Yahoo sender requirements
Yahoo's bulk sender requirements are deliberately aligned with Google's: authenticate with SPF and DKIM, publish a DMARC record (p=none accepted), ensure an authenticated domain aligns with the visible From:, keep complaint rates low, and support one-click unsubscribe on marketing mail. In practice, a domain that satisfies Google's checklist satisfies Yahoo's.
The short version
Yahoo and Google announced their bulk-sender requirements in concert, and the overlap is close to total. If you have worked through the Gmail checklist, you are substantially done here. There is no separate DNS to publish — every receiver reads the same SPF, DKIM and DMARC records from your domain.
| Requirement | Gmail | Yahoo |
|---|---|---|
| SPF and DKIM (bulk) | Required | Required |
| DMARC record | Required (p=none ok) | Required (p=none ok) |
| Alignment with visible From | Required | Required |
| One-click unsubscribe (RFC 8058) | Required on marketing | Required on marketing |
| Low spam-complaint rate | Required | Required |
Reading a Yahoo rejection
Yahoo's 554 5.7.9 and related 5xx codes are permanent rejections on authentication
or policy grounds. As always, 5xx means the message never arrived at all — not
that it went to spam. Your MTA received a bounce; start there and read the authentication results
before you touch DNS.
Audit your domain
SPF, DKIM, DMARC and alignment posture, from live DNS.
Frequently asked
What are Yahoo's requirements for bulk senders?
SPF and DKIM authentication, a published DMARC record with p=none or stronger, alignment between an authenticated domain and the visible From domain, low user complaint rates, and one-click unsubscribe on marketing messages. Yahoo coordinated these with Google, so the checklists are near-identical.
What does 554 5.7.9 mean from Yahoo?
It indicates a message rejected on authentication or policy grounds. As with any 5xx, it is a permanent rejection — the message is refused, not filed in spam. Check whether SPF and DKIM pass and whether either aligns with your From domain.
Do I need separate DNS records for Yahoo and Gmail?
No. SPF, DKIM and DMARC are published once on your domain and every receiver reads the same records. There is no per-receiver configuration. If your authentication is correct, it is correct for all of them.
Related
- Gmail bulk sender requirements — What Google requires once you cross its bulk threshold to personal Gmail accounts: authentication, alignment, DNS, TLS, spam rate and one-click unsubscribe.
- Fixing Gmail 550 5.7.26 — Gmail rejects with 550 5.
- Setting up email authentication, in the right order — A working sequence for SPF, DKIM and DMARC that doesn't reject your own mail on the way.
- Outlook 550 5.7.515 and friends — Microsoft's 5.
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