Your own domain with HTTPS, or a free SmartMy address
Every site is online at once on a free SmartMy address. When you have your own domain, add it in the editor. SmartMy shows the two records to add, checks them every hour, and serves the site over HTTPS. Visitors on your other addresses are sent to the main one.
PLANSEvery plan
The problem it solves
- The website cannot go live until someone has sorted out the domain and the hosting.
- Connecting a domain means following a technical guide nobody in the office understands.
- The site shows Not secure in the browser because the certificate ran out.
- Visitors type the address with and without www and land on two different things.
How it works
- When the site is made, choose its free address, such as morningcrumb.smartmy.site. It works as soon as the site is published.
- When you have your own domain, a Website Manager opens the editor's Site tab > Own domain, types the domain and presses Add. Adding yourshop.com adds www.yourshop.com too.
- Add the two records shown at the company where you bought the domain. The TXT record proves the domain is yours; the CNAME (or A) record points it to SmartMy. Copy each value.
- SmartMy checks every hour by itself, or press Check now. The state goes from Waiting for DNS to Connected, and the secure lock follows.
- With more than one domain, press Make main on the one visitors should end up on. Publish again so links and search engines use it.
Everything it does
The free address
- Every site gets one, such as morningcrumb.smartmy.site
- Small letters, digits and single hyphens, 3 to 63 long
- Names kept for SmartMy are refused, such as www, app, api, admin, shop, store, blog, login, account, support and help
- The new-site screen says Available, or Taken or not allowed
- Change it later at Websites > Sites > the site > Free Address: the live site moves, and the old address stops working
Own domains
- TXT record at _smartmy.<your domain> with a proof code starting smartmy-
- CNAME record pointing to SmartMy's website address; an A record for a bare domain where SmartMy gives an IP address
- States: Waiting for DNS, Connected, Not Found, with what was found or is missing
- Checked every hour by itself; Check now checks at once
- Make main: visitors on the other addresses, the free address included, are sent to the main domain
- Remove takes a domain off; a domain already connected to another site is refused
- Up to 20 domains per site
HTTPS
- Free addresses are served over HTTPS
- Own domains get a certificate once the records point to SmartMy, through Cloudflare or through the website server's own certificate service
- The domain row shows the state of the secure connection
- Own-domain HTTPS needs SmartMy's server set-up for your subscription; it is set up and tested with you before go-live
Who uses it
Website ManagerAdds, checks, makes main and removes own domains.
Your domain company or IT personAdds the TXT and CNAME records SmartMy shows.
Website EditorSees the domains and their state.
Where you use it
- Web: the editor's Site tab > Own domain (Website Managers)
- Web: Websites > Sites > the site > Free Address
- Not offered: buying domains through SmartMy, and email hosting on your domain
What you control
Settings
- Free address: chosen when the site is made
- Main domain: the one you mark with Make main; until then, the first connected domain in alphabetical order
- Domain check: every hour by itself
Questions
Can I go live before I have a domain?
Yes. Publish on the free SmartMy address and connect your own domain whenever it is ready.How long does connecting take?
DNS changes take from minutes to a day to show. SmartMy checks every hour, or press Check now. The secure lock follows soon after the domain shows Connected.Do I have to move my domain or my email to SmartMy?
No. The domain stays where you bought it; you add two records there. Your email is not touched, and SmartMy does not host email.What if the domain shows Connected but no lock?
Own-domain HTTPS depends on SmartMy's server set-up for your subscription. Ask SmartMy support; it is set up and tested with you before go-live.Can someone connect my domain to their site?
No. A domain connects only when its TXT record carries the proof code of your site, which only the domain's owner can add.Related features
BUILDING THE SITEPages, publishing later, versions and password pagesAdd pages and set who can open each one: everyone, only with the link, with a password, or members only. Publish now or at a set time. Every publish is kept as a numbered version you can bring back, and a secret test link shows your changes before they go live.BUILDING THE SITEComing-soon and page-not-found pages, and redirectsWrite your own page-not-found message, with a search box and a way home. Send old addresses to new ones so links keep working after a rename or a move. A site that is not published, or was taken off the internet, shows a Coming soon page.BUILDING THE SITESearch engine set-up done for youEvery page gets a title, a description, a share picture and the structured details Google reads. Empty ones are written from your own words. A sitemap, redirects and a Search and AI check come with it.ACROSS SMARTMY WEBSITEWebsite Editor and Manager rolesTwo roles split the work on your website. Editors change pages, words, pictures and the design, and look after entries, bookings and members. Managers also publish, set up the shop and its payments, and own the domains.BUILDING THE SITEDrag-and-drop editor: type on the page itselfYou change your website on the page as visitors will see it. Click a heading and type, drag sections into order, and pick layouts from live pictures with your own words. Everything saves by itself, and nothing goes live until a manager publishes.
See your business on a real design.
Tell us what you do and what the site needs to do: bring enquiries, take bookings, show your work or sell. We will start your site from the closest design with you.