How to warm up a new email domain step by step in 2025

When you learn how to warm up email domain, you protect your email reputation and improve your chances of landing in the inbox. If you skip the warm up a domain process, your emails may end up in spam or miss their target. Studies show that up to 40% of new email domains face deliverability issues if you do not warm up a new domain. A proper email warm up can raise inbox placement rates from 54% to 93% in just two weeks. To succeed, start slow, increase your volume over 14–30 days, and always monitor your progress. Mails.ai makes the domain warm-up process simple by automating every step for you.

Key Takeaways

• Begin warming up your new email domain by sending only a few emails each day. Slowly send more emails over 14 to 30 days. This helps inbox providers trust your domain.

• Set up important email authentication protocols like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC before you send any emails. These help protect your domain and make sure your emails get delivered.

• First, send emails to your most engaged contacts. These are people who open and reply to your emails a lot. Later, send emails to less active users. This keeps your sender reputation strong.

• Keep your email list clean by removing invalid, inactive, or role-based addresses. This lowers bounce rates and helps you avoid spam complaints.

• Use tools like Mails.ai to automate the warm-up process. These tools help you watch key metrics and fix problems fast. This helps your emails reach more inboxes and helps your business grow.

Why Warm Up a Domain

Risks of Skipping Domain Warm-Up

If you send emails from a new domain without warming up, you risk your email reputation. Inbox providers notice if you send lots of emails quickly. If you send 100 emails on day one, your domain looks strange. Your emails might go to spam or bounce back. Sometimes, inbox providers block your domain. A burned domain hurts everyone who uses it. Fixing this is very hard and often fails.

Tip: Always begin slowly. Warming up a domain carefully helps you avoid these problems.

Other risks include:

• Spam filters may mark your emails as junk.

• Your domain could get blacklisted, which is tough to fix.

• Your email deliverability can drop for future campaigns.

• You may get high bounce rates with bad recipient lists.

• Inbox providers may lose trust, making it harder to reach people.

Skipping domain warming can ruin your chance to build a good email reputation. Even your best emails may not reach the inbox.

Benefits of a Proper Email Warm Up

A good domain warming process helps you earn trust with inbox providers. You start by sending a few emails to people who are likely to open them. You slowly send more emails over time. This shows you are a real sender, not a spammer. Your email deliverability gets better because inbox providers see people opening and replying.

A proper warm-up helps you:

1. Build a good email reputation by avoiding big jumps in volume.

2. Get more emails into inboxes, so more people see them.

3. Watch important numbers like open rates and bounce rates to catch problems early.

4. Use authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) to prove who you are.

5. Split your audience for better engagement.

When you follow a domain warming plan, more emails reach inboxes. You get higher open and click rates. Your campaigns do better, and you keep your domain safe for the future.

How to Warm Up Email Domain: Step-by-Step

Warming up a new domain helps inbox providers trust you. It also keeps your sender reputation safe. Follow these steps to make sure your emails reach the inbox and help your email outreach.

Initial Setup and Authentication

First, set up your domain and make sure it is authenticated. This is very important for domain warming and deliverability. You must add three main authentication protocols to your DNS records:

• SPF lets certain IP addresses send emails for your domain.

• DKIM puts a digital signature on your emails to show they are real.

• DMARC tells servers what to do if emails fail SPF or DKIM checks.

Set up SPF and DKIM first, then add DMARC. All three use DNS TXT records. Most mailbox providers want these for bulk senders. This setup stops spoofing and phishing. It also helps your emails get to the inbox.

Tip: Wait for DNS changes to finish. This can take one to three days. Lower your TTL before you make changes to speed things up.

Start with Low Volume

Begin by sending only a few emails each day. This helps you avoid spam filters. It also builds a good sending history. If you send too many emails too fast, your reputation can get hurt. Your emails may go to spam.

Here is a good schedule for your first week:

Send emails to your most engaged recipients first. This tells mailbox providers your emails are wanted and safe. A warm-up tool like Mails.ai can help you manage this and avoid mistakes.

Gradually Increase Sending

After the first week, slowly send more emails each day. This step-by-step growth is important for domain warming. Double your daily volume each week, but always watch your open and bounce rates.

1. Week 1: Send to your most active contacts (10–20 per day).

2. Weeks 2–3: Double your volume each week (20 → 40 → 80), and add moderately engaged users.

3. Week 4 and after: Send your full daily volume, but skip risky or inactive emails.

Do not send too many emails at once. If you increase too fast, mailbox providers may think your domain is suspicious. This can put your emails in spam or get you blacklisted. Use a warm-up tool to track your progress.

Segment and Target Engaged Users

Split your list by how much people interact with your emails. Start with the most engaged recipients. These people open, click, and reply to your emails. High engagement shows inbox providers your emails are good.

You can find engaged recipients by looking at:

Targeting engaged users first helps your open rates. It also builds a strong sender reputation. As your domain warms up, send to less engaged groups. AI tools like Mails.ai can help you split your list and personalize your emails.

Maintain List Hygiene

Keep your email list clean during the warmup. Remove invalid, inactive, or role-based addresses like info@ or support@. This lowers bounce rates and spam complaints. It also protects your sender reputation.

A warm-up tool with email verification, like Mails.ai, can remove fake or unused addresses for you. This keeps your list healthy and helps your email warm up work better.

Use Mails.ai Email Warmup

Mails.ai does every step of the warmup for you. The platform uses mailbox warmup and campaign warmup to build trust with inbox providers. AI engagement acts like real users by opening, replying, and moving emails. This boosts your sender reputation.

