Query A, AAAA, MX, TXT, NS, CNAME & more
The Domain Name System (DNS) is the internet's directory service that translates human-readable domain names like example.com into machine-readable IP addresses like 93.184.216.34. When you type a URL into your browser, your device sends a DNS query to a resolver, which then looks up the correct records and returns the result. Our DNS lookup tool lets you query these records directly, showing you exactly what the DNS system returns for any domain and record type.
DNS records come in many types, each serving a different purpose. A records map a domain to an IPv4 address, AAAA records map to IPv6, MX records specify mail servers, TXT records hold verification strings and email authentication policies, NS records identify authoritative name servers, CNAME records create aliases, SOA records contain zone authority information, and CAA records control which certificate authorities can issue SSL certificates for a domain.
To use this tool, enter a domain name and select the record type you want to query. The results show the returned records along with their TTL (time to live) values, which indicate how long resolvers should cache each record. This tool is invaluable for verifying DNS configuration after making changes, debugging website or email delivery issues, and auditing a domain's DNS setup.
A DNS lookup is the process of querying DNS servers to retrieve records associated with a domain name. Every time you visit a website, your device performs a DNS lookup behind the scenes to find the server's IP address. This tool lets you perform those same queries manually so you can inspect the records directly, which is essential for troubleshooting connectivity issues, verifying DNS configuration, or understanding how a domain is set up.
This tool supports all common DNS record types: A (IPv4 address), AAAA (IPv6 address), MX (mail exchange servers), TXT (text records used for SPF, DKIM, domain verification), NS (name servers), CNAME (canonical name aliases), SOA (start of authority with zone metadata), and CAA (certificate authority authorization). Each record type serves a specific function in the DNS ecosystem.
An authoritative DNS server holds the actual DNS records for a domain and provides definitive answers. A recursive DNS resolver (like Cloudflare's 1.1.1.1 or Google's 8.8.8.8) acts as an intermediary -- it receives your query, traverses the DNS hierarchy to find the authoritative server, retrieves the answer, caches it, and returns it to you. Our tool queries via Cloudflare's recursive resolver, which means results may be cached based on the record's TTL.
TTL (Time to Live) is a value in seconds that tells DNS resolvers how long to cache a record before requesting a fresh copy from the authoritative server. A TTL of 3600 means the record can be cached for one hour. Lower TTL values mean changes propagate faster but generate more DNS traffic. Before making DNS changes, it is common practice to lower the TTL in advance so the old records expire quickly once the update is made.
DNS results can vary by location for several reasons. DNS caching means different resolvers may have fetched records at different times, so some may still serve older cached data after a change. GeoDNS and CDN providers like Cloudflare intentionally return different IP addresses based on the querier's location to route traffic to the nearest server. Additionally, some DNS providers use anycast routing, where the same IP address is announced from multiple locations worldwide.
