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An Elementor contact form that does not send emails can cause missed inquiries, lost leads, and frustrated customers. You may test the form, see a successful submission message, and still receive nothing in your inbox. If you're trying to fix an Elementor form not sending email, the good news is that this problem is usually caused by an incorrect form setting, an invalid sender address, a hosting restriction, or poor email authentication. It can often be fixed without rebuilding the form.
Elementor forms can store submissions in the WordPress dashboard, send the information by email, or perform both actions. Elementor's current documentation also notes that form emails may be filtered as spam because major email providers have become stricter about sender reputation and authentication.
In this guide, you will learn exactly how to fix an Elementor form that is not sending email notifications, step by step.
Why Is the Elementor Form Not Sending Email?
Before changing your website, it is important to understand where the problem may be occurring.
Common causes include:
- The Email action is missing from Actions After Submit.
- The recipient's email address is incorrect.
- The From Email does not match the website domain.
- A form field has an incorrect or missing ID.
- The email shortcode is invalid.
- Your hosting server cannot process outgoing email correctly.
- The message is going to the spam or junk folder.
- Your domain does not have proper email authentication.
- A plugin, theme, security rule, or integration is blocking the form.
- The website is showing a success message even though delivery failed.
WordPress documentation explains that a successful response from its email function does not guarantee that the recipient actually received the message. It only confirms that the email request was processed without an immediate error.
Follow the steps below in order and test the form after every major change to fully fix your Elementor form's email delivery.
1. Check Actions After Submit
First, confirm that Elementor has been instructed to send an email after someone submits the form.
- Open the page in the Elementor editor.
- Select the Form widget.
- Open the Content tab.
- Expand Actions After Submit.
- Confirm that Email appears in the selected actions.
If Email is missing, click the field and add it.
Elementor supports several post-submission actions, including collecting submissions, sending an email, sending a confirmation through Email 2, redirecting the user, opening a popup, and connecting the form to third-party services. Adding Email tells Elementor to send the submitted information to the configured recipient.
Update the page and submit the form again.
2. Verify the Recipient Email Address
Open the Email section inside the Form widget and check the To field.
Enter the email address where you want to receive form notifications. For example:
contact@yourdomain.com
Check the following:
- The address is spelled correctly.
- The mailbox exists.
- There are no unnecessary spaces.
- The inbox is not full.
- The address can receive normal emails.
- Multiple recipients are separated correctly.
For the first test, use only one recipient. You can add other addresses after confirming that email delivery works.
You should also test a different recipient, such as another business mailbox or a Gmail address. This will help you determine whether the problem affects the entire form or only one email provider.
3. Use a Domain-Based From Email
An incorrect From Email is one of the most common reasons Elementor emails are rejected or sent to spam.
The sender address should normally use the same domain as the website.
For example, when your website is:
https://yourdomain.com
Use a From Email such as:
wordpress@yourdomain.com
or:
contact@yourdomain.com
Avoid entering the visitor's Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook, or other personal email address in the From Email field. The website is not authorized to send messages on behalf of those external domains.
A recommended configuration is:
- To: contact@yourdomain.com
- From Email: wordpress@yourdomain.com
- From Name: Your Website Name
- Reply-To: [field id="email"]
This setup sends the notification from your website's domain while allowing you to reply directly to the person who completed the form.
4. Configure the Reply-To Field Correctly
The Reply-To field should contain the email address entered by the visitor.
To configure it:
- Open the Form Fields section.
- Select the visitor's email field.
- Open its Advanced tab.
- Find the field ID and shortcode.
- Copy the exact shortcode.
- Paste it into the Reply-To setting.
A common shortcode is:
[field id="email"]
However, your shortcode may be different if you changed the field ID.
Elementor states that only shortcodes shown inside the Advanced tab of the form fields should be used in the email settings. Shortcodes from unrelated plugins may cause errors.
5. Check Every Form Field ID
Each Elementor form field should have a unique ID.
For example:
- Name: name
- Email: email
- Phone: phone
- Subject: subject
- Message: message
Do not use spaces in field IDs. Avoid assigning the same ID to more than one field.
To check an ID:
- Select the Form widget.
- Open Form Fields.
- Select a field.
- Open the Advanced tab.
- Review the ID.
Missing or duplicate IDs may prevent submitted values from appearing correctly in the notification email. Elementor's troubleshooting documentation specifically recommends confirming that every field has a populated, unique ID.
6. Check the Email Message Shortcodes
By default, Elementor may use the following shortcode in the Message field:
[all-fields]
This shortcode includes all submitted form values in the notification.
You can also create a custom message:
Name: [field id="name"]
Email: [field id="email"]
Phone: [field id="phone"]
Message: [field id="message"]Make sure every shortcode exactly matches the field's shortcode shown in its Advanced tab.
Do not manually guess field IDs. A small spelling difference can prevent the submitted value from appearing.
You should also enter a clear email subject, such as:
New Contact Form Submission from Your Website
A recognizable subject makes the notification easier to find in your inbox and spam folder.
7. Check Elementor Submissions
Elementor can store form entries inside the WordPress dashboard.
Go to:
WordPress Dashboard → Elementor → Submissions
Submit the form and check whether the new entry appears.
When the entry appears in Submissions but no notification arrives, the form itself is probably processing the request correctly. The problem is more likely connected to email delivery, authentication, or inbox filtering.
When the entry does not appear, review:
- Required fields
- Field IDs
- Actions After Submit
- Third-party integrations
- JavaScript errors
- Security settings
- Plugin conflicts
Keeping submissions enabled also gives you a backup of customer inquiries when an email notification fails.
8. Configure SMTP or a Transactional Email Service
WordPress uses its email system to process outgoing notifications, but successful processing does not always mean successful inbox delivery. An authenticated sending service can make WordPress email more reliable, and it's one of the most effective ways to permanently fix Elementor form email delivery issues.
