InboxValid
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Product GuideAPI Reference

Changelog

Changes to results and to the API that your code or your lists may need to handle, newest first.

2026-10-16: connect InboxValid to Claude over MCP

InboxValid now runs an MCP server at https://mcp.inboxvalid.com/mcp. Add it to Claude as a custom connector, or to Claude Code, with your API key as an Authorization: Bearer header, and Claude can verify addresses, find emails, audit sending domains and clean lists on your account.

Nothing changes in the API. The MCP tools call the same endpoints with your key, so results, rate limits and credits are the same as calling the API yourself. See the MCP connection guide for the setup steps.

2026-10-12: a new result status, blocked

There is a new result status, blocked, with the sub status behind_gateway. The address's mail goes through a security gateway we do not check, so we did not check the address. It appears only for addresses behind such a gateway. It is not valid and not invalid; we do not know.

A blocked result is final and is never charged, whether it comes from a single check, a bulk job or the email finder.

What to do with it

Treat it like an address you have not verified and decide by your own risk: keep it for one to one mail you would send anyway, and leave it out of bulk sends where a bounce would hurt you.

What changes in the API

  • The status field can now be blocked, in addition to valid, invalid, invalid_syntax (the address is not written as a valid email address), catch_all, risky, disposable and unknown.
  • mail_gateway on a single check result and on a finder result: the name of the security gateway, present only when the status is blocked.
  • mailGateway on job rows, on single check history items and on finder history rows.
  • A blocked count on jobs and on the job.completed webhook.
  • A mail_gateway column in the job download, right after trust_score. Mapped upload columns move one place to the right.
  • The finder status blocked.

What to check on your side

  • Anything that lists the allowed statuses: an enum, a validation rule or a switch with a default that throws would fail on the first blocked row.
  • Anything that reads download columns by position.
  • A blocked or unknown result carries a neutral trust score (50 for blocked, usually 50 for unknown) that says nothing about the address, so filter by status, not by score.

See the API reference for the full list of statuses.