ValidMailReference Guide
What Does Each Email Status Mean?
ValidMail returns 6 status types. Here is exactly what each one means, what causes it, and what you should do with it.
The 6 Email Statuses
Every email you validate receives one of these statuses.
The email address exists, the mail server is active, and the mailbox accepts incoming messages.
SMTP handshake confirmed delivery acceptance.
Send with confidence. This email will deliver.
The email address does not exist or the mail server permanently rejected it.
550/551 SMTP error — mailbox does not exist.
Remove immediately from all lists. Never send to this address.
The email may exist but carries a high risk of bouncing. This includes disposable addresses, full mailboxes, or domains with poor reputation.
Disposable domain detected, mailbox full, or DNS issues.
Send with caution or exclude from critical campaigns.
The mail server accepts messages for any address at the domain. Delivery is technically possible but individual mailbox existence cannot be confirmed.
Server configured to accept all incoming mail regardless of recipient.
Send with caution. Monitor bounce rates per domain and suppress if bounces appear.
ValidMail could not determine the status with confidence. This happens when SMTP servers timeout, apply greylisting, or return ambiguous responses.
Greylisted servers, temporary SMTP errors, or rate-limited responses.
Retry validation after 24–48 hours. If still Unknown, treat as risky or remove.
The email address cannot be verified through any available method. The domain may lack MX records, use privacy-focused configurations, or block all verification attempts.
No MX records, firewall-blocked SMTP, or privacy-proxy domains.
Do not send. These addresses carry high bounce risk and could harm sender reputation.
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