Summary
The question of industry benchmarks for email deliverability KPIs is complex, with varying perspectives from marketers, experts, and official documentation. While some see benchmarks as crucial for evaluating performance and securing stakeholder buy-in, others argue that they can be misleading, advocating for a focus on continuous improvement tailored to specific email programs. Understanding these different viewpoints is key to effectively leveraging or navigating industry averages for your email deliverability strategy.
Key findings
- Differing views: There is no universal consensus on the utility of email deliverability benchmarks, with opinions ranging from essential for external validation to largely irrelevant for internal improvement.
- External validation: Benchmarks can be valuable for demonstrating above-average performance to partners and investors, aiding in client acquisition and retention.
- Continuous improvement: Many experts emphasize that regardless of benchmarks, there is always room to improve email campaign performance and deliverability practices.
- Specific metrics: Key performance indicators (KPIs) like inbox placement rate, delivery rate, bounce rate, and spam complaint rate are frequently cited for monitoring email health. For more on what metrics to track, review what KPIs to use.
- Industry reports: Various reports and studies offer average metrics across different industries, though their applicability to individual programs can vary.
Key considerations
- Program uniqueness: No two email programs are identical, making direct comparisons to generalized benchmarks potentially misleading. Focus on your own historical performance.
- Goal-oriented metrics: The most relevant KPIs depend on specific campaign goals. A good deliverability rate might vary, so understand what is a good deliverability rate for your context.
- Data interpretation: While benchmarks can provide context, they should be interpreted cautiously and not used to deflect from addressing underlying issues.
- Resource allocation: Relying too heavily on benchmarks might divert energy from tangible improvements to strategies for better email performance.
What email marketers say
Email marketers often seek industry benchmarks to gauge their performance, understand market trends, and make a case for their strategies to stakeholders. While some find value in these averages for strategic positioning and external reporting, others caution against their over-reliance, advocating for a more internal focus on optimization and continuous improvement. The consensus points towards using benchmarks as a reference, not a definitive goal.
Key opinions
- Investor confidence: Marketers may use above-average deliverability metrics to impress partners and investors, aiding in securing buy-in and investment.
- Improvement focus: Some marketers believe that focusing solely on benchmarks can distract from the ongoing process of improving email practices. For more on improving your emails, read our expert guide to email deliverability.
- Contextual understanding: Understanding that email programs are unique is critical, and a direct comparison to industry averages may not always be appropriate.
- KPI importance: Email marketers consider various KPIs like open rates, click-through rates, and bounce rates to assess campaign health.
Key considerations
- Data specificity: Marketers should seek out benchmarks that are as specific as possible to their industry, region, and audience demographics for more relevant insights.
- Baseline creation: It's often more beneficial to establish and improve upon your own historical performance baseline rather than strictly adhering to industry averages.
- Metric validity: Not all metrics are equally important. Marketers should identify and focus on KPIs most aligned with their business objectives, such as email engagement benchmarks.
- External resources: Utilize reports from reputable sources to gain a broader market perspective, as suggested by eMarketer's industry KPIs.
Marketer view
Email marketer from Email Geeks explains that benchmarks can be useful for demonstrating strong deliverability performance to partners and investors, helping to gain their confidence and support. This can be a key factor in onboarding new clients and securing business growth.
Marketer view
Email marketer from Email Geeks emphasizes that while benchmarks can be useful in specific scenarios, the focus should always be on continuous improvement, as there's always room to enhance campaign performance regardless of benchmark comparisons. Striving for constant betterment is more impactful than simply meeting an average.
What the experts say
Email deliverability experts often hold a more nuanced view on benchmarks, acknowledging their existence but frequently cautioning against their limitations. They emphasize the complexity of deliverability, where factors like sender reputation, list hygiene, and technical configurations often outweigh generalized industry averages. Experts typically advise focusing on foundational best practices and detailed, provider-specific data for true improvement.
Key opinions
- Resource availability: Experts acknowledge that comprehensive reports providing industry benchmark data do exist and can be useful for certain insights.
- Beyond averages: Inbox placement rate is often considered a more critical KPI than open rate, as it indicates actual delivery to the inbox.
- Provider-specific data: Data directly from major inbox providers (e.g., Google Postmaster Tools) is often deemed more actionable than general industry benchmarks for improving deliverability. This can impact your average deliverability rates.
- Sender reputation: Consistent sender reputation is paramount and often influences deliverability more than hitting specific industry KPI percentages.
Key considerations
- Holistic view: Experts encourage looking beyond isolated metrics and considering the overall health of the email program, including infrastructure and content.
- Niche industries: Benchmarks may not accurately reflect the unique deliverability challenges or performance expectations of niche industries or specialized email types.
- Long-term strategy: Prioritize building a strong, consistent sender reputation over time, as this forms the backbone of good deliverability. Learn more in the Email Deliverability Report.
- Internal reporting: While external benchmarks can offer context, internal reporting and tracking of your own trends are more indicative of real progress. For an example, view this 2025 deliverability report.
Expert view
Deliverability expert from Email Geeks points out that organizations like DDMA provide extensive data and reports on email marketing benchmarks, which can be a valuable resource for industry insights. These reports often contain detailed breakdowns by various metrics and sectors. Such data can aid in strategic planning and comparative analysis.
Expert view
Deliverability expert from SpamResource emphasizes that while industry benchmarks can provide a general idea, true deliverability success relies on deep understanding of individual sending practices. Generic averages might not capture the unique challenges or strengths of a specific email program. A personalized approach to optimization is often more effective.
What the documentation says
Documentation from email service providers and industry bodies often provides comprehensive insights into email marketing benchmarks and deliverability KPIs. These resources typically define key metrics, present industry averages by various segments (e.g., industry, region), and offer guidance on interpreting these figures. While valuable for contextual understanding, documentation usually stresses that benchmarks are a guide, not a strict rule, and that individual performance should be evaluated within its unique context.
Key findings
- Metric definitions: Documentation provides clear definitions for essential deliverability KPIs such as inbox placement rate, delivery rate, bounce rate, and spam complaint rate.
- Industry averages: Many reports present average email performance metrics across different industries and regions, allowing for comparative analysis.
- Guidance on improvement: Resources often include strategies and best practices for improving email performance, indicating that benchmarks are a starting point for optimization.
- Comparative analysis: Documentation often encourages users to compare their email performance against these established standards to identify areas for growth.
Key considerations
- Contextual application: While useful, benchmarks should be applied with an understanding of individual business models, audience, and email volume.
- Specific focus: Prioritize critical deliverability metrics like inbox placement rate over less direct indicators. Additionally, DMARC, SPF, and DKIM are important.
- Continual monitoring: Regularly tracking and analyzing your own email performance against your specific goals is more impactful than periodic benchmark comparisons.
- Reputation impact: Good deliverability is often a reflection of consistent, positive sender reputation, which should be actively managed. Check our domain reputation guide.
- Leverage data: Use data from industry reports to set realistic expectations and identify broad trends, as detailed by Klaviyo's deliverability monitoring resources.
Technical article
Documentation from Klaviyo provides guidance on understanding good email deliverability metrics tailored by industry and outlines strategies for performance improvement. This resource emphasizes that industry-specific insights can lead to more targeted and successful email campaigns. It aims to help users optimize their email strategies for their unique business context.
Technical article
Documentation from Mailgun encourages an in-depth review of email performance metrics across various industries and geographical regions to facilitate comparative analysis. They suggest that understanding how your results stack up against others can reveal areas of strength or weakness. This detailed comparison supports informed decision-making.
Related resources
7 resources
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