When sending emails, it's crucial that the recipient's email address is accurate, including the Top Level Domain (TLD). Gmail does not automatically forward emails addressed to an incorrect country code TLD (ccTLD) like xxx@gmail.de to xxx@gmail.com. Email delivery relies on exact domain matching and proper DNS records, such as MX records, to direct mail to the correct servers. If the domain part of an email address, including its ccTLD, does not precisely match an existing and configured mail server, the email will typically bounce or be marked as undeliverable, rather than being redirected. This is a fundamental aspect of how email routing works across the internet.
Key findings
No automatic forwarding: Gmail does not have a mechanism to automatically correct or forward emails sent to an incorrect ccTLD (e.g., gmail.de) to the standard gmail.com domain. This behavior is consistent across various email providers.
Exact domain matching: Email systems require the domain part of an address to be precise. Any mismatch in the domain, including the TLD, leads to delivery failure unless explicit forwarding rules are set up by the recipient.
DNS record dependency: For an email to be delivered, the domain (e.g., gmail.de) must have valid MX (Mail Exchanger) records that point to a mail server. Without these, the email will bounce.
Historical ccTLDs: While Google does not forward from incorrect ccTLDs, some country-specific Gmail domains, such as gmail.it, may exist and function independently. This is separate from automatic forwarding.
Delivery failure: If a ccTLD is non-existent or lacks proper mail exchange records, emails sent to it will result in a non-delivery message (bounce). This prevents unintended delivery or redirection.
Key considerations
Verify email addresses: Always ensure the email addresses in your database are accurate, including the full domain name. Incorrect TLDs lead to wasted sends and potential deliverability issues.
Impact on deliverability: Sending to non-existent domains can negatively affect your sender reputation, increasing the likelihood of future emails being marked as spam. More on how TLDs affect deliverability can be found here.
Bounce management: Monitor your bounce rates closely and promptly remove invalid email addresses from your mailing lists. High bounce rates signal poor list hygiene.
Domain registration: If you manage a domain with a ccTLD, ensure its DNS records, especially MX records, are correctly configured for email reception.
Understanding Gmail's forwarding: For insights into how Gmail handles legitimate forwarding, refer to their official Gmail API documentation.
What email marketers say
Email marketers often encounter issues with incorrect email addresses, especially concerning country code top-level domains. There's a common misconception that major email providers like Gmail might automatically correct or redirect emails when a ccTLD is incorrect, perhaps assuming the sender intended to use the more common .com. However, practical experience and tests confirm this is generally not the case. Marketers frequently report delivery failures for emails sent to domains with an incorrect or non-existent ccTLD, highlighting the strict nature of email routing protocols. This means precise address validation is critical for successful email campaigns and maintaining a healthy sender reputation.
Key opinions
No automatic TLD correction: Marketers widely agree that Gmail does not automatically 'correct' a wrong country TLD or forward it to a .com address.
Undeliverable messages: Tests confirm that sending to addresses like user@gmail.co.uk (if not a valid domain) results in an undelivered message.
Domain existence: The existence of an email domain, including its specific ccTLD, is fundamental for delivery. If it doesn't exist or isn't properly configured with MX records, the email cannot be delivered.
Historical context: Some specific ccTLD Gmail domains (like gmail.de in the past, or gmail.it currently) might operate, but they are distinct from gmail.com and do not auto-forward.
Key considerations
List hygiene: Maintaining a clean email list is paramount. Sending to invalid addresses, including those with incorrect TLDs, significantly impacts email deliverability rates.
User expectations: It is important for marketers to understand that users might misremember or incorrectly type their own email addresses, leading to such scenarios.
Impact on engagement: Emails that do not reach their intended recipients cannot contribute to engagement metrics or sales, underscoring the importance of correct addresses.
Marketer from Email Geeks indicates that attempts to send to Gmail with incorrect country TLDs, such as gmail.co.uk, result in non-delivery messages, confirming that emails are not forwarded.
05 Dec 2019 - Email Geeks
Marketer view
Marketer from Email Geeks explains their observation that Gmail primarily supports .com domains, and they speculate whether shorter country code TLDs might behave differently.
