What are the consequences of not warming up an IP address correctly?

Summary

Failing to properly warm up an IP address before sending email campaigns results in severe deliverability issues and a damaged sender reputation. Email providers view a sudden surge in email volume from a new IP address as suspicious, often flagging it as spam. This can lead to emails being filtered into the spam folder, blocked entirely, or the IP address being added to blocklists. A gradual warm-up is crucial to establish trust with ISPs and ensure emails reach the intended recipients. Real-world examples highlight instances where rapid warm-ups led to months of spam classification, underscoring the importance of following best practices.

Key findings

  • Deliverability Impact: Poor IP warming leads to emails landing in spam folders or being blocked by ISPs.
  • Damaged Sender Reputation: Inadequate warm-up damages sender reputation, impacting future deliverability.
  • ISP Suspicion: ISPs view sudden spikes in email volume from new IPs as suspicious activity.
  • Potential Blacklisting: Failure to warm up properly can result in the IP address being added to blocklists.
  • Examples of Failures: Rapid warm-ups can lead to prolonged periods of spam classification.

Key considerations

  • Gradual Increase: Implement a gradual IP warm-up process to build sender reputation over time.
  • Monitor Deliverability: Closely monitor deliverability metrics during and after the warm-up process.
  • Segmentation: Consider segmenting by ISP to tailor the warm-up process to specific providers.
  • Recognize Risks: Be aware of the risks associated with sending from a new IP and take precautions.
  • Establish Legitimacy: Implement legitimate sending practices to avoid being marked as a spammer.

What email marketers say
8Marketer opinions

Failing to warm up an IP address correctly results in significant deliverability issues. Email providers view sudden spikes in email volume from a new IP as suspicious, often flagging the sender as a spammer. This leads to a damaged sender reputation, with emails being filtered to spam folders, blocked entirely, or even causing the IP to be blacklisted by ISPs. Proper IP warming establishes trust with ISPs and ensures emails reach the intended recipients.

Key opinions

  • Deliverability impact: Poor IP warming directly impacts deliverability, with emails ending up in spam or being blocked.
  • Sender reputation damage: Inadequate warm-up damages sender reputation, making it harder to reach inboxes in the future.
  • ISPs suspicion: ISPs flag sudden email volume increases from new IPs as suspicious activity.
  • Real-world examples: Examples exist of rapid warm-ups leading to months of spam classification by major providers.

Key considerations

  • Gradual increase: Implement a gradual IP warm-up process to build sender reputation over time.
  • Monitor deliverability: Closely monitor deliverability metrics during and after the warm-up process.
  • Segment by ISP: Consider segmenting sending by ISP to tailor the warm-up process to specific providers.
  • New IP risks: Recognize the risks associated with sending from a new IP and take precautions.
Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks shares an example of a client who warmed up too fast (1k-2k one day then 100k the next day) and were marked as spam at Yahoo for months.

September 2024 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from StackExchange explains that ISPs use algorithms to detect spammers. A sudden spike in traffic from a new IP looks suspicious, so ISPs will filter the mail as spam until the server builds up a good reputation.

November 2022 - StackExchange
Marketer view

Email marketer from Mailjet Blog explains that not warming up your IP correctly will seriously affect your deliverability. Email providers will consider you a spammer as they can't verify the legitimacy of your sending practices. It will lower your sender reputation and your emails will bounce or end up in the spam folder.

December 2023 - Mailjet Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from HubSpot Blog responds that failing to warm up an IP address can lead to poor deliverability, meaning your emails may end up in the spam folder or be blocked altogether. This can damage your sender reputation and impact your email marketing performance.

February 2025 - HubSpot Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from EmailGeeks Community responds that failing to warm up an IP address leads to immediate deliverability problems. This person has seen ISPs automatically block emails until the IP gains a positive reputation through a gradual warm-up.

April 2024 - EmailGeeks Community
Marketer view

Email marketer from SendGrid Blog shares that without proper IP warming, your emails are more likely to be marked as spam. ISPs will be suspicious of sudden large volumes of emails from a new IP address, hurting sender reputation and deliverability.

