Do all email service providers support DMARC, and what does 'support' mean in this context?
Summary
What email marketers say8Marketer opinions
Email marketer from AuthSMTP explains that While AuthSMTP can't directly manage your DMARC settings, they can help ensure your emails are properly authenticated with SPF and DKIM, which are essential for DMARC compliance.
Marketer from Email Geeks explains that ESPs like Mailchimp don't need to 'support' DMARC in the same way a domain owner implements it. It depends on what "support" means - whether it's dashboards for aggregated DMARC reports. Also notes that mailbox providers like Gmail and Yahoo have varying levels of DMARC support, with some treating all failures as 'p=quarantine' and others ignoring the record entirely.
Email marketer from Mailjet explains that DMARC implementation is a domain-level setting, not directly managed within Mailjet or similar ESP platforms. Users must configure DMARC records with their domain registrar or DNS provider.
Email marketer from SparkPost shares that setting up DMARC requires publishing a DMARC record in your DNS settings.
Email marketer from StackOverflow shares that DMARC builds upon SPF and DKIM. If SPF or DKIM passes, the DMARC can pass. DMARC tells the receiving server what to do with emails that fail authentication (reject, quarantine or do nothing)
Email marketer from Postmark answers by saying that DMARC cannot be enabled within an ESP like Postmark directly. DMARC is a setting you set up with your domain provider.
Email marketer from Reddit explains that Mailchimp requires you to authenticate your domain with SPF and DKIM. This contributes towards DMARC compliance which is setup with your domain name registrar.
Email marketer from EasyDMARC shares that while ESPs don't directly offer DMARC, they provide the tools to help set it up. Mailbox providers, on the other hand, may vary in their DMARC compliance, affecting email handling.
What the experts say4Expert opinions
Expert from Email Geeks specifies that receiver 'support' can mean different things: sending reports, respecting requests for handling failing mail, and following report authorization standards - and not all do these things. Also that The DMARC standard itself does not put any obligation on the receiving side.
Expert from Word to the Wise explains that large senders have generally implemented DMARC, but smaller senders still lag behind, therefore ESP's need to support it.
Expert from Email Geeks clarifies that platforms like Mailchimp DO need to support DMARC to support alignment, and not all of them do. She was initially focusing on the sending side rather than the receiving side.
Expert from Spam Resource explains that many ESPs offer tools or guidance to help their customers implement SPF and DKIM correctly, which are prerequisites for DMARC. He also talks about how many companies might not have the internal resources to resolve the configuration issues that DMARC brings to light.
What the documentation says3Technical articles
Documentation from Microsoft explains that Exchange Online honors the DMARC policy of the sender's domain when it receives mail. A DMARC check result of Pass lets Exchange Online know that the message passed authentication and that the sender's organization can be considered legitimate.
Documentation from Google Workspace explains that If a message fails DMARC authentication checks, Gmail handles the message according to the policy you set in your DMARC record.
Documentation from DMARC.org explains that the DMARC standard doesn't mandate specific actions for receivers (ISPs, mailbox providers). Receivers are not obligated to send reports or enforce policies from DMARC records, but many do for enhanced security.