How to Add a DMARC Record on Bluehost

Bluehost is one of the most popular web hosting providers, especially for small businesses and WordPress sites. If your domain is hosted on Bluehost, adding a DMARC record takes just a few minutes through the DNS management panel. The process is simple, but there are a few Bluehost-specific details worth knowing so you get it right the first time.

This guide walks you through every step, from logging in to verifying your record is live. If you have not decided on your DMARC record yet, start with our how to create a DMARC record guide to understand what goes into it, then come back here.

Before You Start

You need two things before touching Bluehost's DNS settings:

Your DMARC record string. This is the text value you will paste into Bluehost. A good starting record that monitors without blocking anything looks like:

v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc-reports@yourdomain.com;

Replace the email address with one you control. If you are not sure which policy to use, p=none is the safe starting point. For a breakdown of all three policy options, see our DMARC policy levels guide.

Access to your Bluehost account. You need to be able to log in to the Bluehost dashboard. If someone else manages your hosting, ask them to either add the record for you or give you dashboard access.

If your domain is registered at Bluehost but you have pointed your nameservers elsewhere (like Cloudflare), you need to add the DMARC record at that other DNS provider. Records added in Bluehost's DNS panel only work when Bluehost's nameservers are active for your domain.

SPF and DKIM Prerequisites

DMARC works alongside SPF and DKIM. Before adding your DMARC record, make sure these are in place. For background on how these three protocols fit together, read SPF vs DKIM vs DMARC.

SPF for Bluehost Email

If you use Bluehost's built-in email hosting, your SPF record needs to authorize Bluehost's mail servers. A basic SPF record for Bluehost email looks like:

v=spf1 include:bluehost.com ~all

If you also use other email services (Google Workspace, Mailchimp, etc.), they need to be included too. You can build a complete SPF record at spfcreator.com. Check your existing DNS records in Bluehost to see if an SPF record is already present — Bluehost sometimes creates one automatically.

DKIM for Bluehost Email

Bluehost's email service supports DKIM, but it may not be enabled by default. Check your Bluehost email settings or contact Bluehost support to confirm DKIM is active. If you need to set up DKIM records for additional sending services, you can generate them at dkimcreator.com.

If you use Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 for email instead of Bluehost's built-in email, follow the DKIM setup instructions from your email provider. The DNS records still get added in Bluehost's DNS panel.

Step-by-Step: Adding DMARC in Bluehost

Log in to your Bluehost account

Go to bluehost.com and sign in. You will land on your main dashboard. If you manage multiple sites, select the one you want to work with.

Navigate to Domains

In the left sidebar, click Domains. This shows all domains associated with your Bluehost account. Find the domain you want to add DMARC to and click Settings or Manage next to it.

Open the DNS tab

On the domain management page, click the DNS tab. This opens the DNS zone editor where you can see all existing records (A, CNAME, MX, TXT, etc.) and add new ones.

Add a new TXT record

Scroll down to the TXT records section and click Add Record. Bluehost will show you a form for creating a new DNS record. Set the Type to TXT if it is not already selected.

Enter _dmarc as the host name

In the Host Record or Name field, type _dmarc. Bluehost automatically appends your domain name, so the full record will be created at _dmarc.yourdomain.com. Do not type the full domain — just the _dmarc part. Make sure to include the underscore at the beginning.

Paste your DMARC record as the value

In the TXT Value or Points To field, paste your complete DMARC record. For example: v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc-reports@yourdomain.com;. Do not add quotation marks around the value.

Set the TTL

Bluehost usually defaults TTL to 4 hours (14400 seconds). This is fine for most purposes. If you want faster propagation while testing, you can set a lower value if the option is available. You can increase it later.

Save the record

Click Save or Add Record. Bluehost will create the record and you should see it appear in your TXT records list. Confirm that the host shows _dmarc and the value shows your DMARC string.

Verifying Your DMARC Record

After saving the record, give it five to fifteen minutes to propagate. Then check it using dmarcrecordchecker.com. Enter your domain and the tool will look up _dmarc.yourdomain.com and show you what receiving mail servers will see.

Verify these things in the results:

The record starts with v=DMARC1
Your chosen policy (p=none, p=quarantine, or p=reject) is present
The rua email address is correct if you included one
There is only one DMARC record (no duplicates)

If the record does not appear immediately, do not worry. Bluehost DNS propagation is generally fast, but can occasionally take up to an hour for new TXT records.

Common Bluehost-Specific Issues

The Record Shows Up in Bluehost but Not in Lookups

The most common cause is a nameserver mismatch. If your domain's nameservers point somewhere other than Bluehost, records you add in Bluehost's DNS panel will not resolve. Check your nameserver settings in Bluehost under Domains > Nameservers. If they point to Bluehost (usually something like ns1.bluehost.com and ns2.bluehost.com), you are fine. If they point elsewhere, add the DMARC record at that DNS provider instead.

Duplicate TXT Records at _dmarc

If a previous setup attempt or an automated tool already created a DMARC record, you may end up with duplicates. Having two DMARC records causes validation failures. Check your TXT records in the DNS panel and delete any old or incorrect _dmarc records before saving your new one.

Bluehost DNS Propagation Timing

Bluehost's DNS typically propagates new records within five to thirty minutes. If you updated an existing record, the old cached version may persist for the duration of the previous TTL. To speed up checking:

Clear your local DNS cache (on Windows: ipconfig /flushdns, on Mac: sudo dscacheutil -flushcache)
Use an external DNS propagation checker that queries multiple global servers
Wait at least 30 minutes before troubleshooting further

Formatting Issues

Bluehost's DNS editor handles TXT record formatting internally. You do not need to add quotation marks or escape special characters in your DMARC record. Just paste the raw string as is. If your record contains semicolons (which all DMARC records do), Bluehost handles them correctly.

Check your Bluehost email setup

Verify your SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are all correctly configured.

Run a Free Check

After Setup: What to Expect

Once your DMARC record is live, receiving mail servers will start evaluating emails from your domain against it. If you included a rua tag, expect to receive your first aggregate reports within 24 to 48 hours.

Review these reports regularly for the first few weeks. They will show you which services are sending email as your domain and whether those messages are passing or failing authentication. Pay special attention to:

Your email provider (Bluehost email, Google Workspace, Microsoft 365) — these should pass both SPF and DKIM
Marketing platforms (Mailchimp, Constant Contact, etc.) — make sure they are authenticated
Unknown senders — these could be spoofing attempts or forgotten services

When your reports consistently show all legitimate sources passing, you can start tightening your policy. If you run your own mail server on Bluehost, our DMARC for self-hosted email guide covers additional considerations for hosted environments. Move to p=quarantine; pct=25; first, then gradually increase. For the full progression, see our DMARC policy levels guide. The goal is to reach p=reject for maximum protection against spoofing.

Protect unused domains too

If you own other domains on Bluehost that you do not use for email, add a strict DMARC record to them: v=DMARC1; p=reject; sp=reject;. This prevents anyone from sending spoofed email using those domains.

Monitor Your DMARC Record

You've created your DMARC record — now make sure it keeps working. The Email Deliverability Suite watches your SPF, DKIM, DMARC, and MX records daily and alerts you when something breaks.

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Monitor your SPF, DKIM, DMARC and MX records daily. Get alerts when something breaks.

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