Send a test email, get instant results. The Email Testing tool lets you check your SPF, DKIM, and DMARC setup in real time — without waiting for daily reports.
🧪 How It Works
Send a test email
From the domain you want to test, send to your unique test address
We analyze it instantly
SPF, DKIM, DMARC, spam, and virus checks run automatically
View detailed results
See pass/fail verdicts and drill into raw headers
📬 Your Test Address
Each selector has a dedicated test email address:
your-selector@test.dmarccloud.com
Replace your-selector with the selector you chose when you registered. If you have multiple selectors, you can switch between them on the Email Tests page.
🔬 Testing Step by Step
Navigate to the Email Tests page from the main menu. You’ll see your test address with a copy button at the top.
Click the copy button to get your full test address (e.g., acmecorp@test.dmarccloud.com).
Open your regular email client (Gmail, Outlook, webmail — whatever you normally use) and send any email to the test address. The subject and body don’t matter — we’re checking the authentication headers, not the content.
Processing typically takes 5–15 seconds. Click the Refresh button to check for new results.
Each test shows color-coded badges for every check. Click any result row to see the full technical details.
🔍 What Gets Checked
Every test email is analyzed for five authentication and security checks:
Sender Policy Framework
Is the sending server authorised by your domain? SPF checks whether the server’s address is listed in your domain’s approved senders list. If you’re sending from a server that isn’t on the list, this will fail. Learn more about SPF →
DomainKeys Identified Mail
Was the email sealed with a digital signature by the sending domain, and is the seal intact? This confirms the email hasn’t been tampered with in transit. Learn more about DKIM →
Domain-based Message Authentication
Do SPF or DKIM pass and match the visible “From” address? DMARC needs at least one of SPF or DKIM to pass with a matching domain (called alignment). This is the check that ties everything together. Learn more about DMARC →
Content Analysis
Spam score based on email content and formatting. High scores may indicate spammy patterns.
Malware Scan
Automatic virus and malware scanning of the email content and attachments.
Each check returns one of three verdicts:
PASS
— Check succeeded
FAIL
— Check failed
GRAY
— Could not be determined
📋 Detailed Results
Click any test result row to open the detail view. This gives you the full technical breakdown that’s essential for troubleshooting verification issues:
Who the email was from, the return address, and the sending server’s IP address
The full SPF result showing which server was checked and whether it passed
All digital signatures on the email, showing which domain signed it and the method used
The complete verification results from the receiving server, showing pass/fail for each check
🎯 When to Use Email Testing
Just added your DMARC, SPF, or DKIM records? Send a test to verify everything is working before you wait for aggregate reports.
Getting DMARC failures in your reports? Send a test from the failing source to see exactly what’s going wrong — which check fails and why.
Adding a new marketing tool, CRM, or transactional email provider? Test it before going live to make sure it passes authentication for your domain.
Planning to move from p=none to p=quarantine or p=reject? Test every sending source first to avoid blocking legitimate email.
Changed your SPF record, rotated DKIM keys, or updated your DMARC policy? Test immediately to confirm the changes work as expected.
🔧 Troubleshooting Common Results
SPF Fails
The sending server’s IP address is not authorized in your domain’s SPF record.
How to fix:
- Check your SPF record: look up your domain’s TXT records for the
v=spf1entry - Add the sending server’s IP or the email provider’s SPF include (e.g.,
include:_spf.google.com) - Make sure you haven’t exceeded the 10 DNS lookup limit
DKIM Fails
The email wasn’t signed with DKIM, or the signature didn’t verify.
How to fix:
- Ensure DKIM signing is enabled in your email server or provider settings
- Verify the DKIM public key DNS record exists for the correct selector and domain
- Check the detail view for the DKIM-Signature header — it shows the signing domain and selector being used
DMARC Fails (but SPF or DKIM passes)
This is almost always an alignment issue. SPF or DKIM passed, but the authenticated domain doesn’t match the From: address.
How to fix:
- Check the detail view for the From address and the SPF/DKIM domains
- The SPF domain (Return-Path) or DKIM domain (d= tag) must match or be a subdomain of the From: domain
- Consider switching to relaxed alignment if you need subdomain flexibility
Test from every system that sends email on behalf of your domain — not just your primary email. That includes marketing platforms (Mailchimp, SendGrid), CRMs (HubSpot, Salesforce), ticketing systems (Zendesk, Freshdesk), and any automated notification emails.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
Test results are automatically cleaned up after 30 days. The page shows your 10 most recent tests.
Yes! Just send the test email from each domain you want to test. The results will show the sender address so you can see which domain each test was for.
Make sure you’re sending to the correct address (your-selector@test.dmarccloud.com — note the “test” subdomain). Wait 10–30 seconds and click Refresh. Check your sent folder to confirm the email was actually delivered.
Yes. Aggregate reports are summaries sent daily by email providers covering all mail from your domain. Email testing gives you instant, per-message results so you can verify specific senders immediately.
Use the dropdown on the Email Tests page to switch between selectors. Each selector has its own test address and results. The test address always uses the format selector@test.dmarccloud.com.
Ready to Test Your Email Authentication?
Create a free account and send your first test email in under 2 minutes.