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Verifying DKIM and Return-Path

Set up DKIM and Return-Path to send review requests from your business email

Updated today

Available on the Free plan


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Why use a custom email sender

By default, we send your review request emails from requests+yourstore@judge.me and other emails from requests@judge.me.

However, you can send the review request emails (and sample review request emails) from your business email (e.g., company@business.com) to make the review requests feel more personal.

Judge.me can send the following emails from your business domain:

  • Review request emails

  • Review request reminder emails

  • Sample review request emails (used to preview your templates)

Important:

When you send emails from your own domain, proper email authentication becomes essential. Without it, your emails may be rejected by major email providers like Gmail, Yahoo, or Outlook.

What is email authentication?

Email authentication uses DNS records to verify that Judge.me is allowed to send emails using your domain. This confirms your messages are legitimate and haven’t been tampered with. There are three key components:

What is DKIM?

DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) is like a digital signature that proves your email hasn't been tampered with. It's a security seal that shows the email genuinely came from your domain.

What is Return-Path?

Return-Path tells email providers where to send bounce notifications and helps with email authentication. When properly configured, it helps ensure your emails are trusted by major email providers.

What is DMARC?

DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance) is like a security guard for your email domain. It tells email providers what to do if an email claiming to be from your domain fails authentication checks:

  • Should it still be delivered?

  • Should it go to spam?

  • Should it be blocked completely?

What happens if email authentication isn’t set up correctly?

  • Email bounces: Your emails may be rejected with errors like “DMARC policy” or “authentication failure.”

  • Spam folder delivery: Some emails may get through, but land in spam folders.

  • Delivery failures: Major email providers (Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook) increasingly require proper authentication.

  • Reputation damage: Failed authentication attempts can hurt your domain's email reputation.

The review requests will still be sent from requests+yourstore@judge.me if:

  • You added a custom sender without confirming the sender signature and verifying the DKIM and Return-path.

  • You added a custom sender and verified the DKIM and Return-path, but didn't confirm the sender signature.

The review request will be bounced with the error "DKIM/Return-Path not verified" if:

  • You add a custom sender and confirm the sender signature without verifying DKIM and Return-Path.

Steps to set up email authentication

To send Judge.me emails from your own domain safely and reliably, you’ll need to complete three quick authentication steps:

Step 1: Add your custom sender email in Judge.me.

Step 2: Confirm your sender signature with Postmark (our email provider).

Step 3: Verify DKIM and Return-Path (the technical security settings).

Step 4: Verifying the records in Judge.me.

Before you start

To see the exact email address used for your store:

  1. From your Judge.me admin, go to Collect reviews > Emails.

  2. In the Sender info section, find the email address under Sender email.

See the steps for the new app design (coming soon)

You can find the exact email address Judge.me uses from your store.

To find your store's sender email:

  1. From your Judge.me admin, go to Settings > Email templates.

  2. Click Edit sender settings in the top right corner.
    ​

  3. In the Sender info section, check the email listed under Sender email.

What the sender email looks like:

Step 1: Add your custom sender email in Judge.me

To add your custom email address:

  1. From your Judge.me admin, go to Collect Reviews > Email Settings.

  2. In the Sender info section, click Add custom email.

  3. Enter your business email address.

  4. Click Send confirmation email.

See the steps for the new app design (coming soon)

To add your custom sender email:

  1. From your Judge.me admin, go to Settings > Email templates.

  2. Click Edit sender settings in the top right corner.
    ​

  3. In the Sender info section, click Add custom email.

  4. Enter your business email address.

  5. Click Send confirmation email.
    ​

Note:
We only support business domains (e.g., @shopify.com). Public email providers such as @gmail.com and @outlook.com cannot be used as sender addresses.

Step 2: Confirm sender signature with Postmark

After you add your custom sender email:

  • Our email provider (Postmark) will send you a confirmation email with the subject “Verify your email for … to send Judge.me review requests”.

  • Open the email and click Confirm Sender Signatures to continue.

Didn’t receive the confirmation email?
No worries! Just contact our support team and we’ll help you out!

Step 3: Verify DKIM and Return-Path

After adding your custom sender email and confirming the sender signature, you can verify DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) and Return-Path to ensure your emails are trusted, land in inboxes, and avoid spam filters.

You'll find your unique DKIM and Return-Path records in Collect Reviews > Email Settings > Add custom email.

  1. Keep this page open.

  2. Log into your DNS provider (e.g., Shopify, GoDaddy, Cloudflare).

  3. Add the provided TXT and CNAME records exactly as shown in Judge.me.

  4. If your DNS provider asks for TTL (Time To Live), leave it at the default setting.

See the steps for the new app design (coming soon)

Once you’ve added your custom sender email, you’ll need to add two DNS records (DKIM and Return-Path) to authenticate your domain.

