How to View Email Message Headers

Email headers contain important information about the origin and journey of an email. Viewing email headers can be helpful when troubleshooting email delivery issues or identifying potential phishing attempts.

Microsoft Outlook (Windows)

1. Open Microsoft Outlook.
2. Double-click the email to open it.
3. Click File > Properties.
4. In the Properties window, look for the “Internet headers” section. This contains the email headers. To copy, highlight the header text and press Ctrl+C.

See View internet message headers in Outlook

Apple Mail

1. Open Mail app on your Mac.
2. Select the email.
3. From the main menu choose View > Message > All Headers.

The email headers will be displayed. To cop, select all header text. Right click and choose Copy.

See Show detailed headers in Mail on Mac

Thunderbird

1. Open Thunderbird
2. Select the email.
3. From the main menu choose View > Headers > All.

See Getting started with the Thunderbird main window > Headers Pane

The email headers will be displayed above the message body. To copy, right click and choose Copy.