Summary
Apple's privaterelay.apple.com and Hide My Email services provide users with anonymous email addresses to protect their privacy. privaterelay.apple.com is tied to Sign In with Apple, while Hide My Email uses icloud.com. Blocking these addresses is generally discouraged, as it can prevent reaching legitimate subscribers and could inadvertently block all of iCloud. Due to Apple's Mail Privacy Protection (MPP), open rates are inflated, making it crucial to shift focus to other engagement metrics such as clicks, conversions, and website visits. Email marketers should adapt by segmenting lists, prioritizing valuable content, building stronger relationships, optimizing for conversions, leveraging preference centers and zero-party data, and adhering to deliverability best practices. The key is to understand audience behavior and provide value to subscribers.
Key findings
- Address Mapping: Sign in with Apple uses privaterelay.apple.com, while Hide My Email uses icloud.com.
- Blocking Risks: Blocking Apple relay addresses can prevent reaching subscribers and might block all of iCloud.
- Anonymous, Not Disposable: Apple's anonymous addresses are not necessarily disposable; users may desire ongoing communication.
- MPP Impact on Metrics: Apple Mail Privacy Protection (MPP) inflates open rates, necessitating a focus on clicks, conversions, and engagement.
- Deliverability Best Practices: Adhering to deliverability best practices minimizes negative MPP impact on sender reputation.
- Hide My Email Access: Users can locate and manage Hide My Email addresses in their Apple ID settings.
Key considerations
- Segment Strategically: Segment email lists based on Apple Mail users to tailor content and sending strategies.
- Provide Value First: Focus on creating and providing valuable content to build trust and encourage engagement.
- Build Relationships: Prioritize building strong relationships with subscribers through personalized messaging and engagement.
- Optimize Conversions: Optimize email designs for conversions to drive desired actions and measure effectiveness.
- Gather Direct Data: Use preference centers and zero-party data to gather direct subscriber information and preferences.
- Embrace Alternative Metrics: Shift from relying solely on open rates; adopt clicks, conversions, and other engagement metrics as key indicators.
- Assess User Intent: Recognize that users of Hide My Email may have various intentions, from one-time use to ongoing interaction.
What email marketers say
12 marketer opinions
Apple's privaterelay.apple.com and Hide My Email features impact email marketing primarily by limiting open tracking and requiring a shift in focus towards engagement metrics. Marketers should avoid blocking Apple's relay addresses, as they represent legitimate users. Strategies for adaptation include segmenting email lists, focusing on providing valuable content, building stronger relationships with subscribers, optimizing email design for conversions, and gathering more information about subscribers through preference centers and zero-party data.
Key opinions
- Privacy Addresses: Apple's privaterelay.apple.com and Hide My Email provide users with anonymous email addresses.
- Blocking Avoidance: Blocking Apple relay addresses is not recommended as it prevents reaching legitimate subscribers.
- Engagement Focus: Due to MPP, focus on engagement metrics like clicks, conversions, and website visits rather than open rates.
- Data Gathering: Leveraging preference centers and zero-party data to understand subscriber preferences becomes crucial.
Key considerations
- Segmentation: Consider segmenting email lists based on Apple Mail users to tailor content and send times.
- Content Value: Prioritize providing valuable content to build trust and encourage engagement.
- Relationship Building: Focus on building stronger relationships with subscribers and personalizing messaging.
- Conversion Optimization: Optimize email design for conversions to drive desired actions.
- CDPs: Consider implementing CDPs to gain a deeper understanding of audience behavior.
Marketer view
Marketer from Email Geeks suggests calling Apple's addresses 'anonymous' rather than 'disposable.' He believes that it's potentially 'temporary' but not necessarily. He explains that One big difference between Apple's 'anonymous' addresses and mailinator is that Apple makes it very hard or impossible to generate lots and lots of these accounts at a given website and keep them all active.
6 May 2025 - Email Geeks
Marketer view
Email marketer from Litmus discusses how Apple's MPP affects email marketing analytics, emphasizing the need to move beyond open rates and focus on metrics that indicate genuine engagement, like website visits and purchases.
5 Dec 2023 - Litmus
What the experts say
4 expert opinions
Apple's privaterelay.apple.com is associated with Sign In with Apple, while Hide My Email uses icloud.com. Blocking Hide My Email is difficult without blocking all of iCloud. These anonymous addresses are not disposable, as users may want ongoing communication. Apple Mail Privacy Protection (MPP) inflates open rates, so focusing on other metrics is essential. While MPP doesn't directly impact deliverability, sender reputation can be affected if open rates are the sole measure of engagement.
Key opinions
- Address Association: privaterelay.apple.com is linked to Sign In with Apple; Hide My Email uses icloud.com.
- Blocking Implications: Blocking Hide My Email could lead to blocking all of iCloud.
- Address Nature: Apple's anonymous addresses are not necessarily disposable; users may want ongoing communication.
- MPP Impact: Apple Mail Privacy Protection inflates open rates, necessitating a shift to other engagement metrics.
- Deliverability Impact: MPP doesn't directly affect deliverability but can affect sender reputation if open rates are overrelied upon.
Key considerations
- Avoid Broad Blocks: Be cautious about blocking iCloud domains due to Hide My Email usage.
- Evaluate Engagement: Transition from open rates to other engagement metrics for accurate campaign assessment.
- Maintain Best Practices: Adhering to deliverability best practices minimizes the negative impact of MPP.
- Consider User Intent: Recognize that users of Hide My Email may have varying intentions, including ongoing communication.
Expert view
Expert from Word to the Wise staff discusses how Apple's Mail Privacy Protection does not directly impact deliverability, but it can affect sender reputation if marketers rely solely on open rates to gauge engagement and adjust their sending practices. He advises that the change should have little negative impact if the sender is following best practices for deliverability.
13 Sep 2021 - Word to the Wise
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks shares his theory that Sign in with Apple always uses privaterelay.apple.com and that hide my email always uses icloud.com. He then explains that you can’t easily block hide my email without blocking all of icloud.
2 Mar 2023 - Email Geeks
What the documentation says
4 technical articles
Apple's Hide My Email allows users to create unique, random email addresses for privacy when signing up for newsletters or apps. Sign In with Apple offers enhanced privacy, and the Mail Privacy Protection feature impacts email open rates, leading to inflated metrics. Therefore, email marketers should adapt their strategies by focusing on engagement metrics like click-through rates and conversion rates and considering A/B testing to improve subject lines.
Key findings
- Hide My Email Function: Hide My Email creates unique, random email addresses for privacy.
- Sign In with Apple Privacy: Sign In with Apple provides increased privacy and security features.
- MPP Inflated Open Rates: Apple's Mail Privacy Protection inflates email open rates.
- Engagement Metric Focus: Marketers should focus on engagement metrics like click-through rates and conversions.
Key considerations
- A/B Testing: Consider A/B testing subject lines to improve email performance.
- Adapt Marketing Strategies: Adapt email marketing strategies to account for privacy changes.
- Re-evaluate Success Metrics: Re-evaluate email marketing success metrics beyond open rates.
Technical article
Documentation from Twilio SendGrid explains that Apple's Mail Privacy Protection can lead to inflated open rates and recommends focusing on other engagement metrics like click-through rates and conversion rates to gauge campaign performance.
30 Dec 2021 - Twilio SendGrid
Technical article
Documentation from Apple Support explains that Hide My Email allows users to keep their personal email address private by creating unique, random email addresses that forward to their real inbox. It can be used when signing up for newsletters, apps, or websites.
11 Sep 2021 - Apple Support
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