Why validate your BIMI logo?
Email providers (Gmail, Apple Mail, Yahoo) only display your logo if several conditions are met:
- Valid BIMI DNS record
- Logo in compliant SVG Tiny-PS format
- Stable and fast HTTPS delivery
- File under 32KB
A single unmet criterion = no display. Without prior validation, you discover the problem after deployment, and it takes days to fix.
Common use cases:
- BIMI deployment → Validate the logo before publishing the DNS record
- Display debugging → Understand why your logo doesn't appear in Gmail
- Logo change → Verify the new SVG meets requirements
How to use the BIMI checker
Step 1: Enter URL or domain
Two options:
- Direct URL: Paste your SVG file URL (e.g.,
https://cdn.captaindns.com/bimi/logo.svg) - Domain: Enter your domain and the tool fetches the URL from the BIMI record
Step 2: Analyze the report
The tool checks:
| Category | Checks |
|---|---|
| HTTP Delivery | Redirects, latency, final URL, MIME type |
| SSL Certificate | Validity, trust chain |
| SVG Format | Tiny-PS compliance, forbidden tags |
| Metadata | viewBox, dimensions, title |
| Size | Weight in bytes vs 32KB recommendation |
Step 3: Fix and retest
- Fix blocking errors first (forbidden elements, HTTPS failure)
- Address warnings (size, multiple redirects)
- Rerun analysis until you get a compliant result
What is SVG Tiny-PS?
SVG Tiny-PS (Tiny Portable/Secure) is an SVG profile designed for security. It forbids elements that could pose a risk:
Forbidden elements
| Element | Reason |
|---|---|
<script> | JavaScript code execution |
<foreignObject> | External HTML content inclusion |
<use href="external"> | Reference to external resources |
| External fonts | Third-party resource loading |
<animate> (some) | Complex animations |
Allowed elements
| Element | Description |
|---|---|
<svg>, <g> | Basic structure |
<path>, <rect>, <circle>, <ellipse> | Geometric shapes |
<polygon>, <polyline>, <line> | Lines and polygons |
<linearGradient>, <radialGradient> | Gradients (simple) |
<text> converted to <path> | Vectorized text |
Compliant logo example
<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 100 100">
<title>CaptainDNS Logo</title>
<rect width="100" height="100" fill="#4F46E5"/>
<path d="M25 50 L50 25 L75 50 L50 75 Z" fill="#FFFFFF"/>
</svg>
Common diagnostics and solutions
Forbidden elements (scripts, external fonts, external references, animations) are stripped automatically by the BIMI SVG converter, which also adds the version, baseProfile and title attributes required by Tiny-PS and lists every change before you download the file. An SVG editor is still needed to rework the artwork itself.
Error: Unsupported tag
Diagnostic: Element <script> not allowed in SVG Tiny-PS
Solution: Remove all <script> elements. A BIMI logo is static, with no interactivity.
Error: External reference
Diagnostic: External reference in href attribute
Solution: Replace external references (href="https://...") with embedded resources or remove them.
Warning: Excessive size
Diagnostic: File size 48KB exceeds 32KB recommendation
Solution:
- Simplify paths with an SVG optimizer (SVGO)
- Remove unnecessary metadata (comments, editor-generated IDs)
- Convert text to paths
- Reduce coordinate precision
Error: Incorrect MIME type
Diagnostic: Content-Type: text/html instead of image/svg+xml
Solution: Configure your server or CDN to serve .svg files with Content-Type: image/svg+xml.
Error: Multiple redirects
Diagnostic: 4 redirects before reaching final URL
Solution: Simplify the redirect chain. Ideally, the BIMI record URL points directly to the final file (0-1 redirect max).
FAQ - Frequently asked questions
Q: What is a BIMI logo?
A: BIMI (Brand Indicators for Message Identification) displays your brand logo next to your emails in Gmail, Apple Mail, Yahoo, and other compatible mailboxes. It requires a BIMI DNS record and a logo in SVG Tiny-PS format.
Q: What is SVG Tiny-PS?
A: SVG Tiny-PS is a secure subset of the SVG format. It forbids scripts, external fonts, external references, and certain animations. This format ensures the logo is safe to display in a mailbox.
Q: Why isn't my BIMI logo showing?
A: Check these points in order:
- BIMI DNS record present and correctly formatted
- Logo accessible via HTTPS (no certificate errors)
- SVG Tiny-PS format compliant (no forbidden tags)
- Size under 32KB
- Correct MIME type (
image/svg+xml)
Q: What's the maximum size for a BIMI logo?
A: The official recommendation is 32KB maximum. Beyond that, the logo may be ignored by some mailboxes or slow down display.
Q: Is the tool free?
A: Yes, 100% free with no signup. No usage limits.
Q: How do I fix a non-compliant logo?
A: The BIMI SVG converter does the cleanup for you: scripts, external fonts, external references and animations are stripped, and the version, baseProfile and title attributes are added. To rework the artwork itself, use an SVG editor (Adobe Illustrator, Inkscape, Figma) to:
- Remove scripts and interactive elements
- Convert text to paths
- Remove external fonts
- Replace external references with embedded resources
- Optimize with SVGO to reduce size
Complementary tools
| Tool | Purpose |
|---|---|
| BIMI SVG Converter | Clean up an SVG logo and make it Tiny-PS compliant |
| BIMI Inspector (DNS) | Check your domain's BIMI record |
| BIMI Syntax Checker | Validate BIMI record syntax |
| DMARC Inspector | Check DMARC (prerequisite for BIMI) |
| Email Tester | Test overall email deliverability |
| VMC Certificate Parser | Analyze a Verified Mark Certificate |
Useful resources
- Official BIMI specification (BIMI Group implementation guide)
- SVG Tiny 1.2 (W3C specification the Tiny-PS profile builds on)
- SVGO - SVG Optimizer (open source SVG optimization tool)
- Google - BIMI in Gmail (Gmail documentation)