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Get your free API key now
4.8 from 1,863 votes
See why the best developers
build on Abstract
No credit card required
Email checker: see if an address is real before you send
Your signup form accepts every email, including fakes and typos. Verify each address against MX records, SMTP, and a maintained database of known disposable domains before it enters your database.
What an email checker tells you
Confirms the address can receive mail by checking format, DNS records, and the mail server's SMTP response.
Flags addresses from known temporary email providers and scores overall address quality and risk.
Returns the domain age, registration date, registrar, and whether DMARC and SPF are configured.
Checks the mail server without sending any message. No data is stored after the request completes.
Trusted for email verification by teams at
4.8 from 1,863 votes
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How an email checker works
Every verification runs six checks in sequence. Results return in under 300ms.
Format parsing
Checks the address against RFC 5322 syntax rules: valid characters, proper @ placement, and a well-formed domain.
MX record lookup
Queries the domain's DNS for mail exchange records. If no MX record exists, the domain cannot receive email.
SMTP verification
Connects to the domain's mail server and tests whether the specific mailbox accepts mail, without sending a message.
Disposable detection
Checks the domain against a database of known temporary email providers like Mailinator, Guerrilla Mail, and Temp Mail.
Catch-all detection
Identifies domains configured to accept mail to any address, where individual mailbox existence cannot be confirmed.
Quality scoring
Combines all signals into a single quality score from 0 to 1, so you can set your own threshold for what to accept.
Validate email addresses at scale
4.8 from 1,863 votes
The same validation the tool above runs, available as an API.
No credit card required
Why verify email addresses
Signup form cleanup
Catch typos, fake addresses, and disposable emails at registration before they enter your database. Verification at the point of entry is cheaper and faster than cleaning your list later.
Fraud prevention
Disposable emails are a common signal in account fraud, promo abuse, and trial farming. Flagging them at signup reduces fake accounts without adding friction for real users.
Bounce rate reduction
Email providers like Gmail and Outlook track your bounce rate. Sending to invalid addresses pushes you toward spam filtering. Verifying your list before each send keeps your deliverability high.
Sender reputation protection
Your domain's sender reputation is cumulative. Every bounce and spam complaint counts against you. Verifying addresses before sending protects the reputation you have built over time.
For more information check our
More email intelligence tools
Disposable Email Checker
Detect disposable email addresses before they enter your database.
Try it free
Domain Age Checker
Check when a domain was registered and how long it has been active.
Try it free
Catch-All Checker
Check if a domain accepts mail for every address.
Try it free
Email Risk Checker
Get a low, medium, or high risk grade for any email address.
Try it free
MX Record Lookup
Look up the mail servers that accept email for any domain.
Try it free
Explore all Abstract tools
See what the API returns
Every email verification returns a structured JSON response. The same data the tool shows above is available through the API, from one request to millions per month.
Response parameters
email_address
String
The email address you submitted for analysis.
email_deliverability.status
String
Whether the email is considered deliverable, undeliverable, or unknown.
email_deliverability.status_detail
String
Additional detail on deliverability (e.g., inbox_full, full_mailbox, invalid_format).
email_deliverability.is_format_valid
Boolean
Is true if the email follows the correct format.
email_deliverability.is_smtp_valid
Boolean
Is true if the SMTP check was successful.
email_deliverability.is_mx_valid
Boolean
Is true if the domain has valid MX records.
email_deliverability.mx_records
Array
List of MX records associated with the domain.
email_quality.score
Float
Confidence score between 0.01 and 0.99 representing email quality.
email_quality.is_free_email
Boolean
Is true if the email is from a known free provider like Gmail or Yahoo.
email_quality.is_username_suspicious
Boolean
Is true if the username appears auto-generated or suspicious.
email_quality.is_disposable
Boolean
Is true if the email is from a disposable email provider.
email_quality.is_catchall
Boolean
Is true if the domain is configured to accept all emails.
