Does AMPHTML directly impact email folder placement?

No, AMPHTML itself doesn't directly influence folder placement. ISPs prioritize factors like sender reputation, email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), and content quality. If your emails are landing in spam, it's likely due to these underlying factors, not the presence of AMPHTML.

Are AMPHTML emails always delivered to the promotions tab?

AMPHTML emails are designed to render in any tab within supporting email clients, including the primary inbox, promotions, or social tabs. The idea that they are confined to the promotions tab is a common misconception.

Do I need special approval to send AMPHTML emails?

To send AMPHTML emails, you typically need to be a trusted sender and register with the specific mailbox providers that support AMP for email. This process ensures you meet their guidelines for sending dynamic content.

What happens if a recipient's email client doesn't support AMPHTML?

AMPHTML emails are sent with a text-x-amphtml MIME type, but they always include a standard HTML fallback. If an email client doesn't support AMP, it will display the HTML version, ensuring broad compatibility without affecting deliverability due to the AMP content.

Does using AMPhtml in emails affect how ISPs deliver them to different folders? - Basics - Email deliverability - Knowledge base

Many email marketers are curious about the impact of AMPHTML in emails. Specifically, they want to know if using this dynamic content format affects how internet service providers (ISPs) deliver their messages to different folders like the primary inbox or the promotions tab. It's a valid question, as deliverability is paramount for any email campaign's success.

The short answer is that AMPHTML itself does not directly dictate which folder your email lands in. ISPs primarily rely on foundational deliverability factors to make those decisions. Think of AMPHTML as an enhancement to your email content, not a deliverability silver bullet or a red flag.

Understanding ISP deliverability factors

ISPs, such as

Gmail and

Outlook, use sophisticated algorithms to determine email placement. These algorithms analyze numerous signals related to your sending behavior and email content to assess your sender reputation. A strong domain reputation is the most critical factor influencing whether your emails land in the inbox, spam folder, or specific tabs.

Key factors that influence deliverability include your sender history, bounce rates, spam complaint rates, recipient engagement, and proper email authentication protocols like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. These signals are assessed regardless of whether your email contains AMPHTML or standard HTML. If your sender reputation is poor, adding AMPHTML won't magically bypass spam filters or improve folder placement, as outlined in Google's sender guidelines.

The content itself, including subject lines, body text, and links, is also heavily scrutinized. While AMPHTML enables interactive and dynamic elements, it's still subject to content filtering. Overly promotional language or suspicious links can trigger spam filters, irrespective of the AMP component. This is similar to how images in emails or other design choices can impact deliverability. What matters most is the overall quality and trustworthiness of your message.

Best practices for deliverability

Maintain high sender reputation: Focus on consistent sending, low bounce rates, and minimal spam complaints. Clean your lists regularly.
Ensure proper authentication: Implement SPF, DKIM, and DMARC for your sending domains to verify your email's legitimacy.
Provide value: Send relevant and engaging content that recipients want to open and interact with.
Monitor deliverability: Regularly check your email placement and metrics across different ISPs.

AMPHTML and inbox placement

One common misconception is that AMP emails are somehow restricted to a specific tab, like the promotions tab in

Gmail. This is incorrect. AMPHTML emails are designed to render in any tab, whether it's the primary inbox or the promotions tab, provided the recipient's email client supports AMP. The actual folder placement is still determined by the ISP's filtering algorithms, which evaluate the email based on its overall characteristics and the sender's reputation.

AMP for Email provides a subset of AMPHTML components that enable interactive experiences within the email itself, as described by AMP's official documentation. To ensure broad compatibility, AMP emails are sent with a new MIME type, text-x-amphtml, alongside a standard HTML fallback. This means that if a recipient's email client doesn't support AMP, it will simply display the regular HTML version of the email, without any negative impact on deliverability simply due to the presence of AMPHTML code.

While AMPHTML doesn't affect folder placement directly, some senders have observed fluctuations in metrics like open rates when using AMP. This isn't necessarily due to ISPs foldering AMP emails differently, but rather how open rates are measured, as AMP emails can be processed through different proxies. It's crucial to consider that recipients may use various email clients, some of which may or may not render the AMP version, defaulting instead to the HTML fallback. For more on this, you can check our guide on how interactive forms or AMP impact deliverability.

Traditional HTML email

Content: Static display, links lead to external pages for interaction.
Rendering: Generally consistent across most email clients, though minor variations exist.
Deliverability impact: Determined by sender reputation, authentication, and content quality. No special content-type considerations.

AMPHTML email

Content: Dynamic and interactive elements within the email (forms, carousels).
Rendering: Requires text-x-amphtml MIME type and email client support. Falls back to HTML for unsupported clients.
Deliverability impact: Still primarily relies on core deliverability factors. Requires prior sender registration/approval with supporting ISPs.

