Buying a domain with Wix

Buy a domain for your Base44 app through Wix, with DNS and SSL set up automatically and ongoing management handled in your Wix dashboard.

You can buy a domain for your Base44 app directly through Wix, without leaving Base44. This is the simplest way to get a custom domain, since the purchase, DNS, and SSL are handled for you and your app connects automatically.

Base44 works with two domain providers, Wix and IONOS. When you click Buy Domain, you may see one or both, depending on your account, and the Wix option is rolling out gradually. Use whichever you see. This page covers buying through Wix. For the IONOS flow, see Buying a domain with IONOS; to connect a domain you already own, see Connecting an external domain.

Before you begin:

• Custom domains are available on the Builder, Pro, and Elite plans.
• Only the workspace owner can buy and manage domains for the workspace.

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Buying a domain

Search for and buy a domain without leaving your app. When your purchase completes, Base44 connects the domain for you automatically.

Buying a new domain from your app's Domains dashboard

To buy and connect a new domain:

1. Click Dashboard in your app editor.

2. Click Domains.

3. Under Custom domains, click Buy new domain.

4. Search for a domain, or choose one of the recommended options, then click Get It on the one you want.

5. Choose a registration period. Longer periods save more and can include bonus years at no extra cost. A free-year voucher, when you have one, covers your first year.

6. Add your contact information. This sets the domain’s registered owner, and some of these details may appear on public domain databases. You may need to verify your email address.

7. Choose a privacy and security option. A free-year voucher covers Basic Protection only, so the private options add a yearly cost:

   • Basic Protection: Free. Your contact details are listed on public domain databases.
   • Private Registration: Keeps your personal details private.
   • Private registration and DNSSEC: Keeps your details private and adds DNSSEC to help protect against domain hijacking.

   

   Choosing a privacy and security option

8. Choose a saved payment method or add a new one, then click Submit Purchase. By purchasing, you agree to the Domain Name Registration Agreement and the Privacy Policy, and to automatic yearly renewal.

9. Your domain connects automatically. DNS records are created for you and SSL is set up, so there is nothing to configure by hand.

Once connected, your domain appears under Custom domains on your Domains page with a Base44 Domain tag. You can buy more than one domain for a single app.

Connecting a domain does not publish your app. You can buy and connect a domain before your app is published, but it will only go live on that domain once you publish.

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Verifying your domain

After you buy a domain, its registration is confirmed automatically. This usually takes about 30 minutes, and in rare cases up to 24 hours, before your domain goes live.

A domain waiting for its registration to be verified

You also need to confirm the domain’s contact information. Wix, the domain provider, sends a verification email to the domain’s contact address, and your Domains page shows a reminder until you confirm.

Confirm your contact information before the deadline shown on your Domains page. If it is not verified in time, the domain is suspended and disconnected from your app. If you do not see the email, check your spam folder or click Resend Verification Email on your Domains page.

Your domain is secured with SSL automatically. Once it is verified, Base44 provisions and renews an SSL certificate for you, so your app is served securely over HTTPS with nothing to set up.

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Managing your domain

Domains you buy through Wix are managed from your domains dashboard, where you can update settings, handle renewals, and transfer your domain. Only the workspace owner can manage the workspace’s domains.

To open your domains dashboard:

1. Click Dashboard in your app editor.
2. Click Domains.
3. Under Custom domains, click the More Actions icon next to your domain.
4. Click Manage Domain.

Opening a domain's management dashboard from the More Actions menu

Your domains dashboard shows each domain’s renewal date, and renewals are set to automatic by default. Use the sections below to manage your DNS records, update your contact details, transfer your domain, or unlink it from your app.

You receive a few emails around your purchase: a confirmation from Base44, a verification request from Wix that you must complete to keep the domain active, and an optional data-sharing preferences email from Wix’s registrar, Tucows. Renewal notices also come from Wix. The Wix and Tucows emails are expected and legitimate.

Managing DNS records

Your DNS records are set up automatically when you buy a domain, so you do not need to configure anything for your app to work. You can view or edit them at any time from your domain’s management dashboard.

To manage your DNS records:

1. Click Dashboard in your app editor.
2. Click Domains.
3. Under Custom domains, click the More Actions icon next to your domain.
4. Click Manage Domain.
5. On the management dashboard, click the More Actions icon next to your domain.
6. Click Manage DNS records.

Opening Manage DNS records from the domain's management dashboard

The records that point your domain to Base44 are added for you:

• A record
  Type: A
  Host: @
  Value: 216.24.57.1
  
• www subdomain
  Type: CNAME
  Host: www
  Value: base44.onrender.com
  

You can add and edit A, CNAME, TXT, and SRV records, for example to verify another service or connect a third-party tool. Name server (NS) records are managed by Wix and cannot be edited.

To connect a subdomain such as app.yourdomain.com, add a CNAME record with the subdomain label as the host (for example, app) and base44.onrender.com as the value.

Do not change or remove the records that point your domain to Base44. If you do, your app can stop loading on your domain.

Updating your contact information

Each domain has contact information on its registration, which the domain registry requires to be accurate. You can update it from your domain’s management dashboard.

To update your contact information:

1. Click Dashboard in your app editor.
2. Click Domains.
3. Under Custom domains, click the More Actions icon next to your domain.
4. Click Manage Domain.
5. On the management dashboard, click the More Actions icon next to your domain.
6. Click Edit contact info.
7. Update your details, then save your changes.

Opening Edit contact info from the domain's management dashboard

Keep your contact email current. Verification and renewal notices are sent to this address, and a domain with unconfirmed contact information can be suspended.

