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Mailgun: Private API Key Setup

Email Services • Mailgun • API Connection
Connect Mailgun to Chat To Clients CRM with a Private API Key
Connect your Mailgun account to Chat To Clients CRM so your agency can send email through your verified Mailgun infrastructure. Add Mailgun as an Agency-level Email Service, select a verified US-region sending domain, and make it the Active provider for eligible sub-accounts.
What You'll Learn

Learn how to prepare a Mailgun domain, connect it with a Private API key, activate Mailgun for Agency-level sending, understand sub-account provider priority, validate the connection, and troubleshoot common setup issues.

Important

Chat To Clients CRM uses the Mailgun Private API key for this integration. Treat the key as a secret and never expose it in screenshots, support tickets, documentation, or public messages.

Table of Contents
1

What Is the Mailgun API Key Connection?

Connecting Mailgun lets Chat To Clients CRM use your Mailgun account and verified sending domain for outbound email.

The Private API key authenticates Chat To Clients CRM with Mailgun and allows eligible verified domains from the account to be selected during setup. After saving the service, you must set it as Active before it becomes the Agency-level default.

2

Key Benefits of Connecting Mailgun

Connecting your own Mailgun account gives your agency more control over the infrastructure used for applicable Chat To Clients CRM email while keeping provider management centralized.

  • Use Your Own Infrastructure: Send through your existing Mailgun account and verified domain.
  • Centralize Agency Setup: Use Mailgun as the default service for sub-accounts without their own provider.
  • Switch Providers: Save multiple Agency-level email services and change which service is Active when needed.
  • Support Sub-Account Overrides: Allow individual sub-accounts to use another provider when configured.
  • Support Reply Routing: Proper Mailgun receiving and DNS configuration can route supported replies back into Conversations.
3

Prerequisites and Limitations

Preparing Mailgun before connecting it prevents the most common issues with missing domains, authentication failures, and unexpected provider behavior.

Before you begin:

  • Have an active Mailgun account.
  • Have at least one verified Mailgun sending domain or subdomain.
  • Create the Mailgun domain in the US region.
  • Complete the DNS records required for your Mailgun configuration.
  • Have access to Agency View → Settings → Email Services.
  • Have the appropriate Mailgun Private API key.

Keep these limitations in mind:

  • Chat To Clients CRM reads eligible verified Mailgun domains from the US region.
  • Saving a Mailgun service does not automatically make it Active.
  • Only one Agency-level email service can be Active at a time.
  • A sub-account-specific provider takes priority over the Agency-level provider.
  • Inbound reply handling requires additional Mailgun receiving and DNS configuration.
  • Mailgun billing, volume limits, and provider-level restrictions are managed through Mailgun.
4

Mailgun Region and Domain Requirements

Chat To Clients CRM can display eligible Mailgun domains only when the domain is verified and configured in the supported Mailgun region.

  • Create the Mailgun domain or subdomain in the US region, not the EU region.
  • Confirm the domain shows as verified in Mailgun.
  • Complete the DNS records required by your Mailgun configuration.
  • Use a subdomain when you want Mailgun sending to remain separate from the primary domain's existing mailbox configuration.

Example: If your main domain is yourdomain.com, you can use a sending subdomain such as mg.yourdomain.com. This is especially useful when the root domain already receives mail through Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, or another mailbox provider.

Mailgun domain showing US-region configuration and verified status
5

How To Connect Mailgun at the Agency Level

Connecting Mailgun at the Agency level makes it available as the default sending service for eligible sub-accounts after the service is saved and activated.

Step 1: Copy Your Mailgun Private API Key

The Private API key authenticates the connection between Chat To Clients CRM and the Mailgun account containing your verified sending domain.

  1. Sign in to Mailgun.
  2. Go to Settings → API Keys.
  3. Create a key if you do not already have an appropriate Private API key.
  4. Copy the key securely.

Security: Never include your Mailgun Private API key in screenshots, tickets, documentation, or chat messages. If a key is exposed, replace it in Mailgun and update the connected Email Service in Chat To Clients CRM.

Step 2: Open Agency Email Services

Agency Email Services control the default sending provider used when a sub-account does not have its own email provider configured.

  1. Open Agency View.
  2. Click Settings.
  3. Select Email Services.
  4. Open the SMTP Service tab.

Interface Note: Depending on your current interface, this configuration area may also be labeled Advanced Settings.

Step 3: Add Mailgun

Add Mailgun as an Agency-level Email Service and select the verified sending domain associated with the Mailgun account.

  1. Click + Add Service.
  2. In the Add your own email service window, select Mailgun.
  3. Enter your Mailgun API Key.
  4. Select the verified Mailgun Domain.
  5. Save the Email Service.

If the domain is missing: Confirm it is fully verified in Mailgun, belongs to the account associated with the API key, and was created in the US region.

