Connect your Cloudflare domain to Webflow

Learn how to point your Cloudflare domain to Webflow and connect it to your Webflow site.

Some DNS providers limit the configurations they provide, such as only accepting a single A record, or not supporting SSL on the root domain. For more flexibility, you can point your custom domain to a third-party DNS provider, like Cloudflare. 

How to point your Cloudflare domain to Webflow with the www subdomain as the default

To connect your Cloudflare custom domain and set the www subdomain as the default:

1. Direct NS records from your domain registrar to your Cloudflare account
2. Go to Site settings > Publishing > Production (you’ll need to confirm the correct DNS records and copy them from here)
3. Create a CNAME record with the name www and set the target to the value shown in Site settings (i.e., proxy-ssl.webflow.com or cdn.webflow.com)
4. Click the proxy status switch to set the proxy status to DNS only 
5. Set the record’s TTL to auto
6. Create an A record with the hostname @ and set the target to the IP value shown in Site settings (i.e., 75.2.70.75 or 198.202.211.1)
7. Create an A record with the hostname @ and set the target to the IP value 99.83.190.102 (only if this second A record is shown in Site settings)
8. Click the proxy status switch to set the proxy status on your A record(s) to DNS Only 
9. Set the TTL on your A record(s) to auto 

Then, back in Webflow:

1. Open Site settings > Publishing > Production
2. Click Add a custom domain
3. Choose Manually add domain
4. Enter the domain you want to connect with Webflow (e.g., yourdomain.com)
5. Set the www subdomain (e.g., www.yourdomain.com) as the default domain
6. Publish your site

How to point your Cloudflare domain to Webflow with the root domain as the default 

1. Direct NS records from your domain registrar to your Cloudflare account
2. Go to Site settings > Publishing > Production (you’ll need to confirm the correct DNS records and copy them from here)
3. Add a CNAME record with the name www and set the target to the value shown in Site settings (i.e., proxy-ssl.webflow.com or cdn.webflow.com)
4. Click the proxy status switch to set the proxy status to DNS only
5. Set the record’s TTL to auto
6. Delete any A records set on the root domain from your DNS settings
7. Add a CNAME record with the name @ and set the target to the value shown in Site settings (i.e., proxy-ssl.webflow.com or cdn.webflow.com)
8. Click the proxy status switch to set the proxy status to DNS only 
9. Set the record’s TTL to auto

Then, back in Webflow:

1. Open Site settings > Publishing > Production
2. Click Add a custom domain
3. Choose Manually add domain
4. Enter the domain you want to connect with Webflow (e.g., yourdomain.com)
5. Set the root domain (e.g., yourdomain.com) as the default domain
6. Publish your site

FAQ and troubleshooting tips

I added my DNS records in Cloudflare but my domain isn’t available yet. What’s going on? 

While most DNS providers try to update your DNS records as fast as possible, many factors impact how long it takes, including TTL (Time to Live) and internet service providers. DNS changes can take up to 48 hours to fully propagate in all geolocations, although this typically occurs within a few hours, so it may be a matter of waiting a bit longer for the site to “come online.” 

You can double-check that your DNS records are live and pointing to Webflow and view the propagation status using a tool like whatsmydns.

If your DNS records are live and pointing to Webflow and you’re still experiencing issues after 2 days, please contact Webflow’s customer support team.

Help! There’s a “525 Handshake Error” from Cloudflare on my domain. 

Double-check that your DNS records are set to DNS Only in Cloudflare. To set your records to DNS Only, click the “orange cloud” icons next to each record in your Cloudflare DNS settings. 

Webflow hosting is not compatible with the Cloudflare proxy, particularly because the Cloudflare proxy causes issues with SSL provisioning and renewal. The “525 Handshake Error” will occur when SSL provisioning or renewal is attempted, as the Cloudflare proxy sits in front of the Webflow DNS records used for domain validation, breaking the provisioning process.

If you need to continue using the Cloudflare proxy, you may toggle the proxy off to allow for SSL renewal and toggle the proxy back on. However, we recommend against this as a long-term solution, because the issue will continue to occur whenever the SSL certificate is up for renewal (approximately every 90 days).

‍Additional resources: 

• Troubleshoot your DNS settings
• Too many redirects error