How to Set Up a Blogger Custom Domain in 2026 (Step by Step)

Back in January 2007, Blogger finally let Blogspot blogs switch to their own domain names. It was the feature I had waited for, though by then I had already moved my Blogger blog to WordPress. The feature is still free today, and setting up a Blogger custom domain takes about 15 minutes plus DNS time. Here is the current 2026 process.

Quick answer: Buy a domain from any registrar, then in Blogger go to Settings > Publishing > Custom domain and enter your www address (for example www.example.com). Blogger shows two CNAME records: www pointing to ghs.google.com and a unique verification record. Add both at your registrar, wait for DNS to update, save in Blogger, then turn on “Redirect domain” and HTTPS.

Before you start

• A domain name from any registrar (Namecheap, Cloudflare, GoDaddy, Squarespace Domains and so on). Blogger no longer sells domains directly since Google Domains moved to Squarespace in 2023.
• Access to your registrar’s DNS settings.
• Admin access to the Blogger blog.

How to set up a Blogger custom domain

1. Enter your domain in Blogger

Open Blogger, choose your blog, and go to Settings > Publishing > Custom domain. Type the www version of your domain, such as www.example.com, and save. Blogger will show an error with the DNS records you need. Keep that page open.

2. Add the two CNAME records

• Record 1: Name/Host www, Target ghs.google.com.
• Record 2: a verification record unique to your account (a short code as the name, pointing to a gv-xxxx.dv.googlehosted.com address). Copy both values exactly from Blogger.

3. Point the root domain (optional but recommended)

So that example.com without www also works, add four A records for the root (@) pointing to Google’s IPs: 216.239.32.21, 216.239.34.21, 216.239.36.21 and 216.239.38.21. Check Blogger’s custom domain help page in case these change.

4. Save and redirect

Wait for DNS to update (often under an hour, sometimes up to 48 hours), then save the custom domain in Blogger again. Turn on Redirect domain so example.com forwards to www.example.com.

5. Turn on HTTPS

Blogger issues a free SSL certificate for custom domains. Under Settings > HTTPS, enable HTTPS availability and HTTPS redirect once the certificate is ready.

What happens to your Blogspot address

Your old blogspot.com address automatically redirects to the new domain, so existing links and bookmarks keep working and search engines follow the redirect. Expect some ranking movement for a few weeks while Google processes the change. For the SEO side of a domain move, see Blogspot to hosted domain issues.

Common problems

• “We have not been able to verify your authority to this domain” (error 12 or 32): the verification CNAME is missing or mistyped, or DNS has not updated yet.
• Root domain not loading: the A records are missing or “Redirect domain” is off.
• HTTPS option greyed out: wait a few hours after the domain starts working for the certificate to be issued.
• Cloudflare users: set the CNAME records to “DNS only” (grey cloud) until Blogger verifies the domain.

Planning a bigger move later? Here is how to redirect Blogger to WordPress without losing traffic.

FAQ

Is a Blogger custom domain free?

Blogger charges nothing for custom domains or HTTPS. You only pay your registrar for the domain itself.

Can I use a domain without www on Blogger?

Blogger publishes on a subdomain like www. Add the A records and turn on redirect so the bare domain forwards to www.

Will I lose traffic switching from Blogspot to a custom domain?

The old address redirects automatically, so most traffic carries over. A short dip while Google re-indexes is normal.