What Counts as a Bulk Sender? The 5,000 Email Rule

Google considers you a bulk sender if you send 5,000 or more emails to Gmail addresses in a single day. Once you cross this threshold, you must have SPF, DKIM, and DMARC properly configured, or your email delivery will suffer.

This rule went into effect in February 2024, and Yahoo implemented similar requirements. If you send any volume of email, here’s what you need to know.

The 5,000 Email Threshold

Google’s definition is specific:

• 5,000 or more emails to Gmail addresses
• In a single 24-hour period
• From your sending domain (the domain in your From address)

Once you’ve ever crossed this threshold, Google considers you a bulk sender going forward. It’s not a daily recalculation—it’s a classification that sticks.

What Counts Toward the Limit

Everything from your domain adds up:

• Marketing campaigns
• Transactional emails (receipts, confirmations, shipping notifications)
• Automated alerts and notifications
• Sales outreach
• Support responses
• Internal email (if sent to Gmail-hosted addresses)

All subdomains count:

If you send from marketing.company.com, notifications.company.com, and company.com, they all count toward the same 5,000 limit for the parent domain company.com.

All sending sources count:

Email from your own servers plus email from:

• Marketing platforms (Mailchimp, Klaviyo)
• Transactional services (SendGrid, Postmark)
• CRM systems (Salesforce, HubSpot)
• Support platforms (Zendesk, Intercom)

If it has your domain in the From address and goes to Gmail, it counts.

What Doesn’t Count

• Emails to non-Gmail addresses (Outlook, Yahoo, corporate domains)
• Emails where your domain isn’t in the From address
• Emails that are rejected before delivery (they never “count”)

However, Yahoo has nearly identical requirements, so optimizing only for Gmail doesn’t help much.

How to Check If You’re a Bulk Sender

Option 1: Check Google Postmaster Tools

Google Postmaster Tools shows your sending volume to Gmail. If you’ve registered your domain:

1. Log into postmaster.google.com
2. Look at “Email Sent” metrics
3. Check if any day exceeds 5,000

Option 2: Estimate from your sending platforms

Add up daily sends across all your email services:

Source	Daily Gmail Estimate
Marketing platform	2,000
Transactional emails	1,500
Sales outreach	500
Support replies	300
Total	4,300

If you’re near 5,000, assume you’ll cross it during peak periods (sales, launches, announcements).

Option 3: Check your DMARC reports

DMARC reports show how many emails Google received from your domain. If Google’s report shows thousands of messages, you’re likely a bulk sender.

What Bulk Senders Must Do

Once classified as a bulk sender, you must meet these requirements:

1. SPF and DKIM Authentication

Your domain must pass SPF or DKIM authentication. Ideally both.

# SPF record example
v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com include:sendgrid.net -all

# DKIM is configured per sending service

2. DMARC Record

You must have a DMARC record published. At minimum:

v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:[email protected];

Yes, p=none satisfies the requirement. Google requires DMARC to exist, not necessarily to be at enforcement. But p=none provides no protection—it’s the starting point, not the goal.

3. Alignment

SPF or DKIM must align with your From domain. This means the authenticated domain matches (or is a subdomain of) what recipients see in the From field.

4. One-Click Unsubscribe

Marketing and promotional emails must include:

• A working List-Unsubscribe header
• One-click unsubscribe functionality (no confirmation pages)
• Unsubscribes honored within 2 days

5. Low Spam Complaint Rate

Keep spam complaints below 0.3%. Ideally below 0.1%.

What Happens If You Don’t Comply

Google’s enforcement is gradual but real:

Stage 1: Temporary failures

• Some emails get temporarily rejected (4xx errors)
• Your sending service shows delivery delays
• Messages eventually deliver after retries

Stage 2: Increased spam placement

• More email lands in spam folder
• Open rates drop
• Recipients don’t see your messages

Stage 3: Rejections

• Emails rejected outright (5xx errors)
• Permanent delivery failures
• Bounce rates spike

Stage 4: Domain reputation damage

• Google’s systems learn your domain is problematic
• Even compliant email faces scrutiny
• Recovery takes weeks or months

The Gray Area: Below 5,000

If you’re under 5,000 daily emails to Gmail:

You’re still better off complying. The requirements are best practices regardless of volume. SPF, DKIM, and DMARC protect your domain from spoofing whether you’re sending 500 or 500,000 emails. See our 5 key benefits of email authentication for why.

Also consider:

• Your volume might grow
• Peak days might exceed the threshold
• Yahoo’s requirements are similar
• Other providers are following suit

Set up authentication now, before you need it urgently.

Yahoo’s Similar Requirements

Yahoo implemented nearly identical requirements:

• SPF and DKIM required
• DMARC required for bulk senders
• One-click unsubscribe for marketing email
• Low complaint rates

The threshold isn’t as explicitly documented as Google’s 5,000, but assume similar scale.

Common Questions

Does Gmail count as 1 email or 1 recipient?

One email to one Gmail address = 1 toward the count. An email to 10 Gmail addresses = 10 toward the count.

What if I only send to business Gmail (Google Workspace)?

Google Workspace domains (yourcompany.com hosted on Google) are treated the same as consumer Gmail for authentication requirements. The 5,000 threshold applies.

If I’m under 5,000 today but over yesterday, am I still a bulk sender?

Once you’ve crossed the threshold, Google considers you a bulk sender going forward. There’s no public “cool-down” period that removes the classification.

Do bounced emails count?

Emails that hard bounce (invalid address) likely don’t count toward delivered volume, but soft bounces and deferred messages might. The safest assumption: sent emails count.

Action Steps

1. Check your volume — Are you sending 5,000+ daily to Gmail?
2. Audit your authentication — SPF, DKIM, DMARC all configured?
3. Verify alignment — Are authenticated domains matching your From address?
4. Monitor compliance — Use Postmaster Tools and DMARC reports

For complete guidance on meeting Google and Yahoo’s requirements, see our Google & Yahoo Sender Requirements Guide.

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Verkh monitors your authentication status across all sending sources and alerts you to compliance gaps before they affect delivery. Check your status at verkh.io.