Free tool · Email verifier
Free email verifier
Check whether an email address is real before you send to it. We ask the mailbox provider whether it accepts mail, and flag typos, disposable inboxes and role addresses like info@. Free, no signup, one address at a time.
How it works
How to check if an email address is valid
An address can look right and still bounce. A verifier asks the same questions a careful person would, only faster:
- Is it written correctly? One @, a real-looking domain, no stray spaces. Typos like gmial.com are the most common problem on signup forms.
- Can the domain receive mail? It needs mail servers (MX records). Many fake and mistyped domains don’t have any.
- Does the mailbox exist? We ask the mailbox provider whether it accepts mail for the address. Nothing is sent to the inbox.
- Is it worth sending to? Disposable addresses are made to be abandoned, and role addresses like info@ are often read by a team or nobody.
Some providers answer the same way for every address, so the honest answer is sometimes “can’t tell”. No verifier knows more than the provider tells it.
What the answers mean
- Looks deliverable. The mailbox provider accepts mail for this address.
- Can’t tell. The provider won’t say whether the mailbox exists. Many large providers answer this way for every address.
- Risky. The address may bounce or may never be read.
- Will bounce. Mail to this address won’t be delivered. Remove it.
- Looks like a typo. The address probably has a mistake in it, and we suggest the domain you likely meant.
We also tell you when an address is disposable, the kind people make once and abandon, or a role address like info@ or sales@, usually read by a team or nobody.
One address, not a list
This verifier checks one address at a time, a few an hour. It’s for a quick check before an address goes on your newsletter list, not for cleaning thousands of contacts at once. For a whole list, see email list cleaning.
Letterhead finds the ghosts already on your list.
Every Letterhead newsletter sorts its readers into engagement groups, including Ghosts: readers who have stopped opening and clicking. Each group shows how many readers it holds, so you can size it before you send.
| The old way | In Letterhead |
|---|---|
| Export the list and sort a spreadsheet to guess who’s gone quiet. | Every newsletter sorts its readers into engagement groups, Ghosts included. |
| Rebuild a re-engagement segment by hand every quarter. | The groups stay up to date as people read, so Fading and Ghosts are ready when you are. |
| Send to everyone and hope. | See how many readers each group holds before you send. |
FAQ
Questions about verifying an email address
How do I check if an email address is valid?
Check that it’s written correctly, that its domain has mail servers, and that the mailbox provider accepts mail for it. The verifier above does all of that for one address at a time.
Does verifying an address send it an email?
No. We ask the mailbox provider about the address. Nothing lands in the inbox.
Why does the checker say “Can’t tell”?
Some mailbox providers, including many large ones, give the same answer for every address, so no checker can confirm whether the mailbox exists.
Can I verify a whole list?
Not here. The verifier checks one address at a time and allows a few an hour.
Do you keep the address I check?
No. The address goes to our checker and nowhere else, and we don’t keep it.
The Letterhead Brief
You’re on the list.
The Brief lands once a week. Want these checks running on your own newsletter? Book a test drive →