To find your domain records:

  1. From your Judge.me admin, go to Settings > Email templates.

  2. Click Edit sender settings in the top right corner.
    ​

  3. Scroll down to the Domain records section.
    ​Keep this page open, you’ll copy these values in the next step.

To add the records to your DNS:

  1. Log in to your DNS provider (e.g. Shopify, GoDaddy, Cloudflare).

  2. Create two new DNS records, one TXT and one CNAME, using the exact values shown in Judge.me.

  3. If your DNS provider asks for TTL (Time To Live), leave it at the default setting.

If you're unsure who your DNS provider is:

  • Go to ICANN Lookup.

  • Enter your email domain (e.g. yourstore.com) and click Lookup.

  • Scroll down to Registrar Information and look for Name.

    • If it lists TUCOWS, your DNS provider is likely Shopify.

    • If it lists a hosting service (e.g., GoDaddy, Cloudflare), that's your provider.

Note:
This step must be completed by you (the store owner or your technical team). Judge.me cannot make changes to your DNS settings, as we do not have access to your DNS provider.

Modifying your DMARC policy (if required)

What is DMARC doing? Your DMARC record tells email providers what to do if an email from your domain fails authentication. If your policy is currently set to reject or quarantine, you can change it to none to start monitoring email traffic without blocking any messages.

To update your DMARC policy:

  1. Access your DNS settings

    • Go to your domain registrar (e.g. Cloudflare, GoDaddy) or hosting provider.

    • Find the DNS settings or DNS zone editor for your domain.

  2. Locate your DMARC record

    • Look for a TXT record with the hostname: _dmarc.

    • The value will look something like this:

    • v=DMARC1; p=reject; rua=mailto:dmarc@example.com

  3. Update the DMARC policy

    • In the record's value, find the p= tag.

    • Change its value to none.

    • For example:

    • v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc@example.com

  4. Save your changes

What each part means:

  • p=none: Monitor mode. Emails won’t be blocked, but you’ll receive reports.

  • rua=mailto: Where to send weekly reports about your email authentication.
    ​

If you have any questions, contact our team at support@judge.me. We're available to help 24/7!

Detailed guide for each DNS provider

Shopify

To open your DNS Settings in Shopify:

  1. From your Shopify admin, go to Settings > Domains.

  2. Select the domain that you want to configure.

  3. Click Domain settings and select Edit DNS settings.

To add DKIM:

  1. Click Add custom record and select TXT record.

    • In the Name field: Copy and paste the DKIM Hostname from Judge.me.

    • In the TXT value field: Copy and paste the DKIM Value from Judge.me.

  2. Click Confirm.

To add Return-Path:

  1. Click Add custom record and select CNAME record.

    • In the Name field: Enter pm-bounces.

    • In the Points to field: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  2. Click Confirm.

Bluehost

To open your DNS Settings in Bluehost:

  1. From your Bluehost admin, go to Domains > My Domains.

  2. In the domain that you want to configure, click Manage > DNS.

To add DKIM:

  1. Scroll down to the TXT section.

  2. Click Add record.

    • In the Host Record field: Copy and paste the DKIM Hostname from Judge.me.

    • In the TXT Value field: Copy and paste the DKIM Value from Judge.me.

  3. Click Save.

To add Return-Path:

  1. Scroll down to the CNAME section.

  2. Click Add record.

    • In the Host Record field: Enter pm-bounces.

    • In the Points To field: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  3. Click Save.

GoDaddy

To open your DNS Settings in GoDaddy:

  1. Sign in to your GoDaddy Domain Portfolio.

  2. Click DNS > DNS records.

To add DKIM:

  1. Click Add New Record select TXT.

    • In the Name field: Copy and paste the DKIM Hostname from Judge.me.

    • In the Value field: Copy and paste the DKIM Value from Judge.me.

  2. Click Save.

To add Return-Path:

  1. Click Add New Record and select CNAME.

    • In the Name field: Enter pm-bounces.

    • In the Value field: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  2. Click Save.

Squarespace

To open your DNS Settings in Squarespace:

  1. From your Squarespace admin, go to DNS > DNS Settings.

  2. Scroll down to Custom Records.

To add DKIM:

  1. Click Add record and select TXT.

    • In the Host field: Copy and paste the DKIM Hostname from Judge.me.

    • In the Data field: Copy and paste the DKIM Value from Judge.me.

  2. Click Save.

To add Return-Path:

  1. Click Add record and select CNAME.

    • In the Host field: Enter pm-bounces.

    • In the Data field: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  2. Click Save.

Cloudflare

To open your DNS Settings in Cloudflare:

  • From your Cloudflare admin, click DNS.

