Email Validator & Verifier: Bulk MX & Disposable Check

Email validator and bulk email verifier that cleans your list before you send: syntax, MX records, disposable domains, role accounts and typos (gmial.com to gmail.com). Each address gets a clear verdict, deliverable, risky, undeliverable or unknown, plus a 0-100 score. $0.30 per 1,000 emails, no API key, no subscription.

What you get

• One row per unique address with verdict, score, status, reason and every flag behind them.
• Syntax validation per RFC 5321/5322, including quoted locals and international domains.
• Domain and MX record check. Dead domains, null MX and domains with no mail server are marked undeliverable.
• Disposable email detection from a list of 9,185 throwaway domains such as Mailinator and 10MinuteMail.
• Typo suggestions for common domains, with the fixed address in didYouMean.
• Role account and free provider flags for info@, sales@, Gmail, Outlook, GMX and about 110 more.
• Three ways to feed it: paste addresses, upload or link a CSV or text file, or pick the dataset of another Actor run, for example a Google Maps, Apollo or website contact scraper.
• Optional mailbox check with your own MillionVerifier key. Paste the key and every address that passes the DNS checks is also checked for an existing mailbox and for catch-all domains. It runs on your MillionVerifier credits, so you pay only the DNS-level price here. See Mailbox check.
• Fast. 1,000 addresses finish in a few seconds. Each domain is looked up once and cached.

What deliverable means. The address passed every check that ran. By default these are syntax, DNS, disposable, role and typo checks (verificationLevel: "dns"). They catch dead domains, typos and throwaway inboxes, but they do not prove that the mailbox itself exists. That is why DNS-level results score at most 80. With a mailbox check the same verdict is backed by an answer from the recipient mail server (verificationLevel: "smtp", score up to 97).

Quick start

1. Open the Input tab.
2. Paste addresses into Email addresses. Or upload a CSV or text file, or pick a Dataset from another Actor.
3. Click Start. The prefilled example with 5 addresses finishes in a few seconds.
4. Open the Output tab. Sort by score or filter by verdict, then export to CSV, Excel or JSON.

Clean scraped leads in one step. Run any lead scraper, copy the Dataset ID from its Storage tab, and paste it into Dataset from another Actor. The verifier reads the email field, or emails lists, from every row. Set Email field in the dataset if the column has another name, for example contact.email.

Input example

{
    "emails": ["info@apify.com", "example.user@gmial.com", "test@mailinator.com"],
    "emailsFileUrl": "https://example.com/contacts.csv",
    "datasetId": "aBcD1234eFgH5678i",
    "emailField": "emails",
    "millionVerifierApiKey": "<YOUR_MILLIONVERIFIER_KEY>"
}

Field	Meaning
emails	Addresses to check. Blocks separated by new lines, commas or semicolons also work.
emailsFileUrl	CSV or text file, uploaded in the Console or given as a public link. Every cell with an @ is used, so headers and other columns are ignored. Max 50 MB.
datasetId	Dataset of another run. Dataset ID or the dataset picker.
emailField	Field that holds the address in that dataset. Lists and dot paths work. Empty: email, then emails.
mailboxCheck	Default on. Runs the mailbox check when a MillionVerifier key is available. Turn off for DNS level results only.
millionVerifierApiKey	Your own MillionVerifier API key. Stored encrypted, never logged. Optional.

All three sources can be combined. Duplicates are checked and billed once. INFO@Example.com and info@example.com count as one address. Plus tags are kept, so jane+news@gmail.com and jane@gmail.com are two.

