TXT Record Lookup
Read the text records published for a domain.
A TXT record holds arbitrary text against a DNS name. It was added as a general-purpose note field and became the internet's standard way to prove domain ownership and publish machine-readable policy, because a name's DNS can only be edited by whoever controls it — which makes any value found there an assertion by the domain owner.
Most TXT records you find fall into two groups. Verification tokens are one-off strings a provider asks you to publish so it can confirm you control the domain. Policy records are structured and read continuously by other systems, most importantly SPF, which begins v=spf1 and lists the servers allowed to send email for the domain.
One detail causes recurring confusion: a single TXT string is capped at 255 characters, so anything longer is published as several strings that consumers concatenate. A long DKIM key therefore appears as multiple quoted segments. That is correct, not truncation — but a record split at the wrong boundary, or with a space introduced between segments, will fail validation while looking fine.
What this tool does
Exact published values
Strings are shown as resolvers receive them, so you can check a verification token character by character before telling a vendor it is wrong.
Find the SPF record
SPF is a TXT record on the domain itself, beginning v=spf1. This is where to confirm it exists and that there is only one.
Audit what you publish
TXT records are world-readable. Expired verification tokens from services you no longer use are worth removing.
Understand the 255 split
Long values arrive as several quoted strings that consumers join. Seeing the segments explains apparent truncation.
Frequently asked questions
What is a TXT record used for?
Mostly two things: proving you control a domain, and publishing policy that other systems read. Providers ask you to add a verification token to confirm ownership, while SPF, DKIM, DMARC, MTA-STS and BIMI all publish structured policy as TXT records.
Where is my SPF record?
SPF is a TXT record on the domain itself, starting with v=spf1, so it appears in this lookup. A domain must publish exactly one — several SPF records is a permanent error and receivers will fail the check rather than merging them.
Why can I not find my DMARC or DKIM record here?
Because they live at their own names. DMARC is a TXT record at _dmarc.yourdomain.com, and DKIM at selector._domainkey.yourdomain.com. Look those names up directly, or use the dedicated DMARC and DKIM checkers, which know where to look.
Why is my TXT record split into several parts?
A single TXT string cannot exceed 255 characters, so longer values are published as several strings that consumers join back together. It is normal for DKIM keys. Your DNS provider handles the splitting; problems arise only when a value is split manually in the wrong place.
How many TXT records can a domain have?
As many as you need, with one exception: exactly one may be an SPF record. Domains commonly accumulate a dozen verification tokens from different services. Watch the total size, since a very large response can force resolvers to retry over TCP.
Are TXT records private?
No. All DNS records are public by design, and anyone can read every TXT record you publish. Never put a secret, credential or internal hostname in one — treat everything there as published on your website.
Monitor it, don't just check it
One-off checks catch what is broken today. CertNotify watches your certificates, domains, DNS and code continuously and tells you before something breaks.