How I Fixed My 550 SPF Check Failed Email Error (And How You Can Too)
A few weeks ago, I ran into an email problem that completely caught me off guard. I had been sending and receiving emails from my domain (ccwebdesign.com) without any issues for months. Everything seemed fine—until suddenly, a specific email I sent to a client bounced back with this error:
"550 SPF check failed. 209.85.128.171 is not allowed to send mail from ccwebdesign.com."
At first, I was confused. I hadn't changed anything with my email setup. I use Gmail to send and receive emails for my business, and it had been working perfectly up until that point. So why was this happening all of a sudden?
After a little digging, here's what I learned (and how I fixed it):
What the Error Meant
The 550 SPF check failed error was telling me that my domain's SPF record (a security setting that tells the internet who is allowed to send emails on behalf of your domain) wasn't properly authorizing Gmail's servers to send mail for me.
Even though I was using Gmail, my SPF record was either missing, wrong, or incomplete. Some email servers are pretty relaxed about SPF, but others—especially bigger companies and more secure networks—strictly enforce it. That's why most of my emails were going through fine, but this particular client's server rejected mine.
Diagnosing the Problem
I ran a quick SPF lookup using MXToolbox and saw that my domain's SPF record was literally this:
v=spf1 -allThat's as bad as it gets. That record was basically telling the world "No one is allowed to send email from ccwebdesign.com." Not even Gmail.
How I Fixed It
Since my domain is registered with GoDaddy but my DNS is managed through Squarespace (where my website is hosted), I logged into Squarespace to update my DNS settings.
Here's exactly what I did:
Went to Settings > Domains > DNS Settings in Squarespace.
Found the existing TXT record that said
v=spf1 -all.Edited that record to say:
v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com ~allThat little change tells the world, "Gmail's servers are authorized to send emails for ccwebdesign.com."
After saving the new record, I gave it about 30 minutes for the change to propagate across the internet.
Testing to Make Sure It Worked
To test, I sent an email from my business address to a personal Gmail account.
In Gmail, I opened the email, clicked the three dots (⋮), and selected "Show Original."
Under the SPF and DKIM results, I looked for:
SPF: PASS
Once both of those showed "PASS," I knew the fix had worked.
Why This Suddenly Became a Problem
Even though I'd been sending emails fine for months, email providers like Google, Microsoft, and others have gotten a lot stricter about enforcing SPF policies, especially over the past year. Some servers are now flat-out rejecting emails if SPF or DKIM isn’t properly set.
That's why it seemed like this came out of nowhere—it’s not that my setup suddenly broke; it’s that the receiving server got stricter.
Takeaways
If you’re running a business email through your own domain and you’re using Gmail (or any third-party email provider), make sure you:
Have a correct SPF record.
It’s a quick fix that saves you from the embarrassment of bounced emails, lost leads, and spam folder doom.
Want to make your email even more secure? Learn why setting up DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) is the next important step to fully protect your domain. [Read more about it here].
If you need help setting this up, feel free to reach out — it's a small but important piece of having a professional online presence!
