Email deliverability is one of the most critical challenges digital agencies face today. When managing campaigns across multiple clients, industries, and domains, SPF (Sender Policy Framework) records can quickly become a bottleneck. A broken SPF record doesn’t just create technical headaches—it can tank open rates, hurt sender reputation, and ultimately cost clients revenue.
UniversalSPF by Fraudmarc has been a popular choice for flattening SPF records and avoiding the dreaded “10 DNS lookup limit.” But it won’t be right for every agency. Some agencies outgrow it as they scale, while others need more automation, integrations, or client-facing reporting features.
That’s why we’ve pulled together the 12 best UniversalSPF alternatives in 2025—each carefully reviewed for their strengths, limitations, and suitability for digital agencies.
The goal of this guide is simple: help agencies find the SPF/DMARC management solution that fits their workflows, their client base, and their budget.
Why Look Beyond UniversalSPF?
UniversalSPF is a capable tool, but it was designed with a narrower focus on SPF flattening. Agencies often require more:
- Multi-client scalability – Agencies might manage 20, 50, or even 200 client domains. Manually flattening SPF records for each is not sustainable.
- Automation and monitoring – Without real-time checks, records can break silently, leading to emails being blocked.
- Client transparency – Agencies need clear reports they can share with clients to demonstrate improvements in deliverability.
- Integration with DMARC & DKIM – SPF is only one piece of the puzzle. Agencies need a holistic solution to cover all three.
- Cost efficiency – Paying per-domain fees can become prohibitive as agencies scale.
Simply put: while UniversalSPF solves one part of the problem, agencies often need a more comprehensive and automated platform.
Categories of UniversalSPF Alternatives
Before diving into the tools, it’s useful to categorize them:
- SPF-Only Solutions
Focus primarily on flattening and maintaining valid SPF records. Good for agencies with simpler needs. - DMARC Management Platforms
Cover SPF, DKIM, and DMARC, offering detailed reports and enforcement tools. - Agency-Focused Authentication Suites
Designed for multi-client scalability, with automation, dashboards, and client-facing reports.
The Top 12 UniversalSPF Alternatives in September 2025
1. AutoSPF – Best Overall Alternative for Agencies
AutoSPF is the leading alternative to UniversalSPF and the most agency-friendly option on the market. Built specifically with scalability in mind, AutoSPF automates SPF record management from start to finish.
Instead of manually flattening records, AutoSPF continuously monitors them, ensures compliance with DNS lookup limits, and auto-corrects misconfigurations. For agencies juggling dozens of domains, this means fewer deliverability issues, fewer support tickets, and happier clients.
Key Advantages of AutoSPF
- Multi-domain automation: Manage 10 or 100+ client domains from a single dashboard.
- Real-time monitoring: Get alerts when an SPF record breaks before it affects email delivery.
- DNS-safe flattening: Automatically restructures SPF records to stay under lookup limits.
- Agency-friendly pricing: Designed to grow with your client base without breaking budgets.
AutoSPF vs UniversalSPF
| Feature | AutoSPF | UniversalSPF |
| SPF automation | ✅ Yes – real-time | ⚠️ Partial |
| Multi-client dashboard | ✅ Optimized for agencies | ❌ Limited |
| Alerts & monitoring | ✅ Included | ❌ Minimal |
| Pricing model | ✅ Agency-scalable | ❌ Per-domain fees |
| Reporting | ✅ Shareable with clients | ❌ Limited visibility |
💡 Best choice for agencies that want to eliminate manual SPF management and scale efficiently.
2. Dmarcian – Best for Comprehensive DMARC Reporting
Dmarcian is one of the pioneers in DMARC and SPF management. Agencies that serve enterprise clients often turn to Dmarcian because of its detailed forensic reporting.
- Strengths: In-depth reporting, compliance-focused, trusted by enterprises.
- Limitations: Steeper learning curve, pricing may be too high for small agencies.
💡 Best for agencies with enterprise or government clients that demand detailed DMARC compliance reports.
