DNS (Domain Name System) translates human-readable hostnames like example.com into IP addresses your software can connect to. This page runs a lookup through Cloudflare’s public DNS over HTTPS and lists A and AAAA answers it returns. It does not expose your router’s or OS’s configured “DNS servers” list—browsers are not allowed to read that.
What is DNS?
When you visit a website, your device needs an IP address for the server. A recursive or stub resolver asks upstream servers for records. Common types include A (IPv4), AAAA (IPv6), CNAME (alias), MX (mail), and TXT (text proofs). This tool focuses on A and AAAA because they are what most users mean when they ask how a name resolves for web traffic.
Authoritative name servers hold the source-of-truth zone data; public resolvers like Cloudflare or your ISP cache answers to speed up repeat queries and reduce load.
How does this page perform the lookup?
Your browser sends an HTTPS request to Cloudflare’s DNS API (cloudflare-dns.com) with the application/dns-json format. Cloudflare answers with JSON containing any A and AAAA records for the name you typed. We label the resolver explicitly so you know which service answered, not “whatever your PC uses for everything.”
Why might you need this?
- Verification: Check that a hostname publishes the IPv4/IPv6 you expect after a DNS change.
- Debugging: Compare DoH results with what you see from your OS resolver or
digwhen something looks cached or split-horizon. - Learning: See TTLs and multiple addresses when a name is load-balanced or uses anycast.
- IPv6 readiness: Confirm AAAA records exist before turning up dual-stack traffic.
Related concepts
TTL: Seconds a resolver may cache an answer. Caching: Old values can linger until TTL expires. DNSSEC: Adds cryptographic authenticity; this page does not by itself validate chains—it only displays what the DoH API returns. For your public egress and coarse network context, pair this with our IP tool.
Privacy note
The hostname you query is sent to Cloudflare’s resolver by your browser. Use names you are comfortable sharing with that provider. Read our Privacy Policy for how this site handles analytics and advertising separately.