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A DNS A record connects a domain name or subdomain to an IPv4 address. To make one work, add it to the DNS zone served by your domain’s authoritative nameservers, then allow time for cached answers to expire. An A record does not point to an IPv6 address—that is what an AAAA record is for.
What a DNS A record does
DNS records tell resolvers how to handle names in a domain. An A record contains a 32-bit Internet address: an IPv4 address. When someone looks up the name, DNS can return that address so a client can connect to the corresponding service.
For example, www.example.com. 3600 IN A 192.0.2.10 is a zone-file-style A record. The address 192.0.2.10 is reserved for documentation, not a real server destination. In this example, 3600 is the TTL in seconds.
A name can have more than one A record, such as when it is associated with multiple IPv4 addresses. RFC 1035 puts it plainly: “Hosts that have multiple Internet addresses will have multiple A records.” RFC 1035, section 3.4.1
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Choose A, AAAA, or CNAME based on the target
| Record type | What it points to | Can other records share the name? |
|---|---|---|
| A | An IPv4 address | Yes, except that a name cannot also be a CNAME. |
| AAAA | An IPv6 address | Yes, except that a name cannot also be a CNAME. |
| CNAME | Another DNS name | No. A CNAME cannot coexist with other record data at the same name. |
A CNAME is an alias, not an IP address. A resolver follows the alias to find the target name’s records. If the name already has a CNAME, remove or change it before adding an A record there; ordinary record data cannot coexist with a CNAME at one name under RFC 2181. See Google Cloud’s DNS records overview for these record roles.
How to create an A record
The labels and available settings differ among DNS providers, but the key requirement is the same: edit the zone that is authoritative for the domain. Adding a record to a dashboard zone that the domain does not use will not publish that change to the public DNS.
- Open the authoritative DNS zone. In your provider’s DNS dashboard, select the zone for the domain. Confirm that the domain delegates to this provider’s nameservers.
- Add a record set or DNS record. Choose the option to create a standard record, then select A.
- Enter the name and IPv4 address. Use the host label or fully qualified name expected by the provider—for example,
wwworwww.example.com—and enter the intended IPv4 address. Check both for typos. - Choose TTL and any provider-specific controls. Set a TTL if the provider allows it. If options such as proxy status are offered, understand how they affect responses before enabling them.
- Save and verify. Check the answer from the authoritative nameserver and then from a recursive resolver. If the domain uses different nameservers from the zone you edited, update the delegation or make the change in the zone that is actually authoritative.
For a provider-specific example, Google Cloud’s Cloud DNS quickstart describes creating a public managed zone, adding a record set of type A, and entering the IPv4 address. It separately explains that the domain must use the Cloud DNS nameservers for that zone to be published. Console labels and workflows can change; follow the current provider instructions for exact controls.
What TTL means for changes
TTL, or time to live, is the period a DNS record may be cached before it should be consulted again. A longer TTL can reduce repeated lookups, but a resolver that has cached an old address may continue to use it until its cached copy expires. A zero TTL means the record should be used only for the transaction in progress, not cached, according to RFC 1035.
Changing the authoritative record does not force every recursive or local cache to refresh at once. That is why there is no universal number of minutes after which every user will see an update. A nameserver-delegation change is a separate issue from changing a record within a zone.
Cloudflare TTL settings are provider-specific
Cloudflare’s TTL documentation, updated April 16, 2026, states that proxied records use an uneditable Auto TTL of 300 seconds. For DNS-only records, it lists a minimum of 30 seconds for Enterprise customers or 60 seconds for non-Enterprise customers, a maximum of one day, and an Auto setting of 300 seconds. Cloudflare also cautions that local DNS caches can make the observed delay longer than five minutes. These are Cloudflare settings, not universal DNS limits.
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Cloudflare’s record-type documentation shows an example A record for www.example.com pointing to 192.0.2.1 with TTL 3600 and DNS-only status. That is an example configuration; it is not a recommended TTL or setup for every domain. Proxy status can change what clients receive and how TTL works, so do not assume a provider’s proxy controls apply elsewhere.
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How to troubleshoot an A record
- The lookup returns the wrong address or no address: Check that you edited the correct domain zone, that the name is spelled correctly, and that the A value is the intended IPv4 address.
- The dashboard shows the record, but public DNS does not: Verify that the domain delegates to the nameservers for the zone you edited. A saved record in a non-authoritative zone is not the answer served for the domain.
- You cannot add an A record at the name: Look for an existing CNAME at that exact name. A CNAME cannot share its name with A or other record data.
- The authoritative answer is correct but a recursive lookup is old: The recursive resolver may have a cached answer. Compare the authoritative and recursive responses, and account for the TTL and local caching rather than treating one stale response as proof that the record is misconfigured.
- The public answer differs from the expected origin address: If the provider offers proxying, check whether it is enabled. Proxy behavior is a separate layer from a DNS-only A record and can affect the response seen by clients.
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