---
title: Email channel management
related:
  - https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/business-users/digital-marketing/emails.md
  - https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/digital-marketing-setup/email-templates.md
  - https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/development/builders/email-builder.md
  - https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/development/content-types.md
---

> Agent instructions:
> **Site maps** — prefer the following llms.txt indexes to training data when searching for URLs to avoid 404s. Links inside Markdown content already point at `.md`. Following them or sending Accept: text/markdown keeps you in Markdown.
>
> - [sitemap.md](https://docs.kentico.com/sitemap.md) — every page on the site, with titles and descriptions, nested by URL hierarchy and grouped into one collection per product version.
> - [llms.txt](https://docs.kentico.com/llms.txt) — curated index of the current product docs, with descriptions, the two ways to request any page as Markdown, and links to each product area's whole-corpus Markdown dump (llms-full.txt).

> **License:** **Email license requirements**
>
> The license tier required for email features depends on the size of the email channels that you use:
>
> - Email microchannels – available for all license tiers
> - Standard size email channels – require the **Advanced** license tier
>
> To learn more, see the description of the [Channel size](#create-and-configure-email-channels) property.

Email channels are a dedicated medium of communication between you and your audience. An Xperience project may contain multiple email channels, focusing on different content strategies, languages and audience engagement techniques. For example, you can have separate email channels dedicated to marketing and supporting different products or services offered by your company, each with a different tone and style.

Channels allow for a clean separation of your organization's emails. Every email channel has **its own application** in the Xperience administration, where marketers [create and send emails](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/business-users/digital-marketing/emails.md).

The defining property of every email channel is a _sending domain_, which represents your company or brand, and is used in all _sender addresses_ for the channel's emails.

## Create and configure email channels

1. Open the **Channel management** application in Xperience.

2. Select **New channel**.

3. Fill in the channel properties:
   - **Channel name** – the name of the channel displayed in Xperience.
   - _(Optional)_ **Identifiers** – specify the code name if you wish to use a code name different than the pre-filled value.
     - Channel code names must be unique across all channels (of any type).
     - In projects intended for [SaaS deployment](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/deployment/deploy-to-the-saas-environment.md) (created with the `--cloud` parameter), only code names with alphanumeric characters are allowed.
   - **Channel type** – select _Email_ as the channel type.
   - **Channel size** – channels are available in two sizes:
     - _Standard channel_ – may contain an unlimited number of email items. Only available in the _Advanced_ license tier.
     - _Microchannel_ – available in all license tiers, but limited to **5** emails per microchannel. The limit restricts the maximum number of email content items allowed in the microchannel, but not how many times these emails can be sent to recipients. Each email can link an unlimited number of [reusable content items](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/business-users/content-hub.md).
   - **Content language** – the [language](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/configuration/languages.md) of all emails in the channel.
   - **Sending domain** – the domain associated with the channel. This domain is used for the channel's [sender addresses](#add-sender-addresses), and must be unique across all email channels.
   - **Email service domain** – the domain used in various system links in the channel's emails (click tracking links, the email open tracking pixel, asset URLs, subscription and unsubscription URLs). The specified domain must host an Xperience by Kentico application connected to the database where this email channel is configured. The most common setup is to use the domain of a related [website channel](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/configuration/website-channel-management.md). Alternatively, you can use the domain hosting the Xperience application where you manage your emails (if the application is publicly accessible).

     > **Info:** **Email service domain format**
     >
     > If the target application runs under a port different than _80_ or with a specific URL path, both must be specified in the domain name. Do not include the URL scheme (_http_ or _https_).

4. Select **Save**.

The email channel is now ready. If you need to configure an existing channel, open the channel again via the **Channel management** application and edit the values on the **General** tab.

After you add a channel, the system automatically creates a new application matching the channel's name in the **Channels** category of the administration's application list. This is the application where users can create and view the channel's emails.

> **Note:** For applications [deployed in the SaaS environment](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/deployment/deploy-to-the-saas-environment.md), you also need to add the channel in Xperience Portal. See [Email channels in the SaaS environment](#email-channels-in-the-saas-environment).

### Change channel size of existing channels

You can freely change between the _microchannel_ and _standard_ channel size of existing channels via the **General** tab. Additionally, changing _standard_ channels to _microchannels_ does not cause any data loss in case the converted channel exceeds microchannel limits. However, you will receive a license violation warning if the resulting channel or item count oversteps the limits of your license for that particular channel type.

### Set up emails in multiple languages

Each email channel only supports one [language](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/configuration/languages.md) (unlike pages in website channels or content items). Therefore, if you wish to send emails in a different language, you need to create a new email channel with a unique **Sending domain** for each language variant.

