How do I change my domain name in Plesk?

This question is asked frequently! Sometimes it’s simply because there’s an error when the account was created and other times it’s because the company’s brand name has changed. Regardless of the specific reason for the change, this guide will show you how to change your domain name if you’re hosted with us or otherwise using Plesk control panel.

Important Note: changing your domain in Plesk does not register the domain. If you haven’t already done so, please make sure you register the new domain name first and ensure that the new domain points to your hosting plan. Registration and DNS changes can take 24-48 hours to propagate throughout the Internet so be sure to wait a day or two before proceeding with the changes below.

There are two ways to switch to the new domain: you can directly change the name in Plesk (Option A below) or you can add the new domain to Plesk, clone the website from the old domain to the new domain, then remove the old domain. Please read the notes for each option to understand which is the best choice for you.

Option A: Direct Domain Change

IMPORTANT NOTES:

• This is your only option if the domain you’re changing is your primary domain.
• This will automatically change all email accounts you have configured in Plesk to use the new domain. This means any mail apps you have configured to log in and sync your mail will need their usernames updated by replacing the old domain with the new one. Tip: you can alias the old domain to the new one to ensure mail flows through to the new accounts. Instructions are found below.
• This will automatically change all subdomains to use the new domain. Example: you have subdomain mysub.domain.com, you change domain.com to newdomain.com, and the subdomain changes to mysub.newdomain.com.
• If both the current and the new domain are already hosted in Plesk and you would like to change the primary domain in Plesk to the addon domain, keeping the website hosted at the addon domain, there’s a few extra steps you must complete. Please see our guide to switching your primary domain here.
• If your website is powered by a web app like WordPress, make sure it appears under 1-click web apps in Plesk for our domain change automation to work. If it does not, import it now, then come back here to proceed with the domain change.

How to change the domain in Plesk

1. Login to Plesk
2. Find your domain name in the list and click the “Hosting Settings” link underneath
3. The very first option on this page is Domain Name: and your current domain name will appear in that field. You can directly edit this value to change it to the new domain.
4. If you wish to change the document root value, you’ll need to then move the contents of the old document root folder to the new folder after completing these steps. It’s simpler to not change it.
5. If you have an SSL certificate activated on the domain, be sure to deselect it under the Security section on this page by choosing “Not Selected” from the Certificate drop down.
6. Click the OK button to save your changes.
7. If you want the old domain to redirect to the new one: choose “Add Domain Alias” and enter the old domain. Select the destination to be the newly renamed domain. By default all necessary boxes are checked. Mail aliasing will ensure that any emails sent to xyz@olddomain.com will be automatically delivered to xyz@newdomain.com. Read more about aliasing here.

These changes may take a few minutes to take effect. The following is a list of optional things you may wish to do now that your domain has changed.

Tip: as of Feb 2021, if you’re hosted with us and using WordPress on a shared server, all the changes below are now automatically completed for you when you change your domain. If you have a VPS with Hands-On Support, ask us to install this automation before you complete your domain change. If you’re using any other web app to power your site, you may wish to check below for next steps.

Option B: Add new domain, remove existing

Important Notes:

• This option will not work if the existing domain name is your primary domain. You cannot remove your primary domain. You must use Option A if this is your primary domain.
• This option will also not work if you have our Carbon or Helium hosting plan as you can only host one domain (which therefore must be your primary domain).
• This option will not change the domain you use for email.

Here’s how to use Plesk to add a new domain and copy your website to it:

1. Login to Plesk
2. Choose the Add Domain button and enter your new domain
3. Copy your website
   • If you have static content (ex: html files), you can simply use the Plesk File Manager to select all files in the domain web root for the existing domain, then move them to the web root for the new domain
   • If you’re using WordPress or any other app in our 1-click web apps manager, you can use this guide to clone your site from the old domain to the new one.
4. Remove the old domain in Plesk. This option will not be available if it’s your primary domain, which is why we recommend ‘Option A’ in these cases.