CNAME records can take anywhere from a few moments to 24 to 48 hours to propagate, depending on your hosting provider. So, if you notice that your domain within the Unbounce app is stuck in "Looking for CNAME" or "Configuring" status, it could be that your hosting provider is still going through the motions of propagating the CNAME record.
While you wait, here are some steps you can take to double-check that your CNAME record is set up correctly.
Check Domain Propagation Status
You can check if your CNAME record is set up correctly by running a test on your custom domain using DNS Checker or MxToolbox CNAME Lookup.
Type in your custom domain within the field (which includes both the subdomain & root domain) and click the Lookup or Search button. If your CNAME is set up correctly, your domain will point to your custom CNAME record, with a checkmark indicating that it's working:
The record may still take some time to propagate, but you can use either tool to double-check that the CNAME record is detectable and correctly set up.
Check That Your CNAME Record Is Set Up in the Correct Place
Where the domain is registered and where the domain is hosted are different.
The main difference here would be with the nameservers the domain is using, and that is relevant to how the CNAME needs to be set up (in short, nameservers help connect traffic to your landing page via a server & IP address).
For example, if your domain is registered with Amazon Route 53, but then forwarded to GoDaddy, it would mean you're utilizing GoDaddy's nameservers instead.
So, you'd set up your CNAME record within GoDaddy's DNS, not Amazon Route 53. You can double-check the location of your nameservers by running a test in MxToolbox DNS.
Create a Test Page
Sometimes, the Unbounce application will continue to say "Looking for CNAME," even if you've confirmed that the CNAME record is fully propagated. This could mean that the Unbounce app is taking some extra time to update its servers in the background.
Try creating and publishing a test page on your custom domain to confirm this is the case:
If your domain is try.yoursite.com, create and publish a page on try.yoursite.com/test to see if the page is viewable on the web when you enter the URL in your browser.
My CNAME shows as being set up correctly, but I still can't see my page on my new domain?
Your browser may have cached the page and stored a version of the page that had not yet propagated your CNAME status. Do clear your browser cache and history and try again, or, launch your landing page in an incognito window and try again.
You can also reach out to our Support team for insight into troubleshooting your CNAME record and custom domain.
Troubleshooting CNAME Error Messages
If you’ve got a red Error finding CNAME message like in the image below you can try reconfiguring your domain using the Retry button.
Click the Retry button beside the domain that you would like to reconfigure. This will allow the Unbounce servers to go through the process of communicating with your DNS hosting service to get that domain up and running once more.
Once you click the Retry button, the domain will revert to Configuring status. Give the domain some time to reconfigure.
