How to Transfer Domain From Squarespace to Cloudflare Easily 2026

Before starting anything in Cloudflare, go to Squarespace's Domains section and open the domain's Overview. This shows the domain's current status as Active, its provider (Squarespace), and its expiration date; note the date, since a domain very close to expiring can complicate a transfer. The Registration Information panel here also lists the Admin, Billing, Owner, and Tech contacts, worth reviewing since transfer emails go to whichever contact is on file.

Squarespace locks every domain by default to stop unauthorized transfers, and it won't issue an authorization code while that lock is on. In the domain's settings, find the Domain Lock control and toggle it off. This is a separate action from requesting the code itself, and skipping it is the most common reason the next step fails.

With the domain unlocked, click Request transfer code. You may need to confirm your password or complete two-factor authentication.

Squarespace's own documentation says the code should arrive by email within 24 hours, in a message titled something like "Auth code for yourdomain.com," sent to whichever contact is registered as the domain's owner. Copy the code exactly; you'll paste it into Cloudflare later, so keep the email accessible instead of requesting a fresh code each time.

Cloudflare's transfer requirements match the general ICANN rule: the domain needs to be registered at least 60 days ago, not transferred in the last 60 days, and not have a changed registrant name, organization, or email in that same window. There's no way around any of this if your domain is too new or was recently updated. Domain privacy protection does not need to be disabled for a Squarespace-to-Cloudflare transfer, though Squarespace notes that some older registrar systems on the receiving end may still ask for it.

Cloudflare's own transfer guide asks you to disable DNSSEC at your current registrar first and wait 24 hours before adding the domain. After that wait, add the domain in Cloudflare and let the Quick scan option detect and import your existing DNS records, so nothing breaks once the domain points at Cloudflare's nameservers.

Cloudflare then assigns you a pair of nameservers; update those at Squarespace, and wait for the domain's status in the Cloudflare dashboard to change from Pending to Active, which usually takes minutes but can run up to 24 hours. You can't start the registration transfer until it shows Active.

Once the domain shows Active, go to the Transfer domains page in the Cloudflare dashboard, select the domain, and enter the authorization code from the Squarespace email. Confirm your payment method, enter the contact information for the new registration, and select Confirm transfer. If the domain doesn't appear as an option here, it usually means its DNS status hasn't reached Active yet, not that anything is wrong with the code.

Squarespace typically sends a confirmation email asking you to approve or decline the outgoing transfer; approving it, or simply not declining within the response window, lets the transfer proceed. Cloudflare's own timeline puts the active work at about 30 minutes but the total process at up to 10 days depending on your previous registrar, while Squarespace's page allows for the full handoff to run up to 15 days in some cases. Check back rather than repeating the request.