What is domain authentication?
By default, Housecall Pro sends your customer emails from a housecallpro.com address. Domain authentication lets you send them from your own domain instead, so an email looks like it came from hello@yourbusiness.com. This builds trust with customers and helps your emails reach the inbox instead of the spam folder.
To set it up, you’ll add your domain in Housecall Pro and then prove you own it by adding a few DNS records, either automatically (we connect to your domain provider for you) or manually (you copy the records yourself). DNS changes can take up to 48 hours to take effect.
📌 You’ll need: a domain you own (like yourbusiness.com) and access to where its DNS settings are managed (GoDaddy, Cloudflare, Namecheap, Google Domains, and 30+ others).
Step 1: Add your domain
Go to Settings > Inbox > Advanced Settings.
Fill in the three fields:
Sending domain — your domain, e.g. yourbusiness.com
Subdomain — defaults to email; your records are set up under email.yourbusiness.com
Sender email address — the address customers will see, e.g. hello@yourbusiness.com
Click Add domain.
Your domain now shows a Pending verification status. Next, add your DNS records using one of the two options below.
Step 2, Option A: Connect your DNS provider (automatic)
On the Set up DNS records card, select Connect your DNS provider.
A window opens where you sign in to your domain provider (GoDaddy, Cloudflare, Namecheap, Google Domains, and 30+ more).
Confirm the changes when prompted. We add the DNS records for you automatically.
When it finishes, you’ll see a confirmation that your DNS records were configured. Changes may take up to 48 hours to propagate.
Select Verify to check the status.
📌 Changes can take up to 48 hours to take effect. If verification doesn’t succeed right away, wait and select Verify again.
Step 2, Option B: Add DNS records manually
Use this if you’d rather add the records yourself, or your provider isn’t supported by the automatic option.
On the Configure DNS records manually card, you’ll see a table of records with Type, Host, and Value columns (these are CNAME records).
Sign in to your DNS provider in a separate tab.
For each row, add a new DNS record at your provider using the exact Type, Host, and Value shown.
Save the records at your provider.
Back in Housecall Pro, select Verify.
Each record shows its own status — Pending, Verified, or Failed — so you can see which ones have gone through.
📌 DNS changes can take up to 48 hours to take effect. If a record still shows Pending or Failed, give it time and select Verify again.
Step 3: Confirm your sender address
On the Sender address card, check the Sender email address is the one you want customers to see.
Customers will see: Your Business Name <hello@yourbusiness.com>, and replies go to your business email.
Select Save changes if you edit it.
Step 4: Test it
Once your domain shows Verified, send yourself a test email to confirm the from address is correct:
Add yourself as a customer (use an email address you can check).
Open your own customer profile.
Send yourself a customer portal link from the profile.
Check your inbox — the email should arrive from your own domain (e.g. hello@yourbusiness.com) instead of a housecallpro.com address.
If it still comes from a housecallpro.com address, your domain may not be fully verified yet — recheck the status and DNS records below.
Understanding your domain status
Your domain shows one of these statuses:
Pending verification (yellow) — Records are set up but not yet confirmed. Add your DNS records and select Verify. Remember DNS can take up to 48 hours.
✅ Verified (green) — Your domain is authenticated, and your customer emails now send from your own address. Shows “Connected on {date}.”
⚠️ Verification failed (red) — One or more records didn’t match. You’ll see a message like “2 of 3 records didn’t match.” Double-check the records at your DNS provider, then select Verify again. (DNS changes can take up to 48 hours, so a recent edit may just need more time.)
⚠️ Revoked — A domain that was working stopped passing our routine automatic check, usually because the DNS records were removed or changed at your provider. To keep your emails delivering, Housecall Pro automatically switches you back to sending from the default Housecall Pro address, so your messages still go out. We’ll email your account admins letting them know. To restore your own domain, re-add the DNS records at your provider and verify the domain again.
📌 Removing your domain: On a verified domain, you can select Remove domain at any time. Emails go back to sending from a Housecall Pro address, and you can add the domain again later.
Need help?
We're here for you! Chat with Support using the Blue Chat Bubble in your Housecall Pro account, or give us a call at (858) 842-5746.