The MAIL FROM subdomain in Email Center: your own return path and SPF aligned for DMARC

E-mail·· 25 views· 3 min read

The short answer: MAIL FROM is the return path, where bounces go. By default it is ours. If you set a subdomain of yours, such as bounce.yourcompany.com, SPF aligns with your domain and DMARC gets stronger. It is optional: the domain is verified and sends fine without it.

Two senders in one e-mail

Every e-mail has two sender addresses: the one the customer sees in the From field, and the return path, which only servers read. SPF checks the return path; DMARC wants that address on the same domain as From. With our return path, DMARC passes through DKIM. With a return path on your own subdomain, it passes through DKIM and SPF.

No MAIL FROM of your own Your own MAIL FROM
Return path Ours A subdomain of yours, like bounce.yourcompany.com
DMARC passes through DKIM DKIM and SPF
Extra records None One MX and one TXT on the subdomain

How to set it

1 Pick a subdomain you use for nothing else, such as bounce. Do not use the main domain: the subdomain MX is only for bounces and must not touch your company mail.
2 Save it on the domain in Email Center, or with PUT /v1/email/domains/{domain}/mail-from and the body {"subdomain": "bounce"}.
3 Publish the two new records that appear in dns_records: one MX and one TXT, on the subdomain.
4 To go back to our return path, save an empty value.
Leave the MX of your main domain alone. The new MX record goes on the subdomain only. Put it on the main domain and the mail for your mailboxes stops arriving.
Want to know whether SPF aligns yet? Send an e-mail to one of your own mailboxes, open the original and look at the SPF and DMARC results. How to do it is in reading an e-mail header.

Want help setting MAIL FROM without touching your company mail? Get in touch.

Open a support ticket

SEE ALSO

Adding a sender domain to Email Center: the DKIM, SPF and DMARC records to publish

Sender domain not verified in Email Center: propagation, the found field and usual mistakes

Creating your DMARC record, and reading what it sends back

Reading an e-mail header: did SPF, DKIM and DMARC pass?

SPF, DKIM and DMARC: why your e-mail lands in spam

Someone is sending e-mail in the name of your domain: what SPF, DKIM and DMARC do about it

RECOMMENDED PRODUCT

Professional e-mail on your domain

Mailboxes in your company name, no adverts, with spam filtering. from £5.28/mo (3-year plan, with coupon)

See plans
Was this answer helpful? Your answer helps us improve this article.

Related Articles

E-mail 2,782 How to access your webmail You don't need to install anything to check your e-mail - the webmail works straight from your browser, on any device. A...
E-mail 2,518 How to set up your e-mail on Android Set your e-mail up once on Android and it keeps syncing in the background, on Wi-Fi or mobile data. Setting it up 1 Open...
E-mail 2,058 How to set up your e-mail on iPhone or iPad The Mail app on iPhone and iPad can hold your professional e-mail alongside any personal accounts, each syncing independ...
E-mail 2,419 How to set up your e-mail in Thunderbird Thunderbird can detect this server's settings automatically - you only need to type your name, e-mail and password. Auto...
E-mail 1,580 How to set up your e-mail in the new Outlook for Windows The new Outlook for Windows tries to configure itself automatically. If it can't, it falls back to the same manual setti...
E-mail 65 Sending a transactional e-mail through the API: the fields of POST /v1/email/messages The short answer: an e-mail is a POST /v1/email/messages request with a sender on a verified domain, the recipients, the...