How to Set Up Squarespace DNS Records for Email Marketing

In Squarespace, you add email marketing records under the Custom Records table while leaving the Squarespace Defaults section alone. Where you find the DNS panel depends on whether your domain connects to an active Squarespace website or runs as a standalone domain (common for accounts migrated from Google Domains).

Locating DNS settings and Squarespace Defaults

Where you access DNS settings in Squarespace depends on how your domain is set up:

• Standalone domains (including migrated Google Domains): Log in to the Squarespace Domains dashboard. Click your domain name in the list, then select DNS in the left navigation panel.
• Domains attached to a Squarespace website: Open your site manager from the dashboard. In the left panel, navigate to Settings > Domains (or Website > Domains on newer site layouts). Click your custom domain, then click Edit DNS or DNS Settings.

You can edit DNS here when the domain is registered through Squarespace or connected through Squarespace’s Nameserver Connect. Otherwise, add the records wherever the domain’s active nameservers are managed.

Squarespace Defaults vs Custom Records

The top section of the DNS panel displays Squarespace Defaults. These records consist of four A records pointing to Squarespace IP addresses and a CNAME record pointing to ext-cust.squarespace.com. They route web traffic to your Squarespace site.

Leave the Squarespace Defaults section untouched. Deleting or modifying these records will take your website offline. All email authentication, routing, and tracking records belong in the Custom Records section located further down the page.

Adding a record in Squarespace

1. Navigate to the DNS panel for your domain.
2. Scroll down to the Custom Records section.
3. Click Add record to create a blank record row.
4. Click the Type dropdown and select your record type (TXT, CNAME, or MX).
5. Enter the Name value:
   • For root domain records (such as SPF), enter @.
   • For subdomains (such as _dmarc or a DKIM selector), enter only the subdomain prefix. Squarespace appends your root domain automatically.
6. Enter the value supplied by your email service. Squarespace labels this field Text for TXT records and Data for CNAME and MX records. Do not add quotation marks unless your provider explicitly includes them as part of the value.
7. Leave TTL at its 4-hour default unless your provider specifies another value. If adding an MX record, enter the supplied integer in Priority; otherwise, leave Priority blank.
8. Click Save in the top right corner of the page.
9. If prompted, complete the security verification (password re-entry or two-factor authentication) to confirm the changes.

Squarespace keeps its current field names, TTL defaults, and update guidance in its documentation for editing DNS records and email DNS records.

Required authentication records

Receiving mail servers use these three records to verify that messages sent from your domain are authentic.

1. SPF (Sender Policy Framework)

• Type: TXT
• Name: @ (Squarespace applies this to your apex domain)
• Priority: (leave blank)
• TTL: Default (4 hours)
• Text: The SPF string provided by your email platform, such as:

  v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com include:sendgrid.net ~all

Adding SPF for more than one service

An SPF lookup must return a single policy for a domain. Squarespace handles this differently from most DNS providers: you can add each provider-supplied SPF record individually under Custom Records, and Squarespace merges them into one record when publishing your DNS.

If one SPF record comes from a Squarespace preset and another is a custom entry, they may appear as separate rows in the dashboard, but they publish as a single combined record. Verify the published result with a DNS lookup before marking setup complete.

Do not add quotation marks around the SPF string, as quotes will prevent the record from resolving properly.

2. DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail)

Email platforms provide DKIM records in one of two formats:

CNAME-based DKIM

Most modern email platforms (such as Klaviyo, Postmark, SendGrid, and Amazon SES) provide two or three CNAME pairs:

• Type: CNAME
• Name: The selector prefix without your root domain, such as s1._domainkey or k1._domainkey
• Priority: (leave blank)
• TTL: Default (4 hours)
• Data: The target hostname provided by your email platform, such as s1.domainkey.example-esp.com.

If your email service provides a full hostname like s1._domainkey.yourdomain.com, enter only s1._domainkey into the Name field. Entering the full domain causes Squarespace to publish s1._domainkey.yourdomain.com.yourdomain.com, which breaks verification.

TXT-based DKIM

Some platforms (such as Google Workspace or custom mail servers) provide a raw public key string:

• Type: TXT
• Name: The selector prefix, such as google._domainkey
• Priority: (leave blank)
• TTL: Default (4 hours)
• Text: The raw public key string starting with v=DKIM1; k=rsa; p=...

