Is p=none enough for Gmail and Yahoo?

It meets the published minimum for bulk senders. It does not protect the domain: receivers are told to do nothing with mail that fails. Publish p=none only as a first step to collect reports, then move to quarantine and reject.

Do I need both SPF and DKIM if I send fewer than 5,000 messages a day?

Gmail and Yahoo require one of the two for small senders, but almost every mail provider gives you DKIM for free, and DMARC alignment is far easier with both. Set up both.

Can a DNS check tell me whether my mail passes at Gmail?

It can tell you whether the records exist and are correct, which is where most failures are. Whether a given message passed is in that message: open it in Gmail, choose Show original, and read the SPF, DKIM and DMARC lines.

Where do I set up one-click unsubscribe?

In the platform that sends the mail. Mailchimp, HubSpot, SendGrid, Brevo, Klaviyo and similar tools add the List-Unsubscribe and List-Unsubscribe-Post headers automatically for campaign mail. A custom application has to add the headers itself and handle the POST request.

How do I check my spam rate?

Google Postmaster Tools (postmaster.google.com): add your domain, verify it with a TXT record, and read the Spam rate and Domain reputation dashboards. Yahoo offers similar data in its Sender Hub after a complaint feedback loop is set up.

Gmail and Yahoo sender requirements: what to check on your domain

Since February 2024, Gmail and Yahoo reject or junk mail from domains that do not authenticate, and hold anyone sending 5,000 or more messages a day to Gmail to a stricter list: SPF and DKIM both passing, a DMARC record, an aligned From address and one-click unsubscribe. Microsoft applied the same core rules to Outlook.com, Hotmail and Live addresses in 2025. Small senders are not exempt from the basics; they are exempt only from the bulk-sender extras.

This page lists every requirement, says which ones a DNS check of your domain can confirm and which ones live in your mail platform, and shows the records to publish. Run the check at the bottom to see where your domain stands today.

The requirements, and where each one is checked

Half of the list is DNS, published once on the domain and visible to anyone. The other half is behaviour of the sending system: headers on each message, the reputation of the sending IPs, and how fast you honour unsubscribes. A domain check covers the first half completely and cannot see the second.

Requirement	Who it applies to	In the AstraVerify check	Where else to look
SPF record that passes for your sending servers	All senders (Gmail and Yahoo accept SPF or DKIM; bulk senders need both)	Yes. Record found, includes resolved, lookup count, and whether it ends in -all	Message headers: Authentication-Results shows spf=pass
DKIM signature that verifies	All senders (bulk senders need both SPF and DKIM)	Yes. Selector keys for your provider, key length (1024-bit keys are flagged)	Send a test message; Authentication-Results shows dkim=pass
DMARC record published (p=none is the minimum)	Bulk senders; strongly recommended for everyone	Yes. Policy, subdomain policy, reporting address, alignment mode	Aggregate reports (rua) from Gmail and Yahoo
From domain aligned with SPF or DKIM domain	Bulk senders	Partly. The check shows adkim and aspf and whether your provider signs with your own domain	Message headers: header.from must match the SPF or DKIM domain
One-click unsubscribe (RFC 8058 List-Unsubscribe headers) and a visible link	Bulk senders of marketing or subscribed mail	No. This is a header on each message, not a DNS record	Your email platform settings; view a sent message source
Honour unsubscribes within two days	Bulk senders	No	Your email platform
Spam complaint rate under 0.10%, never above 0.30%	All senders	No	Google Postmaster Tools; Yahoo Sender Hub
Forward and reverse DNS (PTR) for sending IPs	All senders	No. Your provider owns the IPs	Your provider; dig -x on the sending IP
TLS for the connection	All senders	No	Your provider; almost every hosted platform does this
Do not impersonate Gmail or Yahoo in the From address	All senders	Not applicable to your domain	Send from your own domain, never from a free address, through a third party

The three records that settle the DNS half

If your domain has SPF that names your provider and ends in -all, a DKIM key for that provider, and a DMARC record at p=quarantine or p=reject with a reporting address, you have passed every DNS requirement on the list with room to spare. Gmail and Yahoo only require p=none, but p=none does nothing to spoofed mail, and both providers say they will keep raising the bar.

Example record

Name: _dmarc.yourdomain.com
Type: TXT
Value: v=DMARC1; p=quarantine; rua=mailto:[email protected]; adkim=s; aspf=s

Start at p=none only if you have never had a DMARC record and need a fortnight of reports to find every legitimate sender. Then move to quarantine, then reject.

What alignment means, in one paragraph

A DMARC pass needs more than SPF or DKIM passing; the domain that passed has to match the domain in the visible From address. If a newsletter tool signs with its own domain (d=mailer.example) and your From is [email protected], DKIM passes but is not aligned, and unless SPF is aligned instead, DMARC fails. The fix is in the tool: add your domain as a sending domain, publish the CNAME or TXT records it gives you, and it will sign with d=yourdomain.com. The AstraVerify report shows whether the DKIM keys it finds belong to your domain and what the alignment mode is set to.

Am I a bulk sender?

Google counts messages to Gmail addresses (including Google Workspace users) from your domain on any single day. Cross 5,000 once and the bulk rules apply from then on.
Yahoo does not publish a threshold and describes the rules as applying to "bulk senders"; treat any newsletter, notification or marketing stream as in scope.
Microsoft uses the same 5,000-a-day figure for Outlook.com, Hotmail and Live addresses, requiring SPF, DKIM and DMARC (p=none minimum) with alignment.
A transactional app (receipts, password resets) sending 5,000 a day is a bulk sender too, even though the unsubscribe requirement applies only to marketing and subscribed mail.

When mail still lands in spam with everything passing

Authentication is a gate, not a ranking. Once it passes, placement depends on reputation: complaint rate, engagement, list hygiene and content. Google Postmaster Tools shows your domain and IP reputation and the spam rate Gmail measures; keep the rate under 0.10 percent and never let it touch 0.30. Sudden volume spikes from a new domain, purchased lists and missing unsubscribe links are the usual causes.

Frequently asked questions

Is p=none enough for Gmail and Yahoo?: It meets the published minimum for bulk senders. It does not protect the domain: receivers are told to do nothing with mail that fails. Publish p=none only as a first step to collect reports, then move to quarantine and reject.
Do I need both SPF and DKIM if I send fewer than 5,000 messages a day?: Gmail and Yahoo require one of the two for small senders, but almost every mail provider gives you DKIM for free, and DMARC alignment is far easier with both. Set up both.
Can a DNS check tell me whether my mail passes at Gmail?: It can tell you whether the records exist and are correct, which is where most failures are. Whether a given message passed is in that message: open it in Gmail, choose Show original, and read the SPF, DKIM and DMARC lines.
Where do I set up one-click unsubscribe?: In the platform that sends the mail. Mailchimp, HubSpot, SendGrid, Brevo, Klaviyo and similar tools add the List-Unsubscribe and List-Unsubscribe-Post headers automatically for campaign mail. A custom application has to add the headers itself and handle the POST request.
How do I check my spam rate?: Google Postmaster Tools (postmaster.google.com): add your domain, verify it with a TXT record, and read the Spam rate and Domain reputation dashboards. Yahoo offers similar data in its Sender Hub after a complaint feedback loop is set up.

Check your own domain. The scan shows your live records, a score out of 100 and the exact record to publish for each fix.