Custom Domains
    enterprise+ plan

    Connect your own domain to your Giveawayz competition site for a fully white-labelled experience. When a custom domain is verified, all Giveawayz branding is removed and your domain appears in all URLs and customer-facing emails.

    Adding a Custom Domain

    Open Domain settings

    From your dashboard, navigate to Settings > Custom Domain.

    Enter your domain

    Type in the domain you want to connect -- for example, comps.yourbrand.com. Click Add Domain to begin the setup process.

    Configure your DNS

    You will be shown the DNS record you need to add. Log in to your domain registrar or DNS provider and add the required CNAME record.

    Wait for verification

    Giveawayz automatically checks your DNS configuration. Once the record is detected, your domain will be verified and an SSL certificate will be provisioned.

    DNS Configuration

    Add a CNAME record at your DNS provider with the following values:

    | Record Type | Host / Name | Value | |---|---|---| | CNAME | comps (or your chosen subdomain) | cname.vercel-dns.com |

    For example, if your domain is comps.yourbrand.com:

    • Host: comps
    • Type: CNAME
    • Value: cname.vercel-dns.com
    • TTL: Auto (or 3600)

    Verification States

    After adding your domain, it will progress through three states:

    Pending

    The domain has been added but no DNS record has been detected yet. You will see the required DNS configuration on screen. Add the CNAME record and wait for verification to begin.

    Verifying

    Giveawayz has detected a DNS change and is verifying the record points to the correct destination. This typically takes a few minutes but can take longer depending on DNS propagation.

    Verified

    The domain is fully connected. An SSL certificate has been provisioned automatically and your custom domain is live. All traffic to this domain will serve your Giveawayz competition site.

    Auto SSL

    Once your domain is verified, an SSL certificate is provisioned automatically by Vercel. There is no manual configuration required.

    • Certificates are issued via Let's Encrypt
    • HTTPS is enforced automatically -- HTTP requests are redirected to HTTPS
    • Certificates are renewed automatically before expiry

    White-Label Experience

    When your custom domain is verified and active, the following changes take effect:

    • URLs -- All competition, checkout, and account page URLs use your custom domain
    • Emails -- Customer-facing emails (order confirmations, winner notifications) reference your domain
    • Branding -- Giveawayz branding is removed from customer-facing pages
    • SEO -- Search engines index your competitions under your own domain

    This creates a seamless experience where your customers interact entirely with your brand, with no visible reference to Giveawayz.

    Troubleshooting

    DNS propagation delays

    DNS changes can take up to 48 hours to propagate globally, though most changes take effect within 1-2 hours. If your domain is stuck in the "Pending" state, wait and check again later.

    You can check your DNS propagation status using a tool like whatsmydns.net to verify that the CNAME record is visible from multiple locations.

    Wrong record type

    Make sure you have added a CNAME record, not an A record, TXT record, or any other type. The value must be exactly cname.vercel-dns.com with no trailing slash or protocol prefix.

    CNAME conflicts with root domain

    If you are trying to use a root domain (e.g. yourbrand.com) and your DNS provider does not support CNAME flattening or ALIAS records, the CNAME record will conflict with other records at the root (such as MX records for email). In this case, use a subdomain instead.

    Existing CNAME record

    If a CNAME record already exists for the same host, you will need to delete or update the existing record before adding the Giveawayz one. Only one CNAME record can exist per hostname.

    SSL certificate not provisioning

    If the domain is verified but HTTPS is not working, the SSL certificate may still be provisioning. This usually takes just a few minutes after verification. If it has been more than an hour, try removing and re-adding the domain.

    • API Reference -- Use your custom domain as the base URL for API requests
    • Webhooks -- Receive event notifications on your own infrastructure
    • Website Editor -- Customise the look and feel of your site alongside your domain
    • Pricing Plans -- Custom domains are available on the Enterprise plan
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