Paste the public key directly into the Text field without quotation marks. Squarespace supports 2048-bit records, so you do not need to split the string.

3. DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance)

• Type: TXT
• Name: _dmarc (enter only _dmarc; Squarespace appends your domain)
• Priority: (leave blank)
• TTL: Default (4 hours)
• Text:

  v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc-reports@yourdomain.com; pct=100;

Start with p=none. This keeps DMARC in monitoring mode so you can collect reports without risking delivery issues. Once SPF and DKIM pass across all sending sources, update the policy tag to p=quarantine or p=reject.

Optional deliverability and branding records

These records configure custom subdomains for processing bounces and tracking campaign clicks. If omitted, your email provider routes tracking and bounces through its own shared domains.

4. Custom return path (bounce domain) (optional)

• Type: CNAME
• Name: bounces (or the subdomain prefix specified in your platform settings)
• Priority: (leave blank)
• TTL: Default (4 hours)
• Data: The mail server hostname assigned by your email platform (such as pm.mtasv.net or sendgrid.net)

5. Branded tracking domain (optional)

• Type: CNAME
• Name: links (or track, click, or email as specified by your platform)
• Priority: (leave blank)
• TTL: Default (4 hours)
• Data: The tracking hostname assigned by your email platform

Setting up custom MX records (if required)

If your email marketing service requires MX records for incoming replies, automated unsubscribe requests, or dedicated sending subdomains:

1. In the Custom Records section, click Add record.
2. Select MX from the Type dropdown.
3. Enter the details:
   • Name: @ (or the subdomain prefix if you send from a subdomain like mail)
   • Priority: The integer specified by your provider (such as 10)
   • TTL: Default (4 hours), unless your provider specifies another value
   • Data: The mail server address provided by your platform (such as feedback-smtp.us-east-1.amazonses.com)
4. Click Save in the top right corner.

If your domain uses a Squarespace email preset for Google Workspace, verify that adding custom MX records does not conflict with your primary business inbox routing.

Verifying your DNS records

Squarespace custom records use a 4-hour default TTL. Global propagation can take between 24 and 48 hours to complete.

You can verify your DNS records in Windows PowerShell using Resolve-DnsName:

Check SPF

Resolve-DnsName -Name yourdomain.com -Type TXT

Examine the Strings column. Verify that only one SPF record exists and that your sending provider’s include: tag is present.

Check DMARC

Resolve-DnsName -Name _dmarc.yourdomain.com -Type TXT

Verify that the Strings column contains v=DMARC1; p=....

Check DKIM

Replace s1 with the selector provided by your email platform:

Resolve-DnsName -Name s1._domainkey.yourdomain.com -Type CNAME

If your platform uses TXT-based DKIM, change the -Type argument to TXT. The output should return your provider’s target hostname or public key.

Check tracking and bounce records (if configured)

Resolve-DnsName -Name bounces.yourdomain.com -Type CNAME

The output should show your provider’s hostname in the NameHost column.

Check MX records (if configured)

Resolve-DnsName -Name yourdomain.com -Type MX

Verify that the NameExchange column lists your mail servers with the correct priority numbers in the Preference column.

Common troubleshooting issues

Issue	Root cause	Solution
Subdomain hostname is duplicated (_dmarc.yourdomain.com.yourdomain.com)	The full domain was entered into the Name field.	Enter only the prefix (such as _dmarc). Squarespace appends your root domain automatically.
SPF status shows PermError	The lookup returned multiple SPF policies.	Confirm the records are saved in the active DNS panel, remove stale duplicates, and run the query again.
Authentication check fails with syntax error	Quotation marks were pasted into the Text field.	Remove surrounding quotes from the Text field and save again.
Changes do not resolve externally	The records were edited somewhere other than the domain’s active DNS provider.	Use Squarespace for a Squarespace-registered domain or Nameserver Connect; otherwise edit records at the provider hosting the active nameservers.
Cannot find DNS settings panel	Domain is managed under a separate Squarespace account or is a standalone domain.	Check the standalone Domains dashboard at account.squarespace.com/domains.
DNS changes do not save	The security re-authentication prompt was closed or failed.	Click Save again and complete the password or two-factor authentication prompt.