Rules
Gmail and Yahoo changed the rules in 2024. Here is what they require
Five thousand emails a day is the line. Above it, authentication and one-click unsubscribe stop being optional.
From early 2024, Gmail and Yahoo began enforcing new requirements for bulk senders, meaning anyone who sends more than 5,000 messages a day to their users.
What is required
- Authentication: SPF and DKIM, plus a DMARC record, and the domains must align with the From address.
- One-click unsubscribe: bulk messages must carry a List-Unsubscribe header with a URL, and the link must work without a login.
- Complaints under control: the spam complaint rate must stay below a strict threshold, reported as 0.3 percent.
What happens if you don't comply
- Messages can be rejected outright or moved to spam.
- Repeated failures can get a whole domain blocked for a while.
Even under 5,000
- The same habits help smaller senders. The threshold is a line for the strictest rules, not a permission slip below it.
Requirements change. Check the providers' sender pages before you rely on any threshold.