# Email Verifier — Honest Grades, No False Certainty (`alaudinburki/email-verifier-honest`) Actor

Verify email lists without sending mail. Syntax, MX records, disposable domains, role accounts and typo detection. Every result explains its verdict.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/alaudinburki/email-verifier-honest.md
- **Developed by:** [alaudin burki](https://apify.com/alaudinburki) (community)
- **Categories:** Lead generation
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 66.7% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $4.00 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

## Email Verifier — Honest Grades, No False Certainty

Verify email lists without sending mail. Syntax, MX records, disposable domains, role accounts and typo detection. Every result explains its verdict.

Built reliability-first: **every row reports what was found and what was missing** — you never get a
silent blank, and a run summary tells you exactly what happened.

### What you get

| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| `email` | Email |
| `status` | Status |
| `confidence` | Confidence |
| `reason` | Reason |
| `domain` | Domain |
| `isDisposable` | Is Disposable |
| `isRoleAccount` | Is Role Account |
| `mailServer` | Mail Server |
| `suggestedCorrection` | Suggested Correction |

### How to use it

1. Fill in the input (see the example below).
2. Run it once for a snapshot, or **schedule it** to keep the data fresh.
3. Export to CSV/JSON/Excel, or push straight to Google Sheets, Notion, Airtable, Zapier, Make, or n8n.

### Input

```json
{
  "emails": [
    "john.smith@gmail.com",
    "info@stripe.com",
    "test@mailinator.com",
    "ceo@gmial.com"
  ],
  "onlyStatus": "all",
  "maxItems": 1000,
  "concurrency": 10
}
```

### Sample output

```json
[
{
  "email": "name@example.com",
  "status": "ok",
  "confidence": "EX12345",
  "reason": "example",
  "domain": "example",
  "isDisposable": true,
  "isRoleAccount": 1284,
  "mailServer": "example",
  "suggestedCorrection": "example"
}
]
```

### Typical uses

- Schedule it and feed the output straight into your sheet, database, or app.
- Pair it with the related actors below to build a complete pipeline.

### The 0-100 score

Every address gets a single `score` and a `scoreBand`, because that is the metric this market compares on.

| Band | Score | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| `safe` | 85-95 | A mail server actually confirmed the recipient |
| `probably_safe` | 60-84 | Valid syntax, live mail server, no red flags |
| `risky` | 35-59 | Role account, or a catch-all domain where nothing can be proven |
| `very_risky` | 10-34 | Disposable address, or a near-miss typo of a real domain |
| `undeliverable` | 0-9 | Dead domain, no mail server, or the server rejected it |

**Nothing ever scores 100.** An address can bounce for reasons no probe can see — a full mailbox, a
filter, an employee who left last week. The scale tops out at 95 and that is deliberate.

Scores above 85 require a mail server to have actually answered. Everything below is inference, and
the score says so.

### Catch-all detection — and an honest warning about it

A **catch-all** domain accepts mail for every address, real or not. On such a domain "the server
accepted it" proves nothing, and this is the single biggest reason "verified" lists still bounce.
Turn on `catchAllCheck` and one probe per domain marks these as `risky` instead of quietly calling
them valid.

**Read this before you rely on it:** both `catchAllCheck` and `smtpCheck` need outbound **port 25**,
and Apify — like most cloud platforms — **blocks it**. Verified on the platform: these checks return
`smtp_blocked` or `smtp_timeout`, never a false verdict.

So on Apify these two options will usually tell you *nothing was learned*, and the score correctly
stays in the inference range. That is the honest outcome, and it is reported as its own state rather
than being folded into "invalid". Competitors that claim SMTP verification from cloud infrastructure
are either using relays you are not told about, or guessing.

Everything else — syntax, MX, mail provider, disposable, role, typo correction — works fully and
needs no special ports.

### Mail provider

`mailProvider` is read from the MX records: `google`, `microsoft`, `zoho`, `proofpoint`, `mimecast`,
`proton`, `amazon-ses`, `godaddy` and others. Useful beyond verification — knowing a prospect runs
Google Workspace vs Microsoft 365 is a real segmentation signal, and it comes free with the lookup.

### Pricing

**$4.00 / 1,000 results** (`$0.004` per result), plus a near-zero start fee. You are **never charged beyond your limit**, and blocked or
failed items are reported honestly — not billed as data.

### FAQ & limitations

- Public data only — no login walls, no cookies required.
- Rate limits on the source may require the proxy or a retry on very large pulls.
- Every row reports its own status, so partial results are always labeled, never faked.
- **Integrations:** output works with Zapier, Make, n8n, and any webhook via Apify's integrations.
- **Formats:** results export as JSON, CSV, Excel, or HTML from the dataset.

### Related actors

- **Email Verifier**
- **Lead List Deduplicator**
- **Website Contact Finder**

# Actor input Schema

## `emails` (type: `array`):

One address per line, or paste a comma-separated list.

## `onlyStatus` (type: `string`):

Filter the output. Choose 'valid' to get a clean sending list.

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

Hard limit, strictly enforced. You will never be charged for more.

## `concurrency` (type: `integer`):

Higher is faster. Lower if your DNS resolver rate-limits.

## `catchAllCheck` (type: `boolean`):

Probe each domain once to see whether it accepts mail for ANY address. On a catch-all domain a 'valid' verdict proves nothing — this is the single biggest cause of bounced 'verified' lists. Needs outbound port 25, which most cloud hosts block; the result says so plainly when blocked.

## `smtpCheck` (type: `boolean`):

Ask the mail server directly whether the recipient exists (RCPT TO, no mail sent). The only direct evidence available — but port 25 is blocked on most cloud hosts, and some providers answer misleadingly. Off by default.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "emails": [
    "john.smith@gmail.com",
    "info@stripe.com",
    "test@mailinator.com",
    "ceo@gmial.com"
  ],
  "onlyStatus": "all",
  "maxItems": 1000,
  "concurrency": 10,
  "catchAllCheck": false,
  "smtpCheck": false
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

The dataset of results produced by this run.

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "emails": [
        "john.smith@gmail.com",
        "info@stripe.com",
        "test@mailinator.com",
        "ceo@gmial.com"
    ],
    "maxItems": 1000
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("alaudinburki/email-verifier-honest").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "emails": [
        "john.smith@gmail.com",
        "info@stripe.com",
        "test@mailinator.com",
        "ceo@gmial.com",
    ],
    "maxItems": 1000,
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("alaudinburki/email-verifier-honest").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "emails": [
    "john.smith@gmail.com",
    "info@stripe.com",
    "test@mailinator.com",
    "ceo@gmial.com"
  ],
  "maxItems": 1000
}' |
apify call alaudinburki/email-verifier-honest --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,alaudinburki/email-verifier-honest"
        }
    }
}

```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/o2Dz6JK4vGUepxLKb/builds/lOSedKX3EG6xUVLlH/openapi.json