Fix “Invalid DNS” on a Framer Custom Domain
Framer Invalid DNS is usually a mismatch between the public records and the site’s current domain instructions, but old routes, IPv6, proxying, and certificate policy can produce similar symptoms.
Publish the Framer site, open Site Settings → Domains, and compare the live DNS with the values shown there. Framer’s current public guide lists apex A records 31.43.160.6 and 31.43.161.6 plus a www CNAME to sites.framer.app. Remove unrelated A and AAAA records for the same hostname, use DNS-only mode during connection, and verify CAA only after the routing records match.
This guide turns Framer’s Invalid DNS status into a fix order: publish state, authoritative provider, current apex and www records, extra A and unsupported AAAA routes, Cloudflare proxying, propagation, CAA policy, HTTPS, and primary-host redirects. It uses current official values but treats the Framer project screen as the final authority.
Quick Questions
Framer cannot confirm its required public route, often because records are missing, incorrect, duplicated, proxied, or still accompanied by an old A or AAAA record.
Framer’s current troubleshooting guidance says it does not support IPv6 and instructs users to remove AAAA records for the connected domain.
Framer provisions HTTPS automatically after supported DNS and certificate-policy requirements are satisfied.
Framer Invalid DNS decision table
| Evidence | Likely layer | Next action |
|---|---|---|
| Public records do not match Framer | DNS routing | Correct the authoritative zone |
| Correct A records plus another A | Old host conflict | Remove only the extra website route |
| AAAA is present | Unsupported IPv6 route | Remove it for the connected hostname |
| Cloudflare IPs are returned | Possible proxy layer | Check and disable proxying during validation |
| DNS matches but HTTPS fails | CAA or certificate stage | Review issuer policy and Framer status |
See which AI crawlers actually reach your website.
Track visits from GPTBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot, search bots, and other discovery agents-then see which public pages attract their attention.
- Monitor leading AI and search crawlers
- Review which public pages receive visits
- Connect crawler activity to your visibility work
Main Explanation
First confirm that the Framer project is published and that the custom domain was added to that project. A valid DNS zone cannot serve an unpublished site. Likewise, a domain still attached to another project can require an ownership cleanup rather than another round of A-record changes. Read the exact status in the Domains section before diagnosing from the browser alone.
Find which provider is authoritative. Your registrar account may display a DNS editor even though the domain delegates its nameservers to Cloudflare or another host. Changes in the wrong zone never reach Framer. Query the NS records, open the active provider, and compare its public records with the current values displayed by Framer.
For a standard apex and www setup, Framer’s June 2026 connection guide lists two apex A records—31.43.160.6 and 31.43.161.6—and a www CNAME to sites.framer.app. Those values can change, so use the project screen as the final source. A subdomain normally uses a CNAME to the Framer target without copying apex A records onto that subdomain.
Remove conflicting website records at the same hostname. Parking services and previous hosts often leave an extra A record. Framer warns that non-Framer routes can make the site load incorrectly or interfere with HTTPS. Preserve mail and unrelated TXT records. The check is not “delete everything”; it is “make each website hostname resolve only through the intended Framer route.”
Check AAAA separately. Framer’s current troubleshooting page says IPv6 is not supported and that an AAAA record can prevent SSL certificate issuance. This matters because one network can prefer IPv6 while another uses IPv4, creating a confusing result where the site works for some visitors and fails for others. Remove the AAAA only after confirming it belongs to the affected website hostname.
If Cloudflare manages the zone, disable proxying and use DNS-only mode while connecting. A proxied record returns Cloudflare addresses publicly, hiding the Framer destination and potentially blocking validation. Public lookup tools cannot always prove whether proxying is enabled, so verify the orange-cloud setting in the account rather than trusting an inferred diagnosis.
After A, CNAME, and AAAA are correct, inspect CAA if HTTPS is still unavailable. Framer currently documents automatic certificate provisioning and notes that restrictive CAA policy must permit its supported issuers. An absent CAA record is not automatically an error. If CAA exists, compare the allowed issuers with current Framer guidance instead of adding random certificate authorities.
Finally, set the intended default host, republish, and test apex, www, HTTP, and HTTPS. Update canonicals, sitemap URLs, analytics, form destinations, and Search Console to the preferred domain. Run a TruboRankAI scan after the site is reachable to catch content, indexing, sitemap, AEO, GEO, and AI-crawler issues that the Framer domain status does not evaluate.
Practical Steps
- Publish the Framer project and add the intended hostname.
- Confirm the authoritative nameservers.
- Copy the exact current records from Framer.
- Remove extra A, CNAME, or AAAA website routes that conflict.
- Use DNS-only mode during validation when applicable.
- Verify the public apex and www answers.
- Review CAA only if DNS is correct and HTTPS still fails.
- Set the default host, republish, and audit the live site.
Stop guessing whether AI crawlers see your best pages.
Use crawler activity as an early discovery signal, identify pages that receive attention, and find important pages that may need a clearer path.
- Monitor leading AI and search crawlers
- Review which public pages receive visits
- Connect crawler activity to your visibility work
Turn AI crawler visits into a repeatable visibility workflow.
Monitor discovery over time, compare activity across important pages, and use the evidence to decide what deserves attention next.
- Monitor leading AI and search crawlers
- Review which public pages receive visits
- Connect crawler activity to your visibility work
FAQ
How long does Framer DNS take?
Framer says changes can take up to 48 hours, although they are often faster. Confirm the authoritative values first because waiting does not correct a mismatch.
Why does my Framer domain work only sometimes?
Duplicate A records, an AAAA route, resolver caching, or an old proxy can send visitors through different paths. Compare both IPv4 and IPv6 public answers.
Should I configure a registrar redirect to www?
Usually no. Framer handles its domain redirects after the supported DNS setup; an extra registrar forward can create conflicts.
Sources and methodology
The page maps Framer’s official July 2026 troubleshooting and June 2026 connection guidance to observable failure layers, with the project dashboard treated as authoritative. It was reviewed on 2026-08-16 and does not claim that domain recovery guarantees search or AI visibility.
These references support the changeable facts and study findings discussed above. Results depend on each source's sample, date, market, query set, and measurement method.