The Ultimate Guide To Email Headers: Definitions, Examples and Best Practices in Creating An Email Header Design

Email headers may seem like a cloud of confusion, but fear not! In this ultimate guide, we will break down email headers and make them crystal clear. We’ll start by explaining what email headers are and why they are important. Understanding their characteristics will be the next step, as it will help you navigate through the intricacies of email headers.

Once you have a good grasp of the basics, we’ll show you how to view and analyze email headers effectively. This skill is crucial for gaining insights into your email journey and ensuring the security of your inbox.

In this guide, we will also introduce you to some of the best practices for creating fantastic email headers.

So, if you’re ready to unravel the mysteries of email headers and take your email marketing to the next level, keep reading!

What Are Email Headers?

Email headers (also known as message headers or internet headers) are the top section of an email containing metadata such as sender, receiver, route taken, and timestamps. Popular email clients and providers use email headers to authenticate senders and ensure email messages land in the recipient’s inbox rather than their spam folder. Email providers use this header to make sure the sender is legitimate and to organize emails in the correct places.

The information in the email header is created automatically. While there are some standard things the header should have, mail servers can add extra information as needed.

Email headers can be compared to the text written outside the envelope of traditional letters, revealing the sender, recipient, and journey of the message.

Understanding email headers is vital if you want to launch successful email campaigns, as they ensure proper email delivery to customers and potential clients. A well-designed email header is also important in viewer engagement and reinforcing brand image.

This guide will explore the technical aspects of email headers and their contribution to the successful delivery and presentation of emails.

A Guide To Email Header Characteristics

The email header is the top section of an email. They contain your message’s metadata. Understanding the characteristics of your email header can help you identify the email’s travel in the digital world.

The characteristics of a header include:

• From: The sender’s name and email address. IP addresses may also be included.
• To: The recipient’s name and email address.
• Date: The date and time when the email was sent.
• Subject: Provides context to the email’s content.

Beyond these, header information also tracks each stop your email makes before reaching its final destination. Time stamps are left at every MTA (Mail Transfer Agent) that handles it, much like a physical mail getting stamped at each sorting center along its route.

Each ‘Received’ header represents a stop in the email’s journey through different mail servers (MTAs), providing a timestamp and details of each transfer.

Reading full header details from bottom to top, you can trace back your email journey with ease. Don’t overlook this seemingly minor detail; it’s a vital part of ensuring the successful execution of any email marketing strategy.

How To View Email Headers

Each time the email you’re sending passes through an MTA, a shiny new entry is added to the header. It’s like getting a stamp on your passport each time you cross a border, except in this case, it’s a timestamp for every pit stop your email makes. Viewing the email headers can vary depending on what email client you use.

Here are the ways you can find the full email headers of your message in different email clients:

• Gmail: Open the email and find the three-dot icon in the top right corner of the email. Click on “Show Original” in the drop-down menu.
• Microsoft Outlook: Select the three-dot icon in the top right corner. Then, press view and click “view message source”
• Apple Mail: Click “View” on the top-left corner, select the message, and then all headers
• Yahoo: Click the three-dot icon above the email and press “View Raw Message”

These steps help you find an email header that contains essential data such as timestamps for when it was sent and received, IP addresses involved in the transmission process, etc.

How To Analyze The Email Headers

Every email contains a detailed record of their journey. Although most email users may not bother checking them out, email headers provide a substantial amount of information that can be beneficial to you. For example, some people can know whether the email they receive is a threat based on its headers in Gmail. Knowing whether or not an email contains a potential threat is certainly good knowledge to have.

When you open an email, you’ll see familiar fields like “From,” “To,” “Subject,” and “Date.” These provide the basic details we need to navigate our digital communication. You’ll also find entries such as:

• Return-Path: Specifies the return address if delivery fails.
• Reply-To: Indicates where responses should be directed.
• Message-ID: A unique identifier for the email.

While the “Date” and “From” fields are mandatory, headers can branch out into a multitude of specifics, adding depth and nuance to the entire process. No two headers are alike, and within them lie the fingerprints of every MTA agent your email encounters.

Informational Email Headers

These headers provide crucial details about the sender, recipient, subject, and content type.

Here’s a quick overview:

These are just a few among many examples. Each header contains specific information that aids in efficient delivery and response handling.

Technical Email Headers

Technical email headers are an essential part of the behind-the-scenes workings of our daily communications. They provide vital information about the sender, recipient, message routing data, and more.

While these headers are invisible to most users, they play a significant role in diagnostics and troubleshooting. They are particularly useful for analyzing emails, as they provide clues about whether an email has been spoofed or contains malware.

