Domain verification in Meta Business Suite, explained
Meta’s help article “About domain verification in Meta Business Suite” only loads with JavaScript. Here it is in plain words, with Meta’s pages on the steps, the use cases and the errors, from Meta’s help center as read on October 9, 2026.
On this page · 8 sections
- What is domain verification in Meta Business Suite?
- When should you verify your domain?
- What do you need before you start?
- How do you verify your domain, step by step?
- Which verification method should you pick?
- Can you verify a subdomain?
- Why does domain verification fail, and how do you fix it?
- What does Adwize do with your domain?
Domain verification in Meta Business Suite lets your business claim ownership of its website domain, without editing Open Graph tags on the site. Once verified, you control who can edit the link previews of your links, in organic posts and in ads, and you can give specific Pages permission to edit your ads. It is free. You need a business portfolio, full control of it, and admin or developer access to your domain. In Settings, under Brand safety, then Domains, you add your root domain without www or https, then prove ownership in one of three ways: a meta tag in your home page’s head, an HTML file at the root of your site, or a DNS TXT record. Then you click Verify domain. Once it works, you can remove the tag, file or record. You cannot verify a subdomain, except to sell on Facebook Commerce. Meta’s troubleshooting page explains each error message.
TL;DR
- Domain verification proves your business owns its website domain and lets you control who edits your link previews.
- It is free. You need full control of the portfolio and admin or developer access to the domain.
- Three methods: a meta tag, an HTML file at the root, or a DNS TXT record.
- Enter the root domain only. Subdomains are only verified for Facebook Commerce.
- Adwize does not verify your domain for you. You do it once in Meta Business Suite.
What is domain verification in Meta Business Suite?
It is the way a business claims ownership of its website domain in Meta Business Suite, without editing Open Graph markup tags on the site. Meta uses it to make sure only the rightful parties can edit the link previews that point to your content, in both organic posts and paid ads.
Once your domain is verified, you can manage editing permissions on your links. You can assign specific Pages permission to edit your ads. Pages linked to your business portfolio that lack that permission cannot change your ads.
Meta states that verifying a domain is free. The same help page also promotes Meta Verified for businesses, a paid subscription with a badge: that is a separate product, and you do not need it to verify a domain.
When should you verify your domain?
Meta recommends it in several cases. You want to control who edits the links of ads that point to your domain, or the links in organic posts. You manage many Pages and want an easier list than Open Graph tags. Or you want to choose which domains may use your pages as their canonical URL.
It is also part of some onboarding. Publishers registering for the news Page index must verify their domain. Businesses that send buyers from Facebook commerce surfaces to a website may need to verify the one domain they sell through.
It helps with business verification too. If you have no business phone number, if your email domain does not match your website, or if your organization uses an .edu email, which cannot receive Meta’s code, domain verification is one way to prove your connection. Our guide to Meta business verification covers the rest.
What do you need before you start?
Meta lists three requirements. You must have a business portfolio. You must have full control of that portfolio. And you, or the person helping you, must have admin or developer access to the domain, meaning the ability to edit the home page, upload a file to the site, or change DNS records.
Prepare the root domain, written without any prefix. Meta’s example is clear: enter website.com, not www.website.com and not https://website.com.
A domain can only contain letters, numbers and hyphens, and a hyphen cannot be the first or last character. A trailing slash or a protocol makes the entry invalid.
How do you verify your domain, step by step?
In Meta Business Suite, open Settings, go to Brand safety, then Domains. Click + Add, choose Create a domain or Request access to a domain, type the root domain and click Add. Then pick one of the three verification methods shown on screen, complete it, and click Verify domain.
If Meta cannot verify the domain, an error message appears, and the troubleshooting page explains what each one means. When verification succeeds, Meta says you can remove the meta tag, the DNS TXT record or the HTML file without affecting your verified status.
Example. A candle shop selling on its own site enters candleshop.com, picks the DNS method because its host makes HTML edits awkward, adds the TXT record at its registrar, checks it with a lookup tool, then clicks Verify domain.
- Settings, then Brand safety, then Domains
- Click + Add, then Create a domain
- Type the root domain, click Add
- Add the meta tag, HTML file or DNS TXT record
- Click Verify domain
Which verification method should you pick?
Meta offers three methods and treats them as equals. A meta tag goes in the head section of your home page’s HTML. An HTML file, downloaded from Meta and left unchanged, goes in the root directory of your domain. A DNS TXT record goes in your domain registrar’s DNS settings.
