MX Record
An MX (Mail Exchanger) record is a DNS record that specifies the mail server responsible for receiving emails on behalf of a domain.
What Is MX Record?
MX records tell the internet where to deliver email destined for your domain. Each MX record has a priority value — lower numbers have higher priority. When someone sends an email to user@yourdomain.com, their mail server looks up your domain's MX records to find where to deliver it. While MX records are primarily about receiving email, they're relevant to newsletter senders because some receiving servers check whether the sender's domain has MX records as part of their spam filtering. A domain without MX records looks suspicious — it can send email but can't receive replies.
Why It Matters for Newsletters
Having valid MX records for your sending domain adds to your overall legitimacy. Some spam filters check for MX records as part of their evaluation, and a domain that can't receive email may be treated with suspicion. It also matters if subscribers reply to your newsletters — without MX records, those replies will bounce.
Best Practices
- Ensure your sending domain has valid MX records
- Use a backup MX server for redundancy
- Keep MX records updated when changing email hosting providers
- Test that your MX records resolve correctly using DNS lookup tools
How Aldus Handles This
Aldus doesn't require MX record changes for sending newsletters. Your existing MX records for receiving email remain untouched. The platform only needs SPF and DKIM records added to your DNS for authentication.