How to Calculate Email Delivery Rate

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Email Delivery Rate Calculator

Analyze your email marketing campaign success in seconds.

Calculation Results:

What is Email Delivery Rate?

The email delivery rate is a critical performance indicator in email marketing that measures the percentage of emails successfully accepted by the recipients' receiving servers. Unlike "deliverability" (which focuses on whether an email lands in the inbox or the spam folder), the delivery rate simply confirms that the email didn't "bounce."

How to Calculate Email Delivery Rate

The mathematical formula for calculating your delivery rate is straightforward:

Delivery Rate = [(Total Emails Sent – Bounced Emails) / Total Emails Sent] × 100

Example Calculation

Suppose you launch a campaign to 5,000 subscribers. After 24 hours, your ESP (Email Service Provider) reports that 100 emails bounced (either hard or soft bounces). To find your rate:

  1. Subtract Bounces: 5,000 – 100 = 4,900 delivered emails.
  2. Divide: 4,900 / 5,000 = 0.98.
  3. Percentage: 0.98 × 100 = 98% Delivery Rate.

Delivery Rate vs. Deliverability: The Difference

Many marketers confuse these two terms, but they represent different stages of the email journey:

  • Delivery Rate: Did the server accept the message? (Yes/No). This ignores where the message was placed.
  • Deliverability Rate (Inbox Placement): Did the message reach the Inbox or was it diverted to the Spam/Junk folder?

What is a Good Email Delivery Rate?

In the modern email landscape, a 95% or higher delivery rate is considered the industry standard. If your rate drops below 95%, it usually indicates issues with your list hygiene, such as outdated addresses, or problems with your sender reputation.

Tips to Improve Your Rate

  • Clean Your List Regularly: Remove inactive subscribers and addresses that have hard-bounced.
  • Use Double Opt-In: Ensure that users confirm their email address before being added to your list.
  • Monitor Soft Bounces: Soft bounces (temporary issues like a full inbox) can turn into hard bounces if they persist.
  • Authenticate Your Domain: Implement SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records to prove you are a legitimate sender.
function calculateEmailMetrics() { var sent = parseFloat(document.getElementById('totalSent').value); var bounces = parseFloat(document.getElementById('bouncedEmails').value); var resultArea = document.getElementById('resultArea'); var deliveryOutput = document.getElementById('deliveryOutput'); var deliveredCountOutput = document.getElementById('deliveredCountOutput'); var benchmarkOutput = document.getElementById('benchmarkOutput'); if (isNaN(sent) || sent <= 0) { alert("Please enter a valid number for total emails sent."); return; } if (isNaN(bounces) || bounces sent) { alert("Bounced emails cannot exceed the total number of emails sent."); return; } var delivered = sent – bounces; var rate = (delivered / sent) * 100; resultArea.style.display = 'block'; deliveryOutput.innerHTML = "Delivery Rate: " + rate.toFixed(2) + "%"; deliveredCountOutput.innerHTML = "Successfully delivered " + delivered.toLocaleString() + " out of " + sent.toLocaleString() + " emails."; var benchmarkText = ""; if (rate >= 98) { benchmarkText = "Excellent! Your delivery rate is well above the industry standard."; benchmarkOutput.style.color = "#28a745"; } else if (rate >= 95) { benchmarkText = "Good. Your delivery rate is healthy and meets industry standards."; benchmarkOutput.style.color = "#0056b3"; } else if (rate >= 90) { benchmarkText = "Warning: Your delivery rate is slightly low. Consider cleaning your email list."; benchmarkOutput.style.color = "#856404"; } else { benchmarkText = "Critical: Your delivery rate is poor. This may significantly damage your sender reputation."; benchmarkOutput.style.color = "#721c24"; } benchmarkOutput.innerHTML = "Status: " + benchmarkText; }

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