> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.parallellabs.app/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Domains

> Serve your published websites from your own branded URL.

By default a published site lives on a platform URL. Adding a custom domain serves it from your own address instead — `www.yourbrand.com` rather than a generated link.

## Adding a Domain

1. Select your company from the sidebar
2. Go to **Websites** → **Domains**
3. Click **Add Domain**
4. Enter the domain you want to use
5. Copy the **A Record (IP Address)** shown in the table

Then, at your domain registrar or DNS provider:

1. Open your domain's DNS settings
2. Create an **A record**
3. Point it at the IP address shown in the table
4. Save, and wait for DNS to propagate — this can take 24–48 hours
5. Back in the platform, click the refresh icon to **Verify DNS & SSL**

SSL certificates are provisioned automatically once DNS is pointing correctly. You don't need to buy or upload one.

## Domain Status

| Status         | Meaning                                               |
| -------------- | ----------------------------------------------------- |
| **Pending**    | Waiting for DNS to point at the IP address            |
| **Verified**   | DNS is correct                                        |
| **SSL Active** | DNS is correct and HTTPS is live — ready to use       |
| **Failed**     | Something went wrong; hover the status for the reason |

**SSL Active** is the state you want. Until then, the site is still reachable at its platform URL.

## Publish First

A domain can only be attached to a site that has been **published**. Publish the site, then attach the domain.

## Limits

Each company can have a set number of custom domains. When you reach it, the add button is disabled and a message tells you the maximum.

## Troubleshooting

**Still Pending after a day.** DNS propagation is genuinely slow sometimes. Confirm the A record points at exactly the IP shown, with no typos, and that you created an **A** record rather than a CNAME.

**Failed status.** Hover it for the specific error. The most common causes are a record pointing at the wrong address, or a conflicting record for the same hostname left over from a previous host.

**Works without www but not with it (or the reverse).** Each hostname needs its own record. `example.com` and `www.example.com` are separate.

## Next Steps

* [Publish a website](/inbound/websites)
* [Set up domains for landing pages](/inbound/landing-pages/tracking-domains)