Why are my emails from GoHighLevel landing in spam and how do I fix it?
Matthew Whittaker
Co-founder & CTO, Suped
Published 10 Jul 2025
Updated 16 Aug 2025
6 min read
It can be frustrating when your emails, especially those sent through a platform like GoHighLevel, consistently land in spam folders. You might have been sending campaigns successfully for a while, only for deliverability to suddenly drop.
When an email testing tool flags your links as suspicious, it points to a deeper issue than just the content of your message. It's often related to how the email is sent and perceived by mailbox providers.
Addressing GoHighLevel email deliverability requires a comprehensive approach, from understanding the platform's routing mechanisms to meticulously configuring your domain's authentication records and adhering to best sending practices. Let's break down the common reasons your emails might be hitting the spam folder and what you can do to fix it.
Deciphering GoHighLevel's email routing and links
GoHighLevel, like many marketing automation platforms, often uses third-party SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) providers to send emails on your behalf. While convenient, the default setup might involve shared IP addresses and link tracking domains.
When you use shared IP addresses, your sender reputation is intertwined with other users on that same IP. If another user engages in spammy behavior, it can negatively affect your deliverability, even if your own sending practices are pristine. The suspicious links flagged by testing tools are often due to GoHighLevel's (or its underlying SMTP provider's) link tracking, which modifies your original URLs.
The solution is to gain more control over your sending environment. This typically involves using a dedicated sending domain and connecting your own SMTP provider account, such as your own Mailgun account with GoHighLevel. This isolates your sending reputation, protecting you from the actions of others and ensuring your links are associated solely with your domain.
GoHighLevel default
Shared IP addresses: Your email reputation is influenced by other users.
Default link tracking: Links are routed through shared domains, potentially triggering spam filters.
Recommended setup
Dedicated IP addresses: You have full control over your sending reputation.
Custom tracking domains: Links are branded with your domain, building trust.
Mastering email authentication with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC
Beyond the sending infrastructure, proper email authentication is non-negotiable for deliverability. Mailbox providers like Google and Yahoo increasingly rely on SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to verify sender identity and combat phishing and spam.
GoHighLevel requires you to set up these DNS records for your sending domain. SPF (Sender Policy Framework) authorizes specific IP addresses to send mail on your domain's behalf. DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) provides a digital signature, ensuring the email hasn't been tampered with in transit. DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance) builds on SPF and DKIM, telling receiving servers what to do with emails that fail authentication and providing valuable reports.
Even a minor misconfiguration in these records can cause your emails to fail authentication checks, leading them directly to the spam or junk folder. It's not enough to just have the records, they need to be correctly published and aligned. You can find out more about DMARC, SPF, and DKIM in our guides.
Ensuring DNS record precision
GoHighLevel provides instructions for adding the necessary DNS records (TXT, CNAME, MX) to your domain. Always double-check these entries for typos or incorrect values. A single character error can invalidate your authentication. Remember to replace yourdomain.com with your actual domain name.
Building and maintaining a stellar sender reputation
Your sender reputation is a key factor in email deliverability. Mailbox providers assign a reputation score to your sending domain and IP address based on historical sending behavior. Factors like spam complaints, bounce rates, open rates, and even whether your domain is on an email blocklist (or blacklist) all contribute to this score.
Poor list hygiene is a significant reputation killer. Sending emails to invalid, unengaged, or spam trap addresses will quickly erode your sender reputation. Regularly cleaning your email lists and segmenting them based on engagement can help improve your deliverability. If your cold emails are going to spam, list quality is often a major culprit.
The content of your emails also plays a crucial role. Spam filters analyze email content for suspicious keywords, excessive capitalization, too many images, or a lack of plain text. Overly promotional language, misleading subject lines, and broken or suspicious links are common triggers. Ensure your emails provide value and are clearly relevant to your recipients.
Increases spam complaints and can lead to blacklisting.
Advanced strategies and continuous monitoring for GoHighLevel users
Once you've addressed the foundational elements, implementing advanced strategies and continuous monitoring becomes crucial. For new domains or dedicated IPs, email warming is essential. This involves gradually increasing your sending volume over time, mimicking natural sending patterns, which helps establish a positive reputation with mailbox providers.
Many email service providers (ESPs) and CRM platforms, including GoHighLevel, offer a drip mode or sending limits. This feature allows you to send emails in batches over a set period, preventing sudden spikes that can trigger spam filters and lead to a blocklist (or blacklist) listing. It's especially useful for bulk campaigns.
Finally, continuous monitoring is key. Regularly check your domain for blocklist (or blacklist) presence, review your DMARC reports for authentication failures, and pay attention to deliverability metrics like open rates, click-through rates, and bounce rates. Staying compliant with new sender requirements from major providers is also vital for long-term inbox placement.
Summary of solutions
Emails landing in spam from GoHighLevel isn't an insurmountable problem, but it requires a structured approach. It often boils down to a combination of factors related to how your emails are sent and how your domain is configured.
By taking control of your sending environment with a dedicated domain, ensuring robust email authentication, maintaining a healthy sender reputation, and consistently monitoring your deliverability, you can significantly improve your inbox placement rates. These steps are crucial for ensuring your marketing and transactional emails reach their intended audience.
Views from the trenches
Best practices
Always use a dedicated sending domain for your emails to control your sender reputation.
Set up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC correctly following your SMTP provider's instructions.
Regularly clean your email lists to remove inactive or invalid addresses, improving engagement.
Warm up new sending domains or IPs by gradually increasing email volume.
Use drip sending mode in GoHighLevel for bulk campaigns to avoid sudden sending spikes.
Common pitfalls
Relying solely on GoHighLevel's default shared sending domain and IP addresses.
Neglecting to set up or misconfiguring SPF, DKIM, and DMARC DNS records.
Sending emails to purchased or old, unengaged email lists.
Using overly promotional or 'spammy' keywords and content in email bodies or subject lines.
Ignoring email deliverability metrics like bounce rates and spam complaint rates.
Expert tips
Use your own Mailgun account instead of Lead Connector for more control over sending.
If your GoHighLevel emails are for opt-in contacts, consider a dedicated ESP for better deliverability.
The entire tool (GoHighLevel with default settings) can have a bad reputation due to other users' spamming.
Ensure your emails for opted-in recipients are sent through a platform known for good deliverability.
Implement your own DKIM for your domain for stronger authentication.
Marketer view
Marketer from Email Geeks says that the link tracking in GoHighLevel is designed for insights, but it might route through domains that cause issues, suggesting checking with GoHighLevel support.
2023-03-30 - Email Geeks
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks says GoHighLevel might be seen as a cold outreach tool by filters, causing emails to be treated as spam, and advises moving opt-in mail off such platforms.