Output sample

{
    "email": "info@apify.com",
    "verdict": "deliverable",
    "score": 70,
    "status": "valid",
    "reason": "mx_found",
    "verificationLevel": "dns",
    "isSyntaxValid": true,
    "hasMx": true,
    "mxHosts": ["aspmx.l.google.com", "alt1.aspmx.l.google.com"],
    "isDisposable": false,
    "isFreeProvider": false,
    "isRole": true,
    "isCatchAll": null,
    "catchAll": null,
    "mailboxCheck": "none",
    "mailboxResult": null,
    "mailboxDetail": null,
    "smtpChecked": false,
    "didYouMean": null,
    "domain": "apify.com",
    "checkedAt": "2026-10-05T12:54:10.311Z"
}

mailboxCheck tells who checked the mailbox: none, millionverifier or smtp (your own proxy). mailboxResult is ok, invalid, catch_all, unknown or disposable, and null when no mailbox check was made. catchAll mirrors isCatchAll. A run summary with counts per verdict, status, verification level and mailbox answer is saved as SUMMARY in the key-value store.

Verdict and score

Verdict	Typical score	Reasons	What to do
deliverable	80, or 70 for role mailboxes	mx_found: syntax fine, domain receives mail, not disposable, no typo	Keep. Mailbox not confirmed at DNS level
deliverable	97	mailbox_exists: confirmed by the mail server, only with a mailbox check	Keep
risky	10 to 55	possible_typo, disposable, catch_all, mailbox_full, a_record_only	Fix the typo, or review and remove
undeliverable	0	invalid_syntax, domain_not_found, null_mx, no_mail_server, mailbox_not_found	Remove
unknown	30 to 60	dns_error, mailbox_unknown, smtp_blocked, greylisted, smtp_temporary_error, smtp_unreachable, smtp_error	Retry later

a_record_only means the domain has no MX record and mail would go to its A record per RFC 5321. Many such domains do not accept mail, so they count as risky.

Pricing

Pay per event. No monthly fee. Discounts apply automatically on paid Apify plans.

Event	Free plan	Bronze	Silver	Gold
Address checked, per 1,000	$0.30	$0.27	$0.24	$0.21
Answer from your own SMTP proxy, per 1,000	$0.40	$0.36	$0.32	$0.28
Run start, per run	$0.0005	$0.0005	$0.0005	$0.0005

Examples on the Free plan: 1,000 addresses cost about $0.30, 100,000 cost about $30. The Apify free monthly credit covers thousands of checks. Set Maximum cost per run in the run options to cap spend: the run stops there and addresses past the cap are not charged.

Mailbox check with your own MillionVerifier key costs nothing extra here. You pay MillionVerifier for the credits, and this Actor charges only the DNS-level price per address. The price list also holds a "Mailbox verified" event of $3.00 per 1,000 (Bronze $2.70, Silver $2.40, Gold $2.10). It is reserved for a hosted mailbox check that is not switched on yet. No run is charged this event today.

Use it from code, Make, Zapier or AI agents

Everything in the Input tab is also available through the Apify API, the JavaScript and Python clients, scheduling, webhooks and integrations such as Make, Zapier, n8n and Google Sheets. AI agents can call it through the Apify MCP server at mcp.apify.com. A typical API call:

curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/rod_analytics~bulk-email-verifier/run-sync-get-dataset-items" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN>" -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"emails": ["jane@example.com", "john@gmial.com"]}'

Mailbox check with your MillionVerifier key

A DNS-level check cannot see inside a mailbox. MillionVerifier can: it asks the recipient mail server whether the mailbox exists and whether the domain accepts every address. This Actor sends it only the addresses that already passed the syntax, MX, disposable and typo checks, once per unique address.

1. Create an account at millionverifier.com and buy credits. They do not expire.
2. Copy your API key from app.millionverifier.com/api.
3. Paste it into MillionVerifier API key in the Input tab and start the run.

What changes in the output:

MillionVerifier says	Verdict	Reason	Score
ok	deliverable	mailbox_exists	97 (87 for role mailboxes)
invalid	undeliverable	mailbox_not_found	0
catch_all	risky	catch_all, catchAll: true	55
unknown	unknown	mailbox_unknown	60
error or no answer	unchanged DNS-level result	mailboxDetail: "check_failed"	unchanged

Lists of 1,000 or more addresses are sent as files of up to 250,000 addresses and checked in the background. Smaller lists are checked one address at a time. If your key is wrong the run ends with a help row, INVALID_API_KEY, and you pay only the start fee. If your credits run out mid-run, the remaining addresses keep their DNS-level result. Your key is stored encrypted and never written to a log. We keep no copy of your addresses or the answers: they go only to your dataset.

