Background

What is BIMI?

BIMI can show your logo next to authenticated mail in supporting inboxes after DMARC and authentication are in good shape.

BIMI can show your logo next to authenticated mail in supporting inboxes after DMARC and authentication are in good shape.

Why BIMI exists

BIMI (Brand Indicators for Message Identification) lets supporting inboxes show your logo next to authenticated mail. It is a trust and recognition signal for people reading mail, not a replacement for SPF, DKIM or DMARC.

Receivers only consider BIMI after authentication looks solid. In practice that means DMARC at quarantine or reject with healthy alignment, a BIMI DNS record pointing at an SVG Tiny Portable/Secure logo, and often a verified mark certificate hosted as PEM over HTTPS.

NovaMX does not sell mark certificates. We help you publish the DNS pieces and can host the PEM file receivers fetch. You obtain any required certificate from a certificate authority that issues BIMI marks.

How BIMI works

You publish a TXT record at default._bimi.yourdomain (or another selector) with a logo URL and, when used, an a= HTTPS URL to the certificate evidence. Supporting receivers fetch the logo and certificate, check DMARC policy strength, and may display the logo in the message list.

Not every inbox supports BIMI the same way. Some show logos only with a valid certificate; others are more limited. Treat BIMI as progressive enhancement after authentication is done, not as the first mail-security project.

BIMI basis (free) and certificate hosting

BIMI basis is free on NovaMX. It helps you build a correct logo TXT record and a reachable SVG URL. Certificate hosting lets you upload PEM material and serves the HTTPS link receivers need. Hosting is available standalone, at a lower rate when MailControl Essential is on the same domain, and included from MailControl Growth upward. Current rates are on the Pricing page.

Upload PEM for the certificate evidence, not SVG, into the certificate hosting flow. Keep the logo SVG separate at the URL referenced by the TXT record.

Benefits

Pitfalls and failure modes

How NovaMX MailControl helps

MailControl guides BIMI DNS, hosts PEM when ordered, and warns before certificate expiry. Pair with DMARC Reports or a MailControl bundle so you know policy is ready before you invest in marks. Free mail check can include BIMI presence checks on tools.html.

Logo and certificate checklist

What BIMI does not do

BIMI does not stop phishing on lookalike domains, does not replace spam filtering, and does not guarantee display in every client. It rewards domains that already finished authentication work.

Related reading

Follow the BIMI setup how-to for portal steps. Read What is DMARC? and Managed DMARC explained if you still need to reach quarantine or reject. The MailControl overview compares basis-only versus Growth bundles that include certificate hosting.

Common questions

Does NovaMX sell mark certificates?

No. NovaMX helps with DNS and can host PEM evidence. You obtain any required mark certificate from a certificate authority that issues BIMI marks.

Is BIMI basis really free?

Yes. Logo TXT guidance is free. Certificate hosting is a separate paid line or included from MailControl Growth upward.

Must DMARC be at p=reject?

Supporting receivers usually expect quarantine or reject with solid alignment. p=none alone rarely unlocks logos.

Can I keep my website on another host?

Yes. After domain verification, BIMI DNS and PEM hosting work while the site stays elsewhere.

Next steps

BIMI setup how-to What is DMARC? Managed DMARC explained MailControl explained MailControl overview