How to add a DMARC record in GoDaddy

Your check shows the DMARC row marked Missing, your domain is at GoDaddy, and the fix is a single record you can add yourself in about five minutes. This page walks the exact clicks and, just as important, tells you what to put in the value so the record actually helps instead of hurting.

What a DMARC record actually does

DMARC is a public note that tells receiving mail servers what to do with a message claiming to be from your domain when it fails your SPF or DKIM checks. No DMARC record, and every server makes up its own mind — some file the message in spam, some deliver it, some drop it quietly. With one, you decide. Gmail, Yahoo and Microsoft 365 all now expect business senders to publish DMARC, which is why a missing record shows up in every serious check.

The record itself is one line of text at a specific name in your DNS. It changes nothing about where your mail is sent from and requires no software — it only tells receivers how to treat mail that cannot prove it is yours.

Before you add anything: DMARC needs something to stand on

DMARC does not work alone. It checks whether the SPF and DKIM results align with your domain — the domain your mail is seen to come from. If neither SPF nor DKIM is in place, a DMARC record just tells receivers to reject or quarantine all of your own mail. So the safe order is:

1. Make sure SPF exists and lists everything that sends mail for you.
2. Make sure DKIM is switched on at your mail provider (Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 can sign by default, but only if it was turned on for your domain).
3. Add DMARC with the gentlest policy, and tighten it later once reports confirm your real mail passes.

Your free check on this site shows all three rows at once, so you can see whether you are ready before touching DNS.

Adding the record in GoDaddy

1. Sign in at godaddy.com and open My Products.
2. Next to your domain, choose DNS (or Domain → Manage DNS).
3. Choose Add New Record (some accounts say Add).
4. Fill in the row exactly like this:
   • Type: TXT
   • Name: _dmarc
   • Value: v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:you@yourdomain.com
   • TTL: leave the default (1 Hour)
5. Save.

Two GoDaddy-specific notes before you type. The name field already knows your domain: you type only _dmarc, not the full _dmarc.yourdomain.com, because GoDaddy appends the domain itself. And you@yourdomain.com is the mailbox where you want to receive the reports described below — use an address you actually read.

What the tags in that value mean

• v=DMARC1 — the version. Every DMARC record starts with this.
• p=none — the policy. It asks receivers to keep delivering mail that fails, while still sending you reports. This is the correct starting point.
• rua=mailto:… — where aggregate reports go. Each receiving server sends a daily summary of the mail it saw claiming to be your domain, and whether it passed or failed.

Later, once the reports show your legitimate mail passing consistently, you change p=none to p=quarantine (suspicious mail goes to spam) and finally p=reject (it is refused outright). Going straight to p=reject on day one is the single most common way a well-meant DMARC record sends a business’s own mail into spam.

Common mistakes with a GoDaddy DMARC record

• The record is at the wrong name. Receivers only look at _dmarc.yourdomain.com. A TXT record called dmarc or left at the root (@) does nothing, and your check will still show Missing.
• The full name is typed in. If you enter _dmarc.yourdomain.com in the name field, GoDaddy appends the domain and you get _dmarc.yourdomain.com.yourdomain.com.
• Two DMARC records on the same name. If one already exists and you add a second, receivers are required to ignore both. Edit the existing record instead of adding another.
• Curly quotes or line breaks in the value. The value is plain text; paste it in one line.
• The rua mailbox is not yours. Reports can only go to an address on your own domain unless the other domain publishes permission for you.

After you save

DNS changes take minutes to a few hours to be visible everywhere. Give it an hour, then run the free check again — the DMARC row should read Passing. Nothing else on your account needs to change for this one record.

Run the free check

Type your domain below. We read the public records for MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC and your host, and show each one in plain words. It takes about 10 seconds. No sign-up, nothing installed, and we never ask for a password.

The rest of the fix

DMARC was the third leg. If SPF or DKIM also showed Missing, the step-by-step values for those are in our guide to why business emails go to spam, and the Fix Kit gives you the exact records to paste at your host, where to click, and a Recheck for every step. One honest limit, the same one we give everyone: correct records make your mail verifiable, which is what the big providers require — they do not promise every message reaches the inbox.

Northvale, the business behind this check, is itself built and run by AI agents on NanoCorp, which is how we keep the guide matched to what the check reads today.