How relevant is sender score to email deliverability?

Summary

The collective responses indicate that sender score, while debated in its absolute importance, generally serves as a valuable indicator of IP and sender reputation, significantly impacting email deliverability. A good sender score (often cited as 90 or 95+) is associated with better inbox placement, whereas a consistently low score suggests deliverability issues. However, it's crucial to understand that sender score is one of many factors considered by ISPs. Its relevance can vary based on the recipients and spam traps/sensors used. Experts recommend proactively monitoring your sender score and maintaining best practices such as email authentication, low complaint rates, and clean mailing lists to ensure a healthy sending reputation and improve overall deliverability. It is also an indicator of trust with low scores leading to emails being filtered as spam. A Sender Score in the 70s, 80s, or 90s may signal deliverability problems. While flawed, Sender Score provides a relative ranking compared to other IPs.

Key findings

  • IP Reputation: Sender score serves as a valuable indicator of IP and sender reputation.
  • Deliverability Impact: Sender score significantly impacts email deliverability.
  • Good Score Threshold: A good sender score is often cited as 90 or 95+.
  • Low Score Indicator: A consistently low score suggests deliverability issues.
  • Multiple Factors: Sender score is one of many factors considered by ISPs.
  • Proactive Monitoring: Proactively monitor your sender score.
  • Email Authentication: Email authentication is a best practice for maintaining a healthy sending reputation.
  • Spam Traps & Complaints: Complaint rates and spam traps can affect sender score.
  • Low Score Signals: A Sender Score in the 70s, 80s, or 90s may signal deliverability problems.
  • Relative Ranking: While flawed, Sender Score provides a relative ranking compared to other IPs.

Key considerations

  • Recipient & Traps: Relevance can vary based on the recipients and spam traps/sensors used.
  • Overall Strategy: Sender score should be part of an overall email deliverability strategy.
  • Clean Lists: Maintaining clean mailing lists helps improve deliverability.
  • Reputation Building: Focus on building a positive sender reputation for long-term success.
  • Relative Performance: Useful for understanding relative performance.

What email marketers say
12Marketer opinions

The relevance of sender score to email deliverability is multifaceted. While opinions vary on its absolute importance, it's generally agreed that sender score acts as an indicator of IP reputation. A high sender score (typically 90 or 95+) is often associated with better deliverability, whereas a consistently low score can signal deliverability problems. However, sender score is just one of many factors ISPs consider, and its relevance can depend on the recipient base and the specific traps/sensors used. Proactive monitoring of sender score, coupled with best practices like email authentication, low complaint rates, and list hygiene, are recommended to maintain a healthy sending reputation.

Key opinions

  • Indicator: Sender score provides an indication of overall IP reputation.
  • Threshold: A score consistently below 90 may indicate deliverability issues.
  • Multiple Factors: Sender score is one of many factors ISPs use to determine deliverability.
  • Proactive Monitoring: Monitoring sender score helps identify and address deliverability issues.
  • Impact of Low Score: Consistently low sender scores can lead to emails being filtered as spam or blocked.
  • Correlation: A higher sender score generally correlates with better deliverability.
  • Indicator of Trust: Sender score is an indicator of trust, playing a vital role in reaching recipients.
  • Complaint Rates: Complaint rates and spam traps affect sender score.

Key considerations

  • Recipient Intersection: Relevance depends on the intersection of recipients and spam traps/sensors.
  • Best Practices: Maintaining a good sender score involves email authentication, low complaint rates, and list hygiene.
  • General Guide: Sender score should be used as a general guide alongside focusing on engagement and list hygiene.
  • Authentication: Email authentication is vital for maintain sender score.
Marketer view

Email marketer from Mailjet explains that maintaining a good sender score involves practices like authenticating email, keeping complaint rates low, and ensuring clean mailing lists to improve email deliverability.

August 2023 - Mailjet
Marketer view

Email marketer from Reddit explains that a consistently low sender score can lead to emails being filtered into spam folders or blocked entirely by ISPs, severely impacting deliverability.

March 2024 - Reddit
Marketer view

Email marketer from Email Marketing Forum shares that sender score should be used as a general guide, but focusing on email authentication, engagement, and list hygiene is more important.

December 2023 - Email Marketing Forum
Marketer view

Email marketer from Litmus explains that it is important to check your sender reputation regularly to identify and fix any deliverability issues.

March 2025 - Litmus
Marketer view

Email marketer from Sendinblue suggests monitoring sender score to proactively identify and address potential deliverability issues before they negatively impact email campaigns.

