SPF glossary
What does v=spf1 mean at the start of an SPF record?
By Samuel Chenard · CEO & Co-Founder, Palisade · Reviewed July 15, 2026
v=spf1 is the version identifier that marks a TXT record as an SPF record. It must be the exact first term — receivers ignore any TXT record that doesn't start with it. A domain must have at most one: two or more records starting v=spf1 is a permerror, and SPF breaks entirely.
v=spf1 at a glance | |
|---|---|
| Tag | v (version) |
| Valid values | spf1 — the only version there is; there is no v=spf2 |
| Default | Required — a TXT record that doesn't begin with v=spf1 simply isn't an SPF record. |
| Where it goes | The exact first term of the record, e.g. v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com -all |
How v=spf1 works
SPF lives in an ordinary TXT record published on the domain name itself — at the apex for yourdomain.com, with no special prefix like DMARC's _dmarc. Receivers fetch the domain's TXT records and treat the one starting v=spf1 as its SPF policy. That's why the version tag must be the exact first characters: it's the marker that says “this TXT record is my SPF record.”
One domain, one SPF record. If a receiver finds two or more TXT records starting v=spf1, RFC 7208 says the result is a permerror — SPF fails to evaluate at all. This is one of the most common real-world SPF breakages: someone adds a second record for a new email tool instead of merging the new mechanism into the existing record.
And no, there is no v=spf2. The spf2.0/pra strings in old documentation belong to Sender ID, an abandoned Microsoft experiment. Publish v=spf1 and nothing else.
Correct record vs common mistake
Correct
v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com ip4:192.0.2.10 -allOne record: version tag first, your senders in the middle, a catch-all at the end.
Common mistake
v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com -all
v=spf1 include:sendgrid.net -allTwo SPF records on one domain is a permerror — receivers can't pick one, so SPF breaks entirely. Merge the includes into a single record.
Generate your SPF record
Build a correct SPF record for your domain — add your senders, copy the TXT record. Free, no signup.
Who sends email for this domain?
Each service adds its documented include mechanism.
From your provider’s docs, e.g. spf.example-esp.com — commas or spaces between multiple. Some services (Klaviyo, HubSpot, Mailchimp Transactional) authenticate through their own CNAME records instead of a shared include — check their DNS settings page.
How should receivers treat everyone else?
Your SPF record
0/10 lookupsPublish as a TXT record at the domain root. One SPF record per domain — if one exists, merge into it instead of adding another.
yourdomain.com (or @)v=spf1 ~allClick the record to select all of it.
Record type: TXT · ip4/ip6 mechanisms don’t count against the 10-lookup limit.
After you publish
- Add the TXT record at your DNS host.
- Verify it with the free SPF checker.
- SPF alone doesn’t stop spoofing — pair it with DKIM and a DMARC policy. Generate one with the DMARC record generator.
Troubleshooting v=spf1
| Issue | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Checker says 'no SPF record found' but a TXT record exists | The record doesn't begin with the exact string v=spf1 — leading whitespace, a typo, or text pasted before it | Make v=spf1 the very first characters of the TXT value, then re-check |
| Mail broke right after adding a new email tool | The tool's setup guide had you create a second v=spf1 record next to the existing one | Delete one record and merge: a single v=spf1 line containing both includes, ending in -all |
| Record edits don't seem to take effect | DNS TTL — receivers are still serving the cached old record | Wait out the TTL and re-test; lower the TTL ahead of planned SPF changes |
Why it matters for MSPs
Across 50–200 client domains, duplicate v=spf1 records are one of the most common inherited messes: a previous provider's record sits next to yours, and the domain permerrors while looking “configured” in DNS. Every tool onboarding is another chance for a client to paste a second record instead of merging — and the breakage is silent until mail starts failing.
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Marc-Olivier Hardy — VP & CTO, CDT Connexion
DMARC software that does the work
A broken version line doesn't announce itself — it shows up as SPF quietly contributing nothing. Palisade reads every client domain's DMARC reports, so a record that stopped evaluating surfaces as evidence, and each domain still advances safely toward `p=reject` on data, not guesswork.
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