To add DKIM:

  1. Click Add record and select TXT.

    • In the Name field: Copy and paste the DKIM Hostname from Judge.me.

    • In the Content field: Copy and paste the DKIM Value from Judge.me.

    • In the Proxy status field: Set to DNS only.

  2. Click Save.

To add Return-Path:

  1. Click Add record and select CNAME.

    • In the Name field: Enter pm-bounces.

    • In the Content field: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

    • In the Proxy status field: Set to DNS only.

  2. Click Save.

Namecheap

To open your DNS Settings in Namecheap:

  1. From your Namecheap admin, go to Domain List.

  2. Click Manage next to your domain and go to the Advanced DNS tab.

To add DKIM:

  1. Click Add new record and select TXT.

    • In the Name field: Copy and paste the DKIM Hostname from Judge.me.

    • In the Value field: Copy and paste the DKIM Value from Judge.me.

  2. Click Save all changes.

To add Return-Path:

  1. Click Add new record and select CNAME.

    • Host: Enter pm-bounces.

    • Value: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  2. Click Save all changes.

DNSimple

To open your DNS Settings in DNSimple:

  • From your DNSimple admin, go to the DNS record editor.

To add DKIM:

  1. From the Add a Record menu, select TXT record.

    • In the Name field: Copy and paste the DKIM Hostname from Judge.me.

    • In the Content field: Copy and paste the DKIM Value from Judge.me.

  2. Click Add record.

To add Return-Path:

  1. From the Add a Record menu, select CNAME record.

    • In the Name field: Enter pm-bounces.

    • In the Content field: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  2. Click Add record.

SiteGround

To open your DNS Settings in SiteGround:

  • From your SiteGround admin, go to Site Tools > Domain > DNS Zone Editor.

To add DKIM:

  1. From the Create New Record section, go to the TXT tab.

    • In the Name field: Copy and paste the DKIM Hostname from Judge.me.

    • In the Value field: Copy and paste the DKIM Value from Judge.me.

  2. Click Create.

To add Return-Path:

  1. From the Create New Record section, go to the CNAME tab.

    • In the Name field: Enter pm-bounces.

    • In the Resolves to field: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  2. Click Create.

Linode

To open your DNS Settings in Linode:

  1. From your Linode admin, go to Domains and click on the domain you want.

To add DKIM:

  1. Scroll down to TXT record and click Add a TXT Record.

    • Hostname: Paste in the DKIM hostname from Step 1.

    • Value: Paste in the DKIM value from Step 1.

  2. Click Save.

To add Return-Path:

  1. Scroll down to CNAME record and click Add a CNAME Record.

    • Hostname: Enter pm-bounces.

    • Alias to: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  2. Click Save.

DNS Made Easy

To open your DNS Settings in DNS Made Easy:

  1. From your DNS Made Easy admin, go to the DNS dropdown and select Managed DNS.

  2. Select the domain you want.

To add DKIM:

  1. On the Records page, scroll down to TXT Records (SPF) and click on "+".

    • Name: Paste in the DKIM hostname from Step 1.

    • Value: Paste in the DKIM value from Step 1.

  2. Click Submit.

To add Return-Path:

  1. On the Records page, scroll down to CNAME records and click on "+".

    • Name: Enter pm-bounces.

    • Alias to: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  2. Click Submit.

Dreamhost

To open your DNS Settings in Dreamhost:

  1. From your Dreamhost admin, go to Manage Websites > DNS Settings.

To add DKIM:

  1. Click Add Record.

  2. Hover over the TXT Record section and click ADD.

    • Host: Paste in the DKIM hostname from Step 1.

    • TXT Value: Paste in the DKIM value from Step 1.

  3. Click Add Record.

To add Return-Path:

  1. Click Add Record again.

  2. Hover over the CNAME Record section and click ADD.

    • Host: Enter pm-bounces.

    • Points to: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  3. Click Add Record.

DigitalOcean

To open your DNS Settings in DigitalOcean:

  1. From your DigitalOcean admin, go to Networking and click on the domain you want.

To add DKIM:

  1. In Create new record, go to the TXT tab.

    • Value: Paste in the DKIM value from Step 1.

    • Hostname: Paste in the DKIM hostname from Step 1.

  2. Click Create record.

To add Return-Path:

  1. In Create new record, now go to the CNAME tab.

    • Hostname: Enter pm-bounces.

    • Is an alias of: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  2. Click Create record.

Hostgator

To open your DNS Settings in Hostgator:

  1. From your Hostgator admin, go to Domains > click Zone Editor.

  2. Go to the domain you want and click Manage.

To add DKIM:

  1. Click + Add Record.

    • Name: Paste in the DKIM hostname from Step 1.

