MX Lookup
List the mail exchanger (MX) records of a domain: the servers that accept its incoming e-mail, in priority order.
- Runs on our servers
- Free to use
About this tool
MX records tell the world where to deliver e-mail for a domain. This lookup shows the complete list with priority and TTL, parsed from a live dig query, so you can confirm a mail migration, understand why messages bounce, or identify which provider handles a company's mail before contacting them.
Mail security does not stop at MX: check TXT for SPF, DMARC for the policy and the Email Spoof Check for an overall verdict.
This is what a result looks like (trimmed):
$ dig gmail.com MX
;; ANSWER SECTION:
gmail.com. 3600 IN MX 5 gmail-smtp-in.l.google.com.
gmail.com. 3600 IN MX 10 alt1.gmail-smtp-in.l.google.com.
gmail.com. 3600 IN MX 20 alt2.gmail-smtp-in.l.google.com.
gmail.com. 3600 IN MX 30 alt3.gmail-smtp-in.l.google.com.
gmail.com. 3600 IN MX 40 alt4.gmail-smtp-in.l.google.com.How to use it — quick steps
- 01
Enter the domain or hostname
Type or paste the domain or hostname in the field above, for example example.com. Use Ctrl + V to paste.
- 02
Press "Lookup MX records"
Press "Lookup MX records" or Ctrl + Enter. The result appears below in a few seconds. Results can be copied.
- 03
Read the result
It appears in the dark panel under the form in a few seconds. Every block has [copy] and other actions.
Key features of this tool
Live answer
The query is sent to a public resolver from our servers, so you see the records the world sees, not a cached copy from your ISP.
Parsed and raw
Records are listed in a clean table and the full dig output is available below it, with an option to copy all to clipboard.
TTL included
Each record shows its time-to-live (TTL), so you know how long DNS caches may keep the old value before refreshing it.
Frequently asked questions
What is the priority number?
The preference value: lower numbers are tried first. Equal values are used round-robin for load distribution across available mail servers. Backup mail servers get higher numbers.
The domain has no MX records
Then senders fall back to the A record of the domain itself (RFC 5321). A domain that should not receive mail can publish a single "null MX" record pointing to ".".
How do I recognise the mail provider?
The MX hostname usually reveals it: google.com for Google Workspace, outlook.com for Microsoft 365, pphosted.com for Proofpoint, protonmail.ch for Proton Mail, and so on.