Nameservers decide where your domain looks for its DNS instructions, and getting them wrong is one of the fastest ways to knock a website or mailbox offline. I logged into a live Hostinger hPanel account, pulled up the DNS and nameserver settings for a real domain, and walked through every tab connected to it so I could show you exactly what you will see and where each setting lives.
What Are Hostinger’s Nameservers
Hostinger’s default nameservers are:
| Nameserver | Value |
| Primary | ns1.dns-parking.com |
| Secondary | ns2.dns-parking.com |
I confirmed these on a live domain inside hPanel, and Hostinger’s own support assistant, Kodee, gave me the identical answer when I asked directly.
If you bought your domain through Hostinger, it points to these two nameservers automatically. If you registered the domain somewhere else and just want to host with Hostinger, these are the two values you will hand over to your registrar.
I want to flag one thing before you copy these values anywhere. Hostinger’s own support documentation notes that nameserver values can vary by account and plan type, so treat the pair above as the standard case and confirm your own account’s exact values in hPanel before you make any change. I will show you exactly where to look in the next section. And if you want to find out more about the full list of Hostinger’s plans available and decide which one better fits your needs, our Hostinger review gives you full details, as well as an easy way to compare them.
Where to Find Your Nameservers in hPanel
Here is the path I used, step by step:
- Log into hPanel and open Domains from the left sidebar.
- Click DNS.
- On the DNS Zone Editor screen, pick your domain from the dropdown, or select it from the “jump into a recent one” shortcuts if it is already listed.
- You will land on the DNS / Nameservers page for that domain, with your current nameservers displayed at the top.
Once you select a domain, hPanel takes you straight to its DNS / Nameservers page. The nameservers sit right at the top, above the full list of DNS records for the domain.
On the domain I tested, the nameservers read ns1.dns-parking.com and ns2.dns-parking.com, matching Hostinger’s default values exactly.
Below that box sits the full DNS record table, MX records, CNAME entries for mail and Reach, TXT records for DKIM and SPF, and A records for subdomains all live on the same page.
That is a useful layout if you also need to check or edit those records while you are in there, since you are not jumping between separate menus for nameservers and DNS records.
I also noticed this page has six other tabs running across the top, covering DNS records, Child nameservers, Redirects, DNSSEC, DNS history, Subdomains, and SSL. I will walk through what each one does, since a few of them surprised me.
What I Found Across the Other DNS Tabs
Child Nameservers
Child nameservers let you create custom nameservers under your own domain, something like ns1.yourdomain.io instead of Hostinger’s default. Each one needs its own IPv4 address, entered as a glue record.
This is a niche feature. Most site owners will never touch it, but it matters if you are running your own DNS infrastructure or reselling hosting under your own brand.
Redirects
I expected a redirect tool to live here since it is grouped under DNS and Nameservers, but it does not. The page tells you plainly that redirects are managed in website settings instead, and gives you a button that takes you there.
This tripped me up during testing, and I think it would trip up a lot of readers too, so I am flagging it here directly. If you came to this page looking to set up a redirect, you want your website’s settings, not the DNS Zone Editor.
DNSSEC
DNSSEC digitally signs your DNS records so browsers can confirm they are getting the real, untampered response rather than a spoofed one.
Hostinger lets you add a DNSSEC record directly from this tab by entering a key tag, algorithm, digest type, and digest. Not every budget host makes DNSSEC this accessible from the main dashboard, so I count this as a genuine plus.
DNS History
This is the tab I found most useful. It logs every DNS-related change on the domain, subdomain creation, CDN activation, zone record updates, mail activation, and gives you a Restore button next to each entry.
On the account I tested, this log went back to January, which means if a DNS change breaks something, you have a real rollback option instead of trying to remember what you changed and reversing it by hand.
Subdomains
Subdomains show up in their own tab, but they do not get a separate DNS zone. The page states directly that a subdomain’s records live inside the parent domain’s zone, and clicking into one just sends you back to the main DNS records tab. Good to know before you go looking for a subdomain’s DNS settings in the wrong place.
SSL
Hostinger installs a free Lifetime SSL certificate for every domain by default, and this tab shows the certificate status. On the domain I tested it read “Active and secure.” I did not have to request or activate anything separately.
How to Point a Domain to Hostinger
If your domain is registered somewhere else, like GoDaddy or Namecheap, and you want to host it on Hostinger, you need to update the nameservers at your registrar, not in hPanel.
hPanel only controls DNS for domains that are already pointed at it.
- Log into hPanel and pull up your domain’s DNS / Nameservers page using the steps above, so you have the exact nameserver values in front of you.
- Log into your domain registrar’s account separately.
- Find the nameserver or DNS settings section, this is usually under something labeled “Nameservers,” “DNS Management,” or “Custom DNS.”
- Replace whatever nameservers are currently listed with Hostinger’s two values.
- Save the change. Most registrars will show a warning since this affects where your domain resolves, confirm it.
Propagation is not instant. Hostinger’s own support answer states changes can take up to 24 hours to fully propagate, and in my experience that is a realistic upper bound rather than the typical wait, though the exact time depends on your previous nameserver’s TTL settings and your registrar.
How to Change Nameservers in hPanel
If you want to move a domain away from Hostinger’s nameservers, either to point it at another host or to use a third-party DNS provider like Cloudflare, the change happens on the same page.
- Open the domain’s DNS / Nameservers page in hPanel.
- Click Change Nameservers.
- Choose between Use Hostinger nameservers (recommended) and Change nameservers.
- Selecting “Change nameservers” opens up to six input fields, pre-filled with your current nameserver values in the first two slots. Clear those out and enter the new provider’s nameservers instead.
- Click Save.
The six available slots stand out to me. Most domains only need two nameservers, but Hostinger’s form supports up to six, which covers providers that issue three or four nameservers for redundancy. If your new host only gave you two values, leave the remaining fields blank.
Remember that changing nameservers moves DNS management for the entire domain to the new provider. Any custom DNS records you had set up in Hostinger’s zone editor, MX records, TXT records, SPF, and so on, stop applying once the switch takes effect, since the domain is no longer looking to Hostinger for its DNS answers. If you are only moving hosting and want to keep Hostinger’s DNS management, look at pointing an A record instead of changing nameservers entirely.
