As I explained in a previous post about Blogger and WordPress, there are times when I do prefer Blogger over WordPress. Naturally though, when I do have to set up a Blogger property, I’d go for a custom domain name instead of the default free option that comes with the .blogspot.com extension. A custom domain address looks cleaner, more professional and is easier for people to remember.
To learn how to set up a custom domain from Namecheap in Blogger, watch the video or read the step by step instructions below.
1. Sign up for an account in Blogger.com. Just follow the account creation wizard which will prompt you to fill in some pieces of information. At first you will have to take a free .blogspot.com blog address/URL.
2. Go to Namecheap.com. Log in and go to the My Account tab. Choose Manage Domains from the dropdown menu. Click on the domain name you want to set up with Blogger.
Naturally, if you don’t have a domain yet, you need to buy one first from Namecheap. We have a separate tutorial for that here.
3. On the sidebar, click All Host Records.
4. Check that the blank next to @ is already filled in with your URL. Ex. http://www.domainname.com/.
5. On the blank next to www, type ghs.google.com. The dropdown next to it, it should be labelled as CNAME (Alias). Click Save Changes.
6. On the left most section under subdomain settings, fill four blanks with your domain name minus the www. Ex. domainname.com.
7. On the blanks at the center next to the domain entries, type four Google IP addresses:
- 216.239.32.21
- 216.239.34.21
- 216.239.36.21
- 216.239.38.21
8. To the right of these four IP entries, pick A (Address) from the dropdown menus for each of the IP entries. Click Save Changes.
9. Go back to Blogger and on the drop down menu, click Settings.
10. On the Publishing>Blog Address section, click on Add a Domain and then click on “Switch to advanced settings“.
11. On the blank, type your full domain address/URL including the www.
12. Click save. Wait a few hours for the setup to take effect.
That’s it. You’re ready to roll.