How to Add a TXT Record in Cloudflare
Add a TXT record in Cloudflare for domain verification or email: which fields to fill in, exact examples and the mistakes that make verification fail.
October 3, 20263 min readCloudflare · TXT Records · DNS
The short answer. Open the DNS records in Cloudflare, add a record of type TXT, enter
@as the host for the domain itself (or a label for a subdomain) and paste the value you were given.
What TXT Records Are For
A TXT record holds a piece of text for a domain. Services use them to check that you own the domain (Google, Microsoft and most platforms ask for one), and email depends on them for SPF and DMARC. A domain can have many TXT records at the same name, so a new one does not replace the others.
Check Where Your DNS Is Managed
A record only works at the company that answers DNS for the domain, which is not always the one you bought it from. Cloudflare serves DNS only when the domain’s nameservers are two Cloudflare ones (they end in ns.cloudflare.com). The domain’s Overview page shows Active when that is the case.
The TXT Record to Add
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Type | TXT |
| Name | @ for the domain, or a label such as _dmarc or blog |
| Content | Exactly the text you were given |
| TTL | Leave TTL on Auto. |
google-site-verification=abc123EXAMPLEtoken
The service asking for the record tells you the host and the value. Verification records look like this:
| Service | Host | Value starts with |
|---|---|---|
| Google Search Console | @ | google-site-verification= |
| Microsoft 365 | @ | MS= |
| Domain-specific tools | a label they name | whatever they give you |
Step by Step in Cloudflare
Step 1. Open the domain
Sign in to the Cloudflare dashboard and click the domain on the Websites page.
Step 2. Open DNS Records
In the left menu choose DNS, then Records.
Step 3. Add a record
Click Add record. The form opens above the list.
Step 4. Enter the TXT record
Choose TXT as the type and fill in the fields:
- Name:
@for the domain, or a label such as_dmarcorblog - Content: Exactly the text you were given
- TTL: Leave TTL on Auto.
The value to copy:
google-site-verification=abc123EXAMPLEtoken
Step 5. Save
Click Save. Cloudflare shows the record in the list at once.
Common Mistakes
- Adding quotes around the value. Quotes are not part of it, and a record with them typed in fails verification.
- Adding an SPF or DMARC value as a normal TXT record at a name that already has one. Those two must exist only once.
- Typing the domain name into the host field and ending up with
example.com.example.com. - Deleting an older TXT record that looks unused. Some are still checked, so remove one only when you know what it is for.
- Copying the value with a space or line break at the end, which can make the check fail.
Check That It Worked
Query the TXT records of the host you used. The new value should be in the list, next to the others. Then go back to the service and run its verification again. Changes show up as caches expire, usually within minutes for a record and up to two days for nameservers, see how long DNS propagation takes.
More Cloudflare DNS Guides
- How to Add a DMARC Record in Cloudflare
- How to Add an SPF Record in Cloudflare
- How to Change Nameservers in Cloudflare
- How to Add MX Records in Cloudflare
The same task elsewhere: Namecheap, GoDaddy, Hostinger, Squarespace.
Menu names last checked October 2026. Providers rename things now and then; if a label differs, look for the closest match.
See every TXT record Axath finds.
Add the domain to the Domain Hub to keep an eye on its email and DNS records, and be told when a record goes missing or changes.
Open the Domain Hub