Unknown repo: The custom domain is already taken.

[guillaumelauzier]

Select Topic Area

Question

GitHub Feature Area

Actions

Body

Hi everyone,

I’ve run into a recurring issue with GitHub Pages where I try to assign a custom domain to a repository, but GitHub returns:

“The custom domain is already taken.”

The problem is that I cannot find which repository the domain is assigned to.

I’ve tried several things already:

• Checking all my repositories
• Checking username.github.io repositories
• Checking repositories inside organizations I belong to
• Searching for CNAME files across repos
• Verifying DNS records
• Confirming the domain is no longer pointing to GitHub Pages

Despite this, GitHub still considers the domain already in use, which prevents assigning it to a new repository.

In my case this affects multiple custom domains, which appear to be stuck somewhere in GitHub but I have no visibility into where they are bound.

From a developer experience perspective, it would be incredibly helpful if GitHub provided:

• A way to search which repository a domain is assigned to
• A domain ownership dashboard
• Or at least an error message indicating which repo currently holds the domain

At the moment it feels like the domain can become orphaned inside GitHub Pages, leaving no way to recover it.

Has anyone found a reliable way to locate or release a domain that GitHub says is already taken?

Any insights would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

[thesomewhatyou]

the repo could potentially be private, so that would violate multiple privacy terms

[guillaumelauzier]

My domain name is guillaumelauzier.com, I'm the only owner/admin for it. All my Jekyll pages repo are public. Nobody else has the authorization to use my domain. There's no clear point of access to understand how to unlock my domain.

[thesomewhatyou]

delete all gh related records and wait 7-14 days.

[guillaumelauzier]

I'm not gonna wait 2 weeks to claim a domain and a website I need now that I own.

[Ayu270]

there is no other way

[thesomewhatyou]

I'm not gonna wait 2 weeks to claim a domain and a website I need now that I own.

https://docs.github.com/en/pages/configuring-a-custom-domain-for-your-github-pages-site/verifying-your-custom-domain-for-github-pages

this is all you can do. you may have to wait for it to propogate (1 min to 7 days) or that's it

[Ayu270]

In that case the only solution is GitHub Support.
Open a ticket: https://support.github.com/contact

[thesomewhatyou]

AI?

[Ayu270]

But it worked for me ..........

[guillaumelauzier]

This GitHub Pages error “The custom domain is already taken.” usually means GitHub still has the domain attached somewhere in its Pages system, even if you can’t see it in your repositories. This can happen due to caching, deleted repos, forks, or domains attached to another account/org.

Below are the most reliable ways to locate or release it.

1. Check if the domain is attached to another GitHub Pages site

Sometimes the domain is still linked to another user or organization. Try opening: https://yourdomain.com or curl -I https://yourdomain.com

If GitHub Pages is serving it, the headers may show something like: Server: GitHub.com

If the site loads, view page source and check for: <!-- GitHub Pages --> That can hint which repo is serving it.

2. Search GitHub for the domain

Use GitHub’s global search: https://github.com/search?q=yourdomain.com&type=code

Look for CNAME files in repositories.

Many times the domain is still in a repo like: repo-name/CNAME

3. Check deleted repositories

If the repository that owned the domain was deleted, GitHub sometimes keeps the domain reserved temporarily.

Check: Settings → Deleted repositories or restore the repo if possible.

4. Verify DNS is completely removed

GitHub may refuse reassignment if DNS still points to Pages.

Check that these do NOT exist anymore:

A 185.199.108.153 A 185.199.109.153 A 185.199.110.153 A 185.199.111.153 CNAME username.github.io

Use: dig yourdomain.com or nslookup yourdomain.com

If they still resolve to GitHub Pages, remove them and wait DNS TTL (often 1–24h).

5. Wait for GitHub Pages cache

GitHub Pages domain records sometimes remain cached. Typical clearing time: 10 minutes → 24 hours

6. Add a verification TXT record (important)

GitHub introduced domain verification to prevent hijacking.

Add a TXT record like: _hosted-github-pages-challenge-username

GitHub will show the exact record in the Pages settings. Then retry assigning the domain.