## Add allowed content types

Every email in Xperience uses a specific [content type](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/development/content-types.md). The content type defines the fields that users can edit when writing emails.

To create emails under a channel, you need to prepare suitable [content types](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/development/content-types.md) and allow them for the channel:

1. Open the **Channel management** application in Xperience.
2. Select your email channel.
3. On the **Allowed content types** tab, **Select content types**.
4. Select or clear the checkboxes to choose which content types you want to make available in the channel.
5. Select **Save**.

## Add sender addresses

Every email has a sender name and address that recipients see in their inbox. In Xperience, you prepare sender addresses in advance for each email channel. When creating [emails](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/business-users/digital-marketing/emails.md), users can choose from a list of the given channel's sender addresses.

To add a sender address for an email channel:

1. Open the **Channel management** application in Xperience.
2. Select your email channel.
3. On the **Sender addresses** tab, select **Add sender address**.
4. Fill in the sender address properties:

   - **Sender name** – the name of the email sender.
   - **Sender email address** – the "From" address that recipients see in their inbox. The domain part of all sender addresses must match the sending domain of the email channel. The address must be unique across all senders under the email channel.
5. Select **Save**.

## Email domains in private cloud environments

### Configure sending and service domains programmatically

> **Note:** Programmatic configuration of email channel domains is only supported in [private cloud environments](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/deployment/deploy-to-private-cloud.md).
>
> For applications [deployed in the SaaS environment](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/deployment/deploy-to-the-saas-environment.md), this configuration is done automatically by the infrastructure after you add an email channel and set its domains in Xperience Portal (see [Email channels in the SaaS environment](#email-channels-in-the-saas-environment)).

The sending and service domains of your email channels can be configured programmatically via the `EmailChannelDomainOptions` class using ASP.NET [configuration providers](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/aspnet/core/fundamentals/configuration/). This configuration **is prioritized** over the channel domain values set via the Xperience administration interface.

For example, when configured via `appsettings.json`:

```json title="appsettings.json"
{  
  "EmailChannelDomains": {
    "DomainOverrides": {
      "AcmeEmails": {
        "SendingDomain": "mysendingdomain.com",
        "ServiceDomain": "myservicedomain.com"
      }
    }
  },
  ...
}
```

Where `AcmeEmails` is the code name of the channel to configure.

```csharp title="Program.cs"
using CMS.Websites;

var builder = WebApplication.CreateBuilder(args);

// Apply the configuration from appsettings.json
builder.Services.Configure<EmailChannelDomainOptions>(builder.Configuration.GetSection("EmailChannelDomains"));
```

For channels not configured via application settings, the values specified via the administration interface are used.