For the meta tag, paste it between head tags, publish the page, then view the source of your root domain to check it is there. For the file, upload it and open the link Meta shows to confirm the code is visible. For DNS, add the TXT record, then use a DNS TXT lookup tool to check it has spread.
Pick the one you can do yourself. A shop builder may make the meta tag simplest; a site with no editable head may make DNS easier.
Can you verify a subdomain?
No, in most cases. Meta’s troubleshooting page says you cannot verify a subdomain, such as page.yourwebsite.com, or a subdirectory, such as yourwebsite.com/page, and entering one returns an error. Verifying the root domain gives you control of all its subdomains, which is why Meta recommends the root.
There is one exception. Meta says you only need to verify a subdomain when you are selling on Facebook Commerce, and only when onboarding to it.
The same page adds one line on measurement: you cannot verify a subdomain to configure events for Aggregated Event Measurement. That is the only mention of Aggregated Event Measurement we found in the pages read for this article.
- website.com
- = valid root domain
- www.website.com
- = enter the root instead
- shop.website.com
- = only for Facebook Commerce
- website.com/page
- = subdirectory, cannot be verified
Why does domain verification fail, and how do you fix it?
Meta’s troubleshooting page names each error. An invalid domain means a prefix, a slash or a forbidden character. Already verified by another business means another portfolio owns it, perhaps a previous owner: ask that business to share the domain with you. DNS errors mean Meta found no TXT record, or none matching the code, so check the record again.
For the file and meta tag methods, Verification file was not found means Meta could not reach the file or the tag. Meta suggests the Sharing Debugger: open the Scraped URL, look for the tag named facebook-domain-verification, use Scrape Again, and check for expired certificates under Warnings That Should Be Fixed.
One detail catches many modern sites. Meta’s crawler does not run JavaScript, so a meta tag added by a script after the page loads is invisible to it. The tag must be in the static HTML. Redirects are only allowed from the root to www and between http and https; any other redirect makes the file check fail.
| Error | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Invalid domain | Prefix, slash or forbidden character | Enter the bare root domain |
| Already verified by another business | Another portfolio owns it | Ask that business to share it |
| No DNS entries / record doesn’t match | TXT record missing or wrong | Check the record with a lookup tool |
| Verification file was not found | File or tag not reachable | Use the Sharing Debugger, then scrape again |
| Invalidly directed | Redirect beyond www or https | Serve the file at the root |
| Verification code doesn’t match | Content altered | Copy the code exactly, add nothing |
What does Adwize do with your domain?
Nothing on its own. Adwize does not verify your domain, does not edit your website and does not change your DNS. Domain verification is done once, in your Meta Business Suite, by someone with full control of the portfolio and access to the site. See the Security page.
Once your business is set up, Adwize prepares Meta campaigns that point to your site, shows every link and setting in plain words, and waits for your approval before launch. See the Launch page.
Adwize works with Meta ads only, on Facebook and Instagram, inside your own ad account.
Frequently asked questions
Is Meta domain verification free?
Yes. Meta states that it is free to verify your domains. Meta Verified for businesses, also mentioned on the same page, is a separate paid subscription that you do not need for domain verification.
Should I enter www in Meta domain verification?
No. Enter the root domain without any prefix, for example website.com, not www.website.com or https://website.com. Verifying the root gives you control of its subdomains.
Can I remove the meta tag after verification?
Yes. Meta says that once your domain is verified, you can remove the meta tag, the DNS TXT record or the HTML file without affecting your verification status.
Why can’t Meta find my meta tag?
Often because a script adds it after the page loads. Meta’s crawler does not run JavaScript, so the tag must be in the static HTML. The Sharing Debugger shows what the crawler sees.
Can Adwize verify my domain?
No. Adwize does not edit your website or DNS and does not verify domains. You verify your domain once in Meta Business Suite; Adwize then prepares campaigns and waits for your approval.
Sources
- Meta Business Help Center, About domain verification in Meta Business SuiteAccessed 10/09/2026
- Meta Business Help Center, Verify your domain from your business portfolioAccessed 10/09/2026
- Meta Business Help Center, Troubleshoot why you can’t verify your domainAccessed 10/09/2026
- Meta Business Help Center, When to use domain verification to verify your businessAccessed 10/09/2026
