Email remains a powerful marketing tool, boasting impressive open rates and a strong return on investment (averaging 37:1 across industries). This trend is expected to continue, with email marketing revenue projected to reach a staggering $37.5 billion by 2032.
Marketers are continuously studying the key industry benchmarks, exploring strategies like personalisation and automation, and gathering insights on the best times to send emails to capture audience attention.
Top Email Marketing Statistics
- Email marketing industry averages show 35.63% open rate, 2.62% click-through rate, 0.22% unsubscribe rate, and 0.91% combined bounce rate. (Mailchimp)
- Government emails have the highest average open rates (40.56%) and click-through rates (4.58%). (Mailchimp)
- Daily Deals/E-Coupons and Media & Publishing Industries have the highest customer retention with only 0.09% average unsubscribe rate. (Mailchimp)
- 94% of survey respondents said that they use email daily, with some indicating they might skip it on vacation. (zerobounce)
- 39% check their email 3-5 times a day, while almost half of the respondents said that they check it more than 10 times a day. (zerobounce)
- Email marketing revenue is expected to jump by 286.60% from $9.7 billion in 2024 to $37.5 billion in 2032. (Statista)
- The Retail, E-commerce, and Consumer Goods sector has the highest ROI among the listed industries with an average return of $45 for every $1 spent. (Litmus)
- Personalising your email subject line can lead to a 26% increase in open rates. (OptinMonster)
- Mid-week, specifically Tuesdays and Wednesdays, are the most suitable days in sending out marketing emails with 35.3% and 19.6% respondents’ votes respectively. (Statista)
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Email Usage Statistics
Despite the rise of mobile messaging apps, email remains a useful tool in our online world. With over 4.3 billion global users in 2023 and a projected increase to 4.73 billion by 2026, email use shows continuous growth.
Daily email activity is still increasing, with a significant volume of emails being sent and received worldwide.
- The number of email users worldwide has grown from 3.718 billion in 2017 to 4.258 billion in 2022, a 14.5% increase. (Statista)
- Based on a survey conducted in 2022, the number of active email users worldwide is forecast to be 4.48 billion in 2024 and is set to grow over 4.73 billion in 2026. (Statista)
- The number of emails sent and received daily worldwide is expected to hit 361.6 billion by the end of this year, a jump of 35% since 2017. By 2026, that number is expected to climb to 392.5 billion, growing another 9%. (Statista)
- The United States sends the most emails daily as of April 2024, with nearly 10 billion. Germany and Ireland closely follow with 8.5 billion and 8.4 billion emails daily, respectively. A tight cluster of European nations, including the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and France, each send around 8.3 billion emails per day. (Statista)
- As of March 2024, Apple’s Mail Privacy Protection (MPP) is the most used email client globally, accounting for 55% of email opens. Gmail came in second with 30.57%, and Outlook took third place with 4.06%. (Statista)
- Email remains a key communication tool with 94% of people accessing their email daily. (zerobounce)
- 39% of people check their email 3-5 times a day, while a significant portion (49%) check it more frequently, exceeding 10 times a day. (zerobounce)
- More people (58%) are checking their email first thing in the morning than tapping on their social media accounts (14%). (OptinMonster)
Email Benchmarks and Metrics by Industry
The latest Email Marketing Industry research shows that the average open rate has reached 35.63%, a click rate of 2.62%, and a low unsubscribe rate of 0.22%. On the other hand, a 0.21% hard bounce rate translates to a significant number of undelivered emails, highlighting the need for accurate email lists. (Mailchimp)
Email Marketing Benchmarks, Top Industries
| Industry | Open Rate | Click Rate | Unsubscribe Rate | Hard Bounce Rate | Soft Bounce Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agriculture and food services | 38.02% | 2.90% | 0.23% | 0.19% | 0.64% |
| Beauty and personal care | 31.90% | 1.30% | 0.24% | 0.14% | 0.69% |
| Business and finance | 31.35% | 2.78% | 0.15% | 0.26% | 0.70% |
