DNS Propagation Check
Compare a record across multiple public resolvers to check propagation.
DNS Propagation Check queries the same record across different public resolvers at once so you can gauge how far a DNS change has spread across the internet. After switching nameservers or editing an A/MX record, you can watch the “propagating” window where some users see the new value while others still get the old one.
This tool asks two public resolvers — Cloudflare and Google — over DNS over HTTPS and compares the answers side by side. If both resolvers agree, the record is marked consistent (propagated); if they differ, it is still propagating. For a single straightforward lookup, use the DNS Record Lookup tool, and check the delegated nameservers with NS Check.
What propagation means
DNS is a distributed system where countless resolvers cache records for the length of their TTL. Even after you change a value at the authoritative nameserver, any resolver that already cached the old value keeps serving it until that cache expires. This gradual “cache flushing and refilling” is what people call propagation.
How to read the result
- Consistent (propagated): both resolvers return the same set of records — the change has spread widely.
- Inconsistent (propagating): resolvers disagree, so stale caches still linger somewhere.
- Order is ignored; values are normalized (lowercased, trailing dot removed) and compared as a set.
Speeding up propagation
Lower a record's TTL ahead of a change (e.g. 300 seconds) so caches expire faster and propagation shortens. Raise the TTL again once the change settles to reduce query load. Delegation changes to the NS records themselves can take longer because they depend on the parent registry's TTL.