How to Transfer a Domain from Shopify to Static.app

To transfer a domain from Shopify to Static.app, sign in as the store owner and choose Transfer to another provider in the domain's settings. Shopify unlocks the domain and shows the authorization code on the domain's page. Start the transfer at Static.app with that code within 30 days, or Shopify locks the domain again. Shopify says a successful transfer can take up to 7 days. The one thing to do first is write down your DNS records and email forwarding addresses.

Before you start

• Sign in as the store owner. Only the store owner can transfer a domain to another provider. Staff accounts cannot.
• Check the dates. A .com, .net, .org or .us domain cannot move for 60 days after you buy it, transfer it to Shopify, or change its contact information. Shopify does not describe a way to skip this. In the meantime you can still edit the DNS to point the domain somewhere else, and turn off automatic renewal if you do not want it to renew first.
• Check the ending. Some endings cannot be moved from the Shopify admin. For .be, .ec, .mu, .ph, .pl, .re, .se and endings that finish in .nz, Shopify Support starts the transfer.
• Save your DNS records. While the domain is with Shopify, its DNS records are edited on the Domains page in your Shopify admin. Shopify does not say whether they keep answering once the domain has left, so plan as if they will not, and write down every record, especially the MX and TXT records your email depends on.
• Check what else is tied to the domain. Shopify's email forwarding is only for Shopify-managed domains, and Shopify does not say what happens to your forwarding addresses after the move, so plan as if they stop and set up mail somewhere else first. If the store should stay on the domain, it will need connecting to Shopify again as a domain from another provider.
• Check the store's status. If you plan to close the store, Shopify suggests transferring the domain first. A paused, deactivated or frozen store can still transfer, and an unpaid invoice does not block it.

Step 1: Start the transfer at Shopify and copy the code

1. In your Shopify admin, go to Settings and then Domains.
2. In the Domains section, click the domain you want to move.
3. Click Domain settings, then Transfer to another provider.
4. Review the information and click Confirm.

The domain unlocks itself, and the domain authorization code appears on the domain's information page. Copy it from there. If the store is inactive, the Domains page is not in the menu: sign in, replace /access_account and everything after it in the address bar with /access_account/domains, and follow the same steps.

Step 2: Start the transfer at Static.app

Sign in to Static.app, open Domains, and choose Transfer Domain. The form has three parts:

1. Which domain are you moving? Type the whole name, such as yourbusiness.com. Static.app checks at once whether it can move, what the transfer costs, and which company holds it now.
2. Authorization code: paste the code from Shopify. Copy it exactly, with no space before or after.
3. Owner contact: the registry records these details against the domain, so use an email address you read.

Tick the terms box and choose Continue to Payment. A transfer is charged like a registration and adds a year to the domain (two years on a .ai name, which is sold two years at a time). The transfer is sent to the registry once the payment goes through.

Static.app keeps the domain on the nameservers it uses today, so the transfer changes who you pay for the name and nothing else. Your website and email keep working, as long as the DNS behind those nameservers keeps answering.

Not every ending can move here yet. Country endings such as .uk, .de and .eu are not supported, and the form tells you as soon as you type the name.

Step 3: Wait for Shopify to release the domain

Shopify says a successful transfer can take up to 7 days. Its help page does not describe a way to approve it early, so there is nothing to click at Shopify once the request has gone in.

Keep an eye on the 30 days. If the transfer is not completed within 30 days of starting it at Shopify, the domain locks again, and you have to cancel the transfer and start over.

Step 4: Finish setting up the domain at Static.app

When the domain shows as Active in your Domains list, it is registered with Static.app. If the transfer does not go through, the domain stays where it was, the payment is refunded, and the domain page says why and offers Try the Transfer Again. The usual causes are a lock that is still on, a wrong or expired code, or a domain that changed hands in the last 60 days.

What is left depends on where your DNS lives:

• Your DNS is with a company you are keeping, such as Cloudflare or your hosting company: nothing changes. To open a Static.app website on the domain, add its records there, or move DNS here as below.
• Your DNS was at Shopify: move it to Static.app the moment the domain shows Active, since that DNS may stop answering once the domain has left. The steps are in the next point.
• You want Static.app to run the DNS: open the domain, choose Edit beside Nameservers, then Reset to Default and Update Nameservers. Static.app writes the records for any website connected to the domain. Add everything else, such as your email records, in Manage DNS or Email & Forwarding right away, using the copy you made before the transfer.

To open one of your websites on the domain, choose Assign beside Website on the domain page and pick the website. With the DNS here, the records and the SSL certificate are set up for you. A paid plan is needed to publish a website on your own domain.

Moving a domain from another company? See every transfer guide.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a transfer from Shopify take?

Up to 7 days, according to Shopify. Start the Static.app side soon after you click Confirm, because the domain locks again if the transfer is not completed within 30 days.

Do I lose the time I already paid Shopify for?

No. For .com and the other common endings, the time left on the domain comes with it and the transfer adds a year on top. Shopify's transfer page does not mention refunds.

Will my store or email stop working?

Not because of the transfer itself: Static.app keeps your nameservers as they are. The risk is DNS and email forwarding that lived at Shopify. If they stop after the move, your store and email stop with them until the records are set up again, which is why the list you wrote down matters.

Why do visitors see a security warning after I leave Shopify?

Shopify keeps its HTTPS rule (HSTS) on the domain for 90 days after you remove the domain or leave. A website served over HTTPS is unaffected. A website without HTTPS shows a certificate error in the browser for those 90 days. A Static.app website on the domain gets its SSL certificate set up for you, so this only matters if the domain points somewhere without HTTPS.