Squarespace step-by-step domain authentication

This article is meant for those who have already successfully registered a domain with Squarespace.

1. Head to the Account settings page and click the Domains tab.

2. Under Sending domains, click Add domain.

3. Enter an email address that includes your paid domain, which will be used to send campaigns.

4. Click Save.

5. Once the domain has been added, click on the Authenticate button.

1. A pop-up will appear, prompting you to start the authentication process. Click Continue.

This tool will scan your domain and detect which provider is the host.

2. Once the provider has been detected, follow the instructions to connect to your account. You will need to authorise the connection and use your login credentials to log into your hosting provider.

3. Next, follow the steps to authorize MailerLite to configure your DNS and add the necessary records.

4. Once the DNS configuration is done, you will be redirected back to MailerLite. Refresh the page to see the updated status of your domain.

It can take up to 24 hours for your new DNS records to propagate and for your domain to be authenticated. You will see the Wait to activate status first, which will change to Authenticated once the process is completed.

If you would like to access the DNS records and authenticate in Squarespace manually, switch to the Manual tab.

Afterwards, head to your Squarespace account. To access the DNS zone page:

1. From your Dashboard, navigate to the Domains tab and click on the domain you wish to authenticate.

2. Click DNS in the menu on the left-hand side and choose DNS settings from the dropdown menu.

1. Under Custom records, click Add record.

2. Select CNAME as the type.

3. In the Name field, add litesrv._domainkey.

4. In the Alias data box, paste the DKIM value litesrv._domainkey.mlsend.com.

5. Leave the TTL as 4 hours.

6. Click Save.

1. Within the same DNS page, click Add record again.

2. Choose the TXT type for the SPF record.

3. In the Name field, enter @. If you’re using a subdomain, add your subdomain instead.

4. In the Text box, paste the SPF value text that is given to you in your MailerLite account.

5. Leave the TTL as 4 hours.

6. Click Save.

1. Click Add record again.

2. Choose the TXT type.

3. In the Name field, enter @. If you’re using a subdomain, add your subdomain instead.

4. In the Text box, paste the verification value that is given to you in your MailerLite account.

5. Leave the TTL as 4 hours.

6. Click Save.

Head back to your MailerLite Domains page and click on the green Check DNS records button on the domain authentication window. Once the records are approved, your new domain will be displayed as Authenticated ✅.

In some cases, it may appear that the records were not approved even if all of the information was correctly submitted.

There are 2 reasons why this happens:

1. It can take the servers up to 24 hours to completely update this information. Most of the time, however, it is approved and updated in a matter of minutes.

2. Some information has to be rechecked and updated.

🛠️ Need help? For solutions to common issues, check our guide Troubleshooting: Domain authentication.