Free Tool

DNS Watch Record Checker

Instantly check SPF, DKIM, DMARC, MX, A, NS, CNAME & TXT records for any domain. Diagnose email deliverability issues in seconds — no login required.

Enter a domain above to check its DNS records

DNS Watch checks all critical email authentication records — SPF, DKIM, DMARC, MX — and gives you an instant deliverability score. It's free, instant, and requires no account.

What DNS Watch Checks
8 DNS Record Types in One Lookup
Every record that matters for email deliverability, domain health, and inbox placement.

SPF Record

Identifies which mail servers are authorised to send email on behalf of your domain. Missing SPF = high spam risk.

DKIM Record

A cryptographic signature that proves your emails haven't been altered in transit. Essential for inbox placement.

DMARC Record

Tells receiving mail servers what to do with emails that fail SPF/DKIM — quarantine, reject, or report.

MX Records

Mail exchange records that route incoming email to the correct servers. Missing MX = cannot receive email.

A Records

Maps your domain to an IPv4 address. The most fundamental DNS record — everything depends on it.

NS Records

Nameserver records that identify which DNS servers are authoritative for your domain.

TXT Records

All TXT records including SPF, domain verification tokens for Google, Microsoft, and other services.

CNAME Records

Canonical name records that alias one domain name to another — commonly used for www subdomains.

Common Questions
DNS Watch FAQ

DNS Watch is a free tool that performs live DNS lookups for any domain you enter. It queries DNS servers in real time and returns all records including SPF, DKIM, DMARC, MX, A, NS, CNAME, and TXT. It then calculates a deliverability score based on which authentication records are properly configured.

SPF failures usually happen because: (1) no SPF record exists at all, (2) multiple SPF records exist — only one is allowed, or (3) your sending server's IP is not included in the SPF record. Use the TXT records section to view your current SPF and compare it against the servers you send from.

The DKIM selector depends on your email provider. Common selectors are: google or 20230601 (Google Workspace), selector1 / selector2 (Microsoft 365), default (many others), mail (cPanel/WHM). Check your email platform's DNS setup guide for the exact selector name.

DNS changes typically propagate within 1–48 hours, though most updates are visible within 30–60 minutes. If you just updated a record and DNS Watch doesn't show the change yet, wait 30 minutes and check again. The TTL (Time To Live) value shown for each record indicates how long DNS servers cache that record.

Our score is out of 100: 90+ is excellent — all critical authentication records are in place. 70–89 is good — minor improvements possible. 40–69 is fair — missing important records. Below 40 is poor — critical issues that will cause emails to land in spam or be rejected. DMARC and SPF together account for 55 of the 100 points.

Yes — DNS Watch is completely free, requires no account, and has no usage limits. It's provided by ASP OL Media as part of our suite of free email marketing tools. If you need expert help interpreting your results or fixing deliverability issues, our team is available for a free consultation.