How to set up a business email address

To set up a business email address you need three things: a domain name you control, a company to hold the mailbox, and a few records added to your domain's settings so mail finds its way to that mailbox. The whole job usually takes an afternoon, most of it waiting. Below are the steps in order, the choice you make at the start, and how to test it before you print the address on anything.

Before you start: gather two things

Your domain login. The domain is the name after the @, like yourbakery.com. You need to sign in wherever it is registered (GoDaddy, Namecheap, Squarespace, Network Solutions and so on) or wherever its DNS is managed, which can be a different company. If you do not know where that is, how to find where your domain is registered shows the lookup.

A list of the addresses you want. Write down who needs a real mailbox and which extra addresses can simply land in someone's existing inbox. For example: one mailbox for you (jane@), with orders@ and info@ as aliases that arrive in the same place. Mailboxes usually cost money each; aliases usually do not.

Step 1: Choose where your mail will live

There are three common routes. Pick one before touching any settings.

Google Workspace. Your mail opens in Gmail, with Google Calendar and Drive alongside. A good choice if you already use Gmail on your phone and like it. Paid per user, per month.

Microsoft 365. Your mail opens in Outlook, and the business plans include Word and Excel. A good choice if you live in Outlook on a Windows computer or your bookkeeper sends Excel files. Also paid per user, per month.

Forwarding. Mail sent to your business address is passed on to an inbox you already have, often a personal Gmail. Cheap or free, but you need an extra step to reply from the business address, and nothing is stored at the business end. Fine for a one-person business with light email. The trade-offs are covered in email forwarding vs a real mailbox.

Some web hosts and registrars also sell their own mailboxes. They can work well, but check that you can use the mail on your phone's normal mail app and that you could move away later without losing old messages.

When you sign up for Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, you type in your existing domain (say you already have one, not that you want to buy one). The provider then asks you to prove it is yours by adding a TXT record, a short line of text, to the domain's DNS settings.

Here is what that looks like in practice:

The provider shows a value that starts with something like "google-site-verification=" or "MS=".
In another browser tab, sign in to your registrar or DNS host and open the DNS settings for the domain. It may be called DNS, DNS records, Manage DNS or Advanced DNS.
Add a new record. Type: TXT. Name or host: "@" (which means the domain itself). Value: paste exactly what the provider gave you.
Save, go back to the provider's tab and click verify. If it fails, wait half an hour and try again. DNS changes are not always instant.

Do not delete any records that are already there while you do this. Your website depends on some of them.

Step 3: Create the mailboxes and aliases

In the provider's admin page, add each person who needs a mailbox, with their name and address. Then add aliases to the right person. Write down each password somewhere safe and turn on two-step sign-in (a code on your phone as well as the password) for every account, starting with your own admin account.

Step 4: Point your mail at the new mailbox

This is the step that makes email actually arrive. Mail servers look up your domain's MX records (mail exchanger records, the line that says "deliver mail for this domain here").

The provider lists the MX records to add, usually one to five lines with a priority number.
In your DNS settings, remove any old MX records that point to a previous mail service, unless you are still using that service. Two sets of MX records competing means some mail goes to each.
Add the new MX records exactly as given, then save.

If you have an existing mailbox with old mail in it, stop here and read moving your business email to a new provider first, because the order matters when there is mail to carry over.

Step 5: Add the records that keep you out of spam

Your mail will now arrive, but the mail you send can still be treated as suspicious. Three more records fix that:

SPF, a TXT record listing which servers may send mail for your domain. Your provider gives you the exact text. You can only have one SPF record, so if one exists, combine them rather than adding a second.
DKIM, a digital signature on every message. You switch it on in the provider's admin page, and it gives you a record to add.
DMARC, a TXT record at "_dmarc" that tells other mail servers what to do if a message fails the checks. Starting with "v=DMARC1; p=none" is a common, safe first step.

The plain explanation of each one is in SPF, DKIM and DMARC for small business owners.

Step 6: Set up your phone and computer

Google Workspace: add the account in the Gmail app on your phone. On a computer, sign in at gmail.com with the new address.
Microsoft 365: add the account in the Outlook app, or in your phone's built-in mail app using the "Microsoft Exchange" or "Outlook" option.
Forwarding: nothing changes for receiving. For replies, set up the "send mail as" option in the inbox you forward to, so replies show your business address.

Step 7: Test before you tell anyone

From a personal account, send a message to every new address and alias. Check each one arrives.
Reply from the business address to a Gmail account and an Outlook.com or Yahoo account. Check it lands in the inbox, not spam.
In Gmail, open your message, click the three dots and choose "Show original". Look for SPF, DKIM and DMARC each showing PASS.
Fill in your own website's contact form and make sure the enquiry arrives.

A short checklist

Domain login found and working
Provider chosen and domain verified with a TXT record
Mailboxes and aliases created, two-step sign-in on
Old MX records removed, new ones added
SPF, DKIM and DMARC in place
Phone and computer set up
Test messages delivered to the inbox, not spam

Once the address works, put it on your website's contact page. If the site itself is overdue for a refresh, you can see your site rebuilt first with the new address already on it.