email_quality.is_subaddress
Boolean
Is true if the email uses subaddressing (e.g., user+label@domain.com).
email_quality.is_role
Boolean
Is true if the email is a role-based address (e.g., info@domain.com, support@domain.com).
email_quality.is_dmarc_enforced
Boolean
Is true if a strict DMARC policy is enforced on the domain.
email_quality.is_spf_strict
Boolean
Is true if the domain enforces a strict SPF policy.
email_quality.minimum_age
Integer
Estimated age of the email address in days, or null if unknown.
email_sender.first_name
String
First name associated with the email address, if available.
email_sender.last_name
String
Last name associated with the email address, if available.
email_sender.email_provider_name
String
Name of the email provider (e.g., Google, Microsoft).
email_sender.organization_name
String
Organization linked to the email or domain, if available.
email_sender.organization_type
String
Type of organization (e.g., company).
email_domain.domain
String
Domain part of the submitted email address.
email_domain.domain_age
Integer
Age of the domain in days.
email_domain.is_live_site
Boolean
Is true if the domain has a live website.
email_domain.registrar
String
Name of the domain registrar.
email_domain.date_registered
Datetime
Date when the domain was registered.
email_domain.date_last_renewed
Datetime
Last renewal date of the domain.
email_domain.date_expires
Datetime
Expiration date of the domain registration.
email_domain.is_risky_tld
Boolean
Is true if the domain uses a top-level domain associated with risk.
email_risk.address_risk_status
String
Risk status of the email address: low, medium, or high.
email_risk.domain_risk_status
String
Risk status of the domain: low, medium, or high.
email_breaches.total_breaches
Integer
Total number of data breaches involving this email.
email_breaches.date_first_breached
Datetime
Date of the first known breach.
email_breaches.date_last_breached
Datetime
Date of the most recent breach.
email_breaches.breached_domains
Array
List of breached domains.
email_breaches.breached_domains[].domain
String
Domain affected by the breach.
email_breaches.breached_domains[].date_breached
Datetime
Date when the breach occurred.
APIĀ Endpoint
curl --request GET \
--url https://emailreputation.abstractapi.com/v1{
"email_address": "benjamin.richard@abstractapi.com",
"email_deliverability": {
"status": "deliverable",
"status_detail": "valid_email",
"is_format_valid": true,
"is_smtp_valid": true,
"is_mx_valid": true,
"mx_records": [
"gmail-smtp-in.l.google.com",
"alt3.gmail-smtp-in.l.google.com",
"alt4.gmail-smtp-in.l.google.com",
"alt1.gmail-smtp-in.l.google.com",
"alt2.gmail-smtp-in.l.google.com"
]
},
"email_quality": {
"score": 0.8,
"is_free_email": false,
"is_username_suspicious": false,
"is_disposable": false,
"is_catchall": true,
"is_subaddress": false,
"is_role": false,
"is_dmarc_enforced": true,
"is_spf_strict": true,
"minimum_age": 1418
},
"email_sender": {
"first_name": "Benjamin",
"last_name": "Richard",
"email_provider_name": "Google",
"organization_name": "Abstract API",
"organization_type": "company"
},
"email_domain": {
"domain": "abstractapi.com",
"domain_age": 1418,
"is_live_site": true,
"registrar": "NAMECHEAP INC",
"registrar_url": "http://www.namecheap.com",
"date_registered": "2020-05-13",
"date_last_renewed": "2024-04-13",
"date_expires": "2025-05-13",
"is_risky_tld": false
},
"email_risk": {
"address_risk_status": "low",
"domain_risk_status": "low"
},
"email_breaches": {
"total_breaches": 2,
"date_first_breached": "2018-07-23T14:30:00Z",
"date_last_breached": "2019-05-24T14:30:00Z",
"breached_domains": [
{ "domain": "apollo.io", "date_breached": "2018-07-23T14:30:00Z" },
{ "domain": "canva.com", "date_breached": "2019-05-24T14:30:00Z" }
]
}
}APIĀ Response
Email validation vs. verification vs. reputation
Three related but different techniques. Use validation for input forms, verification for list cleaning, and reputation for risk scoring.
