🔍 Overview
If your White Label domain is not resolving correctly after DNS setup, the most common cause is using the wrong DNS record type. This guide walks you through the correct configuration, how to spot mistakes, and how to verify that your DNS changes have taken effect.
⚠️ The Most Common Mistake: A Record vs. CNAME Record
Search Atlas White Label requires a CNAME record, not an A record. This is the single most frequent cause of DNS failures.
- A record — maps a domain to a specific IP address. Search Atlas does not use a static IP for White Label, so A records will not work reliably and will cause the domain to fail or resolve incorrectly.
- CNAME record — maps your custom domain to another domain name (a hostname). This is the correct record type for Search Atlas White Label because it points to our infrastructure hostname, which handles routing automatically.
If you have an A record in place, delete it before adding the CNAME. Having both at the same time will cause conflicts and prevent the domain from resolving.
✅ Correct CNAME Configuration
Use the following structure when adding your CNAME record in your DNS provider (such as Cloudflare, GoDaddy, Namecheap, or Route 53):
- Type: CNAME
- Name / Host: The subdomain you want to use for your White Label (for example, reports if your White Label URL will be reports.yourdomain.com)
- Value / Target / Points to: The hostname provided inside your Search Atlas White Label settings (for example, whitelabel.dns.searchatlas.com)
- TTL: 3600 (1 hour) or Auto if your provider offers it
Example: If your agency domain is agencypro.com and you want your clients to access reports at reports.agencypro.com, your CNAME record should look like this:
- Type: CNAME
- Name: reports
- Value: whitelabel.dns.searchatlas.com
Always copy the exact hostname from your Search Atlas dashboard. Do not guess or modify it. A single typo will cause the configuration to fail.
🔎 How to Verify Your DNS Is Configured Correctly
After saving your CNAME record, follow these steps to confirm the setup before assuming something is broken.
- Wait for propagation. DNS changes can take anywhere from a few minutes to 48 hours to propagate globally. Most changes resolve within 1–4 hours. Do not make additional edits during this window, as each change resets propagation time.
- Check using a DNS lookup tool. Visit a free tool such as dnschecker.org or whatsmydns.net. Enter your White Label subdomain and select CNAME as the record type. You should see your Search Atlas hostname appear as the target across most global locations.
- Clear your browser cache. If the lookup tool shows the correct CNAME but your browser still does not load the page, clear your cache or test in an incognito window.
- Check for conflicting records. Log in to your DNS provider and search for any A records, AAAA records, or duplicate CNAME entries under the same subdomain name. Remove any conflicting records.
🧭 Diagnosing Persistent DNS Failures
If you have followed all the steps above and the domain still does not resolve, work through the following questions to identify the root cause.
- Is the record type definitely CNAME? Log back in to your DNS provider and confirm. It is easy to accidentally save as an A record if the default option in your provider's form is pre-selected.
- Is the CNAME value exactly what Search Atlas provided? Go back to your White Label settings in Search Atlas and copy the hostname again. Paste it fresh rather than retyping.
- Has it been less than 48 hours? If so, continue waiting and recheck using the DNS lookup tool rather than your browser.
- Is there a proxy or CDN layer in front of the domain? If you use Cloudflare, make sure the CNAME record is set to DNS Only (grey cloud icon), not Proxied (orange cloud), during initial setup. Proxied mode can interfere with domain verification.
- Did you add the CNAME at the root domain level? Root-level CNAMEs (for example, agencypro.com without a subdomain) are not supported by most DNS providers and are not compatible with Search Atlas White Label. You must use a subdomain such as reports.agencypro.com.
🔧 Quick Checklist Before Contacting Support
- Record type is CNAME (not A, AAAA, or TXT)
- CNAME value matches exactly what is shown in Search Atlas White Label settings
- No conflicting A records or duplicate CNAMEs exist for the same subdomain
- At least 4 hours have passed since the last change
- DNS lookup tool confirms the CNAME is resolving to the correct target
- Cloudflare proxy is disabled (grey cloud) if applicable
- A subdomain is used, not the root domain
💬 Still Need Help?
If you have completed every step above and the DNS is still not resolving, our team can review your specific configuration. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.
Additional Notes
A previous version of our guidance incorrectly instructed customers to create an A record pointing to IP address 35.243.150.225. This is outdated and incorrect. Do not use that IP. Also, the correct CNAME target is whitelabel.dns.searchatlas.com (not whitelabel.searchatlas.com). Delete any existing A record pointing to 35.243.150.225.