# Why Gmail sends you to spam: the three records (/docs/engage/mailboxes/why-emails-go-to-spam)

An email with clean words, no attachments and no odd links can still land in spam. Gmail judges more than the text: **who sent it** (the domain and its reputation), **which server it came from**, **the proof it carries** (three DNS records) and **what people did with your last emails**. A brand-new domain has no history yet, so the proof records matter most there.

## The three records [#the-three-records]

All three are TXT records in your domain's DNS. Receivers like Gmail and Outlook read them before deciding where your email goes.

| Record | What it says | Without it |
|---|---|---|
| **SPF** | The list of servers allowed to send email for your domain. | Anyone could send as you, so receivers trust nobody. |
| **DKIM** | A signature on every email that proves nothing was changed on the way. | Gmail cannot prove the email is really yours. |
| **DMARC** | What to do when SPF or DKIM fails (deliver, send to spam, or reject), and where to send reports. | Gmail and Yahoo now require it for bulk senders; missing it is a strong spam signal. |

## The records we set up for you [#the-records-we-set-up-for-you]

When you buy a domain in **Integrations → Domains** (or bring your own and point its nameservers at us), we publish all three for you, plus the MX record that receives replies. For a domain called yourdomain.example they look like this:

| Type | Name | Value |
|---|---|---|
| TXT (SPF) | `yourdomain.example` | `v=spf1 a mx ip4:<your sending IP> -all` |
| TXT (DKIM) | `<selector>._domainkey.yourdomain.example` | `v=DKIM1; k=rsa; p=<public key>` |
| TXT (DMARC) | `_dmarc.yourdomain.example` | `v=DMARC1; p=quarantine; sp=quarantine; rua=mailto:<report address>; adkim=r; aspf=r; pct=100;` |
| MX | `yourdomain.example` | `mail.yourdomain.example` |

- **SPF** allows only your domain's own sending server (`-all` = reject everything else).
- **DKIM** uses a key made for your domain alone; the selector is shown in the DKIM pill's tooltip after a check.
- **DMARC** starts at `quarantine`: an email that fails the checks goes to spam instead of the inbox. That protects your domain from people faking it.

Nothing to do on your side: the **Deliverability** column shows *Getting prepared* for the first hours, then four green pills. We re-check these records every day.

**Your own mailbox (Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, Zoho…) on your own domain?** Then your email provider gives you the records: add its SPF include, publish its DKIM key and add one DMARC record, all at your DNS provider. Keep **one** SPF record only (two SPF records make SPF fail) and **one** DMARC record. Then run ⋮ → **Check DNS Records** again ([Deliverability check](/docs/engage/mailboxes/deliverability)).

## The 5-second check [#the-5-second-check]

Send an email from your mailbox to a Gmail address and open it.

- **Your photo or initial** next to the sender: Gmail could confirm it was you.
- **A grey question mark** or "via another-domain": Gmail could not match the email to your domain. A record is missing or does not match.

To see the details: ⋮ (in the open email) → **Show original**. The top shows **SPF**, **DKIM** and **DMARC** with *PASS* or *FAIL* for each.

## Watch your spam rate in Google Postmaster Tools [#watch-your-spam-rate-in-google-postmaster-tools]

Google keeps score of every sending domain. **For domains bought from us we already watch this every day** (Gmail's spam rate and delivery errors per domain) and act when a domain slips, so there is nothing to set up. For a domain whose DNS you manage yourself, Google's free dashboard shows the same numbers:

1. Go to **postmaster.google.com** and sign in with any Google account.
2. Click **+**, type your sending domain (yourdomain.example) and copy the TXT record Google shows.
3. Add that TXT record at your DNS provider.
4. Back in Postmaster Tools click **Verify**. Data appears once you send to enough Gmail users (usually a few hundred emails a day).

What to look at:

- **Spam rate:** the share of your emails Gmail users marked as spam. Keep it **under 0.1%**; Google's hard line is **0.3%**. Above it, more of your mail goes to spam.
- **Domain reputation:** *High* or *Medium* is fine; *Low* or *Bad* means stop and fix the list and the copy before sending more.
- **Authentication:** SPF, DKIM and DMARC should be close to 100%.

## Keep the reputation high [#keep-the-reputation-high]

- **Warm up new mailboxes** before the first campaign ([Warmup](/docs/engage/mailboxes/warmup)) and ramp slowly: about 30 emails a day per mailbox at most ([Outreach domains](/docs/engage/mailboxes/domains)).
- **Never send cold email from your main domain.** Use separate outreach domains so your company email never pays for it.
- **Send to verified addresses only** and keep bounces under 2%.
- **Make leaving easy.** A person who cannot unsubscribe clicks *Report spam*, and every report raises your spam rate.
- **Check the [red flags](/docs/engage/email-campaigns#the-red-flags-check)** on a campaign before you start it.

## Common questions [#common-questions]

**My records are all green. Why do my emails still go to spam?**
The records only prove who you are. Gmail also weighs your domain's history and how people react: a new domain, a sudden jump in volume, many bounces or spam reports all push mail to spam. Warm up, ramp slowly and check your spam rate in Postmaster Tools. Run ⋮ → **Run Deliverability Test** to see where a real email lands today.

**Does clicking "Not spam" help?**
Yes. Gmail learns from it, and future emails from that sender are more likely to reach the inbox. Ask a few colleagues to move your first emails out of spam; warmup does the same at scale.

**Should I change DMARC to `p=reject`?**
Not while the domain is new. `quarantine` already protects you from people faking your domain, and it never makes your own mail disappear without a trace if something is misconfigured.