How do I get my emails whitelisted by a recipient's email admin?
Michael Ko
Co-founder & CEO, Suped
Published 17 Apr 2025
Updated 19 Aug 2025
8 min read
Getting your emails into a recipient's inbox is crucial for effective communication, especially for businesses. Sometimes, despite all your best efforts, emails still land in spam folders or are outright blocked. This is where whitelisting comes into play, a process that can significantly improve your email deliverability (or "allowlisting," as it's also known). However, navigating the process of getting a recipient's email administrator to whitelist your emails can be complex, particularly when dealing with organizations that have robust spam filters.
The challenge often lies in convincing an IT department to modify their mail flow rules to ensure your messages always get through. It's not as simple as just asking them to add an email address. Admins consider security, system performance, and the overall integrity of their email environment. Understanding their perspective and providing the right information is key to a successful whitelisting request.
Understanding administrator-level whitelisting
Whitelisting, or allowlisting, essentially tells an email system to always trust messages from a specific sender, bypassing many of the standard spam checks. There are two primary levels of whitelisting: individual user-level and administrator-level. User-level whitelisting is when an individual recipient adds your email address to their safe sender list or contacts. While helpful for that single user, it doesn't solve broader deliverability issues if the organization's email filters are still blocking your emails before they even reach the user's inbox.
Administrator-level whitelisting, on the other hand, involves the email admin configuring their mail server or security gateway to allow emails from your domain or IP addresses. This is a more powerful form of whitelisting as it affects all recipients within that organization. Admins are typically hesitant to whitelist IP addresses, especially shared ones, because it can open up security vulnerabilities. A shared IP address means many different senders use the same IP, and whitelisting it could allow malicious or unwanted emails from other senders on that shared IP to bypass their filters.
Instead, email administrators prefer to whitelist based on domain authentication. This means they'll configure their system to trust emails that are properly authenticated as coming from your domain, typically through SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records. This approach is more secure because it verifies the sender's legitimacy. If your emails are consistently going to spam, it might indicate issues with your sender reputation, even if you pass email authentication.
How to request whitelisting from an admin
When you need to get your emails whitelisted by a recipient's email admin, the first step is to communicate effectively. Avoid sending technical instructions unless specifically requested. Most admins know how to manage their systems. The core message should be that your organization sends legitimate, business-relevant emails, and they are not reaching the intended recipients. Focus on the value your emails provide and why their users need to receive them reliably.
Ensure your own email setup is robust. Before asking an admin to whitelist you, make sure your domain has properly configured SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records. These authentication protocols prove your emails are legitimate and haven't been tampered with. Most email systems rely heavily on these to determine whether an email is spam or not. A lack of proper authentication makes it much harder for an admin to justify whitelisting your domain.
If you suspect your emails are being blocked, consider checking your domain's status on various email blacklists (or blocklists). Being listed on a major blocklist can severely impact your deliverability. You can use a blocklist checker to see if your domain or sending IP is listed. If so, you'll need to work on rehabilitating your sender reputation before requesting whitelisting.
Best practices for senders requesting whitelisting
Verify authentication: Ensure your SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are correctly set up and passing authentication checks. This is foundational.
Focus on domain: Ask them to whitelist your sending domain (example.com) rather than specific IP addresses or individual email addresses, as this is more secure and scalable for them.
Explain the business need: Clearly state why receiving your emails is important for their organization or their users.
Provide context: If emails are going to a junk folder, suggest that the recipient move them to their inbox, as this can train their local spam filters.
If you know the recipient's email system, you can provide generalized instructions for common platforms, but be aware that configurations can vary. It's often best to simply ask the admin to check why your emails are blocked and make the necessary adjustments on their end.
Admin-level whitelisting: specific platforms
Different email providers and security solutions offer various ways for administrators to whitelist senders. The most common methods involve configuring mail flow rules, connection filter policies, or adding domains/IPs to an approved senders list within their admin console.
For Google Workspace, an admin might use the Email Whitelist setting to specify IP addresses of trusted sending mail servers. This is typically found under the Spam, Phishing, and Malware settings in the Gmail section of the Admin console. They would enter your sending IPs (public IPs only) or an IP range. However, as noted, IP-based whitelisting is generally less preferred for shared IP environments due to potential security concerns.
For Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365), administrators often use mail flow rules in the Exchange Admin Center (EAC) or configure policies in the Microsoft 365 Defender portal. These rules can bypass spam filtering for specific senders or domains. An admin might create a transport rule that identifies your domain and sets the spam confidence level (SCL) to -1, which effectively marks your emails as safe. Additionally, they can add your domain to the Safe Senders list within their Anti-Spam policies, specifically the Connection Filter Policy. If your emails are still being blocked by Microsoft domains, this approach is worth suggesting to the recipient's admin.
