Mail bounced, how do I tell if it's temporary or permanent?
Soft bounces (4xx) are temporary: full mailbox, slow server. Hard bounces (5xx) are permanent: address gone or blocked.
Try this first
- 1Read the NDR, find the three-digit code
- 24xx: retry after a few hours, your mail server usually does this automatically
- 35xx: remove from list or have the recipient check
- 4Repeated soft bounces after a week: treat as hard
When to bring us in
If every recipient on one domain soft-bounces, look at greylisting or MX issues on their side.
See also
- Our emails land in spam for some recipientsAlmost always an SPF, DKIM, or DMARC setting that is wrong or missing, or a sender name that mimics a well-known brand.
- Someone reports receiving phishing emails "from us"Read: spoofing. Someone is abusing your sender name, not necessarily your actual mailbox.
- An email bounces (NDR): delivery failedThe NDR text usually states the exact reason. Reading it is step one.
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