# Mail Provider Detector - MX Lookup for Microsoft 365, Google (`lentic_labs/mail-provider-detector`) Actor

Bulk MX lookup that detects each domain's email provider: Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Zoho, Proofpoint, Mimecast and 20+ more. Spots M365/Google behind security gateways via SPF. Passive DNS only, $0.50 per 1,000 domains.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/lentic_labs/mail-provider-detector.md
- **Developed by:** [Lentic Labs](https://apify.com/lentic_labs) (community)
- **Categories:** Lead generation, Developer tools, AI
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $0.50 / 1,000 domains

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

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

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
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.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## 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.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

## Email Provider Lookup - Bulk MX Check for Microsoft 365, Google Workspace & more

Want to know whether a domain uses **Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace**, for 10,000 domains at once? Paste domains, websites or email addresses and get the **email provider** for each one from a bulk MX record lookup. It recognises **23 named providers and gateways**: Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Zoho, Proofpoint and Mimecast, plus Barracuda, Cisco Secure Email, Cloudflare (Email Security and Email Routing), Trend Micro, Sophos, Yahoo, Apple iCloud, Fastmail, Proton Mail, Amazon SES/WorkMail, Mailgun, MailChannels, GoDaddy, Rackspace, IONOS, OVH and Yandex. Anything else is reported as `Other` with the MX host.

It also looks **behind security gateways**. When MX points to a gateway such as Proofpoint or Mimecast, the SPF record usually shows the mailbox platform underneath, for example M365 behind Proofpoint (`likelyMailboxPlatform`). It also lists the services allowed to send for the domain, like SendGrid, HubSpot or Salesforce.

Two public DNS queries per domain, nothing else, at **$0.50 per 1,000 domains**.

### What does it return?

One row per domain (CSV, Excel or JSON):

| Field | Example |
|---|---|
| `mailProvider` | `M365`, `Google Workspace`, `Zoho`, `Proofpoint`, `Mimecast`, `Other`, `None` |
| `likelyMailboxPlatform` | `M365` (even behind a Proofpoint gateway); an inference from SPF, not proof |
| `securityGateway` | `Proofpoint`, `Mimecast`, `Barracuda`... or empty |
| `acceptsMail`, `nullMx` | whether the domain receives mail |
| `primaryMx`, `mxHosts`, `mxCount` | raw MX data |
| `spfSendingServices` | services allowed to send for the domain: SendGrid, Mailchimp, HubSpot, Salesforce, Zendesk... |

The run summary (`OUTPUT`) counts domains per provider.

### Who is it for?

- **Sales, lead-gen and cold-email teams**: segment prospects by email provider (sell M365 add-ons only to M365 tenants).
- **MSPs and IT resellers**: find Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 shops for migration or security offers.
- **Data-enrichment and RevOps teams**: add an email-provider column to a CRM export.
- **AI agents**: a cheap provider lookup through the Apify API or MCP server.

### How much does it cost?

**$0.0005 per domain ($0.50 per 1,000 domains).** No subscription. Duplicates, invalid input, non-existent (NXDOMAIN) domains and DNS failures are free. Set a maximum total charge per run and the Actor stops cleanly at your budget.
On Apify's free plan, the $5 monthly usage credit covers up to about 10,000 domains a month (less if you use other Apify Actors or services).

### How does it work?

Passive and lightweight: **two public DNS queries per domain** (MX and TXT). It sends no email and makes no web requests. It collects no personal data, only public DNS records.

Use it only on domains you own or are authorized to assess, or for research on public DNS data. Results come only from public DNS records; no personal data is collected.

### Input

`domains`: list of domains, URLs or email addresses (normalized and de-duplicated). Or paste a CSV column into `domainsText`.

### FAQ

**How do I find out what email provider a domain uses?**
Look up its MX records. Google Workspace MX hosts end in `google.com` (for example `aspmx.l.google.com`), and Microsoft 365 hosts end in `mail.protection.outlook.com`. This Actor does that lookup for every domain in your list and maps the hosts to a provider name.

