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Setting Up Aliases and Forwarding

Create extra addresses like support@ and sales@ that point at a mailbox or forward to any target address, so several public addresses land in one place.

What an alias is

An alias is an extra email address that doesn't have its own inbox. Instead it routes mail somewhere else. StretchMail supports two flavors:

  • Mailbox alias — the address points at one of your StretchMail mailboxes (e.g. support@yourcompany.com → the hello@ mailbox). Mail lands in that mailbox's shared inbox.
  • Forward alias — the address forwards to any target address, including one outside StretchMail (e.g. press@yourcompany.com → founder@gmail.com).

Aliases let a small team present many professional addresses while triaging from a single place.

Before you start

Like mailboxes, aliases live on a verified domain. If you're forwarding to a StretchMail mailbox, create that mailbox first (see Creating and managing mailboxes).

Step 1 — Create an alias

1. Open StretchMail → Aliases.
2. Click New alias.
3. Fill in:
- Alias address — the public address, e.g. support@yourcompany.com.
- Type — mailbox (points at a StretchMail mailbox) or forward (sends to any target).
- Target / mailbox — the destination. For a mailbox alias, choose the mailbox; for a forward alias, enter the target email address.
- Inbound / Outbound — whether the alias can receive and (optionally) be used as a send identity.
4. Save. The alias appears in the list with its target and status.

Step 2 — Review your aliases

The Aliases tab shows each alias, its domain, its type, the mailbox or target it routes to, and its status. This is your map of "which public address goes where."

Worked example

Acme Co. runs everything through one shared mailbox, hello@acme.co:

  1. Creates a mailbox alias support@acme.co → hello@acme.co.
  2. Creates a mailbox alias sales@acme.co → hello@acme.co.
  3. Creates a forward alias press@acme.co → the founder's personal Gmail, so media requests skip the shared inbox and go straight to her.

Now customers write to support@ or sales@, everything lands in the one Inbox, and the team replies from there — while press enquiries route privately.

Tips

  • Consolidate with mailbox aliases. Point every departmental address at one shared mailbox so nothing gets missed.
  • Use forward aliases for people, not teams. Forwarding to an external personal address is great for a single owner; for anything a team must see, route it into a shared mailbox instead.
  • Aliases are instant. On a verified domain there's no separate verification step — create and use immediately.
  • Check the alias count on the mailbox. The Mailboxes tab shows how many aliases feed each mailbox, which helps you audit where mail flows.

FAQ

Can an alias send mail?
Aliases route inbound mail. Outgoing replies are sent from the underlying mailbox identity through the governed send route.

Can I forward to an address on another provider?
Yes — a forward alias can target any valid email address, inside or outside StretchMail.

What happens if I delete the mailbox an alias points to?
The alias has nowhere to deliver. Re-point it at another mailbox or remove it.

Troubleshooting

  • Mail to the alias bounces. The alias's target mailbox may be missing or the domain's MX record isn't live. Verify both.
  • Forwarded mail isn't arriving. Check the target address for typos and confirm the destination provider isn't marking forwarded mail as spam.
  • Can't create the alias. The domain isn't verified, or an alias with that address already exists.

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