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# I'm not receiving emails from my Faaaster site

Start by identifying which emails are involved: those **sent by your WordPress site**, those from a **Faaaster mailbox**, or those **sent by Faaaster** itself. The three don't have the same cause or the same fix.

## Contents

- [1. Emails sent by the WordPress site](#2-1-emails-sent-by-the-wordpress-site)
- [2. Emails from a Faaaster mailbox](#2-2-emails-from-a-faaaster-mailbox)
- [3. Emails sent by Faaaster](#2-3-emails-sent-by-faaaster)

## 1. Emails sent by the WordPress site

This is the most common case: a contact form that never gets answered, an order confirmation that never arrives.

### Check your plan first

> ⚠️ **A site on the Dev plan can't send emails.** This is a deliberate limitation of the free trial, as the interface reminds you: "your site has limited resources and cannot send emails".

If your site is on Dev, no setting will change anything: you need to subscribe to a paid plan.

### How WordPress sends its emails here

WordPress uses PHP's `mail()` function, which Faaaster relays to a sending server. You have **nothing to configure** for sending to work.

So the problem is almost never the sending itself, but the **receiving end**: messages go out and are filed as spam, or rejected.

### Improve deliverability

Three DNS records determine whether your messages are accepted:

| Record | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| **SPF** | Declares which servers are allowed to send on behalf of your domain. |
| **DKIM** | Signs your messages to prove they haven't been altered. |
| **DMARC** | Says what to do with a message that fails the previous two. |

**Without SPF, your emails end up in spam.** It's the first thing to check.

> **The most reliable solution is still a dedicated sending service.** An SMTP plugin — WP Mail SMTP, Post SMTP — connected to Brevo, Mailgun, Postmark or Faaaster's Email service sends your messages from an infrastructure whose reputation is monitored. For an online store, it's not a luxury.

### Check that the site is actually sending

Over SSH, in `www`:

```bash
wp eval 'var_dump( wp_mail( "you@example.com", "Test Faaaster", "This is a test." ) );'
```

A `bool(true)` means WordPress did hand off the message: the problem is then on the receiving side, not on the site's side.

## 2. Emails from a Faaaster mailbox

If you have an Email subscription, the cause is almost always **DNS**.

1. Open the **Emails** section in the left menu.
2. Select the domain.
3. Open its **DNS** section, then click **Refresh**.

The screen shows the number of valid records (**All configured** or **Incomplete configuration**) and details, family by family — MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC —, the expected values. Without valid **MX** records, the mailbox exists but receives nothing. For a domain managed at Faaaster, **Apply automatically** sets up the expected records.

> **DNS propagation can take up to 48 hours.** A negative result right after entering the records doesn't mean the configuration is wrong.

Also check that the mailbox isn't **full**: the list of mailboxes shows the storage used, and the quota can be changed at any time.

## 3. Emails sent by Faaaster

Address verification, alerts, invitations.

1. **Look in your spam folder.** It's the number one cause.
2. **Check your account's email address** in your profile (your avatar menu → **My profile**).
3. **Resend the link** — the verification screen offers **Resend validation link**, and invitations can be resent from the **Team** screen.
4. **Check the organization's notification email**, in **Account settings**: it may differ from your personal address.

> **If nothing arrives even though the address is correct**, your mail server may be blocking Faaaster. Try another address, on another domain, to find out.

👉 [How do I create a mailbox?](https://help.faaaster.io/en-us/article/create-a-mailbox-19fo523/) · [How do I configure DNS for my Email service?](https://help.faaaster.io/en-us/article/configure-email-dns-r23enw/) · [Why do I need to verify my email address?](https://help.faaaster.io/en-us/article/verify-your-email-address-1iomgw1/)