Inbox Icons

BIMI (Brand Indicators for Message Identification) is an email standard that lets your logo appear automatically in compatible email clients. It works with the DNS settings you’ve already configured with Brew.

What does BIMI do?

• Displays your logo in supporting email clients
• Works across multiple email platforms with a single setup
• Adds a verification layer that builds trust with recipients
• Some providers add verification checkmarks next to your logo

Which email clients support BIMI?

• Gmail and Google Workspace
• Apple Mail (macOS Ventura 13+, iOS 16+, iPadOS 16+)
• Yahoo Mail
• Fastmail, AOL, Netscape, and Pobox

Not supported by: Outlook and other Microsoft clients

BIMI isn’t just about uploading a logo - it’s an email authentication technology that works with your existing email setup:

1. Authentication check: When you send an email, the recipient’s email provider verifies your DMARC, DKIM, and SPF records (already set up if you’ve completed Brew’s domain verification)
2. Logo retrieval: If authentication passes, the email provider accesses your BIMI record to find and display your logo
3. Trust verification: With a VMC, your logo ownership is verified, adding additional trust signals in supported clients

This process happens automatically behind the scenes, creating a seamless experience for your recipients while adding an extra layer of security for your brand.

To use BIMI, you’ll need one of these certificates (with some exceptions):

Verified Mark Certificate (VMC):

• Requires a registered trademark for your logo
• Costs approximately $1,500/year
• Compatible with all BIMI-supporting email clients
• Adds a blue verification checkmark in Gmail

Common Mark Certificate (CMC):

• For businesses without a trademark
• Requires proof you’ve used your logo consistently for at least one year
• Costs approximately $800/year
• Currently only works with Gmail (not Apple Mail)
• No verification checkmark

No Certificate:

• Works only with Yahoo Mail
• No verification checkmark is displayed
• Free, but limited coverage

Good news! If you’ve already completed the Add DNS Records step in Brew, you’ve already set up the necessary DMARC foundation for BIMI. To complete the BIMI setup:

1. Authenticate your emails

Brew already helped you set up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records. For BIMI to work, confirm your DMARC policy is at enforcement level:

• Must use p=quarantine or p=reject (p=none is not accepted)
• Ensure pct=100 (anything less is not accepted)
• Apply to both domain and subdomains (sp=quarantine or sp=reject)

2. Prepare your logo

• Create a square SVG logo in the Tiny PS format
• Maximum file size: 32KB
• Host it on a secure server with HTTPS
• Use the BIMI Generator tool to create and validate your SVG

3. Obtain a certificate (recommended)

• Purchase a VMC or CMC from Entrust or DigiCert
• For VMCs: You’ll need a registered trademark in supported jurisdictions
• For CMCs: You’ll need to demonstrate consistent logo usage over time
• Self-asserted BIMI (without certificates) has limited email client support

4. Add the BIMI DNS record Add this TXT record to your domain’s DNS settings:

Name: default._bimi
Type: TXT
Value: v=BIMI1; l=https://yourdomain.com/logo.svg; a=https://yourdomain.com/certificate.pem;

Where:

• l= points to your hosted logo (HTTPS required)
• a= points to your certificate (include for VMC/CMC, optional otherwise)

5. Verify your setup After adding the record, use the BIMI Inspector to check that everything is configured correctly.