Skip to main content
Tidy Names

Connect Cloudflare

This guide walks you through creating a Cloudflare API token with the correct permissions and connecting it to Tidy Names.

Prerequisites

  • A Cloudflare account with one or more domains (zones)
  • A Tidy Names account with an organisation set up

Step 1: Create a Cloudflare API Token

Tidy Names uses a Cloudflare API token - not the Global API Key - to access your domain data. API tokens are more secure because you can limit them to only the permissions needed.

Navigate to API Tokens

  1. Log in to the Cloudflare dashboard
  2. Click your profile icon in the top right corner
  3. Select My Profile
  4. Click the API Tokens tab in the left sidebar
  5. Click Create Token
Cloudflare User API Tokens page with Create Token button in the top right
The API Tokens page under My Profile in Cloudflare

Configure Token Permissions

You'll see the Custom token template at the top of the page. Click Get started next to it to create a blank token.

Cloudflare Create API Token page showing the Custom token template with a Get started button
Click “Get started” next to the Custom token template

Then add the following permissions:

In the Permissions section, use the three dropdown menus on a single row to select:

  • First dropdown: Account
  • Second dropdown: Registrar Domains
  • Third dropdown: Read

Click + Add more to add a second row and select:

  • First dropdown: Zone
  • Second dropdown: Zone
  • Third dropdown: Read

Click + Add more again to add a third row and select:

  • First dropdown: Zone
  • Second dropdown: DNS
  • Third dropdown: Read
Cloudflare custom token form showing Account Registrar Domains Read and Zone Zone Read permissions
The permissions and zone resources configuration for Tidy Names

These three permissions allow Tidy Names to:

  • Account → Registrar Domains → Read - fetch expiry dates, auto-renew settings, and transfer lock status for domains registered through Cloudflare
  • Zone → Zone → Read - list all your domains, their status, and nameservers
  • Zone → DNS → Read - fetch DNS records for each domain, used for email security analysis (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) and the DNS records dashboard

Important: Only Read permissions are required. Tidy Names never writes to or modifies your Cloudflare configuration.

Zone Resources

Under Zone Resources, you can choose:

  • All zones - gives access to every domain in your account (recommended for importing your full portfolio)
  • Specific zone - limits the token to selected domains only

For full details on token permissions, see Cloudflare's API token documentation and the Cloudflare API reference.

Create and Copy the Token

  1. Click Continue to summary
  2. Review the permissions, then click Create Token
  3. Copy the token immediately - Cloudflare will only show it once. If you lose it, you'll need to create a new one.

Step 2: Add the Connection in Tidy Names

  1. In Tidy Names, go to Connections in the sidebar
  2. Click Add Connection
  3. Select Cloudflare from the registrar list
  4. Paste your API token into the API Token field
  5. Optionally set a Display Name (e.g. "My Cloudflare Account" or "Production Domains")
  6. Click Test Connection - you should see a success message confirming the token is valid
  7. Click Save Connection

Tidy Names will immediately start importing your domains. This usually takes just a few seconds, depending on how many domains you have.

Step 3: Verify Your Domains

After saving the connection, go to the Domains page. You should see all your Cloudflare domains listed with:

  • Domain name and status
  • Expiry date
  • Auto-renew setting
  • Nameservers

Click on any domain to see its full detail page, including DNS records, email security analysis, and domain protection checks.

Troubleshooting

Test Connection fails

  • Double-check that you copied the full token without any extra spaces
  • Verify the token hasn't expired - you can check this in Cloudflare under My Profile > API Tokens
  • Ensure the token has all three permissions: Registrar Domains: Read, Zone: Read, and DNS: Read

Missing domains

  • If you used Specific zone when creating the token, only those zones will appear. Create a new token with All zones to import everything.
  • Only active zones are imported. Domains that are pending or have been deleted in Cloudflare won't appear.

Missing expiry dates

  • Expiry dates are fetched via the Cloudflare Registrar API and are only available for domains registered through Cloudflare. Domains using Cloudflare only for DNS will show no expiry date.
  • If no expiry dates appear at all, check that your token includes the Account → Registrar Domains → Read permission.

Revoking the token

If you need to revoke access, you can do either of the following:

  • In Tidy Names: Go to Connections and remove the Cloudflare connection. This deletes the stored encrypted credentials.
  • In Cloudflare: Go to My Profile > API Tokens, find the token, and click Revoke. The connection in Tidy Names will show an error on the next sync.

Next Steps