Cloudflare DNS can host your mail records while your domain stays registered elsewhere. To receive mail at every address on the domain with Free Domain Mail, add one TXT ownership record and one MX record pointing to mx.freedomainmail.com in the Cloudflare zone.
Records for a catch-all inbox
Free Domain Mail is a receive-only catch-all inbox for a domain you own: every address at the domain receives mail, nothing has to be created per address, and messages are kept for 30 days. It never sends or forwards mail.
Add a TXT record with Name _maildock-verify and the maildock-verify=… value shown in the app, and an MX record at @ with mail server mx.freedomainmail.com and priority 10. The app shows the exact host and value: at providers that append the domain automatically, enter only _maildock-verify; at providers that want the full name, use _maildock-verify.yourdomain.com.
Type Name / Host Value Priority
TXT _maildock-verify maildock-verify=… (shown in the app) —
MX @ mx.freedomainmail.com 10Turn off Cloudflare Email Routing first
The MX records decide where all incoming mail for the domain goes. If the domain already receives mail you depend on, such as a work mailbox, connect a different domain instead.
If Cloudflare Email Routing is enabled for the domain, it manages the domain's MX records. Turning it off stops the forwarding Email Routing was doing for that domain. Disable Email Routing for that domain before adding the Free Domain Mail MX record, so incoming mail has a single destination.
Then remove any other MX records left in the zone. Senders can deliver to any host listed in the MX set, so an extra record sends some mail elsewhere.
Add records
Open the domain in Cloudflare, choose DNS, then Add record. Select TXT or MX.
For the root-domain MX record, use @ when Cloudflare asks for the name; the ownership TXT record goes at _maildock-verify instead. MX and TXT records are DNS-only; keep existing website A and CNAME records unless you intentionally change website hosting.
SPF, DKIM and DMARC: only if this domain also sends mail
Free Domain Mail never sends mail, so these records are only needed if this domain also sends mail through another provider.
In that case, merge every sender into one SPF TXT record at @, add the provider's DKIM record exactly as shown, and publish DMARC at _dmarc starting with p=none.
Check the result
Run an MX lookup once the old TTL has passed. The answer should list only mx.freedomainmail.com.
Send a message from an outside account to any name at the domain and confirm it arrives in the inbox.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Adding the domain name twice to a hostname.
- Leaving Cloudflare Email Routing enabled while pointing MX at another service.
- Replacing an existing SPF TXT record instead of merging legitimate senders, when the domain also sends.
Frequently asked questions
What TTL should I choose?
Auto or one hour is usually fine for a first setup.
Does Cloudflare store the mail?
No. Cloudflare DNS only publishes the records. The MX record sends incoming mail to mx.freedomainmail.com, where it is kept for 30 days.
Can Email Routing and Free Domain Mail run on the same domain?
Not together. Both depend on the domain's MX records, so disable Email Routing for the domain you connect to Free Domain Mail.