How to Change MX Records in cPanel
MX records decide which server receives your domain's email. Change them when moving email to (or from) an external service such as Google Workspace — carefully, because mistakes stop mail.
Step-by-step
- Open Domains → Zone Editor → Manage next to your domain, and filter by MX.
- Understand priority. Lower number = tried first. A single record with priority 0 pointing at mail.yourdomain.com is the default for mail hosted with EconomicalHost.
- To move mail to an external provider: add the provider's MX records exactly as they specify (e.g. Google Workspace uses smtp.google.com priority 1 on current setups), then delete the old local MX record.
- Set Email Routing. In cPanel → Email → Email Routing, choose Remote Mail Exchanger when mail is handled externally, or Local Mail Exchanger when it is on this server. A mismatch here is the classic cause of "mail works externally but not from the website".
- Wait for propagation (up to a few hours) and test by emailing the domain from an outside account.
- Keep SPF aligned: update the SPF TXT record to include the new sending service — see SPF and DKIM.
💡 Good to know
- Never leave a domain with zero MX records — mail will bounce unpredictably.
- Migrating providers? Lower the MX TTL the day before, and keep both mailboxes accessible during the switch.
- Website contact forms send via the server regardless of MX — wrong Email Routing makes those messages vanish; always set it to match reality.