All guides · Website hosting setup

Use a uk.app custom domain with GitHub Pages

Give a documentation site, portfolio or static project website a memorable address such as yourname.uk.app. Your registration provides the subdomain and DNS management; GitHub Pages provides the hosting under its own account requirements.

1. Prepare the site and verify the hostname

Start with a working Pages site and repository administrator access. Follow GitHub's domain ownership verification before attaching the name. Keep the verification TXT record it provides. Then open the repository's Settings → Pages, enter your full hostname under Custom domain and save it before pointing DNS at GitHub.

2. Add the CNAME in uk.app

In My names → your name, the record host @ represents your registered name, not uk.app itself. Use these values for a site on the registered name:

Host:    @
Type:    CNAME
Content: YOUR-ACCOUNT.github.io.

Replace the example account with your GitHub user or organisation. The target must not include a repository name, https:// or a path. Do not create a wildcard pointing at GitHub Pages.

Remove conflicting parking A/AAAA records at the same host. Preserve mail and verification records elsewhere. If the intended host already needs MX or TXT records, a CNAME there would conflict; consider serving the website at www.yourname.uk.app and using host www for the CNAME instead.

3. Check the domain and enable HTTPS

Wait for GitHub's DNS check and certificate provisioning, then enable Enforce HTTPS when available. Follow the official GitHub Pages custom-domain guide for the current publishing and verification details.

In a terminal, run dig +short yourname.uk.app CNAME; on Windows use Resolve-DnsName yourname.uk.app -Type CNAME. Confirm that the answer matches your account's Pages hostname. Then visit the HTTPS URL and check both the page content and certificate. .app browsers require a valid certificate before the website can be used.

Common setup mistakes

If the site returns an error while the CNAME is correct, check that the exact hostname is attached to the intended repository and the site has finished publishing. If an old parking page appears, check for cached or conflicting routing records. For missing images or styles, check your site's asset URLs and build configuration after changing its public address.

For certificate problems, check the provider's certificate status and any existing CAA policy rather than disabling browser verification. Use the troubleshooting guide for DNS and destination checks.

When you move the site

Update or remove DNS pointing to the old project before giving up control of it. Keep verification records where needed. If the project needs a different hosting workflow, see Vercel setup or the hosting overview.