Free tool
Is this domain or its mail server blacklisted?
The domain itself, plus the IP addresses behind its website and its mail servers, tested against seven well-known public blacklists.
Nothing breaks, and that is the problem
A flagged domain does not go down. The site stays up, the email leaves with no error, it just never arrives. Your client says the quote never came, their mailbox gets the blame, and you lose days looking in the wrong place. Most listings clear within hours — once you know there is one.
What we query
Seven lists, picked because they are alive and documented: Spamhaus ZEN and DBL, SpamCop, Barracuda, SURBL, PSBL and UCEPROTECT level 1. We probe each one with its own test entry before believing a word of it — a dead list tells everybody they are clean.
Who is listed, exactly
It is not necessarily you they put on the list
Anti-spam lists do not list companies. They list IP addresses and domain names. On shared hosting, the IP address sending your mail is your neighbours' address too. Watch what happens.
Shared sending IP address
198.51.100.24
- shop.example.net
- example.comYou
- office.example.org
- club.example.net
Your dedicated IP address
203.0.113.7
What the lists answer
Your messages : They arrive normally.
You can change an IP address by moving. You cannot change a domain name. That is the difference between the two families of lists, and the reason both get queried.
What this check queries
Seven lists. Two worlds.
Two lists judge the domain NAME, five judge the ADDRESSES of its machines. A domain can be clean on one side and listed on the other — and those are two different repairs.
- 2lists that judge the name
- 5lists that judge the addresses
- 24 hthe fastest automatic removal
Reading the result
The tool queries seven lists. The ones that index domain names get your domain. The ones that index IP addresses get the addresses of your site and your mail servers.
- All clear
- Not one of the lists that answered flags the domain or its addresses. We show you how many actually answered, because that is what the verdict is worth.
- Flagged on at least one list
- You get the name of the list, the target flagged — the domain, or one specific address — and where to go for removal. For as long as the listing stands, part of your mail never arrives, with no visible error when you hit send.
- Unknown — some lists did not answer
- The result covers the lists that answered, and says so plainly. Large lists cap query volume, so one or two going quiet on a given check is normal.
- Unknown — no list answered
- The check could not be run. The tool refuses to conclude anything from that — calling a domain clean because nobody answered would be the worst response available. Try again in a few minutes.
The mistakes we see most often
Testing the domain but not the sending address
What causes it: domain lists and IP lists punish different things. A flagged mail address blocks the mail while the domain itself stays perfectly clean.
What fixes it: check the domain and the addresses of both its site and its mail servers. That is what this tool does, and why it shows the addresses tested.
Asking for delisting before stopping the cause
What causes it: a listing comes from real sending — a compromised mailbox, a hijacked contact form, a vulnerable plugin firing from the server. Get delisted before you fix that and you are back on the list within hours.
What fixes it: change the passwords on sending accounts, close whatever relays, check the forms — and only then ask for delisting.
Forgetting that the address is shared with neighbours
What causes it: on shared hosting, the sending address belongs to dozens of sites. The listing may have nothing whatsoever to do with you.
What fixes it: check with the host, and move to a dedicated sending service if it keeps happening.
Reading clean when the lists never answered
What causes it: large lists turn away public resolvers and cap query volume. A query that gets no answer looks exactly like no listing, and plenty of tools show it that way.
What fixes it: look at how many lists actually answered. It is the only way to know what an all clear is worth.
Writing to the wrong list
What causes it: every list runs its own procedure — instant self-service on one, a reviewed form on another, automatic expiry on a third. A request sent to the wrong place moves nothing.
What fixes it: start from the list named in the result. Its delisting address sits right beside the listing.
