---
title: The confirmation email does not arrive or goes to spam
description: "Why a double opt-in confirmation email is missing or in spam: the scheduler, delivery, settings, throttles, your From address or the link."
url: "https://hiveplugins.com/docs/hive-mail-confirmation-email-does-not-arrive/"
updated: "2026-10-28"
category: Hive Mail
---

# The confirmation email does not arrive or goes to spam

A person signs up and never gets the email asking them to confirm, or it lands in spam. First open the person in **Audience > Contacts** (the timeline shows `optin_requested` when the email was queued), then search the address in **Deliverability > Sending Log** and read the status. Causes, most likely first:

1. **It is still queued.** The scheduler is not running. Open **Settings > Scheduler** and click **Run the scheduler now**. See [A scheduled campaign did not go out](/docs/hive-mail-scheduled-campaign-did-not-go-out/).
2. **Delivery is not working.** In **Settings > Compliance**, card **Confirmation email**, type your address in **Send a test to** and click **Send a test**. A red box shows the reason. See [Emails are not sending](/docs/hive-mail-emails-are-not-sending/).
3. **The form does not ask for confirmation.** The default is **Ask new subscribers to confirm by email** in **Settings > Compliance**, but a form or flow can subscribe people at once. Check the form in **Audience > Forms** or the flow's trigger. See [Double opt-in and the confirmation email](/docs/hive-mail-double-opt-in/).
4. **The contact cannot be asked.** Only **Pending** or **Transactional** contacts can be asked ("Only a contact who has not confirmed yet can be asked to confirm."). An address on the suppression list gets nothing. See [Bounces, complaints and the suppression list](/docs/hive-mail-bounces-and-suppressions/).
5. **A throttle held it back.** One confirmation per contact every 5 minutes. Signup forms send at most 3 per address a day and 20 per network an hour.
6. **The people were imported as pending.** An import never emails anyone by itself. In **Settings > Compliance**, use **Send confirmation to pending contacts**: choose **Who**, click it, then **Send the emails**.
7. **It went to spam.**

   - Use a **Default From email** on your own domain (**Settings > General**), not `@gmail.com` or similar.
   - Add SPF, DKIM and DMARC: **Settings > Sending > Is your site ready to send? > Check my domain**. See [Is my site ready to send email?](/docs/hive-mail-is-my-site-ready-to-send/).
   - Do not send through plain WordPress mail: install an SMTP plugin, or choose Mailgun or SendGrid.
8. **The link fails.** "This link has expired" after 30 days (**The confirmation link works for**): the page offers **Send me a new email**. "This link does not work": the site's secret keys (salts in `wp-config.php`) changed; new emails work. A mail scanner opening the link does nothing on purpose: the person must press **Confirm my subscription**.

Next: [Settings: Compliance](/docs/hive-mail-settings-compliance/).