Email Validation

Check an address before you send to it. One address in, one verdict out, fast enough for a signup form.

How it works

Each address runs through the checks in order and stops at the first clear answer: syntax, whether the domain is a throwaway or one we block, whether the address has already failed for us, then whether the domain can receive mail or looks misspelled.

If nothing settles it, we ask the recipient's server whether the mailbox exists. Some answer, some do not. Only a confirmation earns deliverable; otherwise the status says which way the evidence leans.

Authentication

Same bearer token as the rest of the API. See Authentication.

The service account needs email:validate, separate from email:send so a key embedded in a signup flow can check addresses without sending mail. Create a validate-only key from the portal.

Validate an address

curl -X POST https://api.mailverick.com/v1/validate-email \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer <access_token>" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{ "email": "user@example.com" }'

Request body

One reason appears under two statuses. previously_bounced is the same past bounce either way: read status for whether the address is worth sending to, and reason for what happened to it.

Response

{
  "email": "user@example.com",
  "status": "deliverable",
  "reason": "accepted",
  "did_you_mean": null,
  "disposable": false,
  "role": false
}

Status

Four values, ordered by confidence. If you branch on one field, branch on this one. The two probably_ values mean no server confirmed the mailbox either way; they differ only in which way the evidence points.

Quality flags

disposable and role ask whether you want the address, not whether mail will arrive. Both kinds usually do receive mail, so neither changes the status. What you do with them is your call.

Reason

status is derived from reason. New reasons may appear within the existing statuses: treat an unrecognized one as its status.

Examples

A misspelled domain, with a suggestion:

{
  "email": "user@gmial.com",
  "status": "probably_undeliverable",
  "reason": "domain_typo",
  "did_you_mean": "user@gmail.com",
  "disposable": false,
  "role": false
}

A confirmed dead mailbox:

{
  "email": "nobody@example.com",
  "status": "undeliverable",
  "reason": "does_not_exist",
  "did_you_mean": null,
  "disposable": false,
  "role": false
}

Errors

Every verdict comes back as 200. A non-2xx response means the request itself could not be processed.

What's next

For what happens after you send, read Email Events: delivery status, bounces, opens, clicks, and spam reports in real time.