Glue records are one of those DNS concepts that sound intimidating but solve a beautifully simple problem: a chicken-and-egg riddle that would otherwise make certain nameservers impossible to find. Most website owners never need to think about them — but if you are setting up custom nameservers on your own domain, glue records are the piece that makes the whole thing work.

This guide explains what a glue record is in plain language, the circular problem it solves, how the parent zone provides it, where glue records live, and — most importantly — exactly when you need them and when you can safely ignore them. By the end, a term that looks cryptic will make complete, logical sense.

What a glue record is

A glue record is an IP address record stored at the domain registry level that directly links a nameserver’s hostname to its IP address. Instead of the usual process where a name is resolved by asking other nameservers, a glue record provides the IP address immediately, right alongside the nameserver reference, so no further lookup is needed to find that nameserver.

In other words, it is an extra A (or AAAA) record that lives not in your normal DNS zone but at the parent registry, attached to your nameserver’s name. It “glues” the hostname of a nameserver to its numeric address so the internet can reach that nameserver directly.

This might sound like an odd special case — and it is. Glue records exist purely to handle a specific situation where the normal way of finding a nameserver would fail. Understanding that situation is the key to understanding why glue records exist at all.

The chicken-and-egg problem it solves

Here is the riddle glue records solve. Imagine your domain is example.com and you have set up custom nameservers named ns1.example.com and ns2.example.com. When a DNS resolver wants to find your website, it needs to ask your nameservers. But your nameservers are themselves subdomains of example.com — so to find ns1.example.com, the resolver would need to ask… the nameservers for example.com, which are the very things it is trying to locate.

That is a circular dependency: to find your nameserver, you must first find your nameserver. Left unsolved, the resolver would loop endlessly and never reach your domain. This only happens when your nameservers live under the same domain they are responsible for serving.

Glue records break the loop. Because there is no way to resolve ns1.example.com the normal way, the system needs the IP address provided directly, outside that circular process — and that is exactly what a glue record does.

How the parent zone provides it

The fix comes from the parent zone — the registry that runs your extension, such as the .com registry. When you register custom nameservers, the parent zone stores a glue record: an extra A or AAAA IP address entry published alongside the nameserver reference for your domain.

So when a resolver asks the .com registry about example.com, the registry does not just say “its nameservers are ns1.example.com and ns2.example.com” — it also hands over the glue records: “and here are their IP addresses directly.” That gives the resolver the exact addresses it needs immediately, stopping the endless loop before it starts.

This is why glue records are described as living at the registry rather than in your own zone file. They are supplied by the level above your domain, precisely because your own domain cannot supply the answer without the circular dependency. The parent zone provides the “glue” that holds the whole thing together.

Where glue records live

A key point that clears up confusion: glue records are created at your domain registrar or the top-level-domain registry, not just inside your own normal DNS zone file. This is different from ordinary records like A, CNAME, or MX, which you add in your DNS editor.

Because they must be supplied by the parent zone to break the loop, glue records are registered through your registrar’s interface, often in a section for “registering a host” or “private nameservers” or “child nameservers.” You define the nameserver hostname and its IP there, and the registrar publishes the glue at the registry.

So if you ever go looking for glue records in your normal DNS zone editor and cannot find them, that is expected — they are not there. They live at the registry level, set up through the registrar’s host-registration feature, which is a separate place from where you manage everyday DNS records.

When you need glue records

You need glue records in one specific situation: when your nameservers are subdomains of the same domain they serve — in other words, when you are using custom or private nameservers on your own domain, like ns1.yourdomain.com. That is the only scenario where the circular dependency arises and glue is required to resolve it.

For the vast majority of website owners — anyone using their host’s nameservers — glue records are handled entirely behind the scenes and you never touch them. It is only when you run branded, private nameservers on your own domain that you set up glue yourself. That narrow case is what the whole concept exists for.

How to set them up

If you are in that narrow case — setting up custom nameservers on your own domain — the process is to register your nameserver hostnames with glue records at your registrar. In your registrar’s host or private-nameserver section, you create entries like ns1.yourdomain.com and ns2.yourdomain.com and assign each the IP address of the server that will act as your nameserver.

