The Return-Path is the email address used to receive and process bounce messages and delivery status notifications for emails sent through Maileroo.

Maileroo allows you to configure the Return-Path behavior separately for each sending domain. You can either use Maileroo's default Variable Envelope Return Path (VERP) behavior or specify your own local part.

What is a Return-Path?

When an email is sent, the Return-Path identifies where receiving mail servers should send delivery failure notifications, such as:

  • Hard bounces

  • Soft bounces

  • Mailbox unavailable responses

  • Other delivery status notifications

The Return-Path is sometimes referred to as the envelope sender, bounce address, or MAIL FROM address.

It is separate from the From address that recipients normally see.

For example, an email may appear to come from:

[email protected]

While using a different Return-Path for processing delivery failures.

Using the default VERP address

By default, you can leave the Return-Path field empty.

When the field is empty, Maileroo uses a Variable Envelope Return Path (VERP).

With VERP, Maileroo generates a variable Return-Path for outgoing messages. This allows bounce and delivery information to be associated with the appropriate message and recipient automatically.

For most users, we recommend leaving this field empty and using VERP.

VERP is particularly useful when sending to larger recipient lists because each delivery can be identified more precisely when a receiving server returns a bounce.

Using a custom Return-Path local part

If you prefer a consistent Return-Path, you can specify a custom local part for the domain.

The local part is the portion of an email address before the @ symbol.

For example, if you configure:

bounces

Maileroo will use bounces as the local part of the Return-Path for that domain instead of generating a variable VERP local part.

You may use values such as:

bounce

bounces

mailer

return

This setting is configured independently for each sending domain, so different domains can use different Return-Path configurations.

Which option should I use?

For most accounts, leaving the field empty and using VERP is the recommended option. It gives Maileroo more precise information when processing individual delivery failures.

A custom local part can be useful when you require a predictable or standardized Return-Path address for your mail infrastructure or organizational requirements.

Regardless of which option you select, Maileroo will continue to use the Return-Path to process bounces and delivery status updates.

Updating the Return-Path

To change the Return-Path configuration for a domain:

  1. Open the domain's settings in Maileroo.

  2. Locate the Return-Path setting.

  3. Leave the field empty to use VERP, or enter the local part you want to use.

  4. Save your changes.

Changes may take approximately 5 minutes to take effect.

Emails sent before the change has propagated may continue to use the previous Return-Path configuration.