Validation
Confirms an address follows the correct format without contacting any mail server.
start for free
WHAT IT DOES
- Format and syntax check
- Allowed characters
- Domain structure
- MX record lookup
- SMTP mailbox check
- Disposable detection
- Catch-all detection
- Domain age and registration
- Risk scoring
- Breach history
- Speed: Instant (no network call)
- Cost: Free (client-side regex)
- Best for: Input forms, real-time field validation, catching typos
Verification
Checks format, queries MX records, and tests the mail server to confirm the address can receive mail.
start for free
WHAT IT DOES
- Format and syntax check
- Allowed characters
- Domain structure
- MX record lookup
- SMTP mailbox check
- Disposable detection
- Catch-all detection
- Domain age and registration
- Risk scoring
- Breach history
- Speed: Under 500ms
- Cost: er-request API, free tier available
- Best for: List cleaning, signup flows, pre-send verification
Reputation
Everything verification checks, plus domain intelligence, risk scoring, and breach history.
start for free
WHAT IT DOES
- Format and syntax check
- Allowed characters
- Domain structure
- MX record lookup
- SMTP mailbox check
- Disposable detection
- Catch-all detection
- Domain age and registration
- Risk scoring
- Breach history
- Speed: Under 1 second
- Cost: Per-request API, free tier available
- Best for: Fraud screening, lead scoring, compliance checks
The best build
on Abstract
Spammy signs up were an issue for us for a while, and we struggled to come up with the best way to identify all the variations in bad emails we were getting. Thankfully we found and quickly integrated with Abstract's email validation API, which saved us a bunch of time and gave us peace of mind.
Chris Stanley, Scope
Email validation guides
Frequently asked questions
Can I check if an email address is real without sending a message?
Yes. An email checker reads the address format, queries the domain's MX records, and tests the SMTP server response without ever sending a message. You get back a deliverability status, a quality score, and risk flags in under a second.
What is the difference between email validation and email verification?
Validation confirms an address follows the correct format (syntax, allowed characters, domain structure). Verification goes further: it checks MX records, connects to the mail server, and confirms the mailbox can receive mail. Use validation to catch typos at input. Use verification to confirm the address is deliverable before sending.
How does the email checker detect disposable addresses?
An email checker compares the domain against a maintained list of known disposable and temporary providers such as Mailinator, Guerrilla Mail, and Temp Mail. It also weighs domain age and registration data, so a domain registered last week with no history is flagged as risky even when it appears on no list.
What is a catch-all email address?
A catch-all (or accept-all) domain is configured to accept mail sent to any address at that domain, whether the specific mailbox exists or not. This makes it impossible to confirm a specific recipient through SMTP alone. The verifier flags these domains so you can decide how to handle them in your workflow.
How accurate is an email checker?
Accuracy depends on what the checker actually tests. Syntax-only tools miss invalid mailboxes. Abstract runs four checks on every address: format parsing, DNS and MX record lookup, SMTP mailbox probing, and disposable domain detection. Together they catch invalid, risky, and throwaway addresses that single-method tools return as valid.
Should I check emails before sending marketing campaigns?
Yes. Sending to invalid addresses increases your bounce rate, damages your sender reputation with providers like Gmail and Outlook, and can trigger spam filtering for your entire domain. Verifying your list before each send removes invalid, disposable, and risky addresses so your deliverability stays high.
Is the email checker free to use?
Yes. The checker above is free and needs no signup for individual lookups. To check addresses in bulk or inside your own app, Abstract's Email Validation includes 100 free requests / month with no card required.
Start verifying emails for free
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