Email health
SPF
Lists which servers are allowed to send mail as your domain. Half of DMARC; you need it.
What it is
Sender Policy Framework — RFC 7208. A DNS TXT record enumerating the IPs and hostnames authorized to send mail on behalf of the domain. Receiving servers check it against the connecting server's IP.
Why it matters
SPF is the cheapest, oldest piece of email auth. No SPF, no DMARC pass via SPF — meaning more legitimate mail lands in spam.
Who it applies to
Every domain that sends email.
How WQI scores it
Web Quality Index considers this standard satisfied when the supporting factor passes.
| # | Factor | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | SPF record present and valid | live |
Related standards
Standards that share factors with this one
Auto-computed from overlapping factor tickets in satisfiedBy, excluding standards already listed under "See also" above. Strong overlap suggests these standards rise and fall together when sites are scored.
Other references
Examples
example.com. IN TXT "v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com include:sendgrid.net -all"-all is hard fail; ~all is soft fail. Use -all once you're confident every legitimate sender is enumerated.
Implementation guidance
- Cloudflare Cloudflare DNS — Add an SPF record
- Google Workspace Define an SPF record
- Generic OpenSPF authoritative reference