Google Workspace admin whitelist (allowlist)
Log into the Google Admin console.
Navigate to Apps > Google Workspace > Gmail > Spam, Phishing, and Malware.
Select the top-level organization (usually the domain).
Find the Email whitelist setting and enter the sending IP addresses or range. It's recommended to suggest domain-based whitelisting if possible for shared IPs.
Save changes. (Allow up to 24 hours for changes to propagate).
Example: Google Workspace email whitelist entryplain
Create a new rule to bypass spam filtering for your sending domain, or modify an existing one.
Alternatively, go to Microsoft 365 Defender portal > Email & collaboration > Policies & rules > Threat policies > Anti-spam. Edit the Connection filter policy (default) to add your IP address to the IP Allow List. For domains, configure a mail flow rule.
Example: PowerShell command for Microsoft 365 mail flow rulepowershell
New-TransportRule -Name "Bypass Spam for YourDomain.com" -FromDomain "yourdomain.com" -SetSCL -1
Beyond whitelisting: maintaining deliverability
While whitelisting can solve immediate delivery problems, it's not a long-term solution for fundamental email deliverability issues. Continually relying on recipients to whitelist you can be a sign that your overall email practices need improvement. Focus on maintaining a strong sender reputation, which is built on consistent positive sending behavior, low spam complaint rates, and proper email authentication.
Regularly monitor your email performance. Pay attention to bounce rates, spam complaint rates, and engagement metrics. If your emails are frequently landing in spam or being blocked, even without explicit whitelisting requests, it’s a strong indicator of underlying issues that need addressing. Tools that provide DMARC monitoring can help you track authentication failures and understand how email providers are processing your mail.
Preventing your domain from appearing on a domain blocklist or your IPs from getting blocklisted in the first place is far more effective than requesting whitelists. Regularly clean your email lists, send relevant content, and adhere to best practices to avoid triggering spam filters. A proactive approach to email deliverability ensures your messages consistently reach their destination without manual intervention from recipient admins.
Views from the trenches
Best practices
Ensure SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are fully implemented before asking for whitelisting.
Request whitelisting based on your sending domain (e.g., example.com) for better security.
Instruct recipients to check their spam folder and move your email to the inbox if it's found there.
Maintain a consistent sending volume and clean your email lists regularly to build trust with ISPs.
Common pitfalls
Requesting whitelisting by shared IP address, which can introduce security risks for the recipient.
Providing overly technical instructions to non-technical recipients or admins without asking.
Assuming whitelisting is a fix for poor sender reputation or lack of email authentication.
Failing to monitor DMARC reports, which can reveal issues with email authentication and delivery.
Expert tips
A recipient moving an email from their junk folder to the inbox can train their local spam filters.
Smaller businesses might not have a dedicated email admin, so simple, clear instructions are best.
Focus on the business relevance of your emails when communicating with an administrator.
Always prioritize strong email authentication over IP whitelisting for better security and deliverability.
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks says shared IP addresses can complicate whitelisting, especially when coupled with domain name and DKIM signature checks, and that whitelisting by IP alone may introduce security flaws.
2021-12-10 - Email Geeks
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks says whitelisting is an administrator's decision, and senders should request whitelisting for mail authenticated as their domain, not specific IPs.
2021-12-10 - Email Geeks
Key takeaways
Getting your emails whitelisted by a recipient's email admin is a strategic task that goes beyond simple requests. It requires you to have a solid foundation in email authentication, a clear understanding of what email administrators prioritize (security and domain authentication over shared IPs), and effective communication skills to convey the business necessity of your emails.
While providing platform-specific guidance for common services like Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 can be helpful for smaller organizations, the most impactful action you can take is to ensure your own sending practices are impeccable. A strong sender reputation built on proper authentication and responsible sending habits will minimize the need for manual whitelisting requests in the first place, ensuring your emails reliably reach the inbox.
Google Workspace, an admin might use the Email Whitelist setting to specify IP addresses of trusted sending mail servers. This is typically found under the Spam, Phishing, and Malware settings in the Gmail section of the Admin console. They would enter your sending IPs (public IPs only) or an IP range. However, as noted, IP-based whitelisting is generally less preferred for shared IP environments due to potential security concerns.
Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365), administrators often use mail flow rules in the Exchange Admin Center (EAC) or configure policies in the Microsoft 365 Defender portal. These rules can bypass spam filtering for specific senders or domains. An admin might create a transport rule that identifies your domain and sets the spam confidence level (SCL) to -1, which effectively marks your emails as safe. Additionally, they can add your domain to the Safe Senders list within their Anti-Spam policies, specifically the Connection Filter Policy. If your emails are still being blocked by Microsoft domains, this approach is worth suggesting to the recipient's admin.
