Setting up email on a domain you own is mostly a DNS task. The confusing part is that several records solve different problems: receiving mail, proving domain ownership, authorizing senders, signing messages, and publishing an anti-spoofing policy.
This guide explains the five record groups used by Free Domain Mail, a lightweight browser-based mailbox service for freelancers, developers, solo founders, personal projects, and small teams with low email volume.
What you need before starting
You need:
- A domain that you own
- Access to its authoritative DNS provider
- A Free Domain Mail account
- A few minutes for DNS caches to refresh
You do not need to transfer your domain or operate your own mail server.
1. Verify domain ownership with TXT
The first TXT record proves that you control the domain. Its value is generated specifically for your setup.
Add the exact host and value shown in the setup screen. Do not remove unrelated TXT records already used for site verification or other services.
After publishing the record, run the verification check again. DNS propagation may be fast, but some providers and resolvers cache results longer.
2. Route incoming email with MX
An MX record tells other mail systems where messages for your domain should be delivered.
Before changing MX, review any existing records. Replacing the current MX records will change where new mail is delivered. If the domain already uses another email provider, plan the migration instead of editing records blindly.
The priority number matters when multiple MX records exist: a lower number normally has higher priority.
3. Authorize sending with SPF
SPF is a TXT policy that lists the services allowed to send mail for the domain.
A domain should normally publish one SPF record. If one already exists, merge the required authorization into the existing policy. Publishing two independent records beginning with v=spf1 can cause SPF evaluation errors.
SPF helps receiving systems detect unauthorized infrastructure, but it does not cryptographically sign the message.
4. Authenticate messages with DKIM
DKIM adds a cryptographic signature to outgoing messages. Receiving systems use DNS to obtain the public key and verify that the signed parts of the message were not altered.
Free Domain Mail displays the required DKIM CNAME records during setup. Copy each hostname and target exactly. Some DNS dashboards automatically append the domain name, so check the final public record if verification fails.
5. Publish a DMARC policy
DMARC connects SPF and DKIM results to the domain visible in the From address. It also tells receivers what to do when authentication fails.
A cautious starting policy is often:
v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc@example.com
Replace the reporting address with a mailbox you control. A monitoring policy does not directly reject mail. Move toward quarantine or reject only after reviewing legitimate sending sources and alignment.
Verify the public result
After saving all records, check what the public DNS actually returns—not only what the provider dashboard displays.
The free DNS Checker inspects MX, SPF, DMARC, A, AAAA, and nameserver records. You can also follow the complete five-step setup guide.
Common causes of failed verification include:
- Checking before caches have refreshed
- Adding the full domain twice in the hostname field
- Publishing multiple SPF records
- Leaving an old MX record active
- Copying whitespace or punctuation incorrectly
- Editing DNS at a provider that is not authoritative for the domain
What Free Domain Mail currently provides
Free Domain Mail is currently a free beta with a simple webmail interface. It stores received and sent messages and supports reading, composing, replying, manual forwarding, archiving, spam marking, and deletion.
Current free limits include up to three mailboxes per domain, five sent messages per domain per day, and ten received messages per domain per day. No credit card is required.
It is designed for low-volume personal and small-business use. It does not currently provide IMAP, SMTP/POP3 client access, aliases, catch-all addresses, shared mailboxes, automatic forwarding, mobile apps, attachments, or bulk sending. Sending availability is also subject to Amazon SES service restrictions.
These limits are intentional: the product focuses on guided DNS setup, a minimal browser inbox, and strong anti-abuse controls—not marketing campaigns or cold outreach.
Final checklist
Before creating your first mailbox, confirm that:
- Domain ownership TXT passes
- MX points to the intended inbound service
- Only one valid SPF policy is published
- Every DKIM CNAME resolves correctly
- DMARC exists at _dmarc.yourdomain.com
- Existing website A, AAAA, and CNAME records remain unchanged
Once all five record groups pass, the domain is ready for a custom-domain web mailbox.
Have you encountered a DNS-provider-specific issue while configuring email authentication? Share the provider and the symptom in the comments—without posting private tokens or account credentials.
