# SPF, DKIM and DMARC

SPF, DKIM and DMARC are three DNS records that let the recipient check that email from your domain really comes from you, so it stays out of spam.

Source: https://ibenta.no/en/glossary/spf-dkim-dmarc
Publisher: Ibenta (https://ibenta.no)
Updated: 2026-09-27

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Anyone can put your domain in the sender field of an email. These three records let the recipient check whether it is genuine. They sit in [DNS](/en/glossary/dns) for your domain, and you do not notice them day to day.

## What the three do

SPF is a list of the servers allowed to send email for your domain. DKIM puts a digital signature on each email, which the recipient can verify. DMARC tells the recipient what to do if an email fails the checks, and where to send reports about it.

## Gmail and Yahoo require it

From February 2024, both Google and Yahoo tightened their requirements. [Google requires](https://support.google.com/a/answer/81126?hl=en) everyone who sends to Gmail addresses to have SPF or DKIM. If you send 5,000 emails or more a day, you need all three. [Yahoo has similar requirements](https://senders.yahooinc.com/best-practices/). If the setup is missing entirely, even ordinary replies to quotes can end up in spam. If you use a tool for [email marketing](/en/glossary/email-marketing), your domain usually has to be set up there too.

## Check it yourself in two minutes

Send an email from your work address to a Gmail address. Open it in Gmail in the browser, click the three dots next to Reply and choose "Show original". There you can see whether SPF, DKIM and DMARC say PASS. If anything says FAIL or is missing, send a screenshot to whoever runs your email or domain.