Resetting your default records

If your app stops loading on your domain after DNS changes, reset the records that point it to Base44.

To reset your default records:

1. Click Dashboard in your app editor.
2. Click Domains.
3. Under Custom domains, click the More Actions icon next to your domain.
4. Click Manage Domain.
5. On the management dashboard, click the More Actions icon next to your domain.
6. Click Manage DNS records.
7. Set the A record for @ to 216.24.57.1, and the CNAME record for www to base44.onrender.com, adding either one if it is missing.
8. Remove any extra A or AAAA records on the same hostnames that could conflict.

Transferring your domain away from Base44

You can transfer a domain to another provider from your domain’s management dashboard.

To transfer your domain:

1. Click Dashboard in your app editor.
2. Click Domains.
3. Under Custom domains, click the More Actions icon next to your domain.
4. Click Manage Domain.
5. On the management dashboard, click the More Actions icon next to your domain.
6. Click Transfer away from Base44.
7. Follow the prompts to complete the transfer with your new provider.

Opening Transfer away from Base44 from the domain's management dashboard

Newly registered domains are locked and cannot be transferred for the first 60 days, under ICANN’s 60-day transfer lock policy. Your domains dashboard shows the date each domain becomes available to transfer.

Unlinking a domain

Unlinking disconnects a domain from your app without canceling or deleting it. The domain stays listed under your domains, so you can reconnect it to this app or connect it to another app later.

To unlink a domain:

1. Click Dashboard in your app editor.
2. Click Domains.
3. Under Custom domains, click the More Actions icon next to your domain.
4. Click Unlink Domain.
5. Confirm that you want to unlink the domain.

Unlinking a domain from the More Actions menu

Unlinking keeps the domain registered to you and does not stop its billing. To stop future charges, cancel the domain instead.

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Sending emails from your domain

You can send email from a domain you bought through Wix, such as [e-mail], so your app’s emails match your brand. Because Base44 manages the DNS for these domains, the required records are added for you automatically.

To set up email sending:

1. Click Dashboard in your app editor.
2. Click Domains and scroll to the Email domain section.
3. Click Use your custom domain.
4. Enter a Sender name and a Custom address prefix, such as no-reply, then select your domain.
5. Click Connect Domain.

The Email domain section on your app's Domains page

After connecting your email domain

• Your email domain shows as Active once it is connected. If it shows Connection failed, click Retry.
• For more on custom email domains, including credits and limits, see Sending emails from a custom domain.

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Domain ownership

The workspace owner owns any domain bought through Wix, and ownership stays with the workspace owner.

Any app owner can transfer an app to another person, and the connected domain moves with the app so it keeps working. Ownership of the domain itself stays with the original workspace owner, even after the app is transferred.

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Subscription and billing

You manage a domain’s settings, like its DNS records and contact information, from the app’s Domains dashboard. Billing for your domains is handled in your workspace settings, under Plan & Subscriptions, alongside your plan.

The Plan and Subscriptions page shows your current plan at the top, with its credits, price, next billing date, and payment method. Below it, the Subscriptions table lists your active subscriptions, including your plan and any domains you bought through Wix, each with its own next billing date, payment method, and status.

To open the Plan and Subscriptions page:

1. Click your workspace name at the top left.
2. Click Settings.
3. Under Plan & Billing, click Plan & Subscriptions.

To manage a subscription, click the More Actions icon on its row. For a domain, you can update its payment method, cancel the domain, or open Manage Domain.

Managing a domain subscription on the Plan and Subscriptions page

Your Billing History page shows your past charges, with separate entries for plans and domains. Domains renew automatically each year unless you cancel, and your plan and your domains are billed separately, so canceling one does not cancel the other.

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Resolving domain issues

If a domain bought through Wix runs into a problem, use the sections below. These apply to Wix domains only. For a domain bought through IONOS, see Buying a domain with IONOS.

My Wix domain shows a ClientHold or ServerHold status

A ClientHold or ServerHold status means the registry has not activated your domain’s DNS, so your app will not load on it. The most common cause is unconfirmed contact information or a failed renewal payment.

First, confirm your contact information from the verification email, or click Resend Verification Email on your Domains page and complete it. Make sure your payment method is up to date. If the status does not clear after that, contact support.

My Wix domain is suspended

A domain is usually suspended when its contact information was not confirmed by the deadline. Open your Domains page, click Resend Verification Email, and confirm your details. Once verified, the domain reconnects to your app. If it stays suspended, contact support.

I see 'This domain is associated with another Wix account'

This means the domain is already registered to a different account and cannot be added again. Because Base44 manages the underlying registration for you, contact support to resolve it rather than trying to move the domain yourself.

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FAQs

Click a question below to learn more about buying a domain through Wix.

How do I cancel a domain?

Turn off auto-renewal for the domain from your domains dashboard. You keep the domain until the end of the current subscription period, and it is not renewed after that. Canceling a domain does not cancel your plan.

Can I get a refund on a domain?

Domains are non-refundable and are not covered by a money-back guarantee. If you believe your case is an exception, contact support to request a review.

Can I change my domain name after I buy it?

No. A domain name cannot be changed after it is registered. If you want a different name, buy the new domain and connect it to your app.

What happens if a renewal payment fails?

Update your payment method so the renewal can go through. If a domain expires, it enters a grace period during which your app stops loading on it until it is renewed.

What happens if my domain expires?

If a domain is not renewed, it stops working and moves through a few stages: a grace period of about 30 days when you can still renew it, then a redemption period of about 30 days when you can recover it for an added fee, and finally it is released and becomes available for anyone to register. Renew before the grace period ends to avoid extra fees. For the full timeline, see Wix’s Domain Life Cycle article.