⚠️ Why Changing the CNAME Record Will Not Make Your Wix Website Live
- Webx Marketing
- Aug 4
- 2 min read
If you’ve built your website on Wix but your domain is registered with GoDaddy, Namecheap, or any other registrar, you might be wondering:
“Can’t I just update the CNAME record to point to Wix and make my website live?”
Unfortunately, the answer is no — and here’s why.
✅ What Happens When You Change Only the CNAME Record?
The CNAME record, such as the one for www.yourdomain.com, helps route only the subdomain (like www) to Wix. But this does not affect the root domain
🧩 Why CNAME Alone Is Not Enough
When you change the CNAME record:
Your domain may partially connect to Wix
It will not fully support all Wix services (like SSL, email routing, and SEO optimizations)
Root domain won’t point to Wix
There will be conflicts with existing DNS records
The website will still show as “not connected”
🚀 The Right Way: Change the Name Servers to Wix
The correct method is to update your domain’s name servers to Wix. When you do this:
✅ Wix takes full control of your DNS
✅ Both yourdomain.com and www.yourdomain.com will work
✅ Your site will have SSL (https) enabled
✅ All Wix services and settings work as expected
🔁 What Are Name Servers?
Think of name servers like the Internet's GPS system. They tell browsers where to find your website when someone types your domain.
When you point your domain to Wix by changing the name servers, you are saying:
“Hey Internet, Wix is now fully in charge of my domain. Show my Wix site!”
💡 Summary: CNAME vs Name Servers
🛠️ How to Update Name Servers to Wix (Example for GoDaddy)
Log in to your GoDaddy account
Go to My Products > Domains > Manage DNS
Scroll to Nameservers section
Click Change and select Custom
Enter the following Wix name servers:
Save changes
🕒 Wait up to 48 hours for full propagation (often works within a few hours)
🗣 Final Words
👉 If you want your Wix website to go live, changing only the CNAME will not work. You must change your domain's name servers to Wix.
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