Step 4: Set Mailgun as Active

Saving the service adds Mailgun to your Agency account, but the Agency does not use it as the default provider until you activate it.

  1. Locate the Mailgun service you added.
  2. Click Set as Active.
  3. Confirm the change.


6

How Agency and Sub-Account Email Services Work Together

Provider priority determines which Email Service actually sends email when both Agency-level and sub-account-specific configurations exist.

Provider Priority

1. Sub-account-specific default provider
2. Agency-level Active provider

If a sub-account has its own provider configured, that provider takes precedence. If it does not, Chat To Clients CRM uses the applicable Agency-level Active provider.

To review sub-account provider assignments, go to:

Agency View → Settings → Email Services → Location Settings

Agencies can also control whether sub-accounts are allowed to add their own Email Services from:

Agency View → Settings → Email Services → Advanced Settings


7

How To Validate Your Mailgun Connection

Testing Mailgun after activation confirms that the expected provider and sending domain work before you depend on the configuration for campaigns, workflows, or regular conversations.

  1. Confirm Mailgun shows as Active under Agency View → Settings → Email Services.
  2. Confirm the expected verified Mailgun domain is selected.
  3. Open a sub-account that should use the Agency-level provider.
  4. Create or open a test contact using an email address you can access.
  5. Send a test email from the contact conversation.
  6. Confirm the message is received.
  7. Reply to the email if you also want to test inbound reply handling.
  8. Confirm the reply appears in Conversations.

Outbound works but replies do not: Review the Mailgun receiving route, webhook, and inbound DNS configuration. A successful API connection alone does not configure inbound reply routing.

8

Troubleshooting

Most Mailgun connection issues come from domain verification, region selection, API authentication, provider priority, or inbound-routing configuration.

The Mailgun domain does not appear
  • Confirm the domain belongs to the Mailgun account associated with the API key.
  • Confirm the domain is fully verified.
  • Confirm the domain was created in Mailgun's US region.
  • Confirm the required DNS configuration is complete.
Mailgun is saved but email uses another provider
  • Confirm the intended Mailgun service is marked Active.
  • Check whether the affected sub-account has its own default provider configured, which takes priority over the Agency-level provider.
The API key cannot retrieve domains
  • Confirm you are using the Mailgun Private API key.
  • Confirm the key belongs to the expected Mailgun account.
  • Confirm the key has not been deleted, replaced, or revoked.
  • If Mailgun IP restrictions prevent Chat To Clients CRM from retrieving domain information, temporarily adjust the restriction, retry the connection, and restore the restriction after validation.
Mailgun IP access restriction settings used when troubleshooting API domain synchronization
Email sends successfully but replies do not appear in Conversations
  • Check the Mailgun receiving route and webhook.
  • Confirm the Mailgun MX configuration is correct for the inbound setup.
  • Confirm the expected domain is associated with the correct sub-account.
  • For cold inbound email, use a unique dedicated domain or subdomain for the appropriate sub-account so inbound messages route to the intended destination.
9

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Should I use the Mailgun Private or Public API key?
Use the Private API key. The Public API key does not authenticate this Mailgun provider connection in Chat To Clients CRM.
Q: Why doesn't my EU-region Mailgun domain appear?
Chat To Clients CRM reads eligible verified Mailgun domains from the US region. Configure a US-region domain or subdomain for this integration.
Q: Why doesn't my verified domain appear in the dropdown?
Confirm the domain belongs to the Mailgun account associated with the API key, is fully verified, and is configured in the US region. Also review any Mailgun IP restrictions that may block domain retrieval.
Q: Can I save more than one Mailgun service?
Yes. You can save multiple Agency-level Email Services, but only one Agency-level service can be Active at a time.
Q: Does Agency-level Mailgun apply to every sub-account?
It becomes the default for eligible sub-accounts that do not have their own provider configured. A sub-account-specific default provider takes precedence.
Q: Why can't a sub-account add its own Email Service?
Agencies can control whether sub-accounts can add Email Services. Review Agency View → Settings → Email Services → Advanced Settings.
Q: Can I switch back to Chat To Clients CRM Email after activating Mailgun?
Yes. Return to Agency View → Settings → Email Services and set the Chat To Clients CRM Email System as the Active Agency-level service.
Q: Does connecting Mailgun automatically configure email replies?
No. Reply handling also depends on the correct Mailgun receiving route, webhook, and inbound DNS configuration.
Q: Can the same Mailgun domain be used across multiple sub-accounts?
Supported Mailgun setups can use the same account and sending domain across multiple sub-accounts. For cold inbound email, use a unique domain or subdomain for the appropriate sub-account so incoming messages can be routed correctly.

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Last updated Sat, 19 Sep, 2026 at 7:44 PM