Why are my business emails going to spam?
Most often your domain is missing, or has broken, the records that prove mail really comes from you: SPF, DKIM and DMARC. Other causes are a website form sending as your address, a shared server with a poor reputation, or messages that look like bulk mail. Fix the records first, then test with Gmail and Outlook.
Download the email deliverability checklist (PDF)6 pages, 384 KB, free to print. What's inside
The short version
- This page is about mail you send landing in other people’s spam. If good mail is landing in your own junk folder, see why good emails land in my junk folder.
- Check that your domain has SPF, DKIM and DMARC, and that they include every service that sends for you.
- Send website form mail through a proper email service, not straight from the web server.
- Test by sending to a Gmail and an Outlook.com address you control.
Why do my emails end up in spam?
Inbox providers like Gmail and Outlook decide in a split second whether a message is trustworthy. When customers say “your quote went to my junk folder,” it is usually one of these:
- Missing or incomplete authentication. SPF, DKIM and DMARC are short records on your domain that tell receivers which servers may send your mail. Without them, your messages look like they could be forged. Read what SPF, DKIM and DMARC are.
- A sender you forgot. Your newsletter tool, invoicing app or booking system sends “from” your domain but isn’t listed in your SPF record or signing with DKIM.
- Website forms pretending to be you. A contact form that sends from your address through the web server often fails these checks.
- A shared server with a bad reputation. On some cheap hosting, other people’s spam affects everyone on the same server.
- The message itself. Link shorteners, a single large image with little text, or all-caps subject lines can trip filters.
Why does it matter?
Quotes, invoices and replies that land in spam look like silence to your customer. Gmail’s sender guidelines now require every sender to use SPF or DKIM. Anyone sending more than 5,000 messages a day to Gmail also needs both, plus DMARC. Yahoo’s sender requirements say the same. Small senders who skip these records are more likely to be filtered.
What are the common mistakes?
- Two SPF records. A domain should have one SPF record. Adding a second one for a new service, rather than editing the first, breaks it.
- Setting DMARC to reject too soon. If a service you rely on isn’t set up yet, its mail gets blocked. Start with a monitoring policy and tighten it later.
- Changing email providers and leaving old records behind. Old SPF entries and DKIM keys cause confusion. See how to change DNS without breaking email.
- Asking customers to “just check spam” instead of fixing the cause.
What if it’s still going to spam?
If the records pass and mail still lands in spam, look at bounces too. See why messages bounce or won’t send. Then check whether only one recipient is affected; their own filters or company firewall may be the issue. Ask a few regular customers to mark your mail “not spam” while things settle. If form messages are the problem, see why form emails go to spam or go missing.
How much does it cost, and how long does it take?
The records themselves are free; they live in your domain’s DNS. Adding them takes minutes once you know every service that sends for you. Changes can take a few hours to be seen everywhere, and improvement in inbox placement follows as receivers see passing mail.
How does E-3 handle this?
Business email is one of our services. Ask a person if your mail is landing in spam, and include your domain name. You can try our free email deliverability checker first; it reads your public records and explains them in plain English.
Related questions
Rather talk it through?
Call our team, or send a note and we’ll reply within one business day. No pressure and no jargon.