Email Deliverability Checklist

If your emails are landing in spam or bouncing, the fix is usually one of a handful of well-known issues: missing authentication records, a shared IP with a bad reputation, or sending habits that trigger spam filters. Work through this checklist in order.

Set up SPF, DKIM and DMARC

• SPF is a TXT record listing which mail servers are allowed to send on behalf of your domain. cPanel adds a default SPF record automatically — if you also send via a third-party tool (e.g. a CRM or marketing platform), you must add its server to the same SPF record, not create a second one
• DKIM digitally signs your outgoing mail so receiving servers can verify it wasn't tampered with. cPanel generates and publishes this automatically when you create an email account — check under Email → Authentication that it shows "Valid"
• DMARC tells receiving servers what to do if SPF or DKIM fails, and where to send reports. Start with a monitoring-only policy: v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:[email protected] as a TXT record on _dmarc.yourdomain.com, then tighten to p=quarantine once you're confident nothing legitimate is failing

Sending habits that hurt deliverability

• Sending large bulk batches from a regular cPanel mailbox — use a proper mailing tool for newsletters, not your everyday inbox
• Sudden spikes in sending volume from a previously quiet mailbox — ramp up gradually to build sender reputation
• Subject lines with excessive punctuation, all caps, or spammy phrases ("FREE," "ACT NOW") still trip content filters
• High bounce rates from sending to old, unverified contact lists damage your domain and IP reputation over time

Test before you rely on it

Send a test email to a free tool like mail-tester.com and review the score — it checks SPF, DKIM, DMARC, blacklist status and content in one pass, and tells you exactly what's missing.