This article answers common questions about “how to import nodes into sing-box”: once you have a subscription link, a VLESS share link, or a JSON file, where should you import it, and what should you check in your IP, DNS, and browser settings if the import succeeds but webpages won’t load? Menus and supported formats vary between sing-box GUI clients, so follow the interface of the client you’re using.
1. Check your client and node format first
Install a client that’s suitable for your operating system from an official project source, and check its version requirements. sing-box is a proxy core, and GUI clients built on it don’t necessarily support the same subscription formats. The command-line program also has no buttons for scanning QR codes or importing by pasting a link. If you’re a general user, choose a client with a configuration management interface.
- Subscription link: Usually an HTTPS address that may return a complete configuration or a list of nodes.
- Share link: Often starts with vless://, vmess://, trojan://, or a similar prefix, and requires a client that can parse it.
- Configuration file: Usually JSON, but it must use a format supported by your current sing-box version.
Clash YAML, node share links, and sing-box JSON are not interchangeable configuration formats. Check the format specified by your node provider first. For free nodes on this site, use the import method that matches the format actually provided.
2. Import using a subscription link
- Open the client and find the add option on the “Configuration,” “Profiles,” or similar page.
- If remote configurations are supported, choose “Import from URL,” “Add remote configuration,” or a similar option, enter a name, and paste the subscription URL.
- Click Download or Update, then check whether parsing succeeded. If it fails, first make sure the URL is complete and hasn’t expired, and verify the format of the response.
- Select the configuration you just added and enable the connection as prompted by the client. The first time you use it, you may need to allow the system VPN permission.
- If the interface lets you select a node, choose one to test. After updating the subscription, check which configuration and node are currently selected.
A subscription downloading successfully doesn’t mean its format is compatible. If the client only accepts complete sing-box configurations, ask the provider for the corresponding configuration URL instead of pasting in an arbitrary subscription link.
3. Importing share links and local files
If you only have a share link such as vless://, first check whether the client supports “Import from clipboard” or QR code scanning. If it does, copy the complete link and import it. If there’s no import option or the client says the format isn’t supported, you’ll need to obtain a compatible complete configuration. Simply changing the link’s file extension to .json won’t work.
If you already have a JSON file, select “Import from file” on the configuration page, choose the file, and run a configuration check. If you see errors about unsupported fields or missing outbounds, check your client version and the configuration’s compatibility notes. Don’t submit content containing passwords, UUIDs, or subscription tokens to untrusted online conversion sites.
4. If you can’t get online after importing, troubleshoot in this order
First disconnect any other VPNs, proxy tools, or accelerators to avoid conflicts. Then check that the selected configuration is enabled and that system VPN permissions, the system proxy, or TUN mode are enabled as instructed by the client. Check the logs for timeouts, authentication failures, and configuration errors to troubleshoot node availability, credentials, and format respectively.
Next, check DNS. If the logs report a domain resolution failure, first verify the DNS settings against the configuration provider’s instructions. Avoid changing several settings at random at the same time. Your browser’s secure DNS setting or proxy extensions may also affect the results, so try temporarily disabling the relevant extensions or testing in another browser.
Finally, use a trusted IP lookup page to check whether your public IP has changed, then test the target webpage. A changed IP doesn’t mean DNS, routing rules, and your browser environment are all working properly. If only certain websites have issues, also check your cookies, login status, and any site restrictions. Don’t conclude that the node is down based on just one page.