DNS Record Types — Complete Reference
Everything you need to know about DNS record types: what they do, how to write them, and how to fix common issues. Select a record type below for the full reference.
Address Record (A)
Maps a domain name to an IPv4 address — the most fundamental DNS record type.
RFC 1035
IPv6 Address Record (AAAA)
Maps a domain name to a 128-bit IPv6 address — the modern successor to the A record.
RFC 3596
Canonical Name Record (CNAME)
Creates an alias from one domain name to another — the target resolves to an IP separately.
RFC 1035
Mail Exchange Record (MX)
Specifies the mail servers responsible for accepting email for a domain.
RFC 1035 · RFC 5321
Text Record (TXT)
Stores arbitrary text data — widely used for domain verification, SPF, DKIM, and DMARC.
RFC 1035 · RFC 7208
Name Server Record (NS)
Delegates a DNS zone to one or more authoritative name servers.
RFC 1035
Start of Authority Record (SOA)
Defines administrative information about a DNS zone — required for every zone.
RFC 1035 · RFC 2308
Service Record (SRV)
Specifies the hostname and port of servers for specific protocols and services.
RFC 2782
Pointer Record (PTR)
Maps an IP address to a hostname — used for reverse DNS lookup.
RFC 1035
Certification Authority Authorization Record (CAA)
Controls which Certificate Authorities are permitted to issue SSL/TLS certificates for your domain.
RFC 8659