render-domains

name	render-domains
description	Configures custom domains and TLS certificates on Render—DNS setup, CNAME records, apex domains, wildcard domains, and certificate troubleshooting. Use when the user needs to add a custom domain, configure DNS, set up HTTPS/TLS, troubleshoot certificate issuance, disable the onrender.com subdomain, or add a wildcard domain. Trigger terms: custom domain, DNS, CNAME, TLS, SSL, HTTPS, certificate, apex domain, wildcard domain, onrender.com, domain verification.
license	MIT
compatibility	Render web services and static sites
metadata	{"author":"Render","version":"1.0.0","category":"networking"}

Render Custom Domains

Render automatically provisions and renews TLS certificates (via Let's Encrypt and Google Trust Services) for all custom domains. All HTTP traffic is redirected to HTTPS. Custom domains work on web services and static sites only.

When to Use

• Adding a custom domain to a web service or static site
• Configuring DNS records (CNAME, A, or ALIAS) with a provider
• Setting up a wildcard domain (*.example.com)
• Troubleshooting certificate issuance or domain verification failures
• Choosing between apex (example.com) and www (www.example.com)
• Disabling the onrender.com subdomain after adding a custom domain

Domain Limits

Workspace tier	Custom domain limit
Hobby	2 custom domains (across all services)
Professional+	Unlimited

Setup Steps

1. Add domain in Dashboard

1. Go to your service's Settings > Custom Domains
2. Click + Add Custom Domain
3. Enter your domain (e.g. app.example.com)
4. Click Save

Adding a www subdomain automatically adds the root domain (and vice versa) with a redirect between them.

2. Configure DNS

Add a DNS record with your provider pointing to your Render service:

Domain type	Record type	Name	Value
Subdomain (app.example.com)	CNAME	app	<service>.onrender.com
Apex (example.com) on Cloudflare	CNAME (flattened)	@	<service>.onrender.com
Apex on other providers	A	@	Use Render-provided IP (see Dashboard)

Important: Remove any AAAA (IPv6) records for your domain. Render uses IPv4, and stale AAAA records cause unexpected behavior.

Provider-specific guides:

• Cloudflare
• Namecheap
• Other providers

3. Verify domain

Click Verify in the Dashboard. If verification fails, DNS may not have propagated yet—wait a few minutes and retry.

Speed up verification by flushing DNS caches:

• Google Public DNS
• Cloudflare DNS
• OpenDNS

After verification, Render issues a TLS certificate automatically.

Wildcard Domains

Wildcard domains (*.example.com) route all matching subdomains to one service.

Requires three CNAME records:

Name	Value	Purpose
*	<service>.onrender.com	Routes traffic
_acme-challenge	<service-id>.verify.renderdns.com	Let's Encrypt validation
_cf-custom-hostname	<service-id>.hostname.renderdns.com	Cloudflare DDoS validation

Cloudflare users: If you add *.example.com without adding the root domain to Render, disable proxying (gray cloud) for the root domain to avoid routing conflicts.

CAA Records

If your domain has CAA records, add entries for Render's certificate authorities:

example.com IN CAA 0 issue "letsencrypt.org"
example.com IN CAA 0 issuewild "letsencrypt.org"
example.com IN CAA 0 issue "pki.goog; cansignhttpexchanges=yes"
example.com IN CAA 0 issuewild "pki.goog; cansignhttpexchanges=yes"

Without these, TLS certificate issuance fails silently.

Disabling the onrender.com Subdomain

After adding at least one custom domain, you can disable the default onrender.com subdomain:

1. Settings > Custom Domains > Render Subdomain > toggle to Disabled
2. All requests to the onrender.com URL receive a 404
3. Can be re-enabled at any time

Blueprint Configuration

Custom domains are specified in the domains field:

services:
  - type: web
    name: api
    runtime: node
    plan: starter
    domains:
      - app.example.com
      - www.example.com

Blueprint domains only declare the domain association. You still need to configure DNS with your provider manually.

Common Mistakes

Mistake	Fix
AAAA records present	Remove all IPv6 AAAA records for the domain
CAA records blocking issuance	Add letsencrypt.org and pki.goog entries
Verifying too quickly	Wait 2-5 minutes for DNS propagation, then flush caches
Cloudflare proxy + wildcard without root domain	Disable proxying (gray cloud) for the root domain
Trying to add domain to a private service	Custom domains only work on web services and static sites
502 after verification	Routing rules are updating — wait a few minutes

References

Document	Contents
references/dns-configuration.md	Provider-specific DNS setup, apex domain options, TTL recommendations

Related Skills

• render-web-services — Web service configuration, TLS, port binding
• render-static-sites — Static site domains, CDN, headers
• render-blueprints — domains field in render.yaml