# Email Validator (Syntax + MX + Disposable Flags) (`tomwang/email-validator-mx`) Actor

Bulk-check email addresses: syntax, domain MX records, disposable-domain and role-address flags. DNS only - no sending and no SMTP probing, so a valid result means the domain can accept mail, not that the mailbox exists. Disposable detection uses a small curated list.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/tomwang/email-validator-mx.md
- **Developed by:** [Tom](https://apify.com/tomwang) (community)
- **Categories:** Marketing, Lead generation, Developer tools
- **Security:** Limited permissions
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

$2.00 / 1,000 email checkeds

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?

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 Validator (Syntax + MX + Disposable Flags)

Bulk-check email addresses: syntax validation plus mail-DNS checks (MX records, RFC 7505 null-MX rejection, A/AAAA-record fallback).

**Result `valid` means syntax and mail-DNS checks passed. Mailbox existence and delivery are unverified: this Actor never sends mail and never probes SMTP.** Transient DNS failures are reported as `unknown` and are not charged. Disposable-domain detection uses a small curated list; role-address flags are a heuristic.

### How it works

- Syntax check against the address format. Bad-syntax rows are free.
- DNS lookup per domain: MX records first, then RFC 7505 null-MX (`example.com. IN MX 0 .`) detection, then A/AAAA fallback per RFC 5321. NXDOMAIN or no mail records means the domain cannot receive mail.
- Flags addresses on a small curated disposable-domain list and common role prefixes (admin@, info@, support@, ...).
- DNS responses are cached within the run, so many addresses on one domain cost one lookup.

### Input

```json
{"emails": ["hello@example.com", "not-an-email", "postmaster@mailinator.com"]}
```

Up to 10,000 addresses per run.

### Output

One dataset row per address: the address, syntax result, domain DNS state (`mx`, `null_mx`, `fallback_a`, `none`, `unknown`), disposable and role flags, and the overall verdict (`valid`, `invalid`, `unknown`).

### Charging

Pay per event: one `email-checked` event per syntactically valid address checked ($0.002). Bad-syntax rows and transient-DNS `unknown` rows are free.

### Limitations

- No SMTP handshake, no catch-all detection, no mailbox-existence check. A `valid` result can still bounce.
- Disposable list is small and curated; new disposable providers appear daily.

# Actor input Schema

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

Email addresses to check (max 10,000 per run). One charged email-checked event per syntax-valid address with a conclusive mail-DNS result; bad-syntax and transient-DNS-failure rows are free. 'valid' means syntax and mail-DNS checks passed - mailbox existence and delivery unverified. The default uses the developer's own domain plus synthetic examples so the automatic Store test runs without third-party traffic; replace with your list.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "emails": [
    "hello@tomcn.uk",
    "not-an-email",
    "bounce-me@mailinator.com",
    "ops@tomcn.uk"
  ]
}
```

# Actor output Schema

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

Default dataset: one item per checked email address.

# 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": [
        "hello@tomcn.uk",
        "not-an-email",
        "bounce-me@mailinator.com",
        "ops@tomcn.uk"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("tomwang/email-validator-mx").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": [
        "hello@tomcn.uk",
        "not-an-email",
        "bounce-me@mailinator.com",
        "ops@tomcn.uk",
    ] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("tomwang/email-validator-mx").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": [
    "hello@tomcn.uk",
    "not-an-email",
    "bounce-me@mailinator.com",
    "ops@tomcn.uk"
  ]
}' |
apify call tomwang/email-validator-mx --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

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

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/279YzbXOaUHtnW3Ui/builds/WYypiixM0CZ3zHtCN/openapi.json