Nameservers vs DNS hosting: which do I need?
Why you can change nameservers for free but need DNS hosting to manage records.
These two get mixed up a lot. Here’s the difference.
Nameservers: who’s in charge
Every domain registered with us includes nameserver management at no extra cost. Changing nameservers hands control of your domain’s DNS to another provider, such as your website host.
DNS hosting: the detailed records
To create and edit individual DNS records (A, CNAME, MX, TXT, SRV, AAAA) yourself, the domain needs DNS hosting: a DNS zone on our servers that holds those records.
You already have DNS hosting if you have:
- a Webmart web hosting plan for the domain (DNS is managed in cPanel), or
- a DNS hosting add-on on the domain (DNS is managed in the Client Area).
Which do I need?
| Situation | You need |
|---|---|
| Website and email both hosted with one other provider | Just change your nameservers to theirs |
| Website or email on Webmart hosting | Default nameservers. DNS is included with hosting. |
| Website on Shopify, Wix or similar, and email with Webmart or Microsoft 365 | DNS hosting, so you can add the records each provider gives you |
| Service that “doesn’t use nameservers” and just gives you records to add | DNS hosting |
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