Back to 'Guides'Want to send emails with Lettermint using a domain you registered with TransIP and manage DNS at TransIP? This guide explains how to add the required DNS records. Setup takes just a few minutes, and then you can start sending transactional emails with your own domain.
TransIP is one of the largest hosting providers in the Netherlands and is part of team.blue. TransIP uses datacenters in Amsterdam and Delft, and offers an extensive control panel for managing your domains and DNS settings.
What do you need?
- A Lettermint (opens in a new window) account
- A TransIP (opens in a new window) account
- A domain in your TransIP account that uses TransIP's nameservers
Step 1: Add domain in Lettermint
Log in to your Lettermint account and navigate to Domains (opens in a new window). Click the Add domain button and enter your domain name.
After adding, you'll immediately see which DNS records you need to configure. Lettermint provides four records:
- DMARC record – DMARC protects your domain against abuse
- Domain key record lm1 – DKIM adds a digital signature to your email
- Domain key record lm2 – The second key, so Lettermint can rotate your DKIM key without a DNS change
- Bounce record – Handles undelivered emails (bounces) correctly
You don't need to modify your SPF record. Lettermint uses the Return-Path method, so your current SPF record stays intact. Read more in our 'What is SPF' article.
Keep this screen open. You'll need these details for the next steps in TransIP.
Step 2: Add DNS records in TransIP
Log in to your TransIP control panel (opens in a new window) and click Domain in the left menu. Select the domain you added in step 1 in the left column (don't check it). Scroll down to Advanced domain management and then click DNS.
Do you only see Domain management instead of Advanced domain management? First disable the TransIP settings with the toggle switch. After this, you'll have full control over your DNS records.
In your domain's DNS management, we'll add the 4 records Lettermint needs to send emails.
DMARC record
If you use another email service besides Lettermint, you might already have a DMARC record in TransIP. In that case, you don't need to add a new one.
If you don't have one yet, click + Add DNS record and enter the following details:
- Name: _dmarc
- TTL: 1 hour
- Type: TXT
- Value: The DMARC value from your Lettermint dashboard (for example: v=DMARC1; ...)
Enter only _dmarc in the Name field. TransIP automatically appends your domain, so pasting the full record would duplicate it. If you do paste the full record, add a trailing dot at the end (for example, _dmarc.yourdomain.com.).
Click Save DNS.
Domain key records
Lettermint gives you two domain key records. Both are needed, so add them one after the other.
Click + Add DNS record and enter the following details:
- Name: lm1._domainkey
- TTL: 1 hour
- Type: CNAME
- Value: The lm1 target from your Lettermint dashboard (ends with .dkim.lmta.net)
Enter only lm1._domainkey in the Name field. TransIP automatically appends your domain, so pasting the full record would duplicate it. If you do paste the full record, add a trailing dot at the end.
Click Save DNS, then repeat these steps for the second record with Namelm2._domainkey and the lm2 target from your dashboard.
Does your dashboard show a single TXT domain key record instead? Then your domain still uses the older setup. Add that TXT record as shown and read 'Managed DKIM and key rotation' to switch over later.
Bounce record
Click + Add DNS record and enter the following details:
- Name: The bounce subdomain from your Lettermint dashboard
- TTL: 1 hour
- Type: CNAME
- Value: The bounce target from your Lettermint dashboard (usually bounces.lmta.net)
Enter only the bounce subdomain (for example, lm-bounces) in the Name field. TransIP automatically appends your domain, so pasting the full record would duplicate it. If you do paste the full record, add a trailing dot at the end.
Click Save DNS.
Step 3: Verification in Lettermint
Open the Lettermint tab from step 1. Click the green Verify all records button to check if TransIP has processed the DNS changes.
DNS changes can take several minutes to an hour before they're visible to third parties. Lettermint automatically rechecks in the background, and you'll receive an email when they're processed.
Once all records are found correctly, you'll see a green checkmark. Your domain at TransIP is now ready to send emails with Lettermint!
Next steps
Now that your domain is correctly configured, you can start sending emails. Consider separating different types of emails with an email subdomain. This keeps your transactional emails separate from marketing emails, for example.