3. EasyDMARC – Best for Ease of Use
As its name suggests, EasyDMARC focuses on making SPF and DMARC deployment simple. Its clean interface, automated alerts, and helpful wizards make it an ideal entry point for agencies new to authentication management.
- Strengths: Beginner-friendly setup, clear dashboards, email alerts.
- Limitations: May lack the customization advanced agencies want.
💡 Best for smaller agencies that need simplicity over complexity.
4. PowerDMARC – Best for Security-Focused Agencies
PowerDMARC goes beyond SPF and DMARC, covering BIMI, MTA-STS, and TLS-RPT—advanced email security protocols that many agencies will want to roll out for high-risk clients.
- Strengths: Comprehensive security suite, strong brand protection tools.
- Limitations: More expensive than basic alternatives.
💡 Best for agencies that want to deliver complete email security packages, not just SPF fixes.
5. Valimail – Best for Enterprise-Level Agencies
Valimail is trusted by large corporations and government agencies, making it one of the most robust alternatives to UniversalSPF. Its focus on automation and large-scale deployment makes it an ideal fit for agencies that work with Fortune 500 clients.
- Strengths: Enterprise-grade automation, security-first approach, high scalability.
- Limitations: Pricing may be prohibitive for SMB-focused agencies.
💡 Best for global agencies managing very large client portfolios.
6. OnDMARC – Best for Flexible Pricing
OnDMARC offers tiered packages, making it attractive for agencies that want to start small but grow into a bigger solution. It combines SPF flattening with real-time DMARC policy enforcement and visual dashboards.
💡 Best for agencies with a wide range of clients and budgets.
7. Red Sift – Best for Analytics-Driven Agencies
Red Sift’s platform emphasizes visual reporting and analytics. Agencies love it because it helps them not only fix authentication issues but also prove ROI to clients with clear data visualizations.
💡 Best for agencies that need client-facing reports to justify deliverability improvements.
8. Agari – Best for Anti-Phishing Protection
Agari is unique in focusing heavily on brand impersonation and phishing protection. For agencies serving clients in high-risk industries (like finance, law, or healthcare), Agari offers peace of mind by detecting and blocking fraudulent emails.
💡 Best for agencies supporting regulated or phishing-sensitive industries.
9. Postmark SPF Tools – Best Free Option
Not every agency needs a full suite. Postmark provides free SPF record checkers and lookup tools, which can be handy for troubleshooting. While not a replacement for a full solution, they’re useful for agencies on tight budgets.
💡 Best for quick diagnostics and small agencies that want free tools to start with.
10. Mimecast DMARC Analyzer – Best for Security Teams
Mimecast combines email security and DMARC analysis in one platform. Agencies with clients that already use Mimecast for email filtering may find this a natural extension.
💡 Best for agencies working closely with client security teams.
11. Cloudflare DNS & Email Security Tools – Best for Agencies Already on Cloudflare
Many agencies already manage client DNS with Cloudflare. Its built-in SPF and DMARC tools make authentication management easier without extra software.
💡 Best for agencies that prefer to consolidate tools under Cloudflare.
12. Proofpoint Email Fraud Defense – Best for Regulated Industries
Proofpoint is known for enterprise-grade security, and its email fraud defense tools are trusted in industries with strict compliance requirements.
💡 Best for agencies working with finance, government, or healthcare clients.
Final Thoughts
UniversalSPF by Fraudmarc is a reliable SPF flattener, but agencies often need more automation, more scalability, and more reporting.
- Choose AutoSPF if you want the most agency-friendly solution that automates SPF at scale.
- Pick Dmarcian or Valimail if you serve enterprise clients that demand deep compliance reports.
- Go with EasyDMARC or OnDMARC if you want simplicity with flexible pricing.
- Look at PowerDMARC or Agari if your agency supports high-risk, security-sensitive industries.
👉 For most digital agencies, AutoSPF is the #1 UniversalSPF alternative in 2025. It saves time, reduces errors, and ensures client emails always reach inboxes.