A TXT record stores a piece of text in DNS. It sounds plain, but several parts of email security depend on it.
SPF lists the servers allowed to send email for your domain. DMARC and DKIM publish their settings and keys as text. Many services also ask for a TXT record to prove that you control the domain.
A name can hold several TXT records, for example one for domain verification and another for a service. The exception is SPF: a name must have only one SPF record.
A single text string in DNS is limited to 255 characters. Longer values, such as DKIM keys, are split into several strings that receivers join together.
Stray spaces or quotation marks can break a record. Adding a second SPF record instead of editing the first is a frequent mistake.
DNS Domain Detective reads the TXT records that matter for email and points out what to fix. Open DNS Domain Detective
DNS Domain Detective is now available on the App Store.
Last reviewed: 2026-11-02
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