Verify a domain

To send emails from a domain (for example, notificaciones@tuempresa.com) you must prove that you own that domain. Verification is done by publishing a TXT record in your DNS — a standard process that does not affect your email or any other services on the domain.

Verification flow

The process has three steps:

1. Register the domain via API → you receive a unique token.
2. Publish that token as a TXT record in your DNS.
3. Verify by calling the /verify endpoint → the system performs the DNS lookup and, if found, marks the domain as verified.

Operations

List registered domains

GET /v1/domains

Returns all domains on the account with their status: verified (boolean), verified_at (timestamp or null), and the associated token.

Register a domain

POST /v1/domains

Body: { "domain": "tuempresa.com" }. Response: 201 with the token and the exact instructions for publishing in DNS. Returns 409 if the domain is already registered on the account.

Verify

POST /v1/domains/{domain}/verify

Performs a DNS TXT lookup. If found, sets verified: true and records verified_at. Response: { domain, verified, verified_at }. Returns 400 if the TXT record is not found yet.

Delete a domain

DELETE /v1/domains/{domain}

Requires an admin API key. Response: 204.

Step-by-step example

# Step 1: register the domain
curl -X POST https://api.mailerdash.com/v1/domains \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $MAILERDASH_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"domain": "tuempresa.com"}'

The response includes the exact instructions you need:

{
  "domain": "tuempresa.com",
  "token": "md-verify=abc123xyz",
  "instructions": {
    "record_type": "TXT",
    "record_name": "_md-verify.tuempresa.com",
    "record_value": "md-verify=abc123xyz",
    "next_step": "Add this TXT record to your DNS, then call POST /v1/domains/tuempresa.com/verify"
  }
}

Step 2: in your DNS panel (Cloudflare, Route 53, Namecheap, etc.) add the following record:

Field	Value
Name / Host	_md-verify.tuempresa.com
Type	TXT
Value	md-verify=abc123xyz
TTL	Any (300 seconds recommended)

Wait a few minutes for the record to propagate, then:

# Step 3: verify
curl -X POST https://api.mailerdash.com/v1/domains/tuempresa.com/verify \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $MAILERDASH_API_KEY"

Successful response:

{
  "domain": "tuempresa.com",
  "verified": true,
  "verified_at": "2026-06-22T14:30:00.000Z"
}

Without a verified domain you cannot send

Attempting to send an email (transactional or campaign) with a from_email whose domain is not verified results in 403 Forbidden with code domain_not_authorized. The error is returned at request time, before the message is queued.

Once verified, the domain is automatically available for all API keys on your account — there is no additional activation step.

The TXT record can stay permanently

The verification TXT does not interfere with email flow, SPF, or any other record in your DNS. You can leave it published indefinitely — there is no need to remove it after verification.

DNS propagation can take time

If you call /verify and receive a 400, wait 5–10 minutes and try again. With some DNS providers propagation can take up to 24 hours. You can confirm that the record is visible with: dig TXT _md-verify.tuempresa.com.

Next step

With your domain verified, the next step is to configure the email authentication records: SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. These records improve deliverability and protect your domain from spoofing.

See the SPF, DKIM, and DMARC guide.