What Is a DNS Record? A Plain-English Guide
Every time you type a domain into your browser, send an email, or click a link, something behind the scenes has to translate that human-readable name into the technical information a computer actually needs to connect. That translation layer is DNS — the Domain Name System — and the individual entries inside it are called DNS records.
If you've ever opened a DNS lookup tool and seen a wall of unfamiliar record types, this guide breaks down what each one actually does, in plain English.
A record — the basic address
An A record points a domain (or subdomain) to an IPv4 address — a numeric address
like 192.0.2.1. This is the most fundamental DNS record: without it, there's no address
for your browser to connect to.
AAAA record — the modern address
An AAAA record does the same job as an A record, but for IPv6 — the newer, much larger address format designed to eventually replace IPv4. Many domains have both an A and an AAAA record so they're reachable over either protocol.
CNAME record — an alias
A CNAME record points one hostname to another domain name, rather than directly to
an IP address. It's commonly used for subdomains — for example, pointing shop.example.com
at a third-party e-commerce platform's domain, without needing to know that platform's actual IP
address.
MX record — where email goes
An MX record tells the internet which mail servers are responsible for receiving email for a domain, and in what priority order. No MX record generally means a domain can't receive email at all, even if its website works perfectly.
NS record — who's in charge
An NS record lists the nameservers that are authoritative for a domain's DNS zone — in other words, which servers hold the real, current copy of all the domain's other DNS records. This is usually the first thing worth checking when a domain won't resolve at all.
TXT record — free-text metadata
A TXT record holds arbitrary text. It's a flexible, general-purpose slot that's become essential for email security — SPF and DMARC policies, which help prevent email spoofing, are both published as TXT records — as well as for domain-ownership verification with services like Google Search Console.
SOA record — the zone's fine print
The SOA (Start of Authority) record holds administrative information about the DNS zone itself: the primary nameserver, an administrative contact, a serial number that increments with each change, and timers (refresh, retry, expire) that tell secondary nameservers how often to check for updates.
Why TTL matters
Every DNS record includes a TTL (time to live), measured in seconds, which tells resolvers around the internet how long they're allowed to cache that answer before checking again. A low TTL means changes propagate faster but generates more DNS traffic; a high TTL is more efficient but means changes take longer to be seen everywhere. This is exactly why DNS changes can take anywhere from a few minutes to 48 hours to fully roll out.
Try it yourself
You can see all of these record types for any domain using the free DNS Lookup tool — select "All Records" to see every type on one page, or check nameservers and mail servers specifically with the NS Lookup and MX Lookup tools.
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