Summary
Experts, marketers, and technical documentation across the email ecosystem largely agree that sending email from a domain without a valid MX record is a bad practice. While technically feasible in some cases, it negatively impacts deliverability, sender reputation, and the ability to manage role-based email addresses. Many ISPs and spam filters use the absence of an MX record as a spam indicator, potentially leading to emails being blocked or downgraded. The lack of MX records can also make the sender appear incompetent or malicious. It’s also important to note that while the official documentation concentrates on using MX records for receiving email, the message is clear that any well-configured domain should have them.
Key findings
- Deliverability Issues: The absence of MX records can lead to significant deliverability problems, as many mail servers use them as a trust signal.
- Damaged Sender Reputation: Sending from a domain without MX records damages the sender's reputation and can make emails look suspicious, incompetent, or even malicious.
- Role-Based Email Management: Managing role-based email addresses (e.g., abuse@, postmaster@) becomes challenging without proper MX record configuration.
- Technical Non-Compliance: While technically permissible in some cases, sending without MX records goes against established internet standards and best practices.
Key considerations
- ESP Policies: ESPs should consider implementing policies that require valid MX records for sending domains to ensure good email practices.
- Best Practices: Adhering to industry best practices, including proper DNS configuration with MX records, is crucial for maintaining a healthy email ecosystem.
- Long-Term Impact: Even if immediate negative impacts are not apparent, the absence of MX records can lead to long-term deliverability issues and reputational damage.
- Alternative Solutions: Even for sending-only domains, consider implementing MX records, even a simple record, to improve perceived domain validity and legitimacy.
What email marketers say
9 marketer opinions
While technically possible, sending email from a domain without a valid MX record is generally considered a bad practice by email marketers and deliverability experts. It can negatively impact email deliverability, sender reputation, and the ability to manage role-based email addresses. Many ISPs and spam filters use the absence of an MX record as a spam indicator. Although some senders may not have experienced immediate negative impacts, it's still not recommended due to potential long-term deliverability issues.
Key opinions
- Deliverability Impact: Absence of MX records can lead to deliverability issues, as many ISPs use this as a spam indicator.
- Reputation Damage: Sending from a domain without MX records can damage sender reputation and make emails look suspicious.
- Role Address Management: It's difficult to manage role addresses (e.g., abuse@, postmaster@) without properly configured MX records.
- Bounce Processing: Without MX records, processing bounce messages becomes ineffective.
Key considerations
- Technical Possibility vs. Best Practice: While technically possible to send without MX, it's a widely discouraged practice.
- Potential for Future Issues: Even without immediate negative impact, sending without MX records increases the risk of future deliverability problems.
- Alternative Solutions: Consider setting up MX records, even if only for handling role-based addresses or bounce processing.
- ESP Recommendations: Many ESPs strongly recommend against sending from domains without MX records.
Marketer view
Email marketer from Reddit explains that sending email without MX records is generally a bad idea. It can negatively impact deliverability as many email providers use MX records as a trust signal.
10 Nov 2023 - Reddit
Marketer view
Marketer from Email Geeks shares they don't recommend sending from a 5322 domain that doesn't have MX, but have customers who do. He is sure it's not ideal, but haven't seen any outsized negative impact.
21 May 2025 - Email Geeks
What the experts say
4 expert opinions
Experts across various platforms agree that sending email from a domain without a valid MX record is a detrimental practice. It can result in deliverability issues, damage to the sender's reputation, and can be perceived as incompetent or malicious. The absence of MX records is seen as a failure in email authentication and can lead to emails being blocked or downgraded. Experts also emphasize the role of ESPs in enforcing stricter policies regarding MX records to promote good email practices.
Key opinions
- Negative Impact on Deliverability: Sending email without a valid MX record can lead to deliverability issues.
- Reputation Damage: Lacking MX records can damage the sender's reputation and make the sender appear incompetent or malicious.
- Authentication Failure: Absence of MX records hinders email authentication, impacting domain reputation.
- Blocking and Downgrading: Emails from domains without MX records may be blocked or downgraded by receiving mail servers.
Key considerations
- Strict ESP Policies: ESPs should enforce stricter policies requiring valid MX records for sending domains.
- Industry Best Practices: Adhering to email industry best practices includes having valid MX records for sending domains.
- Sender Perception: Consider how the absence of MX records may affect the perception of your organization by recipients and mail servers.
- Proactive Measures: Take proactive measures to ensure valid MX records are in place to avoid deliverability issues.
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks states the only reason folks will stop doing bad things is that their spam doesn’t get through and ESPs just don’t do enough to make their customers actually be good netizens. “We don’t allow you to send mail without a valid MX for both the 5321 and the 5322 from address” is a perfectly valid policy for an ESP to have.
15 Jan 2022 - Email Geeks
Expert view
Expert from Spam Resource explains that sending email from a domain without a valid MX record is a bad practice. They highlight that this practice can lead to deliverability issues and damage the sender's reputation, as many mail servers use MX records as a trust signal.
17 Nov 2024 - Spam Resource
What the documentation says
3 technical articles
Technical documentation from RFC Editor, Google, and Microsoft indicates that while technically a domain *could* function without explicit MX records, it is strongly discouraged. RFC 5321 states the domain is treated *as if* it had an MX record pointing to itself, but it's not recommended. Both Google and Microsoft explicitly state that MX records are *required* for *receiving* email; without them, mail will not be delivered to the domain. The emphasis on MX records for receiving email underscores the understanding and expectation that valid domains should have them, which indirectly suggests it's bad practice to omit them even if only sending email.
Key findings
- MX Records for Receiving: MX records are essential for receiving email at a domain.
- RFC Recommendation: RFC 5321 advises against operating without MX records, even if technically possible.
- Implicit Expectation: The need for MX records for receiving implies they are a fundamental component of a properly configured domain.
Key considerations
- Receiving vs Sending: Although documentation focuses on *receiving* email, the absence of MX records could have negative consequences for sending reputation and deliverability.
- Standards Adherence: Adhering to internet standards, including proper DNS configuration with MX records, is crucial for email ecosystem health.
- Domain Validity: The absence of MX records may raise questions about the validity and legitimacy of a domain.
Technical article
Documentation from Google explains that MX records are required for receiving emails. Without MX records, others can't send emails to your domain. While technically related to *receiving* email, this highlights the expectation that a valid email domain *should* have MX records.
12 Feb 2022 - Google
Technical article
Documentation from RFC Editor explains that if a domain has no MX records, the address is resolved as if it had an MX record pointing to that host with a preference of 0, but this is not recommended and real hosts should have MX records.
27 Aug 2021 - RFC Editor
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