using your own domain gives you an address you control independently of a provider’s name. vael plus can receive mail for up to three verified domains, with up to 25 explicit recipients on each.

there’s one limit to check first: these domains receive only. sending from vael still uses your main @vael.email address. if you need to send as your own domain, this feature alone won’t provide that.

before changing anything.

you need control of the domain’s dns and active plus access. buying a domain and paying for email hosting are separate things; adding it to vael does not register it for you.

if the domain already receives important mail elsewhere, plan the move. changing mx records changes where new incoming mail is routed. it doesn’t copy old messages, create recipient addresses or move website hosting.

try the process with a domain or supported subdomain you can safely change before moving addresses other people rely on. keep access to the previous mailbox while you verify the result.

add and verify the domain.

1. open domains and add the domain you own.

2. copy the txt record name and verification value displayed for that domain.

3. publish that txt record with your dns provider. its name begins with _vael-verification. and its value begins with vael-verification=. use your own displayed value.

4. when you’re ready to route incoming mail to vael, configure the domain’s mx record for mail.vael.email with priority 10.

5. return to domains and choose check dns. cached dns results may take time to update.

some dns editors append your domain to a record name automatically. check the resulting full name so you don’t accidentally publish the verification record under a doubled domain.

keep the verification txt record in place after setup. vael rechecks domain dns; verification is not permission to remove the record later.

add the receiving addresses.

once the domain is verified, add each recipient you need. for example, if you own example.com, adding hello makes hello@example.com a receiving address for your account. that domain is only an example; don’t use someone else’s domain.

there is no catch-all. an unlisted recipient is rejected rather than delivered to whichever mailbox seems closest. finish this step promptly when moving mx records, then verify delivery to every address that matters before treating the move as complete.

if mail isn’t arriving.

check that the domain is verified and receiving is enabled, the verification txt record is still present, the mx destination is correct, and the exact recipient has been added. also check mailbox storage and plus status.

don’t add unrelated backup mx destinations just to make a dns warning disappear. decide where mail should go and follow your dns provider’s instructions for changing the existing routing.

our missing-mail checklist covers the next checks. the terms explain plan expiry and domain limits, and the moving guide covers keeping a copy of mail during a transition.