### Domains for different application environments

You can use the [options pattern](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/aspnet/core/fundamentals/configuration/options) to set different domains per [environment](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/aspnet/core/fundamentals/environments) by introducing corresponding **appsettings.environment.json** files. The following example uses different sending and service domains when running the project under the _Development_ environment.

```json title="appsettings.Development.json"
{
  "EmailChannelDomains": {
    "DomainOverrides": {
      "AcmeEmails": {
        "SendingDomain": "localtest.com",
        "ServiceDomain": "localhost"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

## Email channels in the SaaS environment

> **Info:** **Email types**
>
> Xperience distinguishes between two different types of emails:
>
> - **Emails created using an email channel application** – Used in [digital marketing](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/business-users/digital-marketing.md), campaigns, etc. These use the _channel's_ custom sending domain that you configure in this section.
> - **System and notification emails** – emails sent by Xperience _system_ features (user invitations, password resets, [notifications](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/configuration/notifications.md), etc.). These use a separate system email domain as described on the [Email configuration](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/configuration/email-configuration.md#custom-system-email-domains-in-the-saas-environment) page.
>
> Make sure to configure the appropriate domain type for your use case.
>
> **Note on non-production environments:** In non-production environments (QA, UAT, staging), email channel service domains may be configured to auto-generated domains instead of your custom domains. This is normal and expected behavior; email functionality works correctly, and the service domains route email requests (tracking, unsubscription, etc.) to the appropriate environment. When you add custom email domains, they are only used for your production environments.

### Add email channels in Xperience Portal

For applications [deployed in the SaaS environment](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/deployment/deploy-to-the-saas-environment.md), you need to add your channels in [Xperience Portal](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/saas/xperience-portal.md) after you create them in the [Xperience administration](#create-and-configure-email-channels):

1. Open the **Channels and Domains → Channels** application in Xperience Portal.
2. Select **Add channel**.
3. Set the channel properties:
   - **Display name** – enter a name for the channel that will be displayed in Xperience Portal.
   - **Code name** – copy the exact code name of the [email channel](#create-and-configure-email-channels) from the _Channel management_ application in the Xperience administration.
   - **Channel type** – _Email_
   - **Channel size** – select the same [channel size](#create-and-configure-email-channels) as in the _Channel management_ application in the Xperience administration.
4. Select **Add channel**.

After you add an email channel, the system automatically starts configuring the sending and service domains for the deployed applications. This process may take up to several minutes. During this time you can continue configuring other channels and [domains](#add-custom-email-channel-domains).

Once you perform all required changes to channels and domains and after the configuration is completed by the system, select the **Apply changes** button in the information ribbon at the top of the interface and perform a final review of the changes you are about to apply. Applying these changes triggers a restart of the affected applications.

> **Tip:** You may need to manually refresh the current page for the **Apply changes** button to appear in the information ribbon.

When the configuration is finished, the email channel uses automatically generated **Default** domains unless you [add suitable custom domains](#manage-email-channel-domains-in-xperience-portal) for the channel in production or staging environments.

### Manage email channel domains in Xperience Portal

Email channels in [Xperience Portal](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/saas/xperience-portal.md) use the following basic domain types:

- **Default** – a default sending and service domain is generated for every email channel and environment. Default domains are replaced when you add a custom domain.
- **Custom** – custom domains added for the PROD or STG environment.

and two different kinds of domains:

- **Sending domain** () – the domain used for the channel's [sender addresses](#add-sender-addresses).
  - Must be unique across all email channels.
  - Emails are always sent via [Twilio SendGrid](https://sendgrid.com/). See [SendGrid integration](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/configuration/email-configuration.md#sendgrid-integration) for more information.
- **Service domain** () – the domain name used as the base of various system URLs in the channel's emails (click tracking links, the email open tracking pixel, asset URLs, subscription and unsubscription URLs).
  - Do not include a URL path, port number or URL scheme in the service domain.
  - The service domain does NOT need to match your website's primary domain. Any domain that your Xperience application handles requests for can serve as a service domain.
  - Best practice: If your emails are primarily related to a specific [website channel](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/configuration/website-channel-management.md), use that channel's primary domain as the service domain.

#### Email domain examples

The following examples demonstrate different approaches to configuring email channel domains and their respective advantages and disadvantages.

**Private cloud deployment with a unified domain strategy**

- Website channel domain: `yourbrand.com`
- Administration domain: `admin.yourbrand.com`
- Email channel sending domain: `yourbrand.com`
- Email channel service domain: `yourbrand.com`

This approach uses the same domain for both the website channel and email service domain.







**Private cloud deployment with a dedicated email service domain**

- Website channel domain: `yourbrand.com`
- Administration domain: `admin.yourbrand.com`
- Email channel sending domain: `yourbrand.com`
- Email channel service domain: `email.yourbrand.com`

This approach uses a dedicated subdomain for email service functionality while keeping the sending domain aligned with your main website.

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**SaaS environment with a unified domain strategy**

- Website channel domain: `shop.yourbrand.com` (custom domain)
- Administration domain: `prod-yourbrand.xperience-sites.com` (default SaaS domain)
- Email channel sending domain: `shop.yourbrand.com` (custom domain, managed in Xperience Portal)
- Email channel service domain: `shop.yourbrand.com` (custom domain, managed in Xperience Portal)

