Cloudflare Import and export records: A Guide for Website Owners

If you need to move a Cloudflare zone or change many DNS records at once, export the current records first, then import a correctly formatted BIND zone file from DNS Records → Import and Export. Before completing the import, review whether applicable records should be proxied. If an imported record contains Cloudflare’s cf-proxied tag, that tag takes precedence over the general import setting. This workflow is specific to Cloudflare.

Export a backup#

Export the existing zone before making bulk changes:

1. In the Cloudflare dashboard, open DNS Records → Import and Export.
2. Select Export to download the zone records.
3. Keep the downloaded file as a backup and reference copy.

Prepare the import file#

Cloudflare imports DNS data from a BIND zone file. Check these details before uploading it:

• For certain record types, including CNAME, MX, NS, and SRV, use fully qualified names ending with a trailing period, such as mail.example.com..
• Cloudflare supports the $ORIGIN, $TTL, and $GENERATE directives.
• Cloudflare rejects the $INCLUDE directive, so a file that depends on it will not meet the documented import requirements.
• Keep the zone file within Cloudflare’s documented 256 KiB limit.

Import records in the dashboard#

1. Open DNS Records → Import and Export.
2. Select Import DNS records.
3. Choose the prepared zone file.
4. When prompted, choose whether applicable records should be proxied.
5. Review the imported records and proxy settings after the upload.

The general proxy choice does not override an imported record that contains Cloudflare’s cf-proxied tag. That tag takes precedence, so inspect individual records when the file includes it.

API limits and permissions#

Cloudflare documents these constraints for API-based imports and exports:

Swipe or scroll horizontally to read every column →

The dashboard workflow and the API have different steps and access requirements. If you use the API, confirm the permission assigned to the API token and keep requests within the documented rate limit.

Review the zone after importing#

Open the DNS records for the zone and confirm that the records needed by the website and related services are present. Cloudflare’s DNS documentation describes records as helping make resources available on a domain and configure services such as email, so check those entries carefully after a bulk change. Pay particular attention to fully qualified names, records affected by proxying, and any records that were edited in the source file.