Technical email headers include a Return Path. This records the initial sender of the email during the SMTP session. So, if any bounces happen while your email is making its way through cyberspace, they’ll be sent back to the given address. The Return-Path can be different from the “From” address displayed to the recipient. This is often used to prevent abuse and to protect the sender’s primary inbox from being flooded with bounce messages (non-delivery reports).

Another important part is the Received header. It’s a trail of breadcrumbs, recording the journey of the email as it travels through various mail servers. Each time a mail server receives the email, it adds its own “Received” header to the top of the message. This creates a chronological list of the servers involved in the delivery. This header typically includes:

• From: The hostname or IP address of the server that sent the email.
• By: The hostname or IP address of the server that received the email.
• With: The method of delivery (e.g., SMTP, ESMTP).
• ID: A unique identifier assigned by the receiving server.
• Date/Time: The time and date the email was received by the server.

Other parts of a technical email include:

• Message ID: A unique identifier that is automatically generated to prevent multiple deliveries. This entry includes various letters and numbers and it’s typically enclosed in angle brackets (e.g., <[1bs7g83jdha7w6@email address]>)
• MIME (Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions) is an internet standard that’s all about making email more exciting and versatile. It allows you to add all sorts of media attachments to your messages. Whether it’s images, videos, audio files, or even interactive documents, MIME headers guide email clients and servers in correctly interpreting and displaying them.

So, these headers are like the paper trail of your email’s journey. It’s interesting to see all the stops it makes on its way to the recipient.

Security Email Headers

Security Email Headers play an instrumental role in safeguarding our online communications from potential threats and cyber-attacks. They are used to verify the sender’s identity and protect against phishing or spoofing attempts.

A security email header typically includes details such as the sender’s IP address, authentication results, and encryption information. These components help identify whether the email is legitimate or suspicious.

When you receive an email, your email server may check the following to authenticate the message:

• DKIM-Signature, or Domain Keys Identified Mail (DKIM): An email is signed with a digital signature (connecting the domain name with the email). This acts like a virtual seal of approval. This signature is then verified by checking the sender’s public key, which can be found in the DNS records of the sender’s domain.
• SPF, or Sender Policy Framework: An authentication method used by senders to establish a list of approved hosts that are authorized to send emails on behalf of a particular domain. It’s like a VIP list that only allows certain hosts to enter the email delivery party.
• DMARC, or Domain-Based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance: An email authentication protocol specially designed to empower domain owners to shield their domains from unauthorized use, AKA email spoofing. It leverages the powers of existing email authentication mechanisms called SPF (Sender Policy Framework) and DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail). By combining these forces, DMARC ensures domain alignment and provides robust reporting features.

If an incoming mail fails SPF or DKIM checks, it might be flagged as spam by the recipient’s email servers. These checks are used to verify the authenticity of the sender’s address and prevent spoofing. Email service providers use these tools as a line of defense against malware and other harmful programs that may disrupt your computer.

If you’re interested in doing an email campaign, knowing these may help you avoid the limbo of the email inbox. If you wanna learn more, perhaps ourn article on how to avoid spam may help you further.

What Makes Email Headers Important?

Email headers are important not just because of the information they contain. Headers can provide you an added layer of protection against harm, too.

If you know how to examine an email’s route identification within its header, you’re better equipped to validate its origin and ensure that the content of the email is not a disguised threat.

Here are a few things that make email headers important for your safety:

• Security:
  • Protection against Phishing: Email headers contain security mechanisms like DMARC, DKIM, and SPF, which authenticate the sender’s identity and help prevent phishing attacks. These mechanisms can help you identify emails that may be spoofing the sender’s address.
  • Protection Against Scammers: Email scams can be tricky and sophisticated. Email headers contain vital information, including the sender’s IP address. Most scammers don’t mask their IP addresses as they underestimate your ability to analyze these details. If you’re suspicious, use a DNS checker to discover if their IP address is blacklisted.
• Deliverability: Headers make sure your email is being sent to its intended recipient. This is especially important for the success of email marketing campaigns and for maintaining a good sender reputation.
• Troubleshooting: Headers provide a detailed record of the email’s journey through the internet. This information can be helpful in troubleshooting delivery issues and identifying potential problems with your email server.

Enhancing Email Security and Deliverability with EmailLabs

Optimizing email headers is essential for security and deliverability, and EmailLabs provides advanced tools to streamline this process. With DKIM, SPF, DMARC, and BIMI, it strengthens authentication, prevents spoofing, and enhances brand trust. TLS encryption ensures secure email transmission.

To maximize inbox placement, EmailLabs offers dedicated IPs, 99.98% delivery rates, and proactive reputation monitoring. Advanced features like real-time tracking and blacklist management can help maintain high performance and security.

By integrating EmailLabs, businesses can safeguard their emails, improve sender reputation, and achieve more effective communication.