Custom Domains for Link in Bio: The Complete Guide

A custom domain means your link in bio page is served on a web address you own, instead of a shared platform address.

Same page. Different sign on the door.

• -Platform slug: `hasl.ink/yourname`
• -Custom domain: `yourname.com` or `links.yourname.com`

When a visitor loads your custom domain, they see the exact page you built in the dashboard — your links, your cards, your AI chat, your analytics all keep working. Nothing about the page changes. What changes is the string in the address bar, and the string in the address bar is what people read, remember, and trust.

Under the hood, your domain's DNS points at hasl.ink's infrastructure, and hasl.ink handles serving the page and the HTTPS certificate. You never touch a server. See the custom domain feature page for the short version.

This is the core of it. Five concrete reasons, not platitudes.

1. Every share is a free ad — for whoever owns the URL. Your link goes out thousands of times: bios, DMs, email signatures, printed cards. `hasl.ink/you` advertises hasl.ink on every one of those. `links.you.com` advertises *you*. You are already doing the marketing; a custom domain just points that marketing at your own brand instead of the platform's.

2. Trust and click-through. People click addresses they recognize. A branded domain reads as a real operation; an unfamiliar platform slug reads as maybe-spam, maybe-abandoned. When a brand, a client, or a follower sees a link with your name in it, the click is an easier yes.

3. Portability — you own it, so you can move it. A platform username is rented. If you outgrow a tool, change your handle, or the platform changes its terms, a slug is stuck there. A domain is an asset you control. Point it wherever you want, whenever you want. Your audience's bookmarks and every printed card keep working.

4. Professionalism. For freelancers, small businesses, and creators pitching brands, a custom domain is a signal. It says you invested, you are not disposable, you run a real thing. That signal is cheap to buy and expensive to fake.

5. Link equity accrues to you. Every backlink and mention that points at your domain builds *your* domain's authority — covered in detail below.

The thesis in one line: a platform slug builds the platform's brand with your effort. A custom domain builds yours.

Three options, and the right one depends on how hard your link is working.

| Option | Example | Best for | Cost | |---|---|---|---| | Platform slug | `hasl.ink/you` | Hobby pages, just starting out, personal sharing | Free | | Subdomain | `links.you.com` | Most people who want branding; you have a site elsewhere | Creator plan + domain | | Root domain | `you.com` | When the bio page IS your whole web presence | Creator plan + domain |

Platform slug is the honest default. If your link is a convenient hub for friends and followers and nothing is riding on it, `hasl.ink/you` is free and completely fine. Do not pay for a domain you do not need.

Subdomain (`links.you.com`, `bio.you.com`, `me.you.com`) is the cleanest branded option. It carries your name, and because it is a subdomain, the DNS setup is a single CNAME with no provider quirks. This is the recommendation for most people who want branding.

Root domain (`you.com`) is the strongest statement — the whole domain is your bio page. Use it when the link page is your entire web presence. The only catch is DNS: some providers do not allow a plain CNAME on a root domain and need CNAME flattening or an ALIAS record instead (more on that in Pitfalls).

Be honest with yourself: a custom domain is an upgrade, not a requirement. Starting out or running a hobby page? Stay on the free slug. Come back when the URL is doing real work.

On hasl.ink this is four steps and no servers. Custom domains are a shipped Creator-plan feature.

Step 1 — Add the domain in your dashboard

Open your hasl.ink dashboard, go to the custom domain settings, and enter the address you want to use — either a subdomain like `links.yourname.com` or a root domain like `yourname.com`. This tells hasl.ink to start expecting traffic for that host.

Step 2 — Add ONE CNAME record at your DNS provider

Go to wherever your domain's DNS lives (your registrar, or Cloudflare, or your host) and create a single record:

Type:   CNAME
Name:   links        (or @ / your root, for a root domain)
Value:  cname.hasl.ink
TTL:    Auto (or 3600)

That is the entire DNS change. One CNAME pointing at `cname.hasl.ink`.

