Sending client email from your own domain

What this does

By default, every client and supplier email Mortar sends on your behalf goes out as "{Your Studio} via Mortar", from a Mortar address — that "via Mortar" line is how the message authenticates, since the mail actually leaves Mortar's own servers.

On the Studio plan, you can connect your own domain instead. Once it's verified, the same emails go out as your studio, from your own address (for example, hello@yourstudio.com) — no "via Mortar" at all.

This is available in Settings → Emails.

Setting it up

1. Go to Settings → Emails and enter a domain. We suggest a subdomain like mail.yourstudio.com rather than your main domain — it keeps your email sending completely separate from your website's own DNS — but your main domain works too.
2. Choose what the address sends from (the part before the @) — hello by default.
3. Mortar creates the domain with our email provider and shows you a small set of DNS records (SPF and DKIM, plus an optional record for bounce handling).
4. Add those exact records at whichever service manages your domain's DNS (your registrar, or wherever your domain's nameservers point).
5. Back in Mortar, click Check again. DNS changes can take anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours to take effect, depending on your provider — it's normal to check a few times before it verifies.

You don't have to keep clicking, either — Mortar automatically re-checks a domain that's still waiting to verify roughly every 15 minutes in the background, so it's normal to add the records and come back later to find it's already verified.

Once verified, sending switches over automatically — there's nothing further to turn on.

What happens while it's not verified yet, or if something goes wrong

Nothing breaks. Until your domain is verified, email continues going out exactly as it does today — "{Your Studio} via Mortar". The same is true if verification ever fails, or if your DNS records get removed later: Mortar always falls back to its own address rather than risk a broken send.

You may occasionally see a domain marked "Temporary issue" rather than "Failed" — that's a transient hiccup checking your DNS (not a problem with your records), and it usually resolves on its own within a check cycle or two. "Failed" means the records genuinely don't match yet and need a look.

Sending also automatically reverts to the Mortar default address if your subscription lapses (a failed payment, a cancelled plan) — even with a fully verified domain on file. It picks back up the moment your subscription is active again, with no need to reverify.

A note on invoice and reminder emails

Invoices, payment receipts, invoice reminders, and supplier quote requests are sent through a different delivery route than everyday emails (chosen for reliable delivery and reply-handling), and that route doesn't support sending from a connected domain the way regular client emails do. Those particular emails may continue to show "via Mortar" even with a verified domain connected. Everything else — portal invites, review requests, and more — uses your domain as soon as it's verified.

Removing a connected domain

Remove it any time from Settings → Emails. Sending reverts to the Mortar default address immediately — no DNS cleanup needed on your end (though you're welcome to remove the records from your DNS provider afterwards).

FAQ

Do I need the Studio plan for this? Yes — a custom sending domain is a Studio-plan feature, the same tier as removing the "Powered by Mortar" credit from your emails.

Can I change the address it sends from later? Yes — once your domain is verified, you can change the local part (the hello in hello@yourstudio.com) at any time from Settings → Emails, without re-verifying the domain itself.

What if I downgrade my plan after connecting a domain? Your connected domain stays on file, but sending reverts to the Mortar default address until you're back on the Studio plan — at which point it picks up again immediately, with no need to reverify.

Can I use gmail.com, outlook.com, or another email provider's domain? No — a sending domain has to be one you actually control the DNS for. Public email providers, Mortar's own domain, and a few reserved infrastructure domains can't be connected.

Do I need to keep checking manually? No — once you've added the DNS records, Mortar keeps re-checking a not-yet-verified domain automatically in the background. "Check again" just lets you confirm sooner instead of waiting for the next automatic pass.