Catch-all and accept-all domains, common on Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace, cannot be resolved by any verifier. They come back as catch_all and stay risky. The mailbox answer is a strong signal, not a guarantee, and no tool predicts every bounce.

Optional: SMTP mailbox check with your own proxy

This is an advanced feature for users who run their own mail infrastructure. It is off by default and most users do not need it. If a working SOCKS5 proxy is set, it takes priority over the MillionVerifier check.

A mailbox check asks the recipient mail server whether the address exists, using only EHLO, MAIL FROM, RCPT TO and QUIT. No email is ever sent. It needs outbound TCP port 25, which Apify blocks, like most cloud providers. So on Apify it only works through your own SOCKS5 proxy:

1. Rent a small VPS where port 25 is open. Many hosts open it on request.
2. Set reverse DNS of its IP to a hostname you own, for example verify.yourdomain.com.
3. Run a SOCKS5 server such as Dante with a username and password.
4. In the Bring your own SMTP proxy section, fill socksProxyUrl, heloHost and fromAddress, then turn on smtpCheck.

The Actor tests port 25 before it starts, against four large mail servers. If none answers, it logs a warning, continues without your proxy check and charges no SMTP events. The probe results are in the SUMMARY record under port25Probe. With a working proxy it also detects catch-all domains with one extra random-address probe per domain. Even then no verifier is 100 % accurate: Yahoo and some Microsoft servers accept every address or block probes, so expect catch_all or smtp_blocked there. Keep Max connections per mail server at 1 or 2.

Acceptable use

• Only check lists you have a lawful basis to process, for example your own customers or signups under GDPR. You are the data controller for the addresses you upload.
• No spam. Do not use this Actor to build lists for unsolicited email or to guess addresses. Be aware that cold email to German addresses needs prior consent (UWG section 7).
• Results stay in your own Apify storage. Delete datasets you no longer need.
• Sub-processor. With a mailbox check, the addresses that pass the DNS checks are sent to MillionVerifier, on your key. Without a key, nothing leaves the Actor. We store no addresses and log counts only.

FAQ

Does it confirm that the mailbox exists? Not by default. The default checks prove that the address is well formed, the domain is live and receives mail, and it is not a throwaway or a typo. Those catch a large share of bounces from old, scraped or hand-typed lists. Mailbox confirmation needs your MillionVerifier key or your own SMTP proxy, see above.

Why not just run SMTP checks from the Actor? Apify blocks outbound port 25, like most cloud providers. We re-tested it on 2026-10-07: every large mail server timed out. That is why the mailbox check goes through MillionVerifier or your own proxy.

Is the score a bounce probability? No. It is a simple 0-100 confidence from the checks that ran: 97 for a confirmed mailbox, 80 for a clean address at DNS level, 0 for undeliverable. Role mailboxes get 10 points less.

How big a list can I run? Hundreds of thousands of addresses. Above about 200,000 addresses raise the run memory to 1 GB or more in the run options.

Can I verify the output of a Google Maps or LinkedIn scraper? Yes. Paste the run's dataset ID into Dataset from another Actor. Use Email field in the dataset if the addresses are not in email or emails.

Where does the disposable list come from? A pinned snapshot of disposable-email-domains, CC0 licensed, 9,185 domains.

Does it send emails? No. There is no DATA command, even with the SMTP check on.

What happens if my input is wrong? The run still ends SUCCEEDED and you pay only the start fee. The status message explains the problem and the fix. The same help record is saved in the key-value store under INPUT_ERROR, with error, errorCode, message and howToFix. Codes: EMPTY_INPUT, NO_EMAILS_FOUND, FILE_UNREADABLE, DATASET_UNREADABLE, INVALID_INPUT, INVALID_API_KEY and NO_MILLIONVERIFIER_CREDITS. Addresses with bad syntax are not an input error: they come back as undeliverable.

Found a bug or need a feature? Open the Issues tab. Replies usually come within a day.

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