How do I set-up subdomains in HubSpot?

Click the cog icon on the top right-hand corner of the navigation bar.  Once clicked, scroll down on the right-hand side of the menu and find Domain & URLs.

When setting up your subdomain within HubSpot it is important to understand the structure of the URL. 

*If you are hosting your full website on HubSpot, you will need to set up a redirect from the root domain of your website to the subdomain in your DNS provider. If your DNS provider does not allow for 301 redirects you will need to get into contact with HubSpot for further assistance*

It is also important to understand the type of domain you wish to set up. Below is a detailed look at each type of domain.

Primary domain - This is used for main website, landing page, blog, email, or knowledge base content.

Secondary domain - This is used for a campaign, microsite, or other content you'd like to keep separate from your main site.

Redirect domain - This is used for redirecting another domain.

Email sending domain -  This is used to add another layer of authentication to your HubSpot emails.

Connecting a domain

To locate the domain and url section of your HubSpot portal. Click the cog icon on the top right-hand corner of the navigation bar.  Once clicked, scroll down on the right-hand side of the menu and find Domain & URLs. Once on the domain & urls page, click the orange button named connect a domain. After that you will be directed to pick what type of domain you would like to set up. When you know what type of domain you would like to select click connect.

After clicking connect you will need to select what content type you would like. Here are the content options: 

1. Website 
2. Landing page
3. Blog
4. Email 

To host on the domain. After selecting the content type, click next. 

After that, type in your domain in the text field. This domain is the root domain and not the subdomain. After you’ve typed in the root domain click next. 

The next step is to verify the URL. There are 4 main components of a domain.  

• Subdomain: This is the first part of the domain. For example, if a URL was ‘go.mywebsite.com’. The subdomain would be ‘go’. 
• Brand Domain: The brand domain is positioned between the subdomain and top-level domain. For example, if a URL was ‘go.mywebsite.com’, the brand domain would be ‘mywebsite’. If this is the first domain you’re connecting to your HubSpot portal, you will need to set up your brand domain.  

To set up your brand domain. Go on the Domain & URLs page and scroll down to the advanced options. Within this section you will see a brand domain section. Once there, click add brand domain.  

Now enter the brand domain name. After that, click add brand domain. 

• Top-level domain: The top-level domain is the comes after the brand domain. For example, if a URL was ‘go.mywebsite.com’. The top-level domain would be ‘.com’. 

After you’ve added the sub-domain, click next.

Now you will be directed to the hosting set up. During this stage, it is key that you have access to your DNS provider. 

If you’re using GoDaddy, then click update my CNAME. You’ll be directed to login to your GoDaddy account. Doing this will enable HubSpot to access your go daddy account and automatically update the CNAME record for the domain. If you are connecting the whole of your site, there will be a few more manual steps you’ll need to do.

If you’re not using GoDaddy, then click No, I’ll set it up manually. 

1. You’ll need to confirm that your content is ready to go live. Click the I am ready checkbox. If your domain is currently hosted elsewhere and has SSL, you will see a message asking you to confirm that you own the domain. This will pre-provision SSL for the domain within HubSpot and reduce the website downtime. 
2. Then you’ll need to log into your DNS provider. When you’re logged in, click I am logged in on HubSpot.
3. In the navigation bar of your DNS provider.  Go to DNS > DNS Settings. Once you’ve found the DNS settings, click I'm there on HubSpot.
4. Next copy the value in the value column. Then go back to your DNS provider account and paste the value into the Value/Points To/Target field for the CNAME record of the subdomain you're connecting. Once you’ve entered CNAME value, click Done within HubSpot.

5. Verify your DNS changes, then click Done. If you see a ‘Waiting on DNS change’ error, you may need to wait a few minutes before clicking check them again.

DNS changes can take some time to process. Most of the time, DNS changes will propagate within a few minutes, though it can take longer depending on your DNS provider. If it's been more than an hour and you're still seeing an error, ensure that you've set up your DNS correctly and contact HubSpot support. 

Once your domain provisioning is complete, SSL will be enabled automatically. This usually takes a few minutes, but can take up to four hours.