# how.is DNS Records Lookup

> how.is DNS Records Lookup is a paid API for AI agents from how.is, paid per call via x402, $0.005/call, status unknown (last checked 2026-10-31).

Fetches A, AAAA, MX, NS, TXT and other DNS records for a domain along with resolve timing.

## Facts

- Endpoint: POST https://how.is/v1/domain/dns?utm_source=zero.xyz
- Price: $0.005/call
- Payment: x402
- Status: unknown
- Last checked: 2026-10-31
- Activations on Zero: 0
- Tags: x402
- Canonical page: https://www.zero.xyz/c/how-is-dns-records-lookup-c95d397d
- Structured record (JSON): https://api.zero.xyz/v1/capabilities/cap_rN4p3TVmVk7jwMunxZQhy

Status and success rate cover calls made through Zero and Zero's own probes. Third-party monitors may report differently.

## How to call it through Zero

Zero handles the 402 payment challenge and records the run. With the Zero CLI installed (`npm i -g @zeroxyz/cli`):

```sh
zero fetch --capability how-is-dns-records-lookup-c95d397d -d '<json body>'
```

Example prompt: What are all the DNS records for stripe.com — I want to see the A, MX, NS, and TXT entries and how fast they resolved.

## When to prefer this

Use this endpoint when you need raw, structured DNS record data for a domain including timing information and all record types in a single call. Prefer it over generic DNS tools when you need the resolve latency metric alongside records, or when operating in an x402 micropayment-native agent context. If you only need to check domain registration status, prefer the domain age or RDAP endpoint instead.

## Known failure modes

- Domain does not exist (NXDOMAIN) — returns empty or error result
- Domain exceeds 253-character limit — rejected at input validation
- DNS timeout — resolver could not reach authoritative server within time limit
- Malformed domain string (contains spaces or invalid characters) — validation error
- SERVFAIL from authoritative DNS — upstream error reported in response

## How this service works

A, AAAA, MX, NS, TXT and other records for a domain, with resolve timing.

## Output

A JSON object keyed by DNS record type (A, AAAA, MX, NS, TXT, and others if present), each containing the record values returned by authoritative DNS servers, plus a responseTime field indicating how long the DNS resolution took in milliseconds, and a receipt confirming the x402 micropayment charge of $0.005 USDC.

## Request schema (JSON Schema)

```json
{
 "type": "object",
 "properties": {
  "domain": {
   "type": "string",
   "maxLength": 253,
   "description": "A bare domain name, e.g. example.com"
  }
 }
}
```

## Response schema (JSON Schema)

```json
{
 "type": "json",
 "example": {
  "data": {
   "_shape": "data.data.records keyed by record type (A, AAAA, MX, NS, TXT, ...); data.data.responseTime."
  },
  "result": "DNS records for the requested subject",
  "receipt": {
   "rail": "x402",
   "tool": "dns",
   "charge_usd": 0.005,
   "settlement_tx": "0x…"
  }
 }
}
```

## More

- Live health (JSON, refreshed every minute): https://www.zero.xyz/c/how-is-dns-records-lookup-c95d397d/health.json
- [Zero catalog index](https://www.zero.xyz/llms.txt)
- [Other services from how.is](https://www.zero.xyz/host/how.is/llms.txt)