Step-by-Step: How Temp Mail Works
The entire lifecycle of a disposable email address — from generation to automatic deletion.
1. You open the site
My Temp Mail generates a unique email address the moment the page loads. A local part is created (random or typed by you), combined with your chosen domain to form a valid address like [email protected].
2. The backend registers your inbox
A Cloudflare Worker creates a session token (HMAC-signed) tied to your address. This token is stored in your browser and is the only key to your inbox — no account, no login required.
3. You use the address anywhere
Paste it into a sign-up form, OTP field, or download gate. When the sender's server delivers the email, our MX records route it to our mail processing infrastructure.
4. Email arrives in your inbox live
Our backend processes the incoming message and pushes it to your browser via Server-Sent Events (SSE). The email appears in your inbox within 5–15 seconds — no refresh, no polling.
5. Address auto-expires
After 1 hour, your address and all stored messages are permanently deleted from the database. Your session ends cleanly with no data retained.
Why Emails Arrive in Real Time
Most temp mail services use polling — they check the server every few seconds asking "any new emails?" This creates delays, wastes bandwidth, and means you might wait 30–60 seconds for an OTP code.
My Temp Mail uses Server-Sent Events (SSE) — the server holds an open connection to your browser and pushes new messages the moment they arrive. There's no polling, no refresh, and no delay. Emails typically appear within 5–15 seconds of being sent.
Polling: your browser asks "anything new?" every 10 seconds → average 5-second delay per check, up to 10 seconds between checks. SSE: the server tells you the instant something arrives → average 2–3 second delay, maximum ~15 seconds.
How Privacy Is Protected
Disposable email is only private if the service behind it is built correctly. My Temp Mail is designed with the following guarantees:
- No account or login — nothing to link your inbox to your identity
- HMAC-signed inbox tokens — only your browser can access your inbox
- No permanent IP logs — session data is ephemeral
- Automatic deletion after 1 hour — no data retained after expiry
- No third-party analytics in the email processing pipeline
Technology Stack
Built on modern, globally distributed infrastructure for speed and reliability.
Frequently Asked Questions
Technical questions about how temp mail actually works.
How does My Temp Mail generate email addresses?
When you open the site, My Temp Mail combines a local part (either random or one you specify) with one of 18+ active domains to create a unique address. That address is registered in our Cloudflare Worker backend, which begins listening for incoming messages immediately.
How does email delivery work in real time?
My Temp Mail uses Server-Sent Events (SSE) — a lightweight protocol where the server pushes new messages directly to your browser as they arrive, without any page refresh. This is why emails typically appear within 5–15 seconds of being sent.
Where are emails stored?
Incoming emails are stored temporarily in a Supabase PostgreSQL database. They are tied to your inbox token and automatically deleted when the address expires. No email content is retained after expiry.
What happens when the address expires?
After 1 hour, your address and all associated messages are permanently deleted from our database. There is no recovery option — by design. This automatic deletion is what makes the service private.
How does My Temp Mail receive emails sent to my address?
Each domain on My Temp Mail has MX records pointing to our mail infrastructure. When a sender's email server looks up the MX record for your temp address domain, it routes the message to our servers, where it's processed and stored in your inbox.
Is my temp mail address truly anonymous?
Yes. My Temp Mail does not require any login, name, phone number, or IP association. Your inbox token is generated client-side and is the only identifier. No permanent logs link a session to a person.