My emails only go to spam at Gmail, or only at Outlook. Why?

Each provider runs the checks slightly differently and weighs reputation differently. Gmail is strict about DMARC alignment; Outlook is strict about SPF and about the reverse DNS of the sending server. A setting that is borderline can pass at one and fail at the other. The check above flags anything that either of them would reject.

Will fixing SPF, DKIM and DMARC guarantee the inbox?

No, and nobody honest will promise that. Correct settings are the part you control and the part receivers check first. Content, reputation and the recipient's own filters also matter, and no tool can see those from the outside. What correct settings do is stop you failing before the email is even read.

How long after fixing does it take to work?

DNS changes usually take effect within minutes and occasionally up to an hour. Reputation recovers more slowly: expect a week or two of normal sending before Gmail and Outlook fully trust a domain that had been failing.

GuideEmails going to spam

Why are my emails going to spam?

Most business email lands in spam for one of two reasons: the receiving service cannot confirm the email really came from your domain, or your domain has earned a poor reputation. The first is a settings problem you can fix in an afternoon. Gmail and Outlook check three public settings on your domain before trusting a message: a list of approved senders (SPF), a digital seal (DKIM) and instructions for fake email (DMARC). If any is missing or wrong, invoices, quotes and replies go to spam no matter how good the email is. Check your domain below to see which it is.

See it on your own domainFull domain health check

Start with the part you can see and fix today

Run the check above. It reads the three settings receivers look at and tells you, in plain English, whether each is present and correct. If something is marked "Fix first", that is almost certainly your answer: every email you send fails a check the receiver runs before it even looks at the content. The fix is a small change in your domain's DNS settings, and the result walks you through it for your domain host with the values to copy.

The rules changed, and older setups broke

Since 2024 Google and Yahoo, and since May 2025 Microsoft, reject or filter mail from domains without proper authentication, and the enforcement has tightened each year. A domain set up in 2019 that never had DKIM or DMARC worked for years and then quietly stopped. Around four in five domains still publish no DMARC record. If your email started going to spam without you changing anything, this is the most common cause.

When the settings are fine and mail still goes to spam

Then the cause is reputation or content, which no DNS check can see. The usual suspects: a marketing tool or CRM sending on your behalf that you have not authenticated (it fails the checks even though your own mailbox passes); a sudden jump in volume; many recipients marking you as spam; buying a list; links to a domain that is on a blocklist. Google Postmaster Tools shows Gmail's view of your reputation for free. Your sending tool's own reports show complaint rates. Fix the settings first anyway: a domain with broken authentication cannot build a good reputation.

The order that works

One: fix anything the check marks "Fix first". Two: make sure every service that sends email as your domain (your mailbox, your invoicing tool, your newsletter tool, your website's contact form) is on your approved-sender list and signs with your digital seal. Three: publish DMARC in monitoring mode so nothing legitimate is blocked while you find any sender you missed. Four: check again in a week; settings can break when a tool is added. Paid plans do step four for you and email you when something changes.

Common questions

My emails only go to spam at Gmail, or only at Outlook. Why?: Each provider runs the checks slightly differently and weighs reputation differently. Gmail is strict about DMARC alignment; Outlook is strict about SPF and about the reverse DNS of the sending server. A setting that is borderline can pass at one and fail at the other. The check above flags anything that either of them would reject.
Will fixing SPF, DKIM and DMARC guarantee the inbox?: No, and nobody honest will promise that. Correct settings are the part you control and the part receivers check first. Content, reputation and the recipient's own filters also matter, and no tool can see those from the outside. What correct settings do is stop you failing before the email is even read.
How long after fixing does it take to work?: DNS changes usually take effect within minutes and occasionally up to an hour. Reputation recovers more slowly: expect a week or two of normal sending before Gmail and Outlook fully trust a domain that had been failing.