READING EMAIL HEADERS

The Field Guide

5 chapters · last updated 21 September 2026 · free to read

Almost every question about why an email did or did not arrive is answered in its headers, and almost nobody knows how to read them.

This is the short version: which headers matter, what the authentication results tell you, and how to trace a message backwards.

Chapter 1 of 5

Getting the full headers

Where each client hides them.

Getting the full headers

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Chapter 2 of 5

Received headers

Reading a path backwards, hop by hop.

Received headers

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Chapter 3 of 5

Authentication-Results

What the receiving server concluded about SPF, DKIM and DMARC.

Authentication-Results

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Chapter 4 of 5

Envelope versus header sender

Two different addresses, and which one is checked.

Envelope versus header sender

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Chapter 5 of 5

Spotting a forgery

What does not add up in a spoofed message.

Spotting a forgery

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Check yours

See where your own domain stands.

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