Zero Snippet

DNS lookup for A, AAAA, MX, TXT, CNAME, NS & SOA

Run a fast, browser-based DNS record lookup against public resolvers. Inspect IPv4 and IPv6 addresses, mail exchangers, TXT strings for SPF and DKIM, CNAME aliases, nameserver delegation, and SOA authority fields—ideal when you are validating a migration, debugging deliverability, or confirming DNS propagation.

How to use this DNS lookup tool

Type the hostname your users type in the browser (for example www.example.com) or paste a full page URL—we extract the host automatically. Choose a single DNS record type when you already know what you need, or select all common typesto snapshot the public view of your zone in one pass. After you run a lookup, compare the answers with your DNS provider's editor and with our WHOIS lookup when you need registrar context alongside live records.

DNS record types this tool explains

  • A — maps the name to one or more IPv4 addresses. Essential for traditional hosting and CDN front doors.
  • AAAA — same role as A, but for IPv6. Dual-stack publishing improves reach on modern networks.
  • MX — ordered list of mail servers with priorities. Misconfigured MX is a leading cause of bounced or spoofed mail.
  • TXT — arbitrary text used for SPF, DKIM, DMARC, and SaaS domain verification. Large providers often split long strings into multiple chunks; we show both joined and chunked views.
  • CNAME — points a hostname at another canonical name. Rare on bare apex domains because of co-existence rules; common on www and app subdomains.
  • NS — lists authoritative nameservers. Mismatched NS data at the parent zone and your DNS host is a frequent copy-paste mistake after transfers.
  • SOA — administrative metadata: primary nameserver, responsible mailbox, serial, and timing fields used for zone transfers and refresh logic.

When to pair DNS lookup with other checks

DNS tells you where traffic should go; transport security tells you how safely it arrives. After MX or A records change, verify TLS with our SSL certificate checker and confirm HTTP behavior using the HTTP header checker or response code checker. If marketing links redirect through chains, follow hops with the redirect chain checker. For crawler-facing rules, review robots.txt and HTML metadata via the meta tags extractor.

Practical DNS troubleshooting guide

Start by confirming the exact hostname users hit—apex versus www versus a regional subdomain. Run ALLlookups after any DNS edit, then narrow to the specific type that matters (for example MX after moving email). Remember that resolvers cache answers for the record's TTL, so identical panels at two offices may disagree for minutes or hours. If public DNS shows stale data but your authoritative DNS UI is correct, wait for TTL decay or flush local caches only as a diagnostic step—end users still depend on global resolver behavior.

Email authentication stacks almost always require coherent TXT publishing: one SPF policy per aligned domain, selector-based DKIM records from your ESP, and a DMARC policy hosted on _dmarc.When TXT verification for a SaaS product fails, re-run a TXT lookup on the precise name the vendor specifies—many dashboards hide the leading underscore hostnames beginners expect at the zone root.

Related free tools

Browse the full website and URL tools collection, or open a focused checker below.

  • Broken Link Checker — Scan outbound links from any URL for 404s and broken hrefs—paste a page and audit links in seconds.
  • HTTP Header Checker — Inspect HTTP response headers for any URL: cache control, content-type, CORS, and security-related values.
  • Redirect Chain Checker — Trace the full redirect path to the final URL and spot unnecessary hops hurting SEO and performance.
  • SSL Certificate Checker — Verify TLS certificate validity, expiry, issuer, and chain for any domain before users hit errors.
  • WHOIS Lookup — Look up domain registration details: registrar, dates, and status for research and due diligence.
  • IP Address Lookup — Resolve IPv4 or IPv6 to geolocation, ISP, ASN, and hostname for network and fraud analysis.
  • Domain Age Checker — See how long a domain has been registered—useful for SEO trust signals and quick vetting.
  • Robots.txt Checker — Fetch and review robots.txt rules, directives, and sitemap lines to catch crawler misconfiguration.
  • Meta Tags Extractor — Extract title, meta description, Open Graph, Twitter Card, and canonical tags from any live URL.
  • Open Graph Preview — Preview how a link may appear when shared on social networks before you publish or pitch.

Frequently asked questions

What is a DNS lookup tool?
A DNS lookup tool asks the public DNS system for records attached to a hostname or domain—such as A/AAAA (addresses), MX (mail), TXT (verification and SPF/DKIM), NS (nameservers), CNAME (aliases), and SOA (zone authority). It helps you verify propagation, email setup, and hosting configuration.
What is the difference between A and AAAA records?
A records map a name to an IPv4 address. AAAA records map a name to an IPv6 address. Modern stacks often publish both so clients can choose the best path. If one is missing, some users or networks may still reach you only over the other family.
Why would I check MX records?
MX records tell the internet which mail servers accept email for your domain. Wrong or stale MX values cause bounced mail, deliverability issues, or messages routing to the wrong provider. After changing email hosts, MX checks confirm the world sees the new targets.
What are TXT records used for?
TXT records store arbitrary text at DNS and commonly hold SPF, DKIM, DMARC, domain verification tokens for SaaS, and ACME challenges for certificates. Multiple TXT strings may exist on one name; your provider usually tells you exactly what to publish.
Can I look up DNS for a subdomain?
Yes. Enter the full hostname, for example www.example.com, api.example.com, or _dmarc.example.com. The resolver returns whatever records exist at that exact name (or inherited defaults where applicable).
Why does my CNAME query return no data?
Many apex domains (example.com) cannot use a CNAME alongside other record types under DNS rules, so registrars often use ALIAS/ANAME at the provider instead. CNAME is common on subdomains like www. If you expect a CNAME but see none, check whether the provider uses flattening or A/AAAA at the apex.
How is this different from WHOIS?
DNS lookup reads live resolver data for nameservice records. WHOIS reads registration metadata (registrar, dates, contacts where published). Use DNS for mail and hosting troubleshooting; use WHOIS for ownership and renewal research. Our site offers both tools in the website utilities section.
Why might results differ from my local computer?
DNS is distributed: resolvers cache answers for the TTL, anycast routes differ, and split-horizon DNS can return internal views to office networks. This tool queries from our server’s resolver path, which reflects a public perspective—useful for what the broader internet likely sees after propagation.