Email Engagement Metrics That Matter
Understand which email metrics to track, how they impact deliverability, and how to optimize for better results.
Email metrics tell the story of your campaign performance and sender reputation. Understanding which metrics matter—and what they mean—is essential for improving deliverability and ROI.
Core Engagement Metrics
Open Rate
Percentage of delivered emails that were opened. Average: 15-25% across industries.
What Affects Open Rate
- • Subject line quality and relevance
- • Sender name recognition
- • Send time and frequency
- • List quality and engagement history
- • Mobile optimization
Click-Through Rate (CTR)
Percentage of delivered emails where recipients clicked a link. Average: 2-5%.
Improving CTR
- • Clear, compelling CTAs
- • Relevant, personalized content
- • Mobile-responsive design
- • Strategic link placement
- • Segment by interests
Bounce Rate
Percentage of emails that couldn't be delivered. Target: Below 2%.
Hard Bounces
Invalid addresses, non-existent domains. Remove immediately.
Soft Bounces
Temporary issues like full mailboxes. Retry a few times.
Unsubscribe Rate
Percentage who click unsubscribe. Normal: 0.2-0.5%.
While unsubscribes might seem negative, they're healthier than spam complaints and help you maintain an engaged list.
Spam Complaint Rate
Percentage who mark as spam. Critical threshold: 0.1%.
Critical Metric
Spam complaints above 0.1% trigger deliverability issues. Above 0.3% often results in blocklisting. This is the most damaging metric to your sender reputation.
Advanced Metrics
Conversion Rate
Percentage who complete your desired action (purchase, signup, download). This is your ultimate success metric.
List Growth Rate
Net new subscribers (new signups minus unsubscribes and bounces). A healthy list should grow consistently.
Email Sharing/Forward Rate
Percentage who forward or share your email. Strong indicator of content value.
Engagement Over Time
Track how individual subscribers engage with your emails over weeks and months. This helps identify:
- • Highly engaged subscribers (send more frequently)
- • At-risk subscribers (need re-engagement)
- • Inactive subscribers (consider removing)
How Metrics Impact Deliverability
ISPs use engagement metrics to determine sender reputation:
Positive Signals
Opens, clicks, replies, moves to inbox from spam, adds to contacts
Negative Signals
Spam complaints, deletes without opening, moves to spam folder
Neutral Signals
Unsubscribes (better than spam complaints), opens without clicks
Industry Benchmarks
Average Rates by Industry
Optimization Strategies
1. A/B Test Everything
Test subject lines, send times, content formats, and CTAs to identify what resonates with your audience.
2. Segment Your List
Send targeted content based on behavior, demographics, and preferences. Segmented campaigns get 14% higher opens and 100% higher clicks.
3. Clean Regularly
Remove inactive subscribers quarterly. A smaller, engaged list outperforms a large, unengaged list.
4. Monitor Trends
Track metrics over time, not just campaign-by-campaign. Look for trends that indicate improving or declining performance.