Every Sitesfare website starts at yourname.sitesfare.com, with HTTPS. With your own domain it opens at www.yourname.com instead — same site, same editor, nothing to move.
What you need
- A published Sitesfare website (the domain points at a live site).
- A website tool from Sitesfare for that site's template (custom domains are not part of the free plan).
- The Custom domain plan: ₹4,999 a year per domain (US$62.99 outside India). It covers HTTPS, the connection, and one extra email address (on top of the ones your plan includes) — every address works on your domain.
- A domain name. You can buy one at any registrar — it stays in your own registrar account.
Step 1 — Get a domain
- Open your dashboard → your website → Domain & email.
- Under 1. Find a domain, type the name you want and press Check. You'll see which endings (.com, .in, .co, …) are free.
- Press Namecheap, GoDaddy or Hostinger next to the one you like. The registrar opens with the name already filled in. Buy it there.
Already own a domain? Skip to step 2.
Tips:
- Short and easy to say beats clever. Avoid hyphens if you can.
- A .com or .in usually costs ₹800–1,500 a year. Check the renewal price, not just the first-year offer.
.inand.co.inare shown as "check at the registrar" — our availability lookup can't see them, the registrar can.
Step 2 — Add the Custom domain plan
On Domain & email, under 2. Connect my domain, press Add custom domain and pay. It renews every year. If a renewal isn't paid, your site goes back to yourname.sitesfare.com after a 3-day grace period, and your domain comes back as soon as you pay. After 60 days unpaid it is disconnected from Sitesfare (your registration at the registrar is not affected).
Step 3 — Connect it
- Type your domain and press Connect. Use www.yourname.com.
- If you type yourname.com, Sitesfare connects www.yourname.com and shows you how to forward the bare name to it. Most registrars can't point a bare domain at a website service reliably; www always works.
- Sitesfare shows you one record to add:
| Type | Host / Name | Value / Points to |
|---|---|---|
| CNAME | www | domains.sitesfare.com |
- Add it at your registrar — see Adding the DNS records at your registrar for exact clicks.
- Optional — the bare domain: at your registrar, set up forwarding (sometimes called "redirect") from
yourname.comtohttps://www.yourname.com, permanent (301).
Step 4 — Wait for the live check
Stay on Domain & email (or come back later — it checks by itself). The Live check shows:
- Should point to —
domains.sitesfare.com - Points to right now — what the internet sees for your domain at this moment
- HTTPS certificate — issued automatically once the record is right
Usually it goes live within 5–15 minutes. Occasionally a registrar takes a few hours. When it says Live, open your domain — your site is there, on HTTPS. You also get an email.
What changes when it's live:
- Search engines are told your domain is the main address (canonical links and your sitemap switch to it).
http://is upgraded tohttps://automatically.- yourname.sitesfare.com keeps working.
Step 5 — Email on your domain (optional)
Once your domain is live you can have addresses like hello@yourname.com. See Email on your own domain.
Renewals and stopping
- Renewal: yearly, from Dashboard → Billing. Reminders are emailed before it renews.
- If it isn't paid: after 3 days your domain sends visitors to yourname.sitesfare.com (same page), and email on your domain pauses. Pay and it all comes back. After 60 days unpaid the domain is disconnected and must be connected again.
- Disconnect: Domain & email → Disconnect. Your site stays live at yourname.sitesfare.com. Your domain stays yours at your registrar.
Stuck? See Troubleshooting.