| Computers and electronics | 26.98% | 2.19% | 0.21% | 0.34% | 1.06% |
| Consulting | 29.61% | 2.92% | 0.22% | 0.38% | 1.13% |
| Daily deals/e-coupons | 27.59% | 2.10% | 0.09% | 0.06% | 0.28% |
| Ecommerce | 29.81% | 1.73% | 0.19% | 0.12% | 0.45% |
| Education and training | 35.64% | 3.02% | 0.18% | 0.23% | 0.80% |
| Government | 40.56% | 4.58% | 0.12% | 0.23% | 0.72% |
| Health and fitness | 37.07% | 1.87% | 0.33% | 0.18% | 0.59% |
| Media and publishing | 34.23% | 4.37% | 0.09% | 0.10% | 0.35% |
| Non-profit | 40.04% | 3.27% | 0.18% | 0.21% | 0.69% |
| Politics | 36.10% | 2.61% | 0.21% | 0.20% | 0.60% |
| Retail | 35.05% | 2.08% | 0.21% | 0.14% | 0.48% |
| Software and web app | 28.12% | 2.40% | 0.27% | 0.49% | 1.37% |
| Sports | 41.84% | 2.88% | 0.25% | 0.15% | 0.52% |
| Travel and transportation | 33.25% | 2.56% | 0.24% | 0.24% | 0.78% |
- Here are the industries who had the highest average Open Rate: Religion with 43.97%, Arts and Artists 42.17%, Sports 41.84%, Government 40.56%, and Hobbies 40.55%. (Mailchimp)
- Government emails land the highest click-through rates at 4.58%. Media and publishing (4.37%) and hobbies (4.12%) follow closely, indicating strong user engagement with these email topics. (Mailchimp)
- Daily Deals/E-Coupons and Media & Publishing boast the lowest unsubscribe rates at just 0.09%, a key metric for email marketers aiming to retain subscribers. Government entities (0.12%) also see a very low unsubscribe rate, suggesting their content resonates well with their audiences. (Mailchimp)
- Daily Deals/E-Coupons also landed on top of the list with the lowest combined bounce rate (0.34%) amongst the analysed industries. This suggests a clean email lists and high deliverability rates. Religion (0.41%) and Media & Publishing (0.45%) follow closely, demonstrating effective email list management practices. (Mailchimp)
- Beyond open rates, a global survey of marketers conducted between November to December 2023 shows conversion rate (26.5%) and click-through rate (24%) as the top metrics used to gauge email marketing campaign success. (Statista)
Email Marketing Revenue and ROI
Email marketing delivers a strong ROI (return on investment), averaging across industries at a healthy 37:1 ROI. This is further supported by the growing email marketing revenue, which is expected to reach $37.5 billion USD by 2032.
- The global email marketing industry is experiencing significant growth, with revenue projected to climb from $7 billion in 2022 to a staggering $37.5 billion by 2032. This translates to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) exceeding 18.8%. (Statista)
- A December 2023 survey revealed positive ROI improvements for email marketing campaigns. Over half (52.8%) of marketers reported their ROI doubled compared to 2022. (Statista)
- 22.1% of marketers saw their ROI grow by at least three times, 16.4% saw a threefold increase, and 5.7% saw a fourfold increase. While 12.9% reported no improvement, 3.6% of the respondents even experienced an ROI exceeding four times their 2022 results. (Statista)
- The Retail, E-commerce, and Consumer Goods sector boasts the highest ROI among the listed industries at 45:1. This translates to an average return of $45 for every $1 spent. Marketing/PR Agencies (42:1) and Software/Technology companies (36:1) follow closely. (Litmus)
- Brands that often include A/B testing as a part of their email program increase their email ROI by 82% (42:1), compared to an ROI of 23:1 for those who never A/B test their emails. (Litmus)
- Including dynamic email content always generate an ROI of 42:1, compared to an ROI of 21:1 for those who never or rarely employ dynamic content. That’s 100% increase. (Litmus)
- Utilising animated GIFs help increase email ROI by 105%, seeing an ROI of 37:1 compared to an ROI of 18:1 for those who never include animated GIFs. (Litmus)
- Another strategy is putting live content into action to help increase email ROI by 107%. This has reported an ROI of 56:1, compared to 27:1 for those who never do. (Litmus)
- Leveraging external email analytics tools can result in a 22% ROI increase. Brands that use 3rd party analytics tools for their email program often or always report an ROI of 45:1, compared to an ROI of 37:1 for those who don’t. (Litmus)
- Exercising an extensive checklist for pre-send testing can improve email ROI by 42%. This practice has shown an ROI of 40:1, compared to 28:1 for those who never do. (Litmus)