The seven lists we query
We chose them because they are alive and documented. Each one gets probed with its own test entry before we believe it — a dead list answers all clear to everybody.
| List | Target tested | Scope | Delisting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spamhaus ZEN | IP addresses | Combines Spamhaus's SBL, CSS, XBL and PBL zones into a single query. | check.spamhaus.org |
| Spamhaus DBL | Domain names | Spam, phishing, malware and botnet command domains — plus legitimate domains that have been abused. | check.spamhaus.org |
| SpamCop BL | IP addresses | Addresses drawn from the reports SpamCop receives. | Automatic, around 24 h after the last report. |
| Barracuda | IP addresses | Addresses flagged by Barracuda Central. | Removal form, handled within about twelve hours. |
| SURBL multi | Domain names | Phishing, malware, abuse, compromised sites. | surbl.org/surbl-analysis |
| PSBL | IP addresses | Addresses caught by PSBL's spam traps. | Immediate self-service removal. |
| UCEPROTECT level 1 | IP addresses | The single address. Levels 2 and 3 list whole ranges, and we do not query them — too aggressive to draw any conclusion from. | The listing expires seven days after the last abuse recorded. |
A list that has shut down never gets queried. Its zone would stop answering, and the silence would read as an all clear. That is what makes a good number of free tools misleading.
Common questions
How do I check if my domain is blacklisted?
Type the domain above. The tool resolves the addresses of your site and your mail servers, then queries seven public lists — the domain lists get the name, the address lists get the addresses. You see any listings found, the target concerned, and where to go for removal.
Why does my email go to spam when I am on no blacklist?
A blacklist is only one of several possible reasons. Domain authentication weighs at least as much, and so does the reputation your sending history has built with each provider. Gmail keeps its own assessment, and no public list reflects it. The email authentication check covers the other half of the problem.
How long does a blacklist listing last?
It depends on the list. Some remove on request, immediately, in self-service. SpamCop removes automatically about twenty-four hours after the last report it received. UCEPROTECT level 1 expires seven days after the last abuse recorded. Others review the request by hand. In every case, if the cause has not stopped, the listing comes back.
How do I get delisted from a blacklist?
Find the cause first — a compromised mailbox, a hijacked contact form, a plugin sending from the server, or simply a hosting neighbour. Fix it. Then, and only then, ask the list named in the result for delisting. Do it in the other order and the listing is back within hours.
Why do some blacklists not answer?
Large lists turn away public resolvers and cap how many queries one caller can make, so a list can stay silent on one check and answer the next. The tool counts the lists that actually answered and shows you the figure, which is what lets you judge the verdict.
Can a blacklist take my website offline?
Not directly. A listing concerns mail delivery, and the site stays reachable. But a domain list also gets consulted on the links inside messages, so a flagged domain has the mail that cites it rejected — including mail somebody else sent.
Getting off a list
Four moves, and only one possible order
The removal request is the last move, never the first. Get removed before the cause is dealt with and you end up relisted, and operators stretch the delay a little further with every repeat.
Identify what is listed
The domain name, or a machine's address? Those two get repaired in different places. The name implicates what the domain hosts or relays. The address implicates the machine doing the sending.Find what leaves that machine
A contact form open to the world, a compromised site relaying mail, a mailbox whose password leaked. While the sending continues, the list refills itself.Check what the domain says about itself
SPF,DKIM,DMARCand reverse DNS are what an operator reads to tell a legitimate sender from an open relay. None of them gets you off a list, but their absence weighs against you.Request removal, list by list
Every operator has its own procedure and its own delay — automatic for some, a form for others, self-service elsewhere. None of them talks to the others, so a removal only counts on the list where you asked for it.
The question people ask
Can you get off a blocklist without paying?
Yes.
None of the seven lists queried here charges anything for a removal. Delays and procedures differ — automatic removal, a form, self-service, expiry after a few days — but the removal itself is free. Any service offering a paid express unblock is selling you a procedure you can run yourself.
What actually costs
The time to find the cause
The only long part, and the one nobody can do for you — working out what leaves the listed machine.
The operators' delay
From immediate to a few days depending on the list. It cannot be bought, and nothing speeds up an automatic expiry.
The mail lost in the meantime
Messages refused during the episode never come back. That is the real cost, and it keeps running for as long as the cause goes untreated.
Twenty checks, no sign-up
- A domain's full health report
- When does this domain expire?
- Is this SSL certificate valid, and when does it expire?
- Are your SPF, DKIM and DMARC set up right?
- Which servers receive mail for this domain?
- Which nameservers answer for this domain?
- What do this domain's TXT records do?
- Where does this CNAME end up?