Domain blacklist checker: is your domain on an email blocklist?
In short: Check if your domain is on an email blacklist: live URIBL and NordSpam DBL lookups, with Spamhaus DBL and SURBL linked, and refusals shown as unchecked. Limit: It checks the domain, not your sending IP address. IP lists are separate; use the IP blacklist check.
A domain blacklist checker looks your domain up on the blocklists spam filters use to judge the domains in a message: the From address and every link. Enter a domain and this one queries URIBL and the NordSpam DBL live over DNS, links you to Spamhaus DBL and SURBL, and reports any list that refuses the query as unchecked.
Paste a domain, an email address or a link. Free, no account, ten checks a minute. For your mail server's address, use the IP blacklist check.
By SimpleVerifier Team · Last updated
Also in: Português (Brasil) · Español
Sample result
acme.example is not listed on URIBL or the NordSpam DBL, and both lists answered their test entries.
- Domain
- acme.example
- Queried live
- URIBL, NordSpam DBL
- Linked lookups
- Spamhaus DBL, SURBL
What this means for you
Domain blocklists aren't the problem; check SPF, DKIM, DMARC and your sending IP next if mail lands in spam.
- Live URIBL and NordSpam DBL lookups
- Each list's test entry checked too
- Spamhaus DBL and SURBL linked, per their terms
- DNS lookups only, nothing sent
- Blocklist
- Domain
- URIBL
Which domain blocklists does this checker query?
Two, live: URIBL, whose public mirrors are offered for low-volume use, and the NordSpam DBL, which is free for commercial and non-commercial use under 10,000 queries a day. Each lookup is one DNS query plus the list's own test entry, and results are cached for 15 minutes so repeat checks don't add load.
Two more are linked rather than queried. The Spamhaus DNSBL terms allow free queries only for non-commercial use from your own resolver, and SURBL's usage policy excludes services run alongside a paid product. We sell list verification, so we respect both: the result links to Spamhaus's lookup and SURBL's lookup, which are free to use by hand.
What do the URIBL black, grey and red results mean?
URIBL answers with a bitmask, and each bit is a different list. Black is its high-confidence list of domains used by spammers. Grey covers domains found in bulk mail whose recipients may not have opted in, and URIBL itself warns it can catch legitimate senders and email platforms. Red is a watch list of domains that are active in mail flow and are new, monitored or behind whois privacy.
So treat them differently. A black listing is a real problem to fix. Grey usually means your mail looks like unsolicited bulk mail, so permission and list quality come first. Red on a brand-new domain is common and often clears as the domain builds history; domain warm-up is the usual answer.
Why is my domain blacklisted?
Usually because of what was sent from it or linked in it. Three causes come up again and again: a spike in hard bounces, which signals a list that was bought or scraped rather than earned; recipient complaints above the rate a provider tolerates; and mail arriving at spam traps, which is strong evidence of scraped or purchased addresses.
Domain lists also catch domains that only appear in links. A link shortener, a tracking domain or a site that was hacked can be listed even if you never sent spam, and every message linking to it inherits the problem. Check the domains in your links as well as the one in your From address.
How do I get my domain removed from a blacklist?
Fix the cause, then use that list's own removal process. URIBL takes delisting requests through its site after you register; NordSpam has a delist page; Spamhaus and SURBL handle removals from their lookup pages. Some listings expire after a quiet period, and repeat listings are slower to clear.
The order matters: stop the cause first. A request filed while the bounces or complaints are still happening tends to produce a second listing soon after. If bounces were the cause, verify the list before the next send so the addresses that don't exist never go out. The blacklist removal guide walks through each step.
Why does a blacklist check say "couldn't check"?
Because the list refused or ignored the query, which says nothing about your domain. Blocklists block resolvers that send too many queries: URIBL answers 127.0.0.1 or 127.0.0.255 to a blocked resolver, and some lists simply return "not found" for everything. Every list publishes a test entry that must always be listed (RFC 5782 sets the convention), so we look that up too.
If the test entry doesn't come back listed, the result is shown as couldn't check rather than as clean. A checker that skips this step tells listed domains they are fine; one that treats any answer as a listing tells clean domains they are blocked. Both send people chasing the wrong problem.
How do I check if my email address or IP is blacklisted?
