Porkbun DNS for Business Email: MX, SPF, DKIM and DMARC

Porkbun's DNS editor is one of the simplest around, which is exactly why people trip on its one quirk: the Host field takes only the part before your domain, so typing the full domain there creates a record for yourdomain.com.yourdomain.com. This guide adds the four records a mailbox on your own domain needs, removes the forwarding records that Porkbun adds if you ever switched its email forwarding on, and checks the result.

Quick answer

Porkbun, Account, Domain Management, click the domain, then DNS Records (the Edit link next to DNS). Add an MX with the Host left blank, Answer mail.oqumail.com, Priority 10. Add three TXT records with Hosts blank, the DKIM selector, and _dmarc. Delete any fwd MX records from Porkbun email forwarding. Then click Verify in OquMail.

The four records

• MX: host blank or @, value mail.oqumail.com, priority 10
• SPF: TXT at the root, value v=spf1 MX (Mail Exchanger — where incoming email is delivered) a:mail.oqumail.com ~all
• DKIM: TXT at the selector name shown in your OquMail dashboard, ending in ._domainkey, with the key value from the dashboard
• DMARC: TXT at _dmarc, value v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc@yourdomain.com (use your own address)

Step by step

1. Log in at porkbun.com and open Account, Domain Management.
2. Click the domain name, or the small arrow next to it, and choose DNS Records (shown as Edit under the DNS heading).
3. If Email Forwarding is switched on for the domain, open that section first and remove the forwards; Porkbun then removes its own MX records. If you added them by hand, delete every MX whose Answer ends in porkbun.com.
4. Add the MX: Type MX, Host left blank, Answer mail.oqumail.com, Priority 10, TTL 600. Click Add.
5. Add SPF: Type TXT, Host blank, Answer v=spf1 MX (Mail Exchanger — where incoming email is delivered) a:mail.oqumail.com ~all. If a TXT starting with v=spf1 already exists, edit that one instead of adding a second.
6. Add DKIM: Type TXT, Host the selector exactly as the OquMail dashboard shows it (for example selector._domainkey, without your domain), Answer the full key value. Porkbun accepts long values without splitting.
7. Add DMARC: Type TXT, Host _dmarc, Answer v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc@yourdomain.com, using an address you read.
8. Back in the OquMail dashboard, click Verify. The live check names any record that is still missing or mistyped.

Porkbun quirks

• The Host field is the subdomain only. Blank means the root; typing yourdomain.com there is the single most common mistake.
• Porkbun adds two parking records on new domains: an ALIAS on the root and a wildcard CNAME, both pointing at pixie.porkbun.com. They do not affect mail and can stay until you build a website.
• Do not wrap TXT values in quotes; Porkbun adds them.
• The default TTL of 600 seconds is fine and makes corrections quick.
• If the domain uses Cloudflare or another DNS host, the nameservers at Porkbun point elsewhere and these records must be added there instead.

Confirm it works

Besides the Verify button, run the domain through the free MX lookup, SPF checker and DMARC checker. Then send a message from webmail to a Gmail address and check Show original for spf=pass and DKIM (a digital signature that proves your email was not tampered with)=pass. Changes usually take effect within minutes, occasionally up to 48 hours.

Common questions

Can I keep Porkbun email forwarding for some addresses?

Not alongside real mailboxes. Forwarding needs Porkbun's MX records, and a domain can only route mail to one set of servers. Create the extra addresses as mailboxes in OquMail instead, or as a group address that delivers to several people; both are free.

Porkbun says my DKIM value is too long. What now?

It should not; Porkbun handles values over 255 characters. If you see the error, check that the value has no line breaks or spaces pasted in from the dashboard.

Do I need Porkbun's hosting or SSL add-ons?

No. Email on the domain needs only these DNS records; the website, if any, is separate.

Want to see how your own domain is set up? Use the free SPF checker, DMARC checker and MX lookup: they run in your browser and store nothing.