Hunter's free Email Deliverability Checker tells you whether a sending domain is set up to reach the inbox, before you send anything from it. You enter a domain, and Hunter checks its SPF, DKIM, DMARC and MX records, how old it is, and whether it has a working website. Use it when you're setting up a new sending domain, after changing DNS, or when you're working out why your emails aren't landing.
What the Email Deliverability Checker does
The checker reads your domain's public DNS and reports what passes and what needs fixing. No email is sent and none is received — it's a check on the domain's configuration, not on a message.
It's free, with no limit on how many domains you check or how often. You don't need a Hunter account, though creating a free one lets you monitor your sending domains and get alerted when their health changes.
Run a check
Go to the Email Deliverability Checker.
Enter the domain you send from — just the domain (
example.com), not a full email address.Click "Check domain" and wait a few seconds for the report.
👉 Check the domain you actually send from. If you use a dedicated cold email domain, check that one rather than your main company domain — they have separate DNS and separate reputations.
Reading your report
Your report opens with a score out of 100 and a short verdict. A domain with everything in place scores 100 and reads "Everything looks good"; a domain with one minor problem might score 85 and read "In good shape". The gauge is colour-coded, so you can tell at a glance whether anything needs attention.
Underneath, the report has two parts:
“Issues” — one row for each check that didn't pass. Each row names the domain and the problem, explains in a sentence why it matters, carries a severity, and links straight to the fix.
“Details” — every check that ran, grouped into Authentication checks and Reputation checks, with a passed and failed count per group. Open a group to see the individual checks.
💡 A clean report means the domain is configured correctly. It isn't a guarantee of inbox placement — a brand-new domain can pass every check and still land in spam, because placement also depends on sender reputation built up over time.
What the checker looks at
Authentication checks
SPF — that a single valid SPF record is published, that its format and mechanism count are within limits, and that it ends with an enforcing policy (
-allor~all).DKIM — that a DKIM record is published, with a valid version, a valid tag format, and a public key present.
DMARC — that a single valid DMARC record is published, with a valid policy tag and policy enforcement.
MX records — that MX records are published and valid, so your domain can receive replies.
Reputation checks
Domain age — older domains are trusted more by inbox providers; new ones face stricter filtering.
Website check — that DNS is configured, HTTPS is enabled, and a website or redirect is in place. A sending domain with no working site looks suspicious to inbox providers.
What it doesn't cover
Blocklists. The report doesn't check them, but it links to Spamhaus so you can look your domain up directly.
Your email content. Wording, formatting and links aren't analysed, because no message is involved.
What happens to a real email. Records can look correct in DNS and still fail on a delivered message.
Fixing what the report finds
Each issue links to the matching section of Fix issues detected by Hunter (Domain Health Check), which explains what the warning means and what to change. Depending on what the report flags:
No SPF or DMARC record published yet — Generate your SPF and DMARC records with Hunter's free tools
Not sure where each record goes in DNS — Add SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records for a custom SMTP/IMAP sending domain
Records published but still flagged — Verify SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records (and fix common DNS mistakes)
A new domain or mailbox with little sending history — How to warm up an email account before sending cold emails
👉 DNS changes take time to propagate — often minutes, sometimes up to 24–48 hours. Re-run the check after that before assuming a fix didn't work.
Deliverability Checker or Email Spam Checker?
The two tools produce similar-looking reports and answer different questions.
The Email Deliverability Checker checks a domain. It reads DNS, takes a few seconds, and needs nothing from you but the domain name. Use it when you set up a sending domain, and any time DNS changes.
The Email Spam Checker checks a message. You send a real email to a private test address, and it scores how that delivered email performed — including content and sending reputation, which DNS alone can't show. Use it before launching a campaign.
In practice, use them in that order: get the domain clean with the Deliverability Checker, then confirm on a real email with the Spam Checker. See Check your emails for spam issues with Hunter's Email Spam Checker.