DISPOSABLE EMAIL

Generate a temporary inbox in seconds.No signup. No tracking. Just email.

Emails auto-expire · No registration · Built for developers

Service at a glance

0sTime to inbox
0Signups required
100%Free, forever
RESTPublic API
Definition

What is a fake email address?

A fake email, also called a disposable email, temporary email, throwaway email, or burner email, is a real, working inbox that receives mail for a short period of time and is then automatically deleted. You hand it out instead of your real address whenever you do not want a sign-up, verification flow, or marketing list reaching your primary mailbox.

Fake Email gives you one in under a second at @fake-email.site, with no registration, no captcha, and no tracking. Use it for disposable email signups, one-time codes, QA automation, or anywhere a real address is overkill.

Features

Why use Fake Email

A free temporary email service designed for developers, QA engineers, and privacy-minded users who need a clean inbox for one-off signups.

  • Instant disposable inboxes

    Generate a new temporary email address in under a second. No registration, no captcha, no waiting room.

  • Real-time inbox polling

    Incoming messages appear in the inbox within seconds of arrival, including attachments and HTML bodies.

  • Zero tracking

    No accounts, no analytics fingerprinting, no third-party trackers loading on inbox pages.

  • Developer REST API

    REST endpoints for creating mailboxes and polling messages. OpenAPI 3.1 spec for client codegen.

  • Open-source backend

    Rust SMTP server and HTTP service available on GitHub. Audit the code, self-host, or fork it.

  • Auto-expiring mailboxes

    Mailboxes are ephemeral — when they expire, all messages, attachments, and metadata are deleted.

How it works

How disposable email works

Three steps. Total time to first inbox: under one second.

  1. Step 1

    Generate an address

    Click Generate or pick a username. A new mailbox at @fake-email.site is yours instantly.

  2. Step 2

    Use it anywhere

    Paste the address into a signup form, a CI test fixture, or any place that needs to send you a verification code.

  3. Step 3

    Read incoming mail

    The inbox polls in real time. Click a message to read it. Mailboxes expire automatically.

Want the deep dive on what happens under the hood — SMTP, MX records, Rust pipelines, the lot? Read the full technical walkthrough →

Use cases

When to use a temporary email

  • Sign up for a service without exposing your real email

    Trial a SaaS product, claim a coupon, or download a whitepaper without inviting newsletters into your primary inbox.

  • Receive a one-time verification code

    Get the OTP or confirmation link, copy it, and walk away. The mailbox is gone before any marketing email arrives.

  • QA and developer testing

    Drive automated tests that need a unique inbox per run. Hit the REST API directly — no scraping required.

  • Avoid spam after a data breach

    Use a disposable address on forms you suspect will sell, share, or leak your contact information.

  • Receive verification on a forum or download portal

    Get past mandatory email verification on file hosts, forums, and download walls without committing a real address.

  • Public Wi-Fi captive portals

    Many airports, cafes, and hotels gate Wi-Fi behind an email address. A disposable inbox satisfies the form and dies on its own.

Compare

Fake Email vs other temp-mail services

Honest feature matrix against the three most-used disposable email providers. We document where they win, too.

FeatureFake Emailtemp-mail.org10minutemailGuerrilla Mail
FreeYesYes (paid tier)YesYes
No signupYesYesYesYes
Public REST APIYesPaidNoYes
OpenAPI 3.1 specYesNoNoNo
Open sourceYesNoNoNo
llms.txt for AI agentsYesNoNoNo
Custom usernameYesYesNoYes
Ad-free interfaceYesPaidNoNo

Last verified: 2026-05-25. Competitor features change frequently — check their sites for the latest. If we are out of date, open an issue.

API

REST API for developers

Drive Fake Email from your test suite, CI pipeline, or bot. JSON in, JSON out, no auth.

Create a mailbox

POST /api/temporary-address
Content-Type: application/json

{ "username": "alice" }

200 OK
{ "temp_email_addr": "alice@fake-email.site" }

Poll an inbox

GET /api/inbox/poll?address=alice@fake-email.site

200 OK
{ "messages": [ ... ] }

Read the full reference in the API docs, or pull the OpenAPI spec from /openapi.json. Agents can discover endpoints via /.well-known/api-catalog.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

What is a disposable email address?
A disposable email address — also called a temporary email, throwaway email, burner email, or fake email — is a short-lived inbox that lets you receive mail without revealing your real address. After a short period the inbox and any messages it received are deleted, so spam, marketing follow-ups, and leaked databases can never reach your real inbox.
How is Fake Email different from temp-mail.org, 10minutemail, or Guerrilla Mail?
Fake Email is open source, ships a public OpenAPI 3.1 spec, exposes an llms.txt and agent-skills index for AI agents, and the entire Rust backend is on GitHub for you to read or self-host. Most other temp-mail services are closed source, gate their API behind a paywall, or run on aging stacks with heavy ads.
Is Fake Email really free?
Yes. Every feature is free. There is no paid tier, no signup, no credit card, and no ads on the inbox page. The project is funded by its maintainers.
How long does a temporary email last?
Mailboxes are ephemeral and auto-expire. Treat each address as single-use; if you need a permanent inbox, use your regular provider.
Can I send email from a disposable address?
No. Fake Email is receive-only. This prevents abuse and keeps the service free for legitimate verification and testing use cases.
Do you store, sell, or read my messages?
No accounts exist, so there is nothing tied to a person. Mailboxes and their messages are purged on expiry. The service is operated as a privacy utility, not a data-collection funnel.
Is there an API I can call from my app or tests?
Yes. See the API reference at /docs/api and the OpenAPI 3.1 spec at /openapi.json. Endpoints include POST /api/temporary-address and GET /api/inbox/poll. The same endpoints power this website.
Will incoming email show attachments?
Yes. Attachments arrive alongside the message body while the mailbox is alive.
Is Fake Email anonymous?
No signup is required, so no personally identifying information is collected by the service itself. Network requests are subject to your network provider.
Is disposable email legal?
Using a disposable email address for privacy is legal in most jurisdictions. Always follow each website's terms of service and never use temporary email for fraud, harassment, or evading bans.
Why might a website block disposable email addresses?
Some platforms block known disposable domains to reduce trial abuse or duplicate-account fraud. If a signup is rejected, that site has chosen to require a permanent inbox.
Can I receive verification codes (OTPs) here?
Yes. Sign-up verification codes, magic links, and confirmation emails are all received normally. Many users generate a mailbox specifically to grab an OTP and discard the address.
Can AI agents use Fake Email?
Yes. Fake Email publishes an llms.txt, an OpenAPI spec, a /.well-known/api-catalog (RFC 9727), and an Agent Skills index (RFC v0.2.0). Agents can discover and call the service without a human in the loop.
How does Fake Email compare to using a Gmail alias (the +tag trick)?
A Gmail alias still lands in your real inbox and still ties the signup to your identity. A disposable address from Fake Email cannot be linked back to you and disappears when you are done.