Docs / Add & verify a domain

Add & verify a domain

Add your domain to UglyDMARC and prove ownership by publishing a DNS TXT verification token.

Adding a domain

  1. Sign in to UglyDMARC

    Go to admin.uglydmarc.com and sign in with your account.

  2. Click + Add Domain

    In the dashboard, click the + Add Domain button (or gear icon in the sidebar).

  3. Enter your domain name

    Type the domain you want to monitor. For example: example.com, mail.example.com, or subdomain.example.com. UglyDMARC will generate a unique verification token for that domain.

Verifying ownership

Once you've added your domain, UglyDMARC displays a TXT verification token. You must add this token to your domain's DNS to prove you own it.

  1. Copy the verification token

    UglyDMARC shows a value like:

    uglydmarc-verify=abc123xyz...

    Copy this entire value.

  2. Add the TXT record to your DNS

    Log in to your DNS provider (GoDaddy, Route 53, Cloudflare, etc.) and create a new TXT record:

    • Name: _uglydmarc (or _uglydmarc.example.com depending on your provider)
    • Value: the token you copied above
    • TTL: 3600 (or default)

  3. Wait for DNS propagation

    DNS changes take 5–15 minutes to propagate globally (sometimes longer). After you've added the record, wait a bit before proceeding to the next step.

  4. Click Verify in UglyDMARC

    Return to the UglyDMARC console and click the Verify Domain button. UglyDMARC will query your DNS, check for the token, and confirm ownership. If successful, your domain is ready to use.

Troubleshooting

Verification Failed?

The most common reason is that DNS hasn't propagated yet. Wait another 5–10 minutes and try again. You can also manually verify the record is published using dig or nslookup:

dig _uglydmarc.example.com TXT

If the record appears in the output, it's published. Give it another minute and retry verification in UglyDMARC.

Check with your DNS provider: Some providers (especially enterprise DNS or Cloudflare) may have caching or special requirements. Verify that the TXT record is actually published in their console.

Subdomain verification: If you're verifying a subdomain like mail.example.com, the TXT record should be on that subdomain: _uglydmarc.mail.example.com.

About subdomains

You can add any subdomain (e.g., mail.example.com, marketing.example.com) as a separate domain in UglyDMARC. Each gets its own SPF synthesis, DMARC reporting, and verification token. However, DMARC reports are typically published at the organizational domain level (e.g., example.com for both mail.example.com and marketing.example.com), so you may want to add your base domain first.

Next steps

Once your domain is verified, proceed to Publish your SPF record to set up SPF synthesis and begin collecting DMARC reports.