If you rely on their outreach database, you might assume your messages are landing in actual inboxes. But with outdated data, catch-all domains, and a system that doesn’t check emails in real time, things aren’t always what they seem.
Let’s look at how ZoomInfo’s email verification works, where it fails, and what you can do to get better results. Because when it comes to email deliverability, „good enough” isn’t always good enough.
What is ZoomInfo?
ZoomInfo is a B2B sales intelligence platform that provides businesses access to a vast company and contact information database.
It helps sales and marketing teams:
- find decision-makers,
- track buyer intent,
- and automate outreach with verified business emails and phone numbers.
ZoomInfo also integrates with CRM systems, offering data enrichment and analytics to improve lead generation and customer engagement. Using these real-time insights allows businesses to connect with the right prospects and drive more effective sales and marketing campaigns.
ZoomInfo email verification – how does it work?
ZoomInfo’s email verification process is built into its platform and works alongside its database of business contacts.
Here’s how it works:
Step 1: Pull data from ZoomInfo’s database
When you search for leads in ZoomInfo, the platform provides email addresses associated with those contacts. These emails come from various sources, including web scraping, third-party data providers, and user-contributed information.
Step 2: Basic validation using NeverBounce
ZoomInfo uses its email verification tool – NeverBounce – to check the validity of emails. This process identifies whether an email is:
- Valid – the email exists and is likely to be delivered.
- Invalid – the email doesn’t exist or has a high chance of bouncing.
- Catch-All – the domain accepts all incoming emails, but there’s no guarantee they reach an actual person.
- Unknown – the system can’t determine if the email is valid or not.
Step 3: Assign an email verification score
Each email gets a verification score, ranging from 0 to 100. Higher scores indicate a lower risk of bouncing, while lower scores suggest a higher chance of deliverability issues.
Some users filter emails by setting high thresholds (like 99+), but this reduces the number of available contacts.
Step 4: Deliver the final list
After verification, ZoomInfo provides a refined list of emails based on the score threshold set by the user. If an email meets the selected criteria, it remains in the dataset. Otherwise, it gets removed or flagged as unreliable.
ZoomInfo email verification – pros
1. It exists ✅
Yep, ZoomInfo has an email verification system, which is better than having none. If you’re using their database, you at least get some level of filtering to weed out invalid emails, helping you verify email addresses before sending. But does “existing” mean it’s effective enough?
2. Integrated with the platform ✅
Since ZoomInfo’s verification is built into its system, it works with its database. No need to switch between different tools – it’s all in one place. That sounds convenient, but convenience doesn’t always mean accuracy.
3. Helps reduce some bounces ✅
If you send emails to contacts pulled from ZoomInfo, their verification system might catch a few bad addresses before they hit your campaign. That means fewer undeliverable emails compared to just blindly trusting any database.
4. Uses NeverBounce technology ✅
ZoomInfo uses NeverBounce for email verification, which adds a layer of credibility. NeverBounce is a known name in the email verification space, but that doesn’t mean it’s foolproof – especially when detecting catch-all addresses or role-based emails.
5. Better than a wild guess ✅
If your alternative is randomly guessing email addresses based on name formats, ZoomInfo’s verification is a step up. You’ll at least have some filtering before launching an outreach campaign.
ZoomInfo email verification – cons
1. Not 100% accurate ❌
While ZoomInfo’s system removes some bad emails, it still leaves room for errors. If an email is technically “deliverable” but belongs to someone who left the company months ago, it won’t catch that.
And sending emails to outdated addresses? That’s a one-way ticket to bounce rates increasing.
2. Struggles with catch-all emails ❌
A massive flaw in ZoomInfo’s verification is how it handles catch-all addresses. Many companies use these to funnel all emails into one inbox, but that doesn’t mean those emails will ever get read. ZoomInfo’s system doesn’t tell you if an email is genuinely active – just that it could receive messages, which affects email deliverability.
3. No independent verification ❌
ZoomInfo’s verification is tied to its database, meaning you rely on its internal system to validate the data they’re selling you.
That’s like a restaurant reviewing its own food. If you want accuracy, running your emails through an independent tool like Bouncer is the best move to verify email addresses correctly.
4. Doesn’t prioritize real-time validation ❌
Unlike dedicated email verification services, ZoomInfo doesn’t check email activity in real time. It might tell you an email is valid based on past data, but that doesn’t mean it’s still active today. You might be the last to know if someone changed jobs last week.
5. Bouncer does it better ❌
Let’s be honest – if you’re serious about email outreach, you need accurate verification, not just “this email technically exists.” Bouncer goes beyond what ZoomInfo offers by checking email activity, detecting catch-all risks, and ensuring your messages reach a person, not a black hole.
Why you should use Bouncer together with ZoomInfo
Using ZoomInfo with Bouncer is the smarter choice if you want better email accuracy and more successful outreach.
😔 ZoomInfo gives you access to an extensive database of business contacts, but its email verification isn’t perfect.
😔 It relies on NeverBounce, which doesn’t check emails in real time. This means you might end up with outdated addresses, catch-all domains, or emails that belong to people who no longer work at a company.
😔 In fact, some users have reported that ZoomInfo’s data can be outdated, leading to wasted outreach efforts and higher bounce rates.
Bouncer fixes this problem by running a real-time check on every email before you send your message.
🙂 Instead of marking an email as „valid,” Bouncer confirms whether it’s active and reachable.
🙂 It also detects risky addresses, like catch-all domains, which ZoomInfo doesn’t filter out properly.
🙂 Companies using Bouncer with ZoomInfo can increase their reach without sacrificing accuracy.
If you rely on ZoomInfo’s email marketing list alone, you risk sending messages that never reach a real person. Running your contacts for your email campaigns through Bouncer can result in reduced bounce rates and enhanced sender reputation.
Check out our other articles on ZoomInfo:
Final verdict
ZoomInfo’s email verification is a decent starting point, but it’s not the final check you should rely on.
For businesses focused on cost-effectiveness, relying solely on ZoomInfo’s verification might not be the best strategy.
When you’re collecting leads through sign up forms, double-checking them with a dedicated tool ensures your list remains clean and actionable.
If you want real accuracy, run your email lists through Bouncer first – because getting an email to land in an inbox is only useful if there’s a real person on the other side. 🚀