    • Type: Select TXT.

    • Record: Paste in the DKIM value from Step 1.

  2. Click Add Record.

To add Return-Path:

  1. Click + Add Record again.

    • Name: Enter pm-bounces.

    • Type: Select CNAME.

    • Record: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  2. Click Add Record.

Hover

To open your DNS Settings in Hostgator:

  1. From your Hover admin, go to the Domain's Overview page> DNS section.

To add DKIM:

  1. Click Add a record.

    • Type: Select TXT.

    • Host: Paste in the DKIM hostname from Step 1.

    • Value: Paste in the DKIM value from Step 1.

  2. Click Add Record.

To add Return-Path:

  1. Click Add a record again.

    • Type: Select CNAME.

    • Host: Enter pm-bounces.

    • Value: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  2. Click Add Record.

Media Temple

To open your DNS Settings in Media Temple:

  1. From your Media Temple admin, select the domain you want.

  2. Under DNS & ZONE FILES, click Edit DNS Zone File.

To add DKIM:

  1. Click + Add row.

    • Name: Paste in the DKIM hostname from Step 1.

    • Type: Select TXT.

    • Date: Paste in the DKIM value from Step 1.

  2. Click Save changes.

To add Return-Path:

  1. Click + Add row.

    • Name: Enter pm-bounces.

    • Type: Select CNAME.

    • Date: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  2. Click Save changes.

Gandi

To open your DNS Settings in Gandi:

  1. From your Gandi admin, under Domain, select your domain and click DNS Records.

To add DKIM:

  1. Click Add.

    • Type: Select TXT.

    • Name: Paste in the DKIM hostname from Step 1.

    • Text value: Paste in the DKIM value from Step 1.

  2. Click Create.

To add Return-Path:

  1. Click Add.

    • Type: Select CNAME.

    • Name: Enter pm-bounces.

    • Text value: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  2. Click Create.

Netregistry

To open your DNS Settings in Netregistry:

  1. From your Netregistry admin, select the domain you want.

  2. Go to Zone Manager.

To add DKIM:

  1. Click Add a zone record.

    • Type: Select TXT.

    • Name: Paste in the DKIM hostname from Step 1 .

    • Content: Paste in the DKIM value from Step 1. Make sure to put it inside a speech mark “...”.

  2. Click Add Record.

To add Return-Path:

  1. Click Add a zone record again.

    • Type: Select CNAME.

    • Name: Enter pm-bounces.

    • Points to: Enter pm.mtasv.net.

  2. Click Add Record.

IONOS

To open your DNS Settings in IONOS:

  • From your IONOS admin, click the gear symbol under Actions > DNS.

To add DKIM:

  1. Click Add Record and select TXT under Type.

    • In the Host name field: Copy and paste the DKIM Hostname from Judge.me.

    • In the Value field: Copy and paste the DKIM Value from Judge.me.

  2. Click Save.

Step 4: Verifying the records in Judge.me

DNS record changes can take a few minutes to 48 hours to propagate.

  1. From your Judge.me admin, go to Collect Reviews > Email Settings.

  2. Click Add custom email.

  3. Once the records are verified, you’ll see the "Verified" status for the DKIM and Return-Path.

See the steps for the new app design (coming soon)

To check if your DKIM and Return-Path records are verified:

  1. From your Judge.me admin, go to Settings > Email templates.

  2. Click Edit sender settings in the top right corner.
    ​

  3. Scroll to the Domain records section.

Once your records and verified, you’ll see a "Verified" status for the DKIM and Return-Path.

Troubleshoot

I want to change the sender email

To change your custom sender email to a different email or to use our default email instead:

  1. From your Judge.me admin, go to Collect Reviews > Email Settings.

  2. In the Sender info section, click Add custom email.

  3. Click the Change email button.

  4. Enter the new email (or "requests@judge.me" if you want to use our default email address) and click Send confirmation email.

After changing the email address, the settings page may still display the old email due to caching.

To view the updated sender email: Try clearing your browser cache or opening the settings page in an incognito/private window.

Once you've added the new email, make sure to:

  • Confirm the new email via the confirmation link sent by Postmark

  • Verify DKIM and Return-Path settings to ensure proper email delivery.
    ​

See the steps for the new app design (coming soon)

You can update your custom sender email or switch back to the default Judge.me address.

To change your sender email:

  1. From your Judge.me admin, go to Settings > Email templates.

  2. Click Edit sender settings in the top right corner.
    ​

  3. In the Add custom email section, click Change email.
    ​

  4. Enter your new email address, or use requests+yourstore@judge.me to return to the default.

  5. Click Send confirmation email and follow the instructions in your inbox to verify the new address.
    ​

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