How to Create a Free Custom Email Address Using Your Own Domain (Step-by-Step Guide)
Table of Contents
- Why Use a Custom Email Address?
- Requirements
- Step 1: Add Your Domain to Cloudflare
- Step 2: Update Your Domain Nameservers
- Step 3: Create a Zoho Mail Account
- Step 4: Add Your Domain
- Step 5: Verify Your Domain
- Step 6: Create Your Email Address
- Step 7: Access Your Email
- My Website Example
- Benefits of Using a Custom Email
- Conclusion
A professional email address helps build trust and gives your business or personal brand a more credible image. Instead of using a Gmail address like [email protected], you can create an email that matches your domain, such as [email protected].
In this guide, I'll show you how I created a free custom email address for my website https://kshitiz.com.np using Cloudflare and Zoho Mail.
Compare these two email addresses:
Which one looks more professional?
A custom email address:
- Builds trust with clients and visitors.
- Matches your website and brand.
- Looks more professional.
- Makes your business easier to remember.
- Separates personal and business communication.
Before you begin, you'll need:
- A registered domain name (Example: kshitiz.com.np)
- A free Cloudflare account
- A free Zoho Mail account
If you don't have a domain yet, register one first. Nepal's .com.np domains are available free of charge for eligible users.
Create a free Cloudflare account.
After logging in:
- Click Add a Site.
- Enter your domain name.
Example:
kshitiz.com.np
- Click Continue.
- Choose Manual DNS Setup.
- Select the Free Plan.
Cloudflare will now provide two nameservers.
Log in to your domain registrar.
If you own a .com.np domain, sign in to register.com.np.
Navigate to:
Active Domains → Edit DNS
Replace the existing nameservers with the nameservers provided by Cloudflare.
Save the changes.
DNS propagation may take up to 24 hours.
Visit the Zoho Mail website.
Select Create Domain Based Email Account and click Proceed.
Click the + button.
Enter your domain name.
Example:
kshitiz.com.np
Choose Configure Manually.
Zoho will provide a TXT verification record.
Copy the TXT value.
Go back to Cloudflare.
Open:
DNS → Add Record
Create a TXT record using:
- Type: TXT
- Name: @
- Content: Paste the TXT value
- TTL: Auto
Save the record.
Wait approximately 30 minutes, then return to Zoho and click Verify TXT Record.
Once verified, your domain is ready to use with Zoho Mail.
Open Users in Zoho Mail.
Click Add User.
Example:
First Name: Kshitiz
Last Name: Sharma
Username: info
Your email address will become:
You can also create:
Zoho Mail's free plan allows you to create up to five email accounts.
Sign in using:
- Zoho Mail Web
- Zoho Mail Android App
- Zoho Mail iPhone App
Use the email address and password you created.
I used my own website https://kshitiz.com.np to demonstrate this tutorial.
Previously, my email address was:
After completing the setup, I can use professional email addresses such as:
These email addresses match my website and create a more professional impression when communicating with visitors and clients.
- Professional appearance
- Better brand recognition
- Builds customer trust
- Easy to remember
- Uses your own domain
- Separate personal and business emails
- Free for up to five users with Zoho Mail
Creating a custom email address is easier than many people think. By using Cloudflare for DNS management and Zoho Mail's free email hosting, you can create professional email addresses for your own domain at no cost.
If you own a website like https://kshitiz.com.np, replacing [email protected] with [email protected] is a simple upgrade that makes your website and business look more professional.
Follow the steps in this guide, and you'll have your own custom email address ready in just a short time.
