This article explains how to choose the right mail routing option for a domain hosted on your cPanel account. Email routing tells your server how to handle incoming mail for the domain — whether to deliver it locally, send it to another server, or detect the correct behavior automatically.
About email routing
Email routing controls where mail for your domain is delivered. The setting works alongside your DNS MX records: MX records tell the rest of the internet which server should receive mail for your domain, while the routing setting tells your cPanel server what to do once mail arrives.
Tip: If your mailboxes are hosted on the same cPanel server as your website, use Local Mail Exchanger. If your mailboxes live on a third-party email provider, such as Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, or Enhanced Email, use Remote Mail Exchanger.
Routing options
| Setting | What it does | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Automatically Detect Configuration | cPanel inspects your MX records and picks the routing behavior that matches. | Use this when you're not sure which option is correct. This is the safest default. |
| Local Mail Exchanger | Delivers mail to mailboxes on this cPanel server. | Your email accounts are hosted in cPanel on the same server as your website. |
| Backup Mail Exchanger | Configures this server as a fallback that holds mail when your primary mail server is unreachable. | Your primary mail server is hosted elsewhere and you want this cPanel server to queue mail during outages. |
| Remote Mail Exchanger | Stops this server from accepting mail locally and forwards delivery to the MX server elsewhere. | Your mailboxes are hosted by another provider, such as Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, or Exact Hosting's Enhanced Email product. |
Before you begin
- cPanel login credentials. You need access through the Exact Hosting portal or your domain's /cpanel URL.
- Knowledge of where your mailboxes are hosted. Confirm whether mail for the domain is handled by cPanel or a third-party provider.
- Up-to-date MX records. Your DNS MX records should already point to the correct mail server before you change routing.
Step 1: Log in to cPanel
- Sign in through the Exact Hosting portal and open cPanel from your hosting dashboard, or
- Go directly to yourdomain.tld/cpanel and enter your cPanel username and password.
Step 2: Open Email Routing
From the cPanel home screen, locate the Email section and click Email Routing.
Step 3: Select a domain
If you host more than one domain on this cPanel account, choose the domain you want to configure from the Domain dropdown.
Step 4: Choose a routing option
- Review the four routing options described in the table above.
- Select the option that matches where your mailboxes are hosted.
Warning: Choosing the wrong routing option can cause mail to bounce or be silently delivered to the wrong server. If you're unsure, leave Automatically Detect Configuration selected.
Step 5: Save your selection
Click Change to save the routing setting. cPanel applies the new behavior immediately to incoming mail for the selected domain.
Next steps
- Test mail delivery. Send a message to a mailbox on the domain and confirm it arrives where you expect.
- Review your MX records. If you changed to Remote Mail Exchanger, verify that your DNS MX records point to the external provider.
- Set up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. Configure email authentication to keep outgoing messages out of spam folders.
Questions? Contact Exact Hosting Support.
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