Check the domain and the sending IP separately; blocklists list those, not single email addresses. This page checks the domain, the part after the @. For the IP address of your mail server, use the IP blacklist check, which queries Spamhaus ZEN, Barracuda, SpamCop and other IP lists. If you send through Google Workspace, Microsoft 365 or an email platform, the sending IPs are theirs, and a listing there is theirs to fix.
Large mailbox providers also keep private reputation systems no public checker can query. Outlook.com publishes a sender support and delisting page, and Gmail shows your domain's reputation in Google Postmaster Tools.
How do I check if my domain is blacklisted?
- Type the domain you send from, or paste an email address or a link; the registered domain is taken from it.
- Press Check blocklists. The tool queries URIBL and the NordSpam DBL over DNS, each with its own test entry, and lists Spamhaus DBL and SURBL with links to their lookups.
- Read each row. Listed names the list and the reason; couldn't check means the list refused or ignored the query, which is neither clean nor listed.
- If you are listed, fix the cause, then follow that list's own removal process. Check your sending IP with the IP blacklist check too.
Example
- You enter
- The domain
acme.example. - You get
- Not listed on URIBL or the NordSpam DBL, both of which also answered their own test entry, so the clean result can be trusted. Spamhaus DBL and SURBL show as "Check on their site" with links to their free lookups.
- Limits
- Ten checks a minute per IP address, one domain at a time; DNS lookups only, cached for 15 minutes.
Who uses this tool, and for what?
- Cold emailers
- Check first when replies and opens collapse overnight. A domain listing explains a sudden drop better than copy or timing does.
- Marketers
- Check the domains in your links as well as your sending domain. Domain blocklists such as URIBL and Spamhaus DBL match domains found anywhere in the message body.
- IT admins
- Confirm a delisting went through before telling users mail is back to normal. For your mail server's IP address, use the IP blacklist check.
What can’t this tool tell you?
- It checks the domain, not your sending IP address. IP lists are separate; use the IP blacklist check.
- It queries two lists live. Spamhaus DBL and SURBL are linked, not queried, because their free terms exclude commercial services; private lists run by mailbox providers can't be queried at all.
- A list can refuse a query. That result is shown as couldn't check, not as a pass.
- Results are cached for 15 minutes, so a delisting can take that long to show here.
- Not being listed doesn't mean mail is delivered. Authentication, reputation and engagement still decide inbox placement.
Sources
Common questions
- How do I check if my domain is blacklisted?
- Enter the domain in the checker above. It queries URIBL and the NordSpam DBL live, links you to the Spamhaus DBL and SURBL lookups, and shows any list that refused the query as unchecked. Check your sending IP separately with the IP blacklist check.
- Why is my domain on a blacklist?
- Usually a spike in hard bounces from a stale or purchased list, spam complaints above the tolerated rate, or mail hitting spam traps. Domain lists also catch domains that only appear in links, such as a hacked site or a shared link shortener.
- How do I get removed from an email blacklist?
- Fix the cause first, then request delisting through that list's own process. Some listings expire on their own after a period of clean sending. Requesting removal while the bounces or complaints continue usually produces another listing.
- Why don't you query Spamhaus DBL directly?
- Spamhaus allows free DNS queries only for non-commercial use from your own resolver, and SURBL's free service excludes services run alongside a paid product. We respect those terms and link to their own lookup pages, which anyone can use free by hand.
- Can an email address be blacklisted?
- Not on public blocklists, which list domains and IP addresses. A single address can be blocked by a recipient or by one provider's own filters, and mail from it suffers if its domain or sending IP is listed.
- How do I check if my email is blacklisted in Outlook?
- Check your domain here and your sending IP with the IP blacklist check, then read the bounce: Outlook.com rejections that mention a block name the reason and link to Microsoft's delisting page at sender.office.com. Microsoft's own block list can't be queried from outside.
- Does a clean blacklist check mean my email will be delivered?
- No. Not being listed removes one obstacle, but authentication, reputation, engagement and content still decide inbox placement. A listing, though, is a near-complete explanation for a sudden drop in delivery, which is why it is worth checking first.
How do I check MX, SPF, DKIM and DMARC at once?
Run the deliverability audit: this page covers one record, and the full deliverability audit runs MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC and blocklists together and scores the domain. Just bought a domain to send from? The new domain email setup check checks up to 25 at once and gives the exact Google Workspace, Microsoft 365 or Zoho records to add, or read the glossary entry for the concept behind this check.
You audited one domain. Cold outreach means thousands.
This tool checks a domain you type in. It will not tell you which addresses at that domain are real.
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