# Send email from Ruby

Five steps: check your Ruby, create a test key, send to the sandbox, read the log, then verify a domain so you can send to anyone. Using Rails? The [Rails quickstart](/docs/quickstart/rails) puts the same steps in a service object.

## 1. Install

No SDK needed. The API is plain JSON over HTTPS, and `net/http` and `json` ship with Ruby.

**shell**

```bash
ruby --version   # 3.0 or newer; net/http and json ship with Ruby
```

## 2. Create an API key

[Sign in](/login), open **API keys** in the dashboard and create a **test** key. It starts with `av_test_`. Export it so the script can read it:

**shell**

```bash
export AVELTO_API_KEY=av_test_...
```

> **Sandbox rules.** Test keys never deliver anything; they run the pipeline and record events. The sandbox sender `you@sandbox.avelto.dev` only delivers to your account's verified owner email and to the simulator addresses `delivered@`, `bounced@` and `complained@sandbox.avelto.dev`. Anything else is refused with `403 sandbox_recipient_not_allowed`. To send to anyone, verify a domain (step 5).

## 3. Send your first email

Every request carries the key as a bearer token. The small `api` helper below sends JSON, parses the response and aborts with the `code` and `message` from the error envelope on any non-2xx status.

**Ruby**

```ruby
# send.rb
require "net/http"
require "json"

API = "https://api.avelto.dev"
HEADERS = {
  "Authorization" => "Bearer #{ENV.fetch("AVELTO_API_KEY")}",
  "Content-Type" => "application/json",
}

def api(method, path, body = nil)
  uri = URI("#{API}#{path}")
  req = Net::HTTP.const_get(method).new(uri, HEADERS)
  req.body = JSON.generate(body) if body
  res = Net::HTTP.start(uri.host, uri.port, use_ssl: true) { |http| http.request(req) }
  data = res.body.to_s.empty? ? nil : JSON.parse(res.body)
  unless res.is_a?(Net::HTTPSuccess)
    abort "#{res.code} #{data["error"]["code"]}: #{data["error"]["message"]}"
  end
  data
end

email = api(:Post, "/v1/emails", {
  from: "you@sandbox.avelto.dev",
  to: "delivered@sandbox.avelto.dev",
  subject: "Hello from Avelto",
  text: "It works.",
})
puts email["id"] # "9c1f4a52-6f6e-4b8f-9b8e-2e1a5c7d3f10"
```

**shell**

```bash
ruby send.rb
```

The API answers `201 Created` with the email id:

```http
HTTP/1.1 201 Created
Content-Type: application/json

{ "id": "9c1f4a52-6f6e-4b8f-9b8e-2e1a5c7d3f10" }
```

> **Retrying safely.** Send an `Idempotency-Key` header (any unique string, such as your order id) with every `POST /v1/emails`. If the request times out or comes back `429`, `502`, `503` or `504`, wait a moment and send it again unchanged with the same key: the API returns the original email id instead of sending twice. See [Idempotency](/docs/send-email).

## 4. Check the log

Fetch the email by id with the same helper. `status` moves from `queued` to `sent` to `delivered`, and `events` records each step: `email.queued`, `email.sent`, `email.delivered`.

**Ruby**

```ruby
email = api(:Get, "/v1/emails/#{email["id"]}")

puts email["status"] # "queued", then "sent", then "delivered"
email["events"].each { |e| puts "#{e["type"]} #{e["occurred_at"]}" }
```

```json
{
  "id": "9c1f4a52-6f6e-4b8f-9b8e-2e1a5c7d3f10",
  "mode": "test",
  "from": "you@sandbox.avelto.dev",
  "to": ["delivered@sandbox.avelto.dev"],
  "subject": "Hello from Avelto",
  "status": "delivered",
  "events": [
    {
      "id": "e1f0c3a4-8b2d-4c6e-9a1f-5d7b3e2c8a90",
      "type": "email.queued",
      "payload": {},
      "occurred_at": "2026-09-17T10:12:04.000Z"
    },
    {
      "id": "a7c2e9d1-3f4b-4a8e-b6c0-2d9e1f7b5c34",
      "type": "email.sent",
      "payload": { "test": true, "ses_message_id": "test-9c1f4a52-6f6e-4b8f-9b8e-2e1a5c7d3f10" },
      "occurred_at": "2026-09-17T10:12:06.000Z"
    },
    {
      "id": "c4b8d2f6-7e1a-4d3c-8f9b-6a2e0c5d1b78",
      "type": "email.delivered",
      "payload": { "test": true, "recipients": ["delivered@sandbox.avelto.dev"] },
      "occurred_at": "2026-09-17T10:12:06.000Z"
    }
  ]
}
```

## 5. Verify a domain

Add a domain, publish the DNS records it prints (three DKIM CNAMEs, an SPF TXT and a DMARC TXT), then poll `GET /v1/domains/:id` until `status` is `verified`. The GET re-checks DNS on every call. Use a subdomain such as `mail.acme.com`.

**Ruby**

```ruby
# verify_domain.rb (reuse the api helper from send.rb)
domain = api(:Post, "/v1/domains", { name: "mail.acme.com" })

domain["dns_records"].each do |r|
  puts "#{r["type"]}\t#{r["name"]}\t#{r["value"]}\t(#{r["purpose"]})"
end

# Publish the records, then poll. GET re-checks DNS on every call.
while domain["status"] == "pending"
  sleep 30
  domain = api(:Get, "/v1/domains/#{domain["id"]}")
end
puts domain["status"] # "verified" or "failed"
```

**shell**

```bash
ruby verify_domain.rb
```

Once the domain is verified, switch `AVELTO_API_KEY` to a live key (`av_live_`) and change `from` to an address on it, such as `hello@mail.acme.com`. Nothing else changes.

## Next

- [Send email](/docs/send-email): every field, attachments, tags, scheduling and idempotency.
- [Webhooks](/docs/webhooks): get events pushed to your app.
- [Test mode](/docs/test-mode): test keys, the sandbox sender and the simulator addresses.

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