Mobile Email Marketing
Internet access is increasingly mobile-driven. While computer usage for internet access has dipped by 5.8% in the past year, a shift towards mobile devices is evident. This trend emphasizes the growing importance of mobile-friendly web design and email marketing strategies. (GWI, via DataReportal)
- 85% of users access their email inboxes on mobile devices, highlighting the importance of mobile-optimized email design. (Adobe, via 99 Firms)
- Most email opens in 2024 are happening on mobile devices, accounting for around 50%-60% worldwide according to multiple sources. (Constant Contact | eMarketer, via HubSpot)
- A comprehensive survey conducted during the first half of 2023 shows that 61% of people use their email for work, and that they use their mobile phone more than half of the time too (61%). (zerobounce)
General Email Marketing Statistics & Best Practices
Email marketing remains a successful channel for reaching audiences, with a significant majority of marketers reporting open rates between 20% and 50%, and some innovative strategies are further boosting its return on investment.
- A global survey conducted in 2023 revealed positive news for email marketing. 57.8% of marketers reported email open rates between 20% and 50%. While 30% saw open rates between 10% and 20%. This data indicates that email marketing remains a successful channel for reaching audiences. (Statista)
- In 2023, Newsletters were the most popular type of email campaign, with 16.8% of professionals utilising them to reach existing and potential customers. Promotional emails come in a close second, chosen by 15.3% of respondents for their marketing efforts. (Statista)
- Product Awareness and Promotions are the top priorities for email marketing campaigns in the year ahead, with 16% of marketers worldwide choosing them. Retention and Newsletters follow closely, with 14.6% respondents. (Statista)
- Around 6 in 10 (59%) consumers say marketing emails influence their purchases, while 80% of businesses believe email marketing helps retain customers. (Sales Cycle, via OptinMonster)
Email Automation
- A February 2024 survey revealed that email marketing automation tops the list of areas in which marketers used automation the most. Nearly 58% of respondents reported automating their email marketing efforts. Social media automation followed at 49%, and content management automation came in third at 33%. (Statista)
- In 2023, automated emails generated 41% of all e-commerce orders while accounting for only 2% of emails sent. (Omnisend)
- Marketing automation revenue is expected to hit $8.23 billion in 2024 and is projected to more than double by 2032, surpassing $21 billion. (Statista)
Email Personalisation
- Tailoring your email marketing efforts to specific audience segments can generate a 760% increase in email revenue. (Campaign Monitor, via Luisa Zhou)
- 64.7% of marketing professionals worldwide leverage subject line personalisation in over half their email marketing campaigns in 2023. (Statista)
- Emails with personalised subject lines are 26% more likely to be opened, showing the importance of making your emails feel relevant and targeted to your audience. (Campaign Monitor, via Luisa Zhou | OptinMonster)
Email Timing
- In a recent survey of marketers worldwide, 35.3% shared that Tuesdays were the most preferred week day for sending out marketing emails. Wednesdays came second, with almost 20% of respondents picking them as a suitable day for email campaigning. (Statista)
- Peak engagement times for marketing emails remain consistent from 2022 to the most recent data in 2023. Most respondents reported the best results between 9 AM – 12 PM (31%) and 12 PM – 3 PM (26%). (HubSpot)
- Nearly half (47.9%) of B2B marketers surveyed see peak engagement between 9 AM and 12 PM. (HubSpot)
- The same data indicates that 30.9% of B2C marketers see the highest engagement between 9 AM and 12 PM. (HubSpot)
What’s Next for Email Marketing?
With a consistent rise in global email users projected to reach 4.73 billion by 2026 and upward trend in the revenue, email marketing offers access to a constantly growing audience.
Despite a mobile-driven shift, email marketing shows a strong ROI and projected revenue growth in the years to come. Personalisation, automation, mobile optimisation, and strategic timing help marketers reach target audiences and achieve success.