What Does an Email Parser Do?
When you look at an email in your inbox, you see a clean, formatted message. Behind that interface lies raw MIME data-a structured format containing headers, encoded content, and attachment boundaries. Our email parser cracks open that structure and shows you everything inside.
If you're debugging email delivery issues, investigating phishing attempts, analyzing authentication headers, or just curious about how emails actually work-this tool gives you complete visibility into email anatomy.
How to Parse an Email
Getting started is straightforward:
- Get the raw email source from your email client (usually 'View Original' or 'Show Source')
- Copy the entire raw content including all headers
- Paste it into the parser input field
- Click Parse to analyze the email structure
- Review the extracted headers, body content, and attachments
Understanding Email Structure
Email Headers
Headers contain metadata about the message:
- From/To/CC: Sender and recipient addresses
- Subject: The email subject line
- Date: When the message was sent
- Message-ID: Unique identifier for this specific email
- Received: Server routing information (shows the path the email took)
- Authentication-Results: SPF, DKIM, and DMARC verification results
The Received headers are particularly valuable-they show every server that handled the email, with timestamps. Reading them bottom-to-top reveals the complete delivery path.
MIME Parts and Content Types
Emails use MIME to structure different content types:
- text/plain: Plain text version of the message
- text/html: HTML formatted version
- multipart/alternative: Container holding both text and HTML versions
- multipart/mixed: Message with attachments
- application/*: Attachment files (PDFs, documents, etc.)
- image/*: Embedded images or image attachments
Common Analysis Use Cases
Email Delivery Debugging
When emails don't arrive as expected, parsing reveals what went wrong:
- Check SPF/DKIM/DMARC results in Authentication-Results header
- Trace the delivery path through Received headers
- Identify delays by comparing Received header timestamps
- Find spam scores or filter flags added by receiving servers
Phishing Investigation
Suspicious email? Parsing exposes deception:
- Compare the From header (display name) with the actual sender domain
- Check Return-Path and Reply-To for mismatches
- Examine Received headers to see where the email actually originated
- Look for failed authentication (SPF/DKIM failures)
Email Development
Building email templates or automated systems? Parsing helps you verify:
- Correct MIME structure and boundaries
- Proper encoding of special characters
- Attachment handling and Content-Disposition headers
- Header formatting and compliance
Content Encoding Explained
Email content uses encoding to handle non-ASCII characters and binary data:
- 7bit/8bit: Plain ASCII text, no encoding needed
- quoted-printable: Encodes special characters as =XX hex values
- base64: Converts binary to ASCII-safe characters (used for attachments)
Our parser automatically decodes these formats so you see the actual content, not the encoded representation.
Authentication Headers Deep Dive
Modern email authentication involves three mechanisms:
- SPF (Sender Policy Framework): Verifies the sending server is authorized for the domain
- DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail): Cryptographic signature proving the email wasn't altered
- DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication): Policy framework combining SPF and DKIM
Results appear in the Authentication-Results header. "pass" means verification succeeded; "fail" indicates problems. DMARC alignment matters too-SPF and DKIM must pass with domains that align with the From address.
Working with Attachments
The parser identifies all MIME parts that constitute attachments:
- Content-Disposition: attachment indicates a downloadable file
- Content-Type reveals the file format (application/pdf, image/png, etc.)
- Content-Transfer-Encoding shows how binary data was encoded
- Filename parameter gives the original filename
Inline images (embedded in HTML) appear with Content-Disposition: inline and are referenced by Content-ID headers in the HTML body.
Privacy and Security
When using the email parser:
- All parsing happens in your browser-raw email content isn't sent to our servers
- No email content is stored or logged
- Results remain in your browser session only
- Consider redacting sensitive information before sharing parsed results
Frequently Asked Questions
What is MIME email format?
MIME (Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions) is the standard format for email messages. It defines how emails are structured, including headers, body content (text and HTML), and attachments. Raw email files (.eml) use MIME format.
How do I get raw email content to parse?
In most email clients, you can view raw/source email by finding 'Show Original' or 'View Source' in the message options. Gmail uses 'Show original', Outlook has 'View message source'. You can also download .eml files from many email clients.
What headers can I extract?
The parser extracts all email headers including From, To, Subject, Date, Message-ID, Reply-To, CC, BCC, Content-Type, DKIM signatures, SPF results, and any custom X-headers. These reveal routing information and authentication results.
Can the parser handle attachments?
Yes. The parser identifies all MIME parts including attachments. You'll see attachment filenames, MIME types, and sizes. Binary attachments are detected and listed separately from the message body content.
Does this work with encrypted emails?
The parser works with the outer MIME structure of encrypted emails (S/MIME or PGP). However, the encrypted content itself remains encrypted-you'll see it as a binary attachment. Decryption requires your private key in a separate tool.