Free NS Lookup Tool
Free NS lookup tool — find authoritative nameservers, identify DNS hosting providers, and check domain delegation for any domain.
What Are Nameservers?
NS (Name Server) records identify the DNS servers that hold the authoritative DNS zone for a domain. When a recursive resolver needs to look up any record — whether an IP address, mail server, or TXT record — it contacts these nameservers for the definitive answer.
Every domain must have at least two nameservers for redundancy. Most DNS providers assign multiple nameservers across different networks and geographic locations to ensure availability.
How DNS Delegation Works
NS records create the hierarchical delegation chain that makes DNS work. Root servers delegate to TLD servers (e.g., .com), which delegate to a domain's authoritative nameservers. Each level points to the next, enabling any device on the internet to resolve domain names.
Nameserver changes are made at the domain registrar and can take up to 48 hours to fully propagate due to DNS caching throughout the resolver chain.
Identifying DNS Providers
You can identify a domain's DNS provider from its nameserver hostnames. Cloudflare uses *.ns.cloudflare.com, AWS Route 53 uses *.awsdns-*.com, Google Cloud DNS uses ns-cloud-*.googledomains.com, and DigitalOcean uses ns*.digitalocean.com.
Enterprise DNS providers offer features like DDoS protection, anycast routing, and sub-second propagation for improved reliability and performance.
Run a Free NS Lookup
Enter any domain above to instantly find its authoritative nameservers and identify the DNS hosting provider. Results show nameserver hostnames, IP addresses, and provider detection — no command-line tools required.
Want to dig deeper? Use the A Record Lookup to see where the domain's website is hosted, or try the WHOIS Lookup to view full registration details including registrar and expiration date.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are nameserver (NS) records and what do they do?
NS records identify the authoritative DNS servers for a domain. These servers hold the master copy of all DNS records for the domain and respond to queries from recursive resolvers. An NS lookup lets you find these nameservers for any domain. Without NS records, no DNS records for the domain can be found, making it entirely unreachable on the internet.
How many nameservers should my domain have?
Every domain should have at least two nameservers for redundancy, and most DNS providers assign between 2 and 4. Having nameservers on separate networks and in different geographic locations ensures your domain remains resolvable even if one nameserver or network experiences an outage.
What's the difference between authoritative and recursive nameservers?
Authoritative nameservers hold the actual DNS records for a domain and provide definitive answers to queries. Recursive nameservers (like 8.8.8.8 or 1.1.1.1) are used by end users — they don't hold records themselves but query authoritative servers on behalf of clients, caching responses to improve performance.
How do I change my domain's nameservers?
Nameserver changes are made through your domain registrar's control panel, not your DNS hosting provider. Log into your registrar account, locate the nameserver or DNS settings for your domain, and replace the current nameservers with the ones provided by your new DNS host. Changes can take up to 48 hours to fully propagate.
What happens if my nameservers are down?
If all nameservers for your domain are unreachable, DNS resolvers cannot look up any records for your domain. This means your website will be inaccessible, email delivery will fail, and all services depending on DNS will stop working. Cached records may continue to work for some users until their TTL expires, but new queries will fail.