How do I view full email headers in different clients (Gmail, Outlook, etc.)?

Something's off with an email. Maybe it landed in spam when it shouldn't have, or you want to check whether SPF and DKIM actually passed. Whatever the reason, you need the full headers. Every email client buries them, but they're not hard to find once you know where to look.

But Here's how to pull them up in the most common clients.

Gmail (web)
Open the message. Click the three-dot menu in the top-right corner of the email. Select "Show original." A new tab opens with the complete headers and raw source all in one view.

Outlook (desktop)
Open the message in its own window. Go to File, then Properties. The headers appear in the "Internet headers" box at the bottom of that window. You can also right-click the message in your inbox and choose Message Options to get there faster.

Outlook (web)
Open the message. Click the three-dot menu and select "View message details" or "View message source" (the label varies slightly depending on which version you're on).

Apple Mail
Open the message. Go to View, then Message, then Raw Source. Or just press Command + Option + U. Done.

Yahoo Mail
Open the message. Click the three-dot menu. Select "View raw message."

Thunderbird
Open the message. Go to View, then Headers, then All to see headers inline. For the full raw format, go to View, then Message Source.

And once you've got the headers, reading them raw can feel like staring at a wall of text. That's where analysis tools come in. The Google Admin Toolbox Messageheader and MXToolbox Header Analyzer both let you paste the raw headers and get a readable breakdown. Or you can try our Email Header Analyzer if you want to see what we flag (it's free).

Next up: once you've got those headers open, here's how to actually read what they're telling you.