You can use an SMTP plugin or an email delivery service such as:
- FluentSMTP
- WP Mail SMTP
- Post SMTP
- Brevo
- SendGrid
- Mailgun
- Amazon SES
- Google Workspace
- Microsoft 365
After installing your preferred plugin:
- Select your email provider.
- Enter the required SMTP or API credentials.
- Set a verified domain-based From Email.
- Enable Force From Email when appropriate.
- Save the settings.
- Send a test email.
- Submit the Elementor form again.
Never place private API keys inside a public page, JavaScript file, or HTML widget. Store credentials in protected plugin settings, server environment variables, or wp-config.php when the integration supports it.
9. Add SPF, DKIM, and DMARC Records
SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are DNS records that help email providers verify messages sent from your domain.
- SPF identifies the email servers permitted to send messages for your domain.
- DKIM adds a digital signature to outgoing messages.
- DMARC tells receiving providers how to handle messages that fail authentication checks.
Your email or SMTP provider will give you the exact DNS records to add. These records can normally be added through:
- Your hosting control panel
- Your domain registrar
- Cloudflare
- Your DNS management provider
Do not copy SPF, DKIM, or DMARC values from another website. The correct records depend on your domain and email provider.
10. Check Spam, Junk, and Quarantine
Your Elementor form may be working correctly while the notification is being filtered.
Check:
- Spam
- Junk
- Promotions
- Quarantine
- Blocked senders
- Email filtering rules
- Hosting webmail
- Business email security dashboards
Search for the subject line, From Email, website name, and visitor's email address.
Mark a legitimate notification as Not Spam and add the sender address to your contacts or approved sender list.
11. Disable Third-Party Integrations Temporarily
Email marketing and automation integrations may stop the form from completing when they contain invalid credentials or incorrect field mappings.
Temporarily remove actions such as:
- Mailchimp
- ActiveCampaign
- Webhook
- CRM integrations
- Zapier
- Custom automation actions
Keep only these actions enabled:
- Collect Submissions
Test the form again.
Elementor recommends temporarily disabling third-party integrations while diagnosing form errors. It also advises checking field mapping when an autoresponder or marketing platform is involved.
12. Test for Plugin or Theme Conflicts
A caching, optimization, security, or custom-code plugin may interfere with form submission.
Before troubleshooting, create a complete website backup or use a staging website.
Then:
- Update Elementor and Elementor Pro.
- Clear the Elementor, plugin, hosting, and CDN caches.
- Temporarily deactivate all plugins except Elementor and Elementor Pro.
- Submit the form.
- Reactivate plugins one at a time.
- Test the form after activating each plugin.
You can also temporarily switch to the Hello Elementor theme or a default WordPress theme.
When the form works after disabling a plugin or changing the theme, you have probably identified a compatibility conflict.
13. Contact Your Hosting Provider
Contact your hosting provider when:
- The SMTP test fails.
- No WordPress emails are working.
- The form returns a server error.
- The server blocks outgoing connections.
- Email sending limits have been reached.
- The website displays a 500 error.
- PHP or server logs show mail-related errors.
Ask the hosting provider to check:
- Outgoing email restrictions
- PHP configuration
- Server error logs
- Firewall rules
- Blocked SMTP ports
- DNS settings
- Resource limits
- ModSecurity rules
Provide the page URL, approximate submission time, recipient address, and error message. This information will help the support team investigate the request.
Elementor Form Email Checklist
Before finishing, confirm that:
- Email is enabled under Actions After Submit.
- The recipient address is correct.
- The From Email uses your website domain.
- Reply-To contains the visitor's email shortcode.
- Every form field has a unique ID.
- The email message uses valid shortcodes.
- The form entry appears in Elementor Submissions.
- SMTP or another authenticated mail service is connected.
- SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are configured.
- Spam and quarantine folders have been checked.
- Elementor and Elementor Pro are updated.
- Plugin and theme conflicts have been tested.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does Elementor show a success message but no email arrives?
The success message means the website processed the form request. It does not guarantee that the recipient's email provider accepted or delivered the notification. Check Elementor Submissions, your spam folder, SMTP settings, and email authentication.
Does Elementor require SMTP?
Elementor can process email without a separate SMTP plugin, but an authenticated SMTP or transactional email provider usually offers more reliable delivery than an incorrectly configured hosting mail server.
Can I use Gmail in the Elementor From Email field?
You should not use a random Gmail address as the From Email unless Gmail has been properly connected and authorized through an SMTP or API integration. A verified email address on your website's domain is normally the safer option.
Why are Elementor emails going to spam?
The most common reasons include an unverified From Email, missing DNS authentication, poor domain reputation, suspicious subject lines, or unauthenticated server email.
Will reinstalling Elementor solve the problem?
Reinstalling Elementor rarely fixes an email delivery issue. First check the form settings, From Email, field IDs, SMTP configuration, DNS authentication, hosting restrictions, and plugin conflicts.
Final Thoughts
When you need to fix an Elementor form not sending email, begin with the basic form settings. Confirm that Email is enabled, the recipient address is correct, the From Email uses your website domain, and all field IDs and shortcodes are valid.
Next, check Elementor Submissions. When submissions are being stored but notifications are missing, configure an authenticated SMTP or transactional email service and check your domain's SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records.
Google recommends creating useful, reliable, people-first content rather than writing primarily to manipulate search rankings. Add screenshots from your own Elementor dashboard, document the solution you personally tested, and update this guide whenever Elementor changes its interface.
A correctly configured form, verified sender address, authenticated email service, and stored submission backup will help ensure that important customer inquiries are not lost — and that you never have to fix an Elementor form not sending email again.






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