August 2023 - Sendinblue
Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks explains SenderScore provides a good indicator of overall IP reputation and most chances are that if an IP is below 90 consistently for more than a week, it has serious deliverability problems.

July 2021 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from Neil Patel explains that sender score is crucial for email deliverability because it represents your sender reputation. A good score increases the likelihood of your emails reaching the inbox.

February 2022 - Neil Patel
Marketer view

Email marketer from MailerCheck shares that complaint rates and spam traps affect sender score.

July 2022 - MailerCheck
Marketer view

Email marketer from ZeroBounce shares that sender score is an indicator of trust and plays a vital role in determining whether or not your emails reach the intended recipients.

January 2022 - ZeroBounce
Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks shares that sender score may not be relevant at all depending on the intersection of the recipients and the traps/sensors that feed it, but says as a rule of thumb, 95+ is good.

August 2023 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from EmailToolTester responds that sender score is one of the many factors ISPs consider when determining whether to deliver your emails to the inbox or send them to the spam folder.

February 2022 - EmailToolTester
Marketer view

Email marketer from GlockApps responds that while not the only factor, sender score provides insights into your sending reputation, and a higher score generally correlates with better deliverability.

February 2022 - GlockApps

What the experts say
2Expert opinions

Experts from Word to the Wise suggest that Sender Score, although not a perfect metric, offers a valuable relative ranking compared to other IPs. A perfect score doesn't assure inbox placement, while a low score indicates underperformance relative to other senders. Furthermore, a Sender Score in the 70s, 80s, or 90s can signify existing deliverability problems, potentially causing loss of potential customers due to unnoticed reputation issues. Thus, Sender Score is a useful tool for understanding your relative performance and identifying possible hidden deliverability concerns.

Key opinions

  • Relative Ranking: Sender Score offers a relative ranking of your IP compared to others.
  • No Guarantee: A perfect Sender Score doesn't guarantee inbox placement.
  • Underperformance: A low Sender Score indicates you're doing worse than other senders.
  • Deliverability Problems: Sender Scores in the 70s, 80s, or 90s may signal hidden deliverability issues.
  • Customer Loss: Reputation issues related to Sender Score can lead to loss of potential customers.

Key considerations

  • Relative Performance: Use Sender Score to understand your relative email sending performance.
  • Hidden Problems: Be aware that Sender Score may reveal deliverability problems you're not aware of.
  • Reputation Impact: Recognize that Sender Score impacts your overall email sending reputation and can affect business outcomes.
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise explains that Sender Score, while flawed, provides a relative ranking compared to other IPs. A perfect Sender Score (100) doesn't guarantee inbox placement, and a low score means you're doing worse than other senders. It's useful for understanding relative performance.

January 2024 - Word to the Wise
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise shares that if you're getting a Sender Score in the 70s, 80s or 90s, you might be having deliverability problems you don't even know about. You could be missing out on potential customers because of reputation issues.

August 2024 - Word to the Wise

What the documentation says
4Technical articles

Documentation from Validity, Google Postmaster Tools, Microsoft, and Spamhaus indicates that sender reputation, which sender score measures, is crucial for email deliverability. Sender score is calculated based on factors like complaint rates and spam trap hits, influencing how mailbox providers handle your emails. A strong sender reputation is essential for ensuring messages reach recipients' inboxes, and improving sender reputation is key for better deliverability.

Key findings

  • Sender Reputation: Sender score is a measure of sender reputation.
  • Calculated Factors: It's calculated based on factors including complaint rates and spam trap hits.
  • Mailbox Provider Influence: It influences how mailbox providers treat your emails.
  • Key to Deliverability: Strong sender reputation is key to ensuring high email deliverability.

Key considerations

  • Monitor Score Factors: Monitor complaint rates and spam trap hits, as they affect sender score.
  • Improve Reputation: Focus on improving sender reputation to ensure messages reach inboxes.
  • Provider Treatment: Be aware that mailbox providers use sender reputation to evaluate your emails.
Technical article

Documentation from Google Postmaster Tools says that sender reputation is an important factor, and Google uses it to evaluate the quality of incoming email, which affects deliverability.

May 2024 - Google Postmaster Tools
Technical article

Documentation from Microsoft shares that sender reputation is key to ensuring your messages reach recipients' inboxes and provide guidance on improving your sender reputation.

February 2024 - Microsoft
Technical article

Documentation from Spamhaus responds that a strong sender reputation is key to ensuring high email deliverability.

October 2021 - Spamhaus
Technical article

Documentation from Validity shares that sender score is a measure of your sending reputation, calculated based on various factors including complaint rates and spam trap hits, and it influences how mailbox providers treat your emails.

May 2023 - Validity


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