Key features include:

• Unlimited email accounts and sending for all your brands or teams.

• AI automation that changes sending times and simulates engagement.

• Free email verification to remove bad addresses and lower bounces.

• Inbox rotation to spread activity and avoid spam filters.

• Advanced analytics to track open rates, replies, bounces, and spam complaints.

Mails.ai’s warm-up tool saves you time and works better than doing it by hand. You can start campaigns faster, send more emails, and keep deliverability high. The analytics help you watch every step and make smart choices.

Note: AI personalization and timing can boost response rates by up to 142%. Mails.ai’s automation helps you warm up email domains fast so you can grow your business.

Monitoring the Domain Warm-Up Process

Track Key Metrics

You must watch important numbers during domain warm-up. These numbers tell you if your emails are working well. They also help you find problems early. Watching open rates, bounce rates, and complaint rates keeps your sender reputation safe. It also helps more emails reach inboxes.

Here is a table to show what you should check:

You should also look at your Trust Score. This score shows if your sender health is good. It helps you see if you are making progress. Mails.ai gives you live numbers for opens, bounces, replies, and spam complaints. You can check if your email deliverability gets better as you warm up your domain.

Troubleshoot Deliverability Issues

Sometimes you have problems during domain warm-up. High bounce rates or spam complaints can hurt your email deliverability. You need to fix these problems fast.

Try these steps to solve common issues:

1. Clean your email list often. Take out bad or old addresses to lower bounces.

2. Watch catch-all addresses. Keep them under 25% to avoid hidden bad emails.

3. Run spam tests. Check your email content and settings to stop spam filtering.

4. Use email verification tools. Mails.ai helps you find and remove risky contacts.

5. Raise sending volume slowly. Do not rush the warm-up process.

6. Set up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. These help inbox providers trust you.

7. Watch your numbers. If bounce rates go over 3%, clean your list right away. Keep complaint rates under 0.1%.

8. Use Mails.ai’s reporting features. The platform tracks every number and warns you about problems.

Tip: If you see low open rates or lots of spam complaints, stop sending. Check your list and email content. Change your plan before you start sending again.

Mails.ai makes it simple to watch and fix problems. You get easy-to-read reports and alerts. This helps you keep your domain safe and improve email deliverability.

Best Practices for Email Warm Up

Consistency and Frequency

You need to keep a steady schedule when you warm up a new domain. Consistent sending patterns help build trust with email providers and your subscribers. If you send emails at the same time and in similar amounts each day, your messages look more legitimate. This makes it easier for your emails to reach the inbox.

Here is a simple plan for your email warm up:

1. Start by sending 2–5 emails per day for the first five days.

2. Increase the number of emails each day or week.

3. By day 7, aim for about 20 emails per day.

4. In week 2, raise your daily volume to around 40 emails.

5. In week 3 and beyond, send 60–100 emails per day.

6. Keep increasing slowly until you reach your target volume.

7. Continue sending warm-up emails even after the first month to keep your email reputation strong.

Keeping a regular schedule and avoiding sudden spikes in volume helps you avoid spam filters and keeps your email outreach healthy.

Avoiding Spam Triggers

You must avoid common spam triggers to protect your sender reputation. Spam filters look for certain words, formats, and behaviors. If you make mistakes, your emails may go to the spam folder.

Follow these tips to stay safe:

1. Do not use words like "free," "guarantee," or "best price."

2. Avoid ALL CAPS and too many exclamation marks.

3. Set up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records for your domain.

4. Do not send large batches of emails from a new domain.

5. Use simple text and limit images in your emails.

6. Personalize your emails with the recipient’s name.

7. Never send attachments during warm-up.

8. Use a familiar sender name and avoid using CC.

You can also check your email content and formatting with this table:

Ongoing Use of Mails.ai

After you finish the initial warm-up, you should keep using a warm-up tool like Mails.ai. This platform uses AI to copy real human sending patterns. It sends emails from multiple accounts and rotates inboxes to keep your sending activity natural. Mails.ai also gives you strong analytics, so you can watch your results and fix problems fast.

With Mails.ai, you get:

• AI-driven sending that mimics real users.

• Dual-layer warm-up for both your mailbox and campaigns.

• Inbox rotation to spread out your emails and avoid blacklists.

• Free email verification to keep your lists clean.

• Unlimited sending and account connections for easy scaling.

These features help you keep your email outreach strong and your emails landing in the inbox. You protect your sender reputation and grow your business with confidence.

If you follow each step, your sender reputation stays safe. You also help your emails get delivered better. Slowly send more emails and get real people to reply. This makes inbox providers trust you more. Mails.ai does all these steps for you. It saves you time and lowers your risk.

Try Mails.ai for free and watch your emails reach more inboxes: https://www.mails.ai/email-warmup

FAQ

How long should you warm up a new email domain?

You should warm up a new domain for 14 to 30 days. This slow process helps you build trust with inbox providers and protects your sender reputation.

What happens if you skip the warm-up process?

Your emails may go to spam or bounce. Inbox providers can block your domain. You risk losing future deliverability and damaging your reputation.

Can you automate domain warmup with Mails.ai?

Yes! Mails.ai automates every step. You get AI-driven engagement, inbox rotation, and free email verification. The platform tracks your progress and keeps your domain safe.

What is a Trust Score and why does it matter?

Trust Score shows your sender health. It uses open rates, bounces, and spam recovery. A high Trust Score means inbox providers trust your emails.

Tip: Check your Trust Score often in Mails.ai to spot problems early.