Custom Email on Your Own Domain, Forwarded to Gmail

You can have a polished, custom email address on your own domain and still read and reply to everything inside the Gmail you already use. The trick is email forwarding — and it's simpler than setting up a brand-new inbox.

How email forwarding to Gmail works

When someone emails you@yourdomain.com, your domain's DNS records tell the internet to hand that message to a forwarding service, which instantly relays it to your real inbox. You don't check a new mailbox; the mail simply appears in Gmail alongside everything else. Two records make it happen: MX records (where mail should go) and an SPF record (which keeps your messages out of spam).

Set it up in three steps

The whole thing takes about five minutes:

1. Tell Routr the domain you own and the inbox to forward to.
2. Add three DNS records at your registrar (shown below).
3. Click verify — your address is live.

These are the records you'll add — they point mail to Routr's forwarding servers, which is why step 1 (adding your domain in Routr) comes first:

Not sure where to add them? We have step-by-step guides for GoDaddy and Cloudflare, plus copy-paste instructions for every major registrar inside the app.

Replying from your custom address in Gmail

Forwarding handles incoming mail. To send from your custom address, Gmail has a built-in feature called “Send mail as” (Settings → Accounts → “Send mail as”). It lets you pick you@yourdomain.com as the From address on any message. Routr gives you the exact details and a walkthrough once your domain is verified, so your replies look like they came from your domain — because they did.

Prefer Apple Mail, your iPhone, or another app? Those work too — your dashboard hands you SMTP settings so you can send from most standard mail clients. Microsoft Outlook is the one exception; it isn't supported for sending. Whichever you choose, Routr signs your outgoing mail with DKIM, so it lands in inboxes rather than spam. For the full walkthrough, see how to send email from your custom address.

One domain, unlimited addresses

Forwarding isn't limited to one address. Every address on your domain — hello@, invoices@, you@ — lands in the same inbox automatically. Great for separating “contact us” mail from personal mail without juggling accounts.

Forwarding vs. a full mailbox

Forwarding is perfect when you want a professional address that arrives where you already work. If you need a completely separate inbox with its own storage, calendar, and login, a full mailbox like Google Workspace makes more sense. Curious which is cheaper? See how much a custom email address costs.

Frequently asked questions