What is an SPF Record?

What it is

SPF stands for Sender Policy Framework. It is a TXT record in your DNS that lists who may send email using your domain. Receiving servers check it to help decide whether a message is genuine.

What one looks like

A record might read: v=spf1 include:spf.example.com ~all. The include part names an allowed sender, and ~all tells receivers to treat mail from anywhere else with suspicion.

Common mistakes

A domain should have only one SPF record, so if you add a new service, add it to the existing record rather than creating a second. SPF also has a limit of 10 DNS lookups, which a long list of services can go over.

Forgetting a service, such as a newsletter tool or your website, is another common reason genuine mail lands in spam.