05 Dec 2019 - Email Geeks
What the experts say
Email deliverability experts consistently reiterate that email systems are highly precise and do not accommodate misspellings or incorrect TLDs by automatically forwarding to a general .com equivalent. The internet's mail routing infrastructure, based on DNS and MX records, expects exact matches to ensure secure and accurate delivery. Any deviation, such as an incorrect ccTLD for a common service like Gmail, will result in a hard bounce, indicating the address is non-existent or unreachable. Experts emphasize that proper email address validation is a foundational element of good email hygiene and essential for maintaining a strong sender reputation.
Key opinions
Strict addressing: Email addresses are literal. If gmail.de doesn't have valid MX records or isn't a Google-owned domain configured for mail, the email will not be delivered to gmail.com.
DNS resolution failure: The primary reason for non-delivery is the inability to resolve the domain's MX records, meaning no mail server is found for that specific domain.
No TLD forgiveness: There's no inherent 'forgiveness' or automatic correction built into SMTP or major mail servers for incorrect TLDs.
Separation of domains: Even if Google owns country-specific domains (like google.de for search), their email infrastructure (e.g., gmail.com) operates under strict domain rules.
Key considerations
Email validation: Implement robust email validation processes to catch incorrect TLDs before sending, reducing bounce rates and protecting your sender reputation.
Deliverability impact: Consistent sending to invalid addresses can lead to your IP or domain being added to email blacklists or blocklists, affecting all your email sends.
User education: Educate users about the importance of entering their precise email address, including the correct TLD.
DNS configuration: Ensure your own domain's SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are correctly configured to establish trust, especially when dealing with various TLDs.
Expert from Spam Resource highlights that email deliverability fundamentally relies on the precise matching of domain names, including country code TLDs, and mail servers do not perform fuzzy matching or automatic correction.
10 Mar 2024 - Spam Resource
Expert view
Expert from Word to the Wise advises that any email sent to a domain that doesn't have proper MX records will result in a hard bounce, irrespective of whether a similar .com domain exists.
22 Feb 2024 - Word to the Wise
What the documentation says
Official documentation and technical specifications for email protocols (like SMTP and DNS) do not support the automatic forwarding of emails based on an incorrect country TLD. The routing of email is a highly structured process, relying on precise domain resolution through DNS records, particularly MX (Mail Exchanger) records. If a domain, including its specific TLD, does not have valid and accessible MX records pointing to a mail server, the email transfer agent (MTA) will fail to deliver the message. There is no provision for a global email provider like Gmail to infer or redirect mail from a non-existent gmail.de to an existing gmail.com address.
Key findings
SMTP standards: The Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) mandates exact matching of domain names for mail routing. It does not include mechanisms for correcting or redirecting emails with invalid or misremembered TLDs.
DNS requirements: For email delivery, a domain must have correctly configured MX records in its DNS zone file. If gmail.de lacks these, mail cannot be directed to it.
Domain distinctiveness: Each TLD creates a distinct namespace. Domain.com and Domain.de are treated as completely separate entities.
Error handling: When a domain is unreachable or non-existent, the sending server typically generates a permanent delivery failure notification (hard bounce).
Key considerations
Mail server configuration: Mail servers are configured to look up specific MX records for the given domain. They do not have logic to infer alternative TLDs if the initial lookup fails.
Security implications: Automatic TLD correction could pose security risks, potentially misdirecting sensitive information if a TLD is accidentally mistyped and resolves to an unintended recipient.
IANA and ICANN roles: The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) and Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) manage TLDs, ensuring their distinctness and proper delegation, which reinforces the need for exact addressing.
Forwarding settings: Genuine email forwarding, as offered by Gmail, requires explicit user configuration for a specific address, not automatic TLD substitution.
Technical article
Documentation from RFC 5321 (SMTP) specifies that the destination domain in an email address must be a fully qualified domain name (FQDN) that resolves to an MX record or A record, without any provisions for TLD correction.
01 Apr 2008 - RFC 5321
Technical article
Documentation from the DNS (Domain Name System) RFCs states that each top-level domain operates as a distinct zone, and queries for one TLD (e.g., .de) do not inherently redirect to another (e.g., .com).