Sender trust and AMP adoption

To send AMPHTML emails, you typically need to register with supporting mailbox providers. This registration process involves demonstrating that you are a legitimate sender and adhere to their guidelines. For instance,

Mail.ru

and Yahoo Mail, alongside Gmail, support AMP emails. This approval process is based on your sending reputation, not the AMP content itself, and it is a prerequisite to having your AMP emails rendered dynamically.

If you violate the trust established through this registration process, for example, by sending spam or engaging in deceptive practices, your emails will still be routed to the spam folder or blocked entirely, regardless of whether they contain AMPHTML. The presence of AMPHTML doesn't grant special immunity from spam filters or email blacklists (or blocklists).

In some cases, ISPs might temporarily limit the delivery of emails containing new or experimental features, including AMP, to observe how recipients engage with them. This isn't a punitive action but rather a part of their testing and optimization processes. If you notice a temporary dip in engagement metrics with AMP emails, it's worth considering this possibility and maintaining consistent sending practices. You can learn more about concerns regarding AMP for email in our dedicated article What are the main concerns about AMP for email?.

Example of an AMPHTML email structure with MIME typeshtml

MIME-Version: 1.0
From: sender@example.com
To: recipient@example.com
Subject: Your interactive AMP email!
Content-Type: multipart/alternative;
  boundary="--_BOUNDARY_"

--_BOUNDARY_
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8"

View this email in a client that supports AMP for a better experience.

--_BOUNDARY_
Content-Type: text/x-amphtml; charset="UTF-8"

<!doctype html>
<html 	4C 
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <script async src="https://cdn.ampproject.org/v0.js"></script>
  <style amp4email-boilerplate>body{visibility:hidden}</style>
  <style amp-custom>
    /* Your custom CSS for AMP goes here */
  </style>
</head>
<body>
  <p>Hello, AMP world!</p>
  <amp-carousel width="300" height="200" layout="responsive" type="slides">
    <img src="image1.jpg" width="300" height="200" alt="Image 1">
    <img src="image2.jpg" width="300" height="200" alt="Image 2">
  </amp-carousel>
</body>
</html>

--_BOUNDARY_
Content-Type: text/html; charset="UTF-8"

<!doctype html>
<html>
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
</head>
<body>
  <p>Hello, HTML world! (Fallback content)</p>
</body>
</html>

--_BOUNDARY_--

Conclusion

Using AMPHTML in emails does not inherently affect how ISPs deliver them to different folders. The primary drivers for inbox placement remain consistent: your sender reputation, email authentication, and overall content quality. AMPHTML is an advanced content format that provides dynamic experiences, but it operates within the existing framework of email deliverability rules. Focus on maintaining excellent sender practices, and your AMP emails will benefit from that strong foundation.

Views from the trenches

Best practices

Always include a robust HTML fallback for your AMP emails to ensure content is viewable by all recipients, regardless of their client's AMP support.

Prioritize building a strong sender reputation through consistent sending practices, low complaint rates, and positive engagement metrics.

Register with ISPs that support AMP for email to ensure your dynamic content renders correctly and to demonstrate your legitimacy.

Test your AMP emails across various clients and environments to verify rendering and functionality before large-scale sends.

Common pitfalls

Assuming AMPHTML grants special deliverability benefits that override fundamental sender reputation issues or bypass spam filters.

Failing to register your sending domain with ISPs for AMP, leading to AMP emails not rendering dynamically or being seen as suspicious.

Neglecting the HTML fallback, which can result in a poor experience for recipients using email clients that do not support AMP.

Over-reliance on AMP without considering the overall user experience and relevance of the interactive content to your audience.

Expert tips

Monitor your engagement metrics closely when deploying AMP emails; sometimes, changes in open rate measurement can occur due to AMP's different rendering paths.

AMP for email is an advanced feature, and proper implementation is key. Any misconfigurations can affect rendering but not necessarily folder placement directly.

Focus on the 'why' behind using AMPHTML. Is it truly enhancing the user experience and providing value? If not, the added complexity might not be worth it.

Remember that transactional emails can also leverage AMP. Google Docs notifications are a perfect example of AMP used in a non-promotional context.

Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks says they don't know if AMPHTML impacts which folder an email is delivered to, but they believed AMP only works in the promotions tab in Gmail, making it logical for it to be delivered there.

2023-02-21 - Email Geeks

Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks says that the belief AMP only works in the promotions tab is false, and it might be confused with Gmail annotations or schema. They clarified that AMP renders in any tab.

2023-02-21 - Email Geeks