Why are my emails going to the spam folder?

Emails often land in spam due to poor sender reputation or failing authentication checks. The most common reasons are missing or misconfigured SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records. This tool is designed to help you find and fix those exact issues.

How can I improve my email health and deliverability score?

To improve your email health score, ensure that your MX, SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are correctly configured. Also, check that your mail server IPs are not on any major blacklists and have valid PTR records. Address any warnings or errors identified in the health check report.

What is an MX record and why is it important?

MX (Mail Exchange) records are DNS records that specify the mail servers responsible for accepting email messages on behalf of a domain. They are the first thing to check if you have email delivery problems. They are essential for email delivery.

What is SPF and why is it important?

SPF (Sender Policy Framework) is an email authentication method that helps prevent email spoofing. It allows domain owners to specify which mail servers are authorized to send email on their behalf. A correctly configured SPF record improves email deliverability and protects your domain's reputation.

DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) is another email authentication method that uses cryptographic signatures to verify that an email message was sent from an authorized server and that its content has not been tampered with during transit.

DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance) is an email authentication, policy, and reporting protocol. It builds on SPF and DKIM to help protect against email spoofing and phishing. DMARC allows domain owners to specify how mail receivers should handle unauthenticated messages and provides reports on email activity.

What is the difference between SPF, DKIM, and DMARC?

They are three essential email authentication methods. SPF (Sender Policy Framework) specifies which IP addresses are allowed to send email for your domain. DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) adds a digital signature to verify the email's integrity. DMARC tells receiving servers what to do if an email fails SPF or DKIM checks, and provides reporting.

How do I know if my mail server IP is on a blacklist?

Our tool automatically checks your mail server IPs against several major DNS blacklists (DNSBLs). If your IP is listed, it will be flagged in the 'Blacklists' tab of the report. Being on a blacklist is a primary cause of email delivery failure.

What is a Reverse DNS (PTR) record and why does it matter for email?

A Reverse DNS (or PTR) record maps your mail server's IP address back to its hostname. Many receiving email servers perform this check as an anti-spam measure. A missing or mismatched PTR record can cause your emails to be rejected or marked as spam.

What does 'SMTP Connection Check Disabled' mean?

This means that while we can identify your SMTP servers from your MX records, we are not currently performing live connection tests to these servers (e.g., checking for TLS support). This information is provided for completeness but does not affect your current health score.

Email Health & Deliverability Checker

Are your emails landing in the spam folder? Instantly analyze your domain's SPF, DKIM, DMARC, and blacklist status to fix deliverability issues.

Check Your Email Domain's Health

Enter a domain or email address to perform a detailed analysis of its email setup, Spam score and Deliverability.

Domain or Email Address

Results are based on current DNS records and server responses. Propagation times may affect accuracy.

Why Your Email Health Matters

A strong email health score is crucial for ensuring your messages reach the inbox, protecting your brand from impersonation, and maintaining a trustworthy reputation with your audience.

Improve Email Deliverability

Properly configured SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are the single most important factor in preventing your emails from being marked as spam.

Prevent Spoofing & Phishing

Email authentication protects your domain from being used by attackers for phishing scams, safeguarding your customers and brand.

Protect Your Domain Reputation

A clean IP (not blacklisted) and valid records build a positive sending reputation, ensuring mail providers trust your messages.

Understanding Your Email Health Score

Your Email Health Score provides a quick overview of your domain's email setup. It's calculated based on several critical factors:

MX Records: Correctly configured Mail Exchange records are essential for receiving emails.

SMTP Server Status: Your mail servers must be reachable and respond correctly.

TLS Encryption: Secure Sockets Layer (TLS) encrypts email communication, protecting it from eavesdropping.

SPF (Sender Policy Framework): An SPF record prevents spammers from sending messages with forged "From" addresses at your domain.

DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance): DMARC uses SPF and DKIM to determine the authenticity of an email message and provides instructions on how to handle suspicious emails.

DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail): DKIM adds a digital signature to outgoing messages, allowing receiving servers to verify that the message was sent from an authorized server.

Reverse DNS (PTR Records): Properly configured Reverse DNS helps verify that an IP address legitimately belongs to a sending domain, reducing the chances of emails being marked as spam.

Blacklist Status: Checks if your mail server IPs are listed on common DNS-based blacklists (DNSBLs), which can severely impact deliverability.

A higher score indicates a better and more secure email configuration, leading to improved deliverability and trustworthiness.

Practical Tips to Improve Email Health

Want to boost your email deliverability and security? Not receiving or sending emails? Are your email going into spam? Here are actionable steps you can take today:

Set Up SPF, DKIM & DMARC:

Ensure your domain has valid SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records. Use strict policies for DMARC to prevent spoofing.

Monitor Blacklists:

Check if your email IPs are blacklisted using our IP Blacklist Tool, and request removal if found.

Secure Your Mail Servers:

Enable TLS encryption and keep your mail server software up to date.

Authenticate Outbound Emails:

Only allow authenticated users to send emails through your server.

Review Email Content:

Avoid spammy language, excessive links, and attachments. Personalize your emails for better engagement.

Consistently applying these tips will help you maintain a healthy sender reputation and maximize inbox placement.

Trust, Quality & Data Transparency

Expertise & Experience

Hands‑on remediation of SPF / DKIM / DMARC misconfigurations & delivery failures informs the checks presented. We designed the Email Health / Validator features around realistic operational workflows.

Data Sources

Live DNS lookups (MX, SPF, DKIM selectors, DMARC, PTR), SMTP handshake tests (banner, STARTTLS), blacklist sampling and syntax validation.

Update Cadence & Quality

Standards / RFC nuance updates (SPF macro, DMARC policy evolution) integrated promptly; library upgrades monitored. The rating component reflects genuine user feedback (one rating per browser client ID) and is filtered for abuse.

Privacy & Ethics

Domains and mail hostnames tested are ephemeral; SMTP test logs trimmed to non‑identifying status metrics. See our Privacy Policy for details. No personal account is required.

Accountability

Questions or accuracy concerns? Reach out via the Contact page or learn more About Us. We iterate quickly based on feedback.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Continue Your Investigation

Based on your current task, you might find these tools useful for your next step.

DNS Lookup

Check DNS records for any domain.

IP Blacklist Check

See if an IP is on spam blacklists.

WHOIS Lookup

Find domain registration information.

Boost Your Email Deliverability & Security

Use our Email Health Checker to identify and fix issues, ensuring your emails land in the inbox, not the spam folder.

Secure your email communication today.