNAME
Browser DNS cache. Try in an incognito window or run `sudo dscacheutil -flushcache` on Mac / `ipconfig /flushdns` on Windows.
5. Email at yourdomain.com stops working after switching root domain
You overwrote your MX records. Restore them from your DNS provider's history (most keep 30 days), or re-create them from your email provider's instructions. Email and HTTP traffic use different record types — only HTTP should change.
Still stuck? Contact support@linkstacked.com with your domain, your DNS provider, and a screenshot of your DNS records. We respond within 4 hours during business hours.