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Pattern aliases

With a * in its address, one alias covers a family of addresses and can build each destination from the address.

Updated 29 October 2026

When you finish, one alias receives email for every address that fits its pattern, such as every address that starts with sales-. Pattern aliases work on every plan.

Before you start

  1. Write the pattern in Address#

    On the domain’s Forwarding tab, under Create an alias, enter a name with a * in Alias. A * stands for 1 or more characters.

    Address
    sales-*
    Destinations
    amina.kone@gmail.com

    This alias forwards sales-eu@lunavera.com, sales-2026@lunavera.com and every other address that starts with sales- to Amina. It doesn’t match sales@lunavera.com, because a * needs at least 1 character.

  2. Create it#

    Select Create alias. The pattern appears in the table like any other alias.

  3. Send a test#

    Select Send test (the paper plane) on the pattern’s row. Mailyoto makes up an address the pattern receives, such as sales-5c2e1d@lunavera.com, and the message names it. See Confirm an alias forwards to follow it in Logs.

How Mailyoto reads a pattern#

  • A pattern can have up to 3 *.
  • The pattern covers the whole part before the @. sales-* matches sales-eu@, but not presales-eu@. To allow text in front, start with a *, as in *-desk.
  • Around the *, a pattern can contain letters, digits, ., -, _ and '. It can’t contain +, @ or spaces.
  • Mailyoto compares the pattern with the address in lowercase.
  • Mailyoto matches the address without its +tag. For example, sales-* also matches sales-eu+news@, and Mailyoto forwards it without the tag. To keep the tag, use a rule, as plus-addressing shows.
  • * alone is the catch-all.

Build the destination from the address#

Put {1}, {2} or {3} in a destination, and Mailyoto replaces it with the text that the 1st, 2nd or 3rd * stood for.

Address
*-orders
Destinations
{1}@harborpine.net
Email sent toForwarded to
amina-orders@lunavera.comamina@harborpine.net
diego-orders@lunavera.comdiego@harborpine.net
mei-travel@lunavera.comnot this alias: it doesn’t end in -orders

A destination can name only the * its pattern has: {2} needs a pattern with 2. On the catch-all, {1} is the whole part before the @. A catch-all to {1}@harborpine.net sends each address on lunavera.com to the same name at harborpine.net.

Cover a list of names#

A pattern has no “or”. To forward sales@ and support@ the same way, create 2 aliases with the same destinations, or import them together.

Which alias wins#

A pattern comes third when Mailyoto chooses an alias:

  1. An alias with exactly the address.
  2. The address without its +tag.
  3. A pattern alias. When several match, the one with the most characters besides * wins, then the first in alphabetical order. sales-eu-* comes before sales-*.
  4. The catch-all.

An alias named sales-eu therefore receives sales-eu@ instead of sales-*. A pattern receives its addresses instead of the catch-all.

To route by sender, subject or body instead of by address, use routing rules on Pro and Max.

If the pattern doesn’t match#

Email to an address in the pattern goes to the catch-all

Check that the pattern covers the whole address before the @. Put a * where any text may come, such as sales* for both sales-eu and salesteam. A * stands for at least 1 character. sales-* doesn’t match sales@. Create sales as its own alias for that.

Email goes to another alias

An exact alias, or a pattern with more characters besides *, wins. Delete that alias, or make your pattern longer.

The dashboard refuses the pattern

The message names the reason: more than 3 *, a + in the pattern, or a destination that names a * the pattern doesn’t have.