Step 3 — Let Cloudflare provision SSL automatically

Once the record resolves, hasl.ink (via Cloudflare) auto-provisions a TLS certificate for your domain. You do nothing here. No certbot, no OpenSSL, no manual renewal — HTTPS gets set up and stays renewed for you. This usually finishes within a few minutes of DNS resolving.

Step 4 — Click Verify

Back in the dashboard, click Verify. hasl.ink checks that the CNAME resolves and the certificate is live. Once it passes, your page is serving on your own domain. Open it in a browser, confirm the padlock, and you are done.

Rule of thumb: if it does not verify immediately, it is almost always DNS propagation. Wait, then re-check.

This deserves its own section because it is the argument people underrate.

Link equity accrues to whoever owns the URL. Every time someone links to your bio page — a press mention, a collaborator's site, a directory, a social profile — that link passes authority to the domain in the URL. On `hasl.ink/you`, that authority pools at hasl.ink. On `you.com`, it pools at *you*. Over months and years, that difference compounds into an asset you own versus one you rent.

Ownership survives platform changes. Because the equity is tied to your domain, it is portable. Change tools, redesign the page, migrate everything — the domain and its accumulated authority come with you. A platform slug leaves all of that behind the moment you leave.

Branded search and recognition. People searching your name, or half-remembering your link, land on something that carries your name. Recognition and search behavior both reward a consistent, owned domain.

To be precise: a bio page is not going to rank for competitive keywords on its own, and a custom domain is not a magic ranking button. The benefit is structural — you are accumulating value on an asset you control instead of one the platform controls. For deeper reading, the guides and blog go further.

Two costs, both small.

1. The domain name — bought from a registrar, typically $10–$15/year. You own it outright. 2. The Creator plan — $15/mo, which unlocks the custom domain plus geographic analytics and 5,000 AI chat messages per month.

How the plans stack up

| Plan | Price | Custom domain | |---|---|---| | Free | $0 | No — `hasl.ink/you`, unlimited links, 100 AI chats/mo, 7-day analytics | | Pro | $6/mo | No | | Creator | $15/mo | Yes + geo analytics + 5,000 AI chats/mo |

For context, Linktree charges $5 / $9 / $24 across its tiers and gates custom domains behind its $9/mo plan — see the full breakdown on hasl.ink vs Linktree.

When it is worth it

Worth it: - You pitch brands, clients, or press and the URL represents you - You run a business, storefront, or freelance practice - You print the link on cards, packaging, or merch - You are building a personal brand you intend to own for years

Not worth it (yet): - A hobby page or a link you share with friends - You are just starting and testing whether you will keep it - The free `hasl.ink/you` already does everything you need

No shame in the free slug. Upgrade when the URL earns it.

Ninety percent of custom-domain problems are one of these.

DNS propagation takes time. After you add the CNAME, changes spread across the internet's DNS servers — usually minutes, sometimes up to a couple of hours. If Verify fails right away, this is the likeliest cause. Wait and re-check before assuming anything is broken. You can confirm the record is live with a `dig links.yourname.com CNAME` or an online DNS lookup.

Wrong record type. It must be a CNAME pointing to `cname.hasl.ink`. Not an A record, not a URL-forward, not a page rule. Double-check the value has no typo and no trailing dot issues.

Proxied vs DNS-only on Cloudflare. If your DNS is on Cloudflare, the CNAME record has an orange-cloud (Proxied) or grey-cloud (DNS only) toggle. Set it to DNS only (grey cloud) so hasl.ink can see the record and provision the certificate. Leaving it Proxied is the single most common reason SSL provisioning stalls.

Root-domain CNAME limits. Some DNS providers refuse a plain CNAME on a root domain (`yourname.com`). If yours does, use CNAME flattening or an ALIAS/ANAME record if the provider supports it — or just use a subdomain like `links.yourname.com`, which sidesteps the problem entirely.

Conflicting existing records. If there is already an A record or another CNAME on the same host, remove or update it. Two records fighting over the same name will not resolve cleanly.

Verifying too early. Clicking Verify before DNS has propagated and the certificate is issued will fail. Give it a few minutes after the record resolves, then verify.

Get past these and it just works: your page, your domain, HTTPS handled, no servers. That is the whole point.