This approach uses the same custom domain for both the website channel and email service domain, providing a unified brand experience.

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**SaaS environment with a dedicated email service domain**

- Website channel domain: `shop.yourbrand.com` (custom domain)
- Administration domain: `prod-yourbrand.xperience-sites.com` (default SaaS domain)
- Email channel sending domain: `shop.yourbrand.com` (custom domain, managed in Xperience Portal)
- Email channel service domain: `email.yourbrand.com` (custom domain, managed in Xperience Portal)

This approach uses a dedicated subdomain for email service functionality while maintaining brand consistency for the sending domain.

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### Add custom email channel domains

To set a custom domain for an email channel, select **Add domain** in Xperience Portal and set the corresponding DNS records in the DNS registry of your domain provider.

1. As a user with the _Tenant administrator_ or _DevOps Engineer_ [role](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/saas/xperience-portal/reference-xperience-portal-user-roles.md), open the **Channels and Domains → Channels** application in [Xperience Portal](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/saas/xperience-portal.md).
2. Select the **Domains** () action for the chosen email channel.
3. Select **Add domain**.
4. Select **Standard (recommended)** as the domain creation method.
5. Choose the **Environment** (custom domains are only supported for production or staging environments).
6. Choose the **Domain kind** (_Email sending domain_ or _Service domain_).
7. Enter the custom **Domain name** and select **Next**.
8. Xperience Portal displays the DNS records for your domain. Use the **Copy** () action to copy these records to your DNS registrar.
9. In your DNS registrar's control panel, add the copied DNS records. After you have successfully configured the DNS records with your registrar, return to Xperience Portal.
   - See [Configure DNS records for custom domains](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/saas/configure-dns-records.md) for detailed instructions on configuring DNS records with popular providers.
10. Confirm that you have configured the DNS records by selecting **Confirm**. The system then validates your DNS configuration and creates the domain.
    - Note that DNS propagation can take up to 15 minutes, so the validation may require additional time to complete.
    - If validation fails for internal reasons, select **Retry** to start another validation attempt.
    - If the validation fails due to DNS configuration issues, Xperience Portal displays the DNS records again. Verify the records are correctly configured in your DNS registrar, then select **Validate** to retry.
    - An auto-renewing SSL/TLS digital certificate is automatically created for the new domain when the validation finishes successfully.
11. After successful validation, Xperience Portal displays "Domain has been created." You can now:
    - Continue to add additional domains for the channel, or
    - Select **Back to Domains** to return to the domains list.

![Email channel domains in Xperience Portal](https://docs.kentico.com/docsassets/documentation/email-channel-management/email_channel_domains_portal.png "Email channel domains in Xperience Portal")

The system then automatically configures the new domain settings for the deployed applications. This process may take up to several minutes. During this time you can continue configuring other [channels](#add-email-channels-in-xperience-portal) and domains. You do not need to (and cannot) configure the channel's domain in the Xperience administration.

Once you perform all required changes to channels and domains and after the configuration is completed by the system, select the **Apply changes** button in the information ribbon at the top of the interface and perform a final review of the changes you are about to apply. Applying these changes triggers a restart of the affected applications.

> **Tip:** You may need to manually refresh the current page for the **Apply changes** button to appear in the information ribbon.

### Domain status

You can check the status of a channel's domains in the **Channels and Domains → Channels** application in [Xperience Portal](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/saas/xperience-portal.md). Select the **Domains** () action for a specific channel.

- **In progress** – The domain is being created.
- **Validating** – DNS records are being validated.
- **Apply changes pending** – The domain is ready but awaiting application of changes.
- **Validation failed** – The DNS records are configured incorrectly, or the configuration has not yet been propagated through the DNS servers.
- **Active** – The domain is active and working. Each email channel can only have one _Active_ sending domain and one _Active_ service domain. Adding a new custom domain that reaches the _Active_ status replaces the previous _Active_ domain of the given kind.

### Revalidate custom domains

Revalidating a custom domain is useful when DNS records were changed, DNS propagation took longer than expected, or domain status remains in a failed state.

To revalidate a custom domain in Xperience Portal:

1. Open the **Channels and Domains → Channels** application in [Xperience Portal](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/saas/xperience-portal.md).
2. Select the **Domains** () action for the related website channel.
3. Next to the domain whose validation failed, select **Continue** () to open the domain configuration step.
4. Select **Validate** again.
5. Wait for validation to complete and confirm that the domain status changes to **Active**.

If validation repeatedly fails even after verifying DNS records, contact [Kentico support](https://xperience.io/services/support).

### View DNS records of custom domains

You can view DNS records for any custom domain in the Xperience Portal:

1. Open the **Channels and Domains → Channels** application in [Xperience Portal](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/saas/xperience-portal.md) with a **Tenant administrator** or **DevOps Engineer** role.
2. Select the **Domains** () action for the related channel.
3. Select the **DNS records** () action.

   ![Action to view DNS records](https://docs.kentico.com/docsassets/documentation/email-channel-management/DNS_action.png "Action to view DNS records")

You can now see the DNS records for the domain. You can copy the values and use them, for example, with a new registrar.

### Configure DNS records of custom domains

For detailed step-by-step guidance on configuring DNS records with your domain provider, see [Configure DNS records for custom domains](https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/saas/configure-dns-records.md). This page includes:

- Full step-by-step instructions for **Azure App Service** DNS configuration
- Instructions for **AWS Route 53**, **Cloudflare**, and other popular DNS providers
- Troubleshooting tips and best practices
- DNS propagation information and validation guidance