Get started

Quickstart

Send your first email through the BlacklistGuard HTTP API in a few minutes — create an API key, then make a single request to the send endpoint.

Before you start

You'll need:

A BlacklistGuard account — sign in to the console (or create an account first).
A verified sending domain. The From address must belong to a domain you've authenticated. If you haven't done this yet, follow Set up a sending domain — it takes a few DNS records. (For a throwaway test you can omit the From address entirely and we'll send from the platform default sender; see the note below.)

Create an API key

In the console, open API keys (under Infrastructure) and click New key. Give it a name, grant it permission to send email, and copy the key — it is shown only once. Store it somewhere safe like a secrets manager.

Every API request authenticates with this key in the X-API-Key header.

⚠Treat your API key like a password. Don't commit it to source control or expose it in browser/client-side code — call the API from your server.

Send your first email

Make a POST request to the send endpoint. Replace the key and addresses with your own:

curl -X POST https://app.blacklistguard.com/api/v1/emails/send \
  -H "X-API-Key: efk_your_api_key" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "from_email": "you@yourdomain.com",
    "from_name": "Your Brand",
    "to": "customer@example.com",
    "subject": "Hello from BlacklistGuard",
    "body": "<p>Your first email is on its way.</p>"
  }'

⚠The from_email must be on a sending domain you've verified (or a verified sender address) — otherwise the request is rejected with an authorization error. Omit from_email to send from the platform default sender instead, which needs no setup but isn't your brand.

Request fields

Field	Required	Description
`to`	Yes	Recipient email address.
`subject`	Yes	Subject line.
`body`	Yes	Message body (HTML).
`from_email`	No	Sender address — must be on a verified sending domain. Omitted → platform default sender.
`from_name`	No	Display name shown next to the sender address.
`bounce_email`	No	Where bounce notifications are routed.

The full field list, attachments, and advanced options live in the API reference (coming soon).

Read the response

A successful request returns the standard JSON envelope. The message is accepted and queued for delivery:

{
  "success": true,
  "data": { "id": "1a3a56c6-4393-465e-86aa-d2c0d1200958", "status": "queued" },
  "message": "Resource created successfully"
}

The data.id is the message ID. Track its delivery in the console under Messages. If something is wrong, the envelope returns "success": false with an error message — for example, an unverified from_email returns an authorization error explaining how to verify the domain or sender.

✓That's it. You've sent your first email. Authenticate properly and warm up your domain before sending at volume — the guides below cover both.

Next steps

Authentication & API keys — key scopes, rotation, and the X-API-Key header in depth.
Set up a sending domain — add your domain so you can send as your brand.
Verify SPF, DKIM & DMARC — the DNS records that get you to the inbox.