Every bad address is a letter returned — sort them with Purelist.
Purelist is the most accurate email verification API and bulk email cleaner behind lists that actually reach the inbox. We run real SMTP mailbox checks and a decision engine that returns a clear send/skip verdict, confidence score and bounce risk — without ever sending a test email.
Free, no signup · 3 checks / day
- 0421VALIDalex.chen@enterprise.comSMTP handshake · MX ok · catch-all: false
- 0420INVALIDmarketing@unknown-server.ioMX records not found · domain unresolvable
- 0419RISKYhello@disposablemail.comDisposable provider · low engagement risk
- 0418ROLEinfo@acme.ioRole-based address · catch-all: true
What is Email Verification?
Email verification is the technical process of verifying that an email address exists, is active, and can receive messages without bouncing. It involves checking syntax, verifying domain MX records, and performing a deep SMTP probe to communicate with the mail server directly—without sending an actual email. Purelist’s API automates this entire pipeline in milliseconds.
How does a Bulk Email Cleaner work?
A bulk email cleaner processes thousands of email addresses simultaneously to filter out hard bounces, disposable emails, and risky catch-all addresses. By uploading your CSV to a bulk email verification service like Purelist, the engine tests each row using high-speed parallel probes. You receive a clean list with a definitive send or skip recommendation, protecting your sender reputation.
A verdict you can act on
not just valid / invalid.
Every result carries a send/skip action, a confidence score, reason codes and the method used to verify it — so a person or an automation knows exactly what to do.
{
"catch_all": true,
"risk_score": 68,
"smtp_check": "unknown"
}Cryptic codes. You still don't know whether to send.
Risky but usable.
Company domain on a catch-all setup. We can't confirm john.doe specifically exists, but the domain is real and active.
Recommendation · Safe for password resets and order confirmations. Use cautiously for cold email.
- /01 · Honest verdicts
Catch-all, not faked
On a catch-all domain we say so — flagged as risky/unconfirmed — instead of returning a fake “valid”. You always know what we actually confirmed.
- /02 · Reason codes
Why, not just what
Every result ships with machine-readable reason codes and the exact verification method used (SMTP mailbox, domain-only, catch-all, history) — no cryptic flags.
- /03 · Self-improving
Learns from your sends
Report your real delivered/bounced outcomes and the score sharpens — especially on the catch-all and unknown domains that break other tools.
Seven layers between
your list and a bounce.
Purelist doesn’t just check syntax — it runs a multi-stage pipeline that probes the real mail server, then turns the result into a clear decision. Every address is checked from several angles so risky ones never reach your CRM or campaigns.
- /01
Bulk Verification
Process up to 1 million emails at once
Upload a CSV and our high-speed parallel engine cleans it in minutes. Get a clean deliverable list plus a full audit report.≈ 50,000 rows in 3 minutes - /02
Real-time API
Machine-readable decisions
A drop-in REST API for signup forms, CRMs, and automation. Every response carries a send/skip action, confidence score and reason codes — ready for AI agents to act on. Block bad emails before they enter your database.REST · Webhooks · SDKs - /03
Syntax & MX Checks
Standards-compliant first defense
Validates against RFC 5321/5322 and checks live mail server availability — not just cached lists.Foundation of the 7-layer pipeline - /04
SMTP Deep Probe
Real mailbox confirmation without sending
Opens a safe conversation with the mail server to verify the mailbox exists — without delivering any email or risking your sender reputation.Zero-send protocol - /05
Disposable & Temporary Detection
Maintained blocklist
Automatically flags 10-minute mail, temp inboxes, and burner services from a maintained list refreshable on demand from the upstream community dataset.Keeps your metrics clean - /06
Role & Catch-all Intelligence
Smarter handling, not blind rejection
Identifies role accounts (info@, support@, sales@) and catch-all domains so you can route them intentionally instead of guessing.Classified, not dropped - /07
Decision engine
Send / skip, scored
Decision-ready, not just dataEvery signal above flows into a decision layer that returns a verdict you can act on — not just a flag.
- A calibrated confidence score (0–100) and bounce risk per address
- A clear recommended action: send, send low-priority, risky, or skip
- Honest verdicts: mailbox confirmed, catch-all, or domain-only — never a fake “valid”
- Machine-readable reason codes your CRM or an AI agent can act on
It gets smarter
with every send.
Purelist isn’t a static rulebook. When you report real delivery outcomes — or wire up your email provider’s bounce webhook — the engine updates its per-domain reputation and remembers individual addresses, so the hard cases get more accurate over time.
Real delivery results
You report delivered/bounced results (or pipe in your ESP’s bounce webhook) and the engine records the outcome per domain and per address.
Continuous improvement
Each outcome refines future verdicts. A domain’s real bounce rate is blended into its score, so shifting catch-all behaviours are caught faster.
Beats catch-all
An address known to bounce is flagged invalid on the next check — even when the server accepts everything. Per-address memory is the only way to resolve a catch-all domain.
- Static rules & public lists
- Learns from your real delivery outcomes
- Fixed risk scores
- Scores that sharpen as you report outcomes
- Technical jargon
- Reason codes + the method behind every verdict
- Same accuracy for years
- Improves as email behaviours change
- Generic flags
- A clear send / skip action per address
Fewer surprises, better deliverability, decisions you can actually trust.
Because the engine learns from the real outcomes you report, it handles the edge cases that break static systems — catch-all domains, brand-new domains, and temporary providers that haven’t hit public blacklists yet.
From upload to clean export
in under three minutes.
Three simple steps that replace hours of manual list cleaning. Upload, inspect, and export a delivery-ready audience — with full transparency at every stage.
Connect your source
Sync your CRM or drop a CSV. We prepare the data for inspection.
Multi-layer inspection
Seven stages — syntax, MX, SMTP, disposable, role, catch-all, deliverability score.
Export & automate
Download a clean list or trigger workflows for only the deliverable contacts.
Priced by what you actually verify.
Credit-based, no seat tax, no overage trap. Credits never expire and roll between bulk and API usage interchangeably.
The teams who stopped fighting their inbox.
NorthwindWe cut our bounce rate from 8.4% to 0.6% in a week. The reputation curve we'd been fighting for six months turned around the same afternoon.
QuantaOther tools just gave us valid/invalid flags. Purelist returns a send/skip action with a confidence score and reason codes — our automations finally know what to do with catch-all and risky addresses.
Stop sending letters
to addresses that don't exist.
Start with 25 free verifications. No credit card. Bring your CSV or your API key — we'll sort the rest.