📧 Why Use a Custom Sending Domain?
By default, Guide sends interview emails (e.g. confirmations, reminders, reschedule notices) from a shared Guide domain. To improve deliverability, reduce spam risk, and maintain branding consistency, you can configure a custom domain — so all Guide emails appear to come from your own organization.
✅ What This Does
Once set up, Guide will:
Send all candidate and team-facing emails using your custom domain (e.g. @recruiting.yourcompany.com)
Authenticate email delivery via DKIM, SPF, and DMARC standards
Improve inbox placement and reduce spam filtering
🛠️ Step-by-Step Setup Instructions
Step 1: Navigate to Email Settings in Guide
Go to Settings → Organization Settings → Email Settings
Enter the custom domain you want Guide to send emails from
📌 This should be a subdomain dedicated to Guide (e.g., recruiting.yourcompany.com)
Click Set Domain
Once submitted, Guide will display the DNS records you need to add.
Step 2: Add the Required DNS Records
In your DNS provider (GoDaddy, Route 53, Namecheap, etc.), add all the DNS records exactly as shown in Guide:
CNAME records (used for authentication + routing)
TXT record (used for DMARC verification)
MX record (used for mail routing)
🧠 Some DNS providers (like GoDaddy and Namecheap) will automatically append your domain name.
For example:
❌ Incorrect: em123.recruiting.example.com.example.com
✅ Correct: em123.recruiting.example.com
In these cases, only paste the subdomain portion into the “host” field — e.g., em123.
💡 MX record tip:
Some providers split the MX record into two fields:
- Priority: Set to 10
- Value: Set to mx.sendgrid.net.
If the priority isn’t separate, paste the full value: 10 mx.sendgrid.net.
Step 3: Verify Your Domain
After you’ve added all records in your DNS provider:
Return to the Email Settings page in Guide
Click Verify Domain
If verification succeeds, the status will change to ✅ Verified
If verification fails:
Any failed records will still show a ❌
You may need to wait up to 48 hours for DNS propagation
🚨 Troubleshooting Tips
Double check host fields for DNS entry formatting errors
Wait at least 15–30 minutes before retrying verification (some changes are not immediate)
Use online tools like MXToolbox to verify DNS propagation
If your domain still doesn’t verify:
Email Guide Support with:
A screenshot of your DNS record in your provider’s UI
The name of your DNS provider
The domain you’re trying to verify
🔐 Reminder
Guide will not begin sending emails from your custom domain until all required records are verified.