To change MX records for a WordPress site, edit the DNS zone controlled by your domain’s active nameservers—not necessarily WordPress. Get the exact MX values from your email provider, prepare the destination mailboxes, update the records in the authoritative DNS control panel, and test mail delivery. The website and its email can use separate hosts.
What MX records do—and what they do not do
MX records tell other mail systems which servers should receive email addressed to your domain. They do not host your WordPress site, and changing them does not by itself configure WordPress to send contact-form messages, password resets, or notifications. Those outbound messages may need separate mail-service settings and SPF, DKIM, or DMARC authentication. Learn WordPress explains the role of DNS records; WordPress.org covers mail delivery from WordPress.
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Find the DNS provider that controls the domain
Edit records where the domain’s active nameservers point. The registrar where you bought the domain, the web host, the email provider, and the DNS host may all be different. Changing records at a registrar that is not hosting the active DNS zone will not change the live mail routing.
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If your domain uses WordPress.com nameservers, open the Hosting Dashboard, go to Domains, select the domain, then choose Settings and DNS records. WordPress.com’s DNS-record instructions apply to domains whose DNS is managed there. If the nameservers point elsewhere, make the change in that active DNS provider’s control panel. For help identifying the right records, WordPress.com suggests asking the email provider for the complete DNS values required for the domain: Add email from other providers to a WordPress.com domain.
Prepare before switching mail routing
Get the destination provider’s exact DNS values
Ask the email provider or check its administrator setup page for the MX target or targets, priorities, and any required verification or companion records. Field names differ between DNS companies, and example values in a help article may not match your account. Do not guess an MX target.
Get instructions for any needed TXT or CNAME verification, SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records as well. If an SPF record already exists, follow the provider’s instructions to update it; do not create a second SPF record for the same domain. Microsoft’s Microsoft 365 DNS setup guide, for example, says its admin center provides the tenant-specific MX destination and recommends an SPF record and an optional, highly recommended autodiscover CNAME.
Set up mailboxes and plan for existing messages
Create the users and mailboxes at the destination service before changing MX records, so the new service can accept mail when routing switches. Microsoft specifically recommends this order in its domain connection guidance. If you need to keep old messages, arrange a separate mail migration: an MX change routes new incoming email but does not copy existing mail.
Save the current DNS zone
Make a copy of the existing DNS records, especially MX, SPF, and DKIM entries, before editing. This gives you a reference for troubleshooting or rollback. If the project also involves moving nameservers, enter the required mail records in the new DNS zone before switching nameservers, so it is ready to serve them.
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Change the MX records
- Sign in to the active DNS provider. Open the domain’s DNS management or zone editor. On WordPress.com-managed DNS, use Hosting Dashboard → Domains → [domain] → Settings → DNS records.
- Add or edit the MX records supplied by your email provider. Common fields include record type (
MX), host or name (often@for the root domain), target or destination, priority, and TTL. The labels and accepted formats vary by provider. - Apply the provider’s cutover instructions to old MX records. Remove obsolete entries if instructed. Do not leave competing records in place without a deliberate staged or split-delivery plan.
- Save the DNS changes. Keep the rest of the zone intact, including website A, AAAA, and CNAME records.
Lower numeric MX priority values are treated as higher priority in Microsoft 365’s guidance. For a Microsoft 365 move, Microsoft says to remove old-provider MX entries or give them a lower priority than Microsoft 365. Follow your own provider’s instructions if you are staging a migration.
For Microsoft 365 specifically, its generic DNS table recommends a TTL of 3600 seconds (one hour) and a highest priority value, typically 0; Exchange Online supports TTL values below 21,600 seconds (six hours). These are Microsoft’s generic guidance, not universal values for other providers. Use the tenant-specific target and settings shown in your Microsoft 365 admin center.
Verify mail and the website after the change
- Use the email provider’s domain verification or DNS check to confirm that the required records resolve.
- Send a test message to the domain from an outside email address, then confirm it arrives in the intended mailbox. Check junk or spam folders if it does not.
- Send a message from the new mailbox to an outside address to check outbound mail separately.
- Load the website and confirm that it still resolves. MX records route incoming email, while the site relies on other DNS records; accidental edits to those records can still affect the site.
- If a check fails, compare the live DNS values with the provider’s instructions and the copy of the previous zone. Check provider error messages and confirm that the mailbox exists at the destination service.
DNS caches update on different schedules, so do not assume a fixed MX propagation time. WordPress.com says a nameserver change may take up to 72 hours to become fully active; that timing is specific to nameserver changes, not a guarantee for every MX edit. See WordPress.com’s nameserver-change guidance.
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If domain mailboxes receive messages but WordPress contact forms, password resets, or notifications do not, the MX change is not necessarily the issue. MX records govern incoming mail. WordPress-generated messages depend on the server or configured mail transfer agent and the sender setup; troubleshoot outbound delivery separately, including the sender address and the mail service’s SPF, DKIM, and DMARC requirements. The WordPress.org mail handbook describes these delivery considerations.
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