Is it bad for email deliverability to send from a non-existent email address?
Summary
What email marketers say11Marketer opinions
Email marketer from ActiveCampaign explains that no-reply email addresses are detrimental to deliverability. These negatively impact engagement by preventing recipients from replying and unsubscribing. Using them increases the odds of being marked as spam, which can lower deliverability rates.
Email marketer from Quora shares that sending from a non-existent address can damage your sender reputation. ISPs may see it as a sign of spam and start filtering your emails. It's best to use a valid address that recipients can reply to.
Email marketer from Sendinblue shares that using a 'no-reply' address might seem efficient, but it can hurt sender reputation. It prevents recipients from communicating or unsubscribing directly, potentially leading to more spam reports and lower engagement rates. They recommend allowing recipients to reply to foster trust.
Email marketer from Campaign Monitor explains that while a 'no-reply' address might seem convenient, it can damage your brand image and deliverability. It creates a one-way communication channel, preventing valuable feedback and making unsubscribing more difficult. This can lead to higher spam complaints and negatively affect your sender reputation.
Email marketer from Reddit explains that using a non-existent 'From:' address is a bad practice. It can lead to hard bounces, which damage your sender reputation. Also, recipients may mark your emails as spam if they can't reply or unsubscribe easily.
Email marketer from HubSpot details that non-existent email addresses are bad for deliverability. Senders that use addresses people cannot reply to, such as no-reply addresses, are more likely to be marked as spam, which negatively impacts engagement and deliverability.
Email marketer from Litmus shares that using a no-reply address is generally a bad idea. It can negatively impact deliverability, sender reputation, and engagement. They recommend using a real email address that recipients can reply to or use for unsubscribing.
Email marketer from Email Geeks considers it a stunningly bad idea that will negatively impact deliverability and reduce credibility, as it shows you are someone who spoofs email addresses (which is something that spammers do, and which also technically violates Federal law). Plus when the ISPs and spam filters check and find that your email address doesn’t really exist they will count it against you.
Email marketer from Mailjet explains that using a 'no-reply' address can negatively impact deliverability. While not directly affecting technical aspects like SPF or DKIM, it can lead to engagement issues. Recipients can't reply, provide feedback, or unsubscribe easily, potentially increasing spam complaints and damaging sender reputation.
Email marketer from Email Geeks says it's a bad idea to send from an address that doesn't exist because you need to see replies for unsubscribes and other communications. They advise against it because not everyone clicks an unsubscribe link.
Email marketer from StackExchange responds that using a 'no-reply' address can hurt your deliverability in the long run. While it might not cause immediate issues, it prevents feedback and makes it harder for recipients to unsubscribe, leading to spam complaints and a negative impact on your sender reputation.
What the experts say3Expert opinions
Expert from Word to the Wise Laura Atkins responds to the common advice for the use of a no-reply address. The expert does not recommend using the no-reply@ address, as they believe the from address should always have a working mailbox associated with it.
Expert from Email Geeks states that sending mail from an email address that doesn’t exist will hurt deliverability in the future and that the 5322.from address SHOULD exist and be able to accept email. They say that both noreply@ and info@ should be working mailboxes.
Expert from SpamResource explains that using a no-reply address is problematic because it prevents proper communication and handling of bounces. They share that bounces are important indicators of invalid addresses, and disabling replies can increase spam complaints.
What the documentation says4Technical articles
Documentation from Google highlights sender best practices, emphasizing the importance of proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC). While not directly addressing non-existent addresses, these tools provide data on spam rates and reputation, which can be negatively impacted if a non-existent 'From:' address leads to bounces and complaints.
Documentation from SparkPost explains that while 'no-reply' addresses are technically valid, they can hurt your sender reputation. ISPs may view them as less trustworthy, and recipients may be more likely to mark emails as spam if they can't easily unsubscribe or contact you.
Documentation from Microsoft details how sender reputation impacts deliverability to Outlook.com and other Microsoft services. While not explicitly prohibiting non-existent addresses, they penalize senders with high bounce rates, spam complaints, and low engagement, all of which can be caused by using a 'From:' address that doesn't accept incoming messages.
Documentation from RFC Editor explains that the 'From:' field in an email header must contain a valid email address. While it doesn't explicitly state the address *must* exist and be monitored, the RFC emphasizes the importance of proper formatting for interoperability. An invalid or non-existent 'From:' address violates this standard and can lead to deliverability issues.