How to Add Your Domain to Cloudflare & Use Cloudflare Nameservers (Step-by-Step Guide)

Connecting your domain to Cloudflare allows you to use their powerful DNS management, DDoS protection, SSL, and CDN services — all for free.

Whether you're using a registrar like Realhost, Namecheap, GoDaddy, Hostinger, or a local registrar (like for .ng domains), this guide applies.

✅ Prerequisites

• You must own a domain name (e.g., example.com, realhostnow.com).

• You must have access to your domain registrar's dashboard (where you manage DNS or nameservers).

• Create a free Cloudflare account if you don't have one yet.

???? Step 1: Create a Cloudflare Account (if needed)

1. Go to https://dash.cloudflare.com/sign-up

2. Enter your email and password.

3. Confirm your email by clicking the link Cloudflare sends you.

???? Step 2: Add Your Domain to Cloudflare

1. Log in to your Cloudflare dashboard.

2. Click “Add a Site”.

3. Enter your domain name (e.g., realhostnow.com) and click "Add site".

4. Select the Free plan (unless you need a paid tier) and click "Continue".

???? Step 3: Scan & Confirm DNS Records

Cloudflare will now scan your current DNS records (The realhostnow nameserver will show here). After a few seconds, it will show you a list of your existing records (A, MX, CNAME, etc).

Important:

• Make sure important records (e.g., A records for your website and mail server) are correct.

• If unsure, leave them as-is. You can add/edit later.

• Click “Continue” when you're ready.

???? Step 4: Replace Your Nameservers with Cloudflare's

Cloudflare will give you 2 nameservers, like:

Change your domain's nameservers to the nameserver cloudfare will give you

Now go to your domain registrar's control panel:

Your registrar is the platform where you bought the domain — like Realhostnow, GoDaddy, Namecheap, Truehost, Smartweb, Whogohost, etc.

Find the Nameserver/DNS section and:

1. Remove existing nameservers (e.g., ns1.realhostnow.com).

2. Add the two nameservers given by Cloudflare.

3. Save your changes.

⚠️ Note: It may take 10–30 minutes for nameserver changes to reflect globally (sometimes up to 24 hours).

???? Step 5: Cloudflare Verifies Your Domain

After updating the nameservers:

1. Go back to Cloudflare and click “Done, check nameservers”.

2. Cloudflare will now start checking your domain.

✅ Once verified, you'll see “Active” next to the domain in your dashboard.

⚙️ Step 6: Final Configuration (Optional but Recommended)

• Auto SSL: Cloudflare will automatically enable a free SSL certificate.

  • Go to SSL/TLS tab → set mode to “Full” or “Flexible”.

• DNS Proxy: Orange cloud icon means traffic is going through Cloudflare for DDoS protection and caching.

  • For critical services like email (MX records), keep the cloud grey.

???? Step 7: Test Your Domain

Use these to test:

• Visit the domain in your browser

• Use https://www.whatsmydns.net/ to verify global DNS status

• Use https://intodns.com/ to verify the nameserver

???? Notes & Tips

• Cloudflare does not host your website. You still need hosting (or point to a VPS IP).

• DNS changes (like nameservers) may take time to fully propagate.

• If email stops working, check that your MX and TXT records were copied from your old DNS.

???? Example: Connecting realhostnow.com to Cloudflare

✅ Done!

Your domain is now protected and managed by Cloudflare.