**Can I tell if a company uses Google Workspace or Outlook (Microsoft 365)?**
Usually, yes. `mailProvider` shows the MX-level provider. If MX points to a gateway like Proofpoint or Mimecast, `likelyMailboxPlatform` uses the SPF includes to show the likely platform behind it. That field is an inference from DNS, not proof.

**Is an MX lookup enough to identify the email provider?**
MX shows where inbound mail goes. SPF shows part of who sends outbound mail. Together they identify the provider for most domains. Custom setups and on-prem servers show up as `Other`.

**Can I do a bulk MX record lookup from a CSV?**
Yes. Paste a CSV column into `domainsText`. Anything that looks like a domain, URL or email address is extracted and deduplicated, and you can export the results as CSV, Excel or JSON.

**Does it send email or verify mailboxes?**
No. It makes two public DNS queries per domain (MX and TXT). It sends no email, makes no web requests and collects no personal data.

### Use it from an AI agent or API

Call the Actor through the Apify API (`run-sync-get-dataset-items`) or Apify's MCP server (`https://mcp.apify.com?tools=lentic_labs/mail-provider-detector`), with JSON input `{"domains": ["example.com"]}`. Agents without an Apify account can use Apify's agentic payments (experimental): buy a prepaid token with x402, or pay per request with Skyfire.

### Related Lentic Labs Actors

- Found M365 or Google tenants? Check their DMARC, SPF, DKIM and MTA-STS and get a 0-100 score: [DMARC Checker Bulk - SPF, DKIM & Email Security](https://apify.com/lentic_labs/email-dmarc-security-prospector)
- Quick Gmail/Yahoo bulk-sender pass/fail: [DMARC & SPF Checker - Google/Yahoo Bulk Sender Compliance](https://apify.com/lentic_labs/dmarc-spf-bulk-sender-check)
- SSL expiry for the same domains: [SSL Certificate Expiry Checker](https://apify.com/lentic_labs/ssl-certificate-expiry-checker)

***

Microsoft 365 and Outlook are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Google Workspace and Gmail are trademarks of Google LLC. Yahoo is a trademark of Yahoo. Names are used only to describe the providers checked; Lentic Labs is not affiliated with or endorsed by them.

# Actor input Schema

## `domains` (type: `array`):

Domains to check. URLs, 'www.' hosts and email addresses are accepted and normalized; duplicates are removed.

## `domainsText` (type: `string`):

Paste a list or CSV column. Anything that looks like a domain is extracted; other text is ignored.

## `maxDomains` (type: `integer`):

Stop after this many unique entries (0 = no limit). The run also stops cleanly when your maximum total charge is reached.

## `maxConcurrency` (type: `integer`):

Domains checked in parallel.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "domains": [
    "google.com",
    "microsoft.com",
    "apple.com",
    "github.com",
    "cloudflare.com",
    "mozilla.org",
    "python.org",
    "zoho.com"
  ],
  "maxDomains": 0,
  "maxConcurrency": 10
}
```

# Actor output Schema

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

Default dataset, overview view.

## `summary` (type: `string`):

Counts and distribution summary.

# 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 = {
    "domains": [
        "google.com",
        "microsoft.com",
        "apple.com",
        "github.com",
        "cloudflare.com",
        "mozilla.org",
        "python.org",
        "zoho.com"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("lentic_labs/mail-provider-detector").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 = { "domains": [
        "google.com",
        "microsoft.com",
        "apple.com",
        "github.com",
        "cloudflare.com",
        "mozilla.org",
        "python.org",
        "zoho.com",
    ] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("lentic_labs/mail-provider-detector").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 '{
  "domains": [
    "google.com",
    "microsoft.com",
    "apple.com",
    "github.com",
    "cloudflare.com",
    "mozilla.org",
    "python.org",
    "zoho.com"
  ]
}' |
apify call lentic_labs/mail-provider-detector --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,lentic_labs/mail-provider-detector"
        }
    }
}
```

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/rHgzhvfn8srE7PdqZ/builds/9Btm2j2bf947RBjgE/openapi.json