This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Dulaj Thiwanka
Are you a developer looking for a clean, professional, and free domain for your portfolio, projects, or personal site?
Meet .is-a.dev — a community-driven service that gives developers free subdomains like:
yourname.is-a.dev
project.is-a.dev
portfolio.is-a.dev
The best part? You don’t need to buy a domain or configure a registrar — you just submit a small JSON file via GitHub.
In this guide, you’ll learn:
- ✅ What
.is-a.devis - ✅ Why developers use it
- ✅ Rules you need to know
- ✅ Step-by-step setup (with examples)
- ✅ How to update or delete it later
Let’s get rolling 🚀
🧩 What Is .is-a.dev?
.is-a.dev is an open-source service that gives developers free subdomains for personal or software-related projects. Registration happens via a GitHub pull request to their public repo.
You can use it for:
- 🌐 Portfolios
- 🛠 Dev blogs
- 💻 GitHub Pages
- 📦 Vercel / Netlify sites
- 🚀 APIs & side projects
➡️ Repo: github.com/is-a-dev/register
➡️ Docs: https://docs.is-a.dev
Because it’s listed in the Public Suffix List (PSL), many platforms treat it like a real top-level domain — meaning fewer restrictions.
✅ DNS Record Types You Can Use
.is-a.dev supports the most common DNS records:
| Record | Use Case |
|---|---|
| A / AAAA | VPS, server hosting |
| CNAME | GitHub Pages, Vercel, Netlify, etc |
| MX | Email routing |
| TXT | Verification & configs |
| URL | Redirects |
| SRV / TLSA | Advanced setups |
⚠️ NS (nameserver delegation) is only allowed in certain approved cases, and only if your subdomain has existed for 30+ days.
🛠 Step-by-Step: Get Your .is-a.dev Subdomain
✅ 1. Prerequisites
You’ll need:
- A GitHub account
- A site or project to point to (or plan to host one)
- The DNS record type you want to use (e.g.
CNAMEorA)
✅ 2. Fork the Register Repo
Go to:
🔗 https://github.com/is-a-dev/register
Click Fork to copy it to your GitHub account.
✅ 3. Create Your JSON File
Inside your fork:
- Go to the
domains/folder - Click Add file → Create new file
- Name it after the subdomain you want, for example:
yourname.json
→ This becomes yourname.is-a.dev
✅ Rules:
- 2–64 characters
- lowercase letters, numbers, and dashes only
Now add the JSON data.
Example for GitHub Pages:
{
"owner": {
"username": "your-github-username"
},
"records": {
"CNAME": "yourgithubusername.github.io"
}
}
Example for VPS / IP hosting:
{
"owner": {
"username": "your-github-username"
},
"records": {
"A": ["123.45.67.89"]
}
}
Commit the file.
✅ 4. Open a Pull Request (PR)
After saving, GitHub will prompt you to Open a Pull Request.
In the PR description:
- Complete the checklist
- Confirm your project is dev-related
- Submit the PR
That’s it — now the maintainers will review it.
⏳ Typical approval time: 24–72 hours
✅ 5. Wait for Merge & Test Your Domain
Once merged:
- DNS propagates within minutes (sometimes a bit longer)
- Visit
yourname.is-a.devto check
If you still see the .is-a.dev homepage:
- Refresh / clear cache
- Flush DNS (if needed)
For GitHub Pages users, enable “Enforce HTTPS” in repo settings.
🔁 Need to Update or Delete Later?
Just edit or delete your .json file in your fork and submit another PR.
✅ Example changes:
- Update IP
- Switch from CNAME to A record
- Add TXT or MX
- Remove the domain entirely
🧠 Example Walkthrough
Let’s say Alice wants alice.is-a.dev for her GitHub Pages site.
She creates:
domains/alice.json, with:
{
"owner": {
"username": "alice"
},
"records": {
"CNAME": "alice.github.io"
}
}
She opens a PR → it's merged → DNS goes live →
✅ alice.is-a.dev now points to her site!
✅ Why Developers Love .is-a.dev
- ✅ Free forever
- ✅ Clean, developer-friendly branding
- ✅ Works with GitHub Pages, Vercel, Netlify, etc
- ✅ Supports various DNS records
- ✅ Full control through JSON and GitHub
Perfect if you don’t want to register/pay for your own .com, .dev, .io, etc.
🛠 Common Issues & Fixes
| Problem | Solution |
|---|---|
| PR not merged yet | Wait patiently / check for comments |
| Domain shows default page | Browser or DNS cache → clear it |
| HTTPS not working | Enable HTTPS in hosting settings |
| Want NS records | Only allowed after 30 days with justification |
| Nested domains | Allowed if you own the parent (blog.alice.is-a.dev) |
✨ Final Thoughts
If you want a professional-looking domain for your dev presence — without buying one — .is-a.dev is a fantastic solution.
You control the DNS.
It’s simple to manage via GitHub.
And the process takes less than 10 minutes.
This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Dulaj Thiwanka
Dulaj Thiwanka | Sciencx (2025-09-29T05:03:17+00:00) Get Your Free .is-a.dev Subdomain: Step-by-Step Guide for Developers. Retrieved from https://www.scien.cx/2025/09/29/get-your-free-is-a-dev-subdomain-step-by-step-guide-for-developers/
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