How Do I Point My Existing Domain to HostGator? | HostGator Support
  1. Knowledge Base
  2. >
  3. How Do I Point My Existing Domain to HostGator?

How Do I Point My Existing Domain to HostGator?

 

This article will walk you through pointing your existing domain to HostGator. Pointing a domain means you will be connecting your domain to your HostGator servers.

Depending on who your registrar or domain provider is, you always have the option to point your domain to your HostGator account by changing your name servers or DNS records. In the video below, we will show you how to point your existing GoDaddy domain to HostGator as an example.

Important Note:

Please note that you can only change your domain's name servers through your current registrar or domain provider.

How to Change the Name Servers for your Domain

Here are the steps outlined in the video above. 

Step 1 - Get your HostGator Name Servers

You will want to make sure you have your HostGator name servers handy, which you can see in your Welcome email, Customer Portal, or cPanel.

Option 1 - Welcome Email

When you purchase a new hosting plan, a Welcome email will be sent to you providing you complete details about your hosting package. Depending on your hosting plan, your Welcome email varies. To know more about it, please check out this article, Customer Portal Welcome Email.

Option 2 - Customer Portal

To know where your HostGator name servers are:

  1. Log in to your Customer Portal.
  2. Select Hosting from the left-hand menu.
  3. Locate your hosting plan and click Manage.

    Customer Portal - Hosting - Manage

  4. Click the Settings tab.
  5. In the Settings section, you will find your server information, including your name servers. Take note of these two name servers.

    Customer Portal - Settings - Name Servers

Option 3 - cPanel

To know where your HostGator name servers are:

  1. Log into your cPanel.
  2. On the right-hand side, you will see the General Information section.
  3. Scroll down a little bit to see your name servers.

    cPanel - General Information - Name Servers

Step 2 - Change Name Servers via your Current Registrar

Once you have your HostGator name servers, you will now need to update your domain through your current registrar's account. For this example, we will use GoDaddy.

  1. Log in to your GoDaddy Domain Control Center.
  2. In the upper right-hand corner, click on your name.
  3. Select My Products from the dropdown menu.
  4. Under the Domains section, you should see your domain listed.
  5. Locate your domain name from that section, then click the DNS button.
  6. Scroll down to the Nameservers section.
  7. Click Change.
  8. Choose the option Enter my own nameservers (advanced).
  9. On the next page, enter your two HostGator name servers.
  10. Click Save or Connect to finalize the changes.
  11. You may receive a verification email to confirm the change.
  12. Once confirmed, you can now see your updates by logging back into your GoDaddy account and navigating to the Nameservers section again.
  13. Your HostGator name servers will now undergo the propagation phase, which may take 24 to 48 hours.
The process of pointing your domain via different registrars is the same. You can also refer to this article to know how to change name servers through popular registrars. Please note that while we try to make sure their steps are correct, those registrars are still third-party, and the steps to change name servers may also change without us knowing.
Additional References