Set Up Email Domain Authentication

To help your emails reach your recipients' inboxes, set up email authentication for your custom domain. Authenticating the domain you use to send email can help you maintain and grow an engaged audience, and make sure your emails reach the inbox.

In this article, you'll learn how to set up email authentication on your domain.

Before you start

Here are some things to know before you begin.

• This process is strongly recommended for Mailchimp users with domains registered and managed outside of Mailchimp.
• Before you authenticate, you'll need to verify your domain so we can be sure you have permission to send email from it. Make sure you have your domain login credentials to complete authentication.
• Authentication can only be added to domains you or your business own and control. Public email services like Gmail and Yahoo can't be authenticated through Mailchimp. Learn more about the limitations of free email addresses.

Beginning February 2024, Gmail and Yahoo will require a custom authentication and a published Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance (DMARC) record for anyone sending more than 5,000 emails to Gmail or Yahoo addresses in a 24-hour period. To prevent your emails from bouncing, we strongly recommend authenticating your email domain and configuring DMARC.

Also, if you use a free email service like Gmail or Yahoo for your From email address, we strongly recommend you switch to an email address from a private domain, like the one you use for work or for your website.

How it works

Email hosting services like Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail and many others want to make sure that emails sent to their users are legitimate. There are security processes and protocols they use to help filter malicious users and spam. To learn more about domain authentication, check out our guide.

About Email Domain Authentication

To authenticate your domain, you can use Entri to automatically update domain records after you provide your domain login. Alternatively, you can copy and paste information from Mailchimp into your domain's records. We recommend that you work with 2 browser windows or tabs to easily move between the Mailchimp website and your domain's records. We'll guide you step by step through the process of finding and adding a CNAME record based on your provider.

Copy and paste authentication information

After your email domain is verified, you'll copy some important pieces of information from your Mailchimp account into your domain's CNAME records.

Depending on your domain provider or management software, the steps and information you need to create your records may vary. We'll provide you with customized instructions based on the service you use. If your service isn't listed, you can choose a generic set of steps to guide you.

To find the instructions and authentication information for your domain, follow these steps.

1. Click your profile icon and choose Account.
2. Click Domains.
3. Click Start Authentication next to the verified email domain you want to work with.
   
   Follow these steps to authenticate your domain.
4. Choose your domain provider from the dropdown and click Next. If your service or software is not listed, choose Other.
5. In a separate browser window or tab, navigate to your domain provider's website and find your domain's records. Depending on your service, we'll provide guidance on where to find them. After you find your domain's records, navigate back to Mailchimp and click Next.
6. Follow the instructions for creating new CNAME records. Copy the values for your new records and paste them into the appropriate fields for your domain. These values will be customized for your domain and the service you are using.
   
   After you've created the records in your domain provider, navigate back to Mailchimp and click Next.
7. Follow the instructions for creating a new DMARC record. Your DMARC reports will be sent to your email address. We recommend you use a third party, or a dedicated email, to receive your DMARC reports.
   
   To send your DMARC report to a different email, include rua=mailto:xxxxx in the TXT Value, and add your email address.
   
   Once your domain, such as business.com has a valid DMARC record, then any of your subdomains like subdomain.business.com will also be covered by that DMARC record. To apply a unique DMARC record to one or more subdomains, add sp=none, sp=quarantine, or sp=reject in the TXT Value.
8. Click Next.

That's all you'll need to do. Wait for Mailchimp to confirm the information. It can take up to 48 hours for some domains to update. Great work!

Confirm Authentication

Your email domain will be authenticated as soon as Mailchimp can confirm your records are updated and correct. We'll email you when the authentication process is complete, or if there are any issues we encounter with completing the process.

When authentication is successful, you'll see the Authenticated label next to the domain on the Domains page in your account.

If authentication isn't successful, you'll see a message on the Domains Overview page in the Email Domains section that will provide guidance on what needs to be updated or changed to successfully complete this process.

Mailchimp logs and stores your authentication when you set it up. If you make changes to CNAME records later, it could interfere with the information we have on file.

If you make changes to your domain's CNAME records, disable authentication on the Domains page, and re-authenticate after your domain record changes are complete.

Edit DNS Records with Common Domain Providers

Here are some instructions for editing DNS records with popular domain providers. If your service isn't listed here, log in to your provider's site and search their help documents, or contact their customer support team.

Amazon Web Services: Configuring DNS, Resource Record Types

Bluehost Bluerock: Manage DNS Records

Bluehost Legacy: DNS Management

Dreamhost: DNS Overview

GoDaddy: Add a CNAME Record

Google Domains: DNS Basics

Hostgator: Manage DNS records

Hover: Edit DNS Record

IONOS: Configuring CNAME Records

Namecheap: SPF & DKIM

Squarespace: Advanced DNS Settings

Stablehost: How do I get to cpanel?

Wordpress: Adding Custom DNS Records

Siteground: Create CNAME Records

Wix: Adding or updating CNAME Records

Troubleshooting

• My CNAME Record isn’t updating when I create the domain key.
  Depending on the domain host you’re using, you may only need to type in part of a domain key. For example, if you enter “k2._domainkey.example.com” and “k2._domainkey.example.com.example.com” is created, update your CNAME record to only include “k2._domainkey”.

• My records are all correct, but my domain won’t authenticate in Mailchimp.
  If you've entered all records correctly and your authentication isn't working right away, there typically isn't a cause for concern. You may need to wait a bit longer (up to 48 hours) since it can take awhile for servers to recognize your changes.

If you still experience problems, reach out to your domain provider's help site for tips on troubleshooting DNS records in their service.