TL;DR
- Woodpecker verifies each address right before sending. It's free on every plan except Unlimited, where it's switched off.
- The default catch-all mode, Balanced, sends to risky catch-alls. Bounce Shield (2% by default) is opt-in.
- Verify with MailExchange when you're on Unlimited, want results before import, or use the same list in several tools.
What Woodpecker already does
Woodpecker's verification runs inside the campaign: each prospect's address is checked just before its email goes out, follow-ups included. On every plan except Unlimited that's included in the price. Checking a list by hand in Lists costs 0.25 credit per address, which Woodpecker puts at about half a cent.
If you're on a plan with verification included and you're happy with the default settings, you may not need a separate verifier. We'd rather say that plainly.
When a separate verifier still helps
- You're on the Unlimited plan. Woodpecker says the verification add-on is switched off there, so nothing checks addresses before they send.
- You want to know before you import. Checking at send time means you learn a list is bad only after it's in a campaign. Verifying first tells you whether a list is worth importing at all, and lets you push back on the vendor who sold it.
- The same list goes to several tools. If leads also go to HubSpot, Instantly or Smartlead, one verification pass in MailExchange covers all of them.
- You want catch-alls separated by reason. See below.
Woodpecker's catch-all modes
| Mode | What it sends to |
|---|---|
| Only verify | Checks catch-alls but sends them nothing |
| Maximum | Only catch-alls rated safe |
| Balanced (default) | Deliverable and risky catch-alls |
| None | Every catch-all |
Balanced is the default for all users, so unless you've changed it, risky catch-alls are being emailed. On a new domain, consider Maximum or Only verify, and send catch-alls from a separate campaign on your oldest inboxes. More on the trade-off: should you send to catch-all emails?
Which mode to pick
- New or recently warmed domains: Only verify or Maximum. A few lost catch-all leads cost less than a damaged domain.
- Established domains with a clean history: Balanced can be fine, with Bounce Shield on.
- None: hard to justify for cold outreach. It sends to every catch-all, including the ones Woodpecker rates risky.
If you verify with MailExchange first, you can also keep catch-alls out of the main campaign altogether and give them their own campaign, whatever mode that campaign uses.
Turn on Bounce Shield
Bounce Shield pauses a campaign once its bounce rate reaches a threshold (2% by default), and you restart it by hand. It's opt-in, so check it's on for every campaign. A 2% limit is a sensible line, and close to what most sequencers recommend. See how many bounces burn a domain.
Woodpecker facts from woodpecker.co/features/email-verification, checked 2026-10-17.
How to verify leads for Woodpecker
- Export your leads as a CSV from your lead source or from Woodpecker.
- Upload it to MailExchange. Duplicates are free, unknowns are refunded, and your columns are kept.
- Keep deliverable rows, drop undeliverable ones, and put catch-alls (
risky: low_deliverability) in their own file. - Import the clean file into your main campaign, and the catch-all file into a slower one, if at all.
Cost
MailExchange is pay as you go: $29 for 5,000 ($0.0058 each), $49 for 10,000, $299 for 100,000. Credits never expire. See pricing or the verification cost calculator.
Automate it
Call the MailExchange API (early access) before adding prospects to Woodpecker through its API. A direct connector is on our roadmap. Ask for a key.