7. if nothing works

Sometimes the domain is locked internally in GitHub Pages. In that case the only solution is GitHub Support. Open a ticket: https://support.github.com/contact

Include:

• domain name
• GitHub username
• repository where you want to assign it
• confirmation you own the domain

GitHub staff can manually release the domain binding.

Checklist

• Remove GitHub Pages DNS records
• Wait for DNS propagation
• Search GitHub for CNAME with the domain
• Check org repositories
• Verify domain ownership via TXT
• Contact GitHub support if still locked

I've tried all of these options already, none of it works. I reached out to Github support, I would appreciate not having to go through support each time.

[thesomewhatyou]

But it worked for me ..........

doesn't mean it works for everyone. you didn't have to make an AI repsponse. please delete this comment kthx ❤️

[Ayu270]

Done 🥲

[devJV899]

[thesomewhatyou]

AI 🤣🤣

sybau you used AI too

[Ayu270]

AI 🤣🤣

sybau you used AI too

we all are just trying to help

[thesomewhatyou]

AI 🤣🤣

sybau you used AI too

we all are just trying to help

but i didn't lol. AI doesn't help. it only makes things worse

[guillaumelauzier]

This situation usually happens when a custom domain was previously attached to a GitHub Pages site and GitHub still considers it reserved.

Even if you can't see which repository is using it, the domain may still be linked internally.

A few things you can try that often help locate or release the domain:

1. Check if GitHub still serves the domain

Run:

curl -I https://yourdomain.com

If the headers contain something like:

server: GitHub.com

or

x-github-request-id

then GitHub Pages is still serving that domain somewhere.

2. Try accessing the GitHub Pages resolver

Open:

https://yourdomain.com

If it resolves to a GitHub Pages 404 page, the domain is still bound to Pages internally.

3. Search across repositories for CNAME files

If the domain was previously used, it may still exist in a repo's CNAME file.

You can try searching via GitHub code search:

org:your-org-name filename:CNAME yourdomain.com

or

filename:CNAME yourdomain.com

4. Check if the repo was deleted

If the repository that previously owned the domain was deleted, the domain may remain reserved for some time. GitHub sometimes keeps this association temporarily to prevent domain takeover.

5. Contact GitHub Support

If none of the above helps, the only reliable solution is to contact GitHub Support and ask them to release the domain.

Provide:

• the domain name
• the repository you want to attach it to
• confirmation that you control the DNS

Support can remove the hidden association if the domain is stuck.

Unfortunately there is currently no public dashboard that shows which repository holds a domain, so support intervention is sometimes required.

None of this worked...

[queenofcorgis]

@devJV899
We’ve clarified our stance on using generative AI tools like ChatGPT within our Community via this announcement. Please review the guidelines to ensure your post meets them as failure to adhere to those rules can result in action taken by our moderator team.  You can read our updated Code of Conduct and the announcement for more details. Thank you for helping us maintain an authentic and beneficial space for everyone.

[guillaumelauzier]

I just verified all domain names. That's apparently the issue.

[Ayu270]

Ohhh Nice

[queenofcorgis]

Hey there! 👋

Thanks for posting in the GitHub Community, @guillaumelauzier ! We're happy you're here. You are more likely to get a useful response if you are posting in the applicable category. The Accessibility category is a place for our community to discuss and provide feedback on the digital accessibility of GitHub products. Digital accessibility means that GitHub tools, and technologies, are designed and developed so that people with disabilities can use them.

I've gone ahead and moved this to the correct category for you, Pages. Good luck!

[guillaumelauzier]

I appreciate it. It seems that verifying domains in the general settings is not the right way to go. So technically I unverified all domains and have no issues. Unfortunately for the ones that are still assigned to unknown repos, I still blocked. No search has found the associated domains. Couldn't there but just an option to locate domain name with some sort of Github DNS?

[guillaumelauzier]

These are my domains that are still stuck.

guillaumelauzier.com
tourcoaster.com

[guillaumelauzier]

guillaumelauzier.com found manually. Search engine is unsuccessful in finding anything.

Still tourcoaster.com left.