MX Record Lookup Tool
Check your domain's MX records and mail server configuration instantly with our free lookup tool. We perform a complete DNS lookup to find all mail exchange servers, their priority values, IP addresses, and ASN. We also retrieve your domain's A, AAAA, and CNAME records in the raw DNS section, giving you a complete view of how your email and domain infrastructure is configured.
Whether you're troubleshooting email delivery issues, verifying mail server setup, or auditing DNS configuration, our MX checker provides detailed validation status and full JSON output for easy integration.
Enter a domain name to lookup MX records
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Understanding MX Records
What are MX Records?
MX records (Mail Exchange records) are DNS entries that tell the internet where to deliver email for your domain.
When someone sends you an email, their mail server performs an MX lookup to find out which servers accept mail on your behalf. Without MX records, your domain can't receive email at all.
How MX Priority Works
Each MX record contains two parts: a priority number and a mail server hostname.
The priority value determines which mail server gets tried first. Lower numbers mean higher priority.
For example, if you have two records with priorities 10 and 20, mail servers will try priority 10 first. If that server is down or unreachable, they'll automatically try priority 20.
This system lets you set up primary and backup mail servers for redundancy.
MX Records in Action
Here's what happens when someone emails you at contact@yourdomain.com:
Their mail server queries DNS for yourdomain.com's MX records. It gets back something like '10 mail.yourdomain.com' and '20 backup.yourdomain.com'.
The sending server contacts mail.yourdomain.com first (lower priority number). If that server responds, the email gets delivered there. If it's offline or not responding, the sender tries backup.yourdomain.com instead.
Most domains configure at least two MX records. This ensures email delivery continues even during maintenance or server issues.
What Our Tool Shows You
Our MX lookup goes beyond just finding mail server names. We resolve each mail server hostname to show its actual IP address and its autonomous system number (ASN).
We also check your domain's A, AAAA, and CNAME records. These tell us how your domain itself resolves and can help identify configuration issues that might affect email delivery.
The validation status tells you if everything is configured correctly or if there are potential problems to fix.
FAQs
An MX record check verifies that your domain's mail servers are properly configured in DNS. Our tool confirms your records exist, validates that mail server hostnames resolve to IP addresses, and checks priority values are correct. This is essential when setting up a new domain, switching email providers, or troubleshooting delivery issues. Without valid MX records, incoming email to your domain will fail.
Most domains should have at least two MX records for redundancy. One primary mail server with lower priority (like 10) and one backup with higher priority (like 20). Email providers like Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 typically provide multiple records during setup. Having backups ensures email delivery continues if one server goes down.
MX records point to mail servers and include priority values. A records map hostnames to IPv4 addresses. AAAA records do the same for IPv6. CNAME records create hostname aliases. When you look up MX records, those mail server names often have their own A or AAAA records. Our tool shows all these in the raw DNS section for a complete view.
Partial status means we found your MX records but detected potential issues. This happens if mail server hostnames don't resolve to IPs, there are DNS errors with A or AAAA records, or the configuration seems incomplete. Valid status means everything checked out. If you see partial, review the details to fix issues and ensure reliable delivery.
MX records and SPF serve different purposes but often work together. SPF authorizes which servers can send email from your domain, while MX records tell where to deliver email to you. You don't need MX for SPF to function, but if you receive email, you'll have both. Some SPF records use the "mx" mechanism to include your MX servers as authorized senders.