# Verify one email address in the middle of a conversation

Someone gave you an address on a call, or it came off a form. Ask your agent to check it: contact.verify returns whether the mailbox is valid, invalid or unknown, a certainty grade when the provider gives one, the catch-all flag when known, and which mail service the domain runs on.

HTML page: https://www.routergrowth.com/tools/email-finder/address-verification
Part of: [Email finder tools](https://www.routergrowth.com/tools/email-finder.md)

## The call

[`contact.verify`](https://www.routergrowth.com/catalog/contact.verify): Verify deliverability of a professional email: valid, invalid, or unknown, with catch-all and mail-server details.

Price on this network: $0.002 per verdict. The exact quote is shown before every run.

## What a real run returned

Run on 2026-10-16: 1 records in 3.1 s for $0.002. Personal fields are masked. One address at a small consulting domain: valid and ultra_sure, on a Google Workspace mail server.

| email | status | certainty | mx_provider |
|---|---|---|---|
| k***@***.com | valid | ultra_sure | google |

## How to do it

1. **Connect RouterGrowth once.** Add the MCP server to Claude, ChatGPT, Claude Code, Codex or Cursor, or call the REST API with your RouterGrowth key.
2. **Paste the address.** Type it or point the agent at the message or form where it appears.
3. **Get the verdict.** Status, certainty, catch-all and mail provider come back in a few seconds.
4. **Fix a bad one.** If the address is invalid, the agent can look up the right one with contact.find from the name and domain.

## Ask it like this

- Is this email address real? It came in through our demo form. (`contact.verify`)
- This address bounced. Verify it, and if it is invalid find the correct work email for the same person. (`contact.verify`, `contact.find`)

## Connect

MCP server: `https://api.routergrowth.com/mcp`

```bash
claude mcp add --transport http routergrowth https://api.routergrowth.com/mcp
```

```bash
npm install -g routergrowth && routergrowth setup
routergrowth run -c contact.verify -i '{"email": "alex@example.com"}'
```

```bash
curl -X POST https://api.routergrowth.com/v1/run \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ROUTERGROWTH_API_KEY" \
  -d '{"capability": "contact.verify", "input": {"email": "alex@example.com"}}'
```

## Worth knowing

- **Typos show up as invalid.** A misspelled name or domain returns invalid, which is the moment to ask for the address again.
- **The mail server tells you more.** The mx_provider field shows whether the domain runs on Google, Microsoft or something else, useful when judging an unknown.
- **Paid per verdict.** The charge covers the verdict returned. The quote is shown before the call.

## Questions

### How long does one check take?

Usually a few seconds. The example above took about three.

### Does verification tell me who owns the address?

No. It answers whether the mailbox accepts mail, not whose it is.

### Can a valid address still bounce?

Rarely, for instance when a mailbox is closed after the check or the domain is catch-all. Recheck addresses kept for months.

### Do I need an account with a verification company?

No. The check runs on RouterGrowth's providers with your RouterGrowth key.

## Related

- [Find where to reach a brand from its YouTube channel](https://www.routergrowth.com/tools/email-finder/youtube.md)
- [Read a TikTok brand account's bio, links and contact email](https://www.routergrowth.com/tools/email-finder/tiktok.md)
- [Find the contact details a brand lists on its social profiles](https://www.routergrowth.com/tools/email-finder/social-media.md)
- [Check whether an email address will accept mail before you send](https://www.routergrowth.com/tools/email-finder/verification-tools.md)
- [Turn the LinkedIn profile you are reading into a verified work email](https://www.routergrowth.com/tools/email-finder/linkedin.md)
- [Get the email and links an Instagram brand account shows](https://www.routergrowth.com/tools/email-finder/instagram.md)
- [Get work emails for the people you want at one company](https://www.routergrowth.com/tools/email-finder/company.md)
- [Find someone's work email from their name and where they work](https://www.routergrowth.com/tools/email-finder/by-name.md)
- [Verify a whole list of emails without uploading it anywhere](https://www.routergrowth.com/tools/email-finder/bulk-verification-software.md)
- [Verify emails from your own code with one POST request](https://www.routergrowth.com/tools/email-finder/verification-api.md)