Registering those host records is what publishes the glue at the registry. After that, you set your domain (and any other domains you want to use them) to use ns1.yourdomain.com and ns2.yourdomain.com as their nameservers. The glue ensures the internet can resolve those nameserver names to their IPs directly.

As with any registry-level change, allow time for it to propagate. Once the glue records are in place and your domain points to your custom nameservers, everything resolves normally — the loop is broken, and your branded nameservers work just like any other.

Glue records and custom nameservers together

Glue records and custom (private) nameservers are two halves of one setup. Custom nameservers give you branded ns1.yourdomain.com hostnames — useful for hosting resellers, agencies, and brand-conscious providers who want their own name in the DNS instead of a third-party host’s. Glue records are the technical requirement that makes those branded nameservers actually resolvable.

You cannot have functioning custom nameservers on your own domain without glue records, and glue records exist essentially to support that exact use case. So if you have read about private nameservers, glue is the missing piece that explains how they work under the hood.

For everyone else — regular site owners using their host’s nameservers — none of this is necessary, and it all happens invisibly. Glue records are a specialist tool for a specialist need, and knowing they exist means you will recognise exactly when (and only when) you have to deal with them.

FAQs

What is a glue record?

A glue record is an IP address record stored at the domain registry level that directly links a nameserver’s hostname to its IP address. It provides the IP immediately, alongside the nameserver reference, so a resolver can reach that nameserver without an additional lookup — breaking a circular dependency that would otherwise make the nameserver impossible to find.

Why are glue records needed?

To solve a chicken-and-egg problem. If your nameservers are subdomains of the domain they serve (like ns1.example.com for example.com), a resolver would need your nameservers to find your nameservers — an endless loop. The glue record supplies the nameserver’s IP directly from the parent zone, breaking the loop so resolution can proceed.

Where do glue records live?

At your domain registrar or the top-level-domain registry — not in your normal DNS zone file. Because the parent zone must supply them to break the loop, you create them through your registrar’s host-registration or private-nameserver feature, which is a separate place from where you manage everyday records like A, CNAME, and MX.

When do I need glue records?

Only when you use custom or private nameservers that are subdomains of your own domain, such as ns1.yourdomain.com — common for hosting resellers and agencies. If you use your host’s nameservers (the normal case for most sites), glue is handled behind the scenes and you never need to set it up yourself.

How do I create a glue record?

In your registrar’s host or private-nameserver section, register your nameserver hostnames (ns1/ns2.yourdomain.com) and assign each the IP address of your nameserver. Registering those host records publishes the glue at the registry. Then set your domain to use those custom nameservers, and allow time for propagation.

Do most websites need glue records?

No. The vast majority of site owners use their hosting provider’s nameservers, which resolve under the host’s own domain, so no glue is required and it is all handled invisibly. Glue records are only relevant if you run branded, private nameservers on your own domain — a specialist setup for resellers and agencies.

The bottom line

A glue record is an IP address entry stored at the domain registry that links a nameserver’s hostname directly to its IP, solving a chicken-and-egg problem: when your nameservers are subdomains of the domain they serve (ns1.yourdomain.com for yourdomain.com), a resolver would need your nameservers to find your nameservers — an impossible loop. The parent zone, like the .com registry, breaks it by publishing the nameserver’s IP directly as glue, so resolvers get the address immediately. That is why glue records live at the registry, set up through your registrar’s host-registration feature, not in your normal DNS zone.

The practical takeaway is about when you need them. If you use your host’s nameservers — as almost everyone does — glue is invisible and automatic, and you never touch it. Only when you run custom or private nameservers on your own domain, typically as a hosting reseller or agency, do you register glue records yourself, and they are what make those branded nameservers actually resolvable. Recognise that one narrow case, and this cryptic-sounding concept becomes a simple, logical piece of the custom-nameserver puzzle.

When you are ready, you can start with Hostinger and use code PROTIPS for the reader discount. A glue record links your nameserver’s hostname to its IP at the registry, breaking the loop when nameservers are subdomains of the domain they serve. Only needed for custom/private nameservers; otherwise handled automatically.