Custom domains & white-label
Put the Library on an owned domain, make it canonical, and optionally simplify the public brand chrome.
By default the Library lives at <slug>.podhood.com. If the show already has a durable web presence, a host such as library.example.com or search.example.com lets links and search authority accrue to a domain the team controls.
Custom domains are available on Free, Pro, and Studio. White-label is a separate Studio capability and can be enabled only after the custom domain is verified.
Choose the host
A dedicated subdomain is the simplest setup and avoids replacing an existing marketing site:
library.example.comsearch.example.comarchive.example.com
The bare apex (example.com) also works when the Library should be the main site. One custom domain can be connected per Channel.
Connect the domain
Open Studio → Settings → Domains, enter the full hostname, and click Add. PodHood returns the exact records required by the current domain provider integration.
library.example.com uses one CNAME. Copy the target exactly from the Domains panel.
| Type | Name | Value |
|---|---|---|
| CNAME | library | (shown in the panel) |
The bare example.com uses an A record. The optional www CNAME forwards www.example.com to the apex.
| Type | Name | Value |
|---|---|---|
| A | @ | (shown in the panel) |
| CNAME | www | (shown in the panel) |
The panel checks status when it opens and then polls unsettled domains. The state progresses from Needs DNS to Pending to Live. DNS propagation time depends on the provider and existing TTL.
Once verified:
- The custom host becomes the preferred canonical address for Library links, metadata, API responses, and citations.
- Anonymous visitors and crawlers arriving at the PodHood subdomain are redirected to it.
- The Studio remains at
podhood.com/studio/<slug>. - The same
/<episode>,/mcp,llms.txt,sitemap.xml, and API paths work on the custom host.
The <slug>.podhood.com address remains the Channel's fallback identity, but do not promote both hosts. Share the canonical custom address.
White-label
On Studio, the White-label toggle becomes available after the domain is Live. It changes the public Library's brand chrome to use the Channel name, avatar, favicon/metadata, and custom host.
It does not mean “no attribution.” A discreet Powered by PodHood link remains at the foot of Library, episode, and Hub surfaces by design.
Subscribe and sign-in keep working on a white-label Library. The audience sign-in flow and new-episode email remain PodHood-operated, so those touchpoints still carry PodHood identity.
White-label applies only on the verified custom host. The Studio remains PodHood-branded. Public Search, Translation, Connect AI, REST, MCP, Markdown twins, and crawler surfaces continue to work.
Launch checklist
- The Domains panel says Live.
- The Library home and one episode open on the custom host.
- An episode citation generated by Search or MCP uses the custom host.
-
https://<custom-host>/llms.txtlists the expected episodes and MCP endpoint. -
https://<custom-host>/sitemap.xmlloads. - The custom host is added to Google Search Console.
- If white-label is on, the team confirms Subscribe works on the custom host and accepts the remaining Attribution.
- Public links use the custom host consistently.
Removing the domain returns the Channel to its PodHood subdomain. Because custom domains and slugs can change, redirects are temporary rather than permanent; settle the public address before a large campaign.