Every domain must have at least two nameservers. These servers are the authoritative source of truth for all DNS records associated with your domain. Understanding nameservers is essential when setting up hosting, migrating websites or troubleshooting DNS issues.
How Nameservers Work
When a user's browser needs to resolve your domain, it eventually reaches your domain's authoritative nameservers — the servers designated as the ultimate authority for your domain's DNS records. These are specified in NS records at the domain registrar level.
Default vs Custom Nameservers
When you register a domain, it is assigned your registrar's default nameservers. When you sign up for web hosting, your host may ask you to switch to their nameservers (or use a custom DNS provider like Cloudflare).
- Registrar nameservers — e.g.
ns1.namecheap.com - Host nameservers — e.g.
ns1.siteground.net - Cloudflare nameservers — e.g.
ava.ns.cloudflare.com
Why You Need Two or More Nameservers
DNS requires at least two nameservers for redundancy. If one nameserver goes down, the other continues to answer queries. Most DNS providers offer at least two, often more.
How to Change Nameservers
- Log in to your domain registrar (where you bought the domain).
- Find the DNS or Nameserver settings for your domain.
- Replace the existing nameservers with the new ones provided by your host or DNS provider.
- Save the changes.
- Wait for DNS propagation — this can take up to 48 hours.
How to Check Nameservers
Use our DNS Lookup tool — select "NS" as the record type to see which nameservers are currently authoritative for a domain.
Common Mistake
Do not change nameservers and individual DNS records at the same time. Once you change nameservers, the new DNS provider controls all records. Changes made at the old provider are ignored.