July 2024 - SendGrid Blog
Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks explains that to prove the impact of a poor IP warm up, send a full base email to a brand new IP address, collect the stats and present it to the customer, split up across ISPs. Suggesting it won't burn the IP by doing it for a week or two.

August 2022 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from Reddit answers that sending too much email from a new IP all at once will damage your sender reputation. Major email providers immediately distrust the IP and often send all messages to spam folders.

January 2022 - Reddit

What the experts say
2Expert opinions

Experts agree that failing to warm up an IP address correctly can lead to severe deliverability problems. Sending large volumes of email from a new, unwarmed IP triggers suspicion from ISPs and inbox providers. This heightened scrutiny increases the likelihood of being flagged as a spammer, resulting in email placement in the spam folder, message blocking, and potential blacklisting.

Key opinions

  • Risk of being tagged as a spammer: ISPs flag new IPs sending high volumes as potential spammers.
  • Deliverability issues: Lack of warm-up leads to emails being marked as spam or blocked.
  • Potential blacklisting: Poor warm-up practices can result in blacklisting of the IP.
  • ISP Suspicion: Sending too much volume from an IP without warming can result in inbox providers treating your mail with suspicion

Key considerations

  • Implement IP warm-up: Always implement a proper IP warm-up strategy for new IPs.
  • Gradual ramp-up: Increase sending volume gradually to build a positive reputation.
  • Monitor deliverability: Track deliverability metrics and address any issues promptly.
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise shares that sending too much volume without warming an IP can result in inbox providers treating your mail with suspicion. This can lead to placement in the spam folder, or even complete blocking of your messages.

June 2022 - Word to the Wise
Expert view

Expert from Spam Resource explains that if you don't warm up your IP address, you run the risk of being tagged as a spammer. ISPs see a new IP sending a huge volume of email as a red flag, leading to deliverability issues and potential blacklisting.

March 2024 - Spam Resource

What the documentation says
4Technical articles

Documentation from multiple sources indicates that failing to properly warm up an IP address results in significant deliverability issues and damage to sender reputation. Major email providers like Gmail and Outlook.com will filter or block emails from new IPs sending high volumes of mail without a gradual warm-up. This behavior can lead to the IP being listed on blocklists due to perceived spam activity, further hindering deliverability.

Key findings

  • Negative impact on IP reputation: Sudden spikes in email volume from new IPs without warm-up negatively impact IP reputation with Gmail.
  • Deliverability issues with Outlook.com: Inadequate IP warming leads to deliverability problems with Outlook.com; emails may be flagged as spam.
  • Risk of blocklisting: Sending high volumes of unsolicited email from a new IP can cause it to be listed on blocklists.
  • Damage to sender reputation: Not warming up an IP correctly damages sender reputation and deliverability.

Key considerations

  • Gradual volume increase: Gradually increase email volume when sending from a new IP to establish a positive sending reputation.
  • Avoid unsolicited email: Refrain from sending high volumes of unsolicited email from new IPs to prevent blocklisting.
  • Monitor sender reputation: Monitor sender reputation to ensure emails are not being filtered as spam.
  • Establish legitimate practices: Verify and implement legitimate sending practices to avoid being considered a spammer by email providers.
Technical article

Documentation from RFC Editor explains that sending a high volume of unsolicited email from a new IP address can cause it to be listed on various blocklists, due to perceived spam activity. This makes the email server untrusted.

July 2021 - RFC-Editor.org
Technical article

Documentation from Microsoft Docs shares that inadequate IP warming can lead to deliverability issues with Outlook.com. Microsoft's filtering systems may flag your emails as spam if you send a large volume of emails from a new IP address without gradually increasing volume and establishing a positive sending reputation.

May 2021 - Microsoft Docs
Technical article

Documentation from Google Postmaster Tools explains that a sudden spike in email volume from a new IP address, without a proper warm-up, can negatively impact your IP reputation with Gmail. This can result in emails being filtered to spam or blocked.

May 2022 - Google Postmaster Tools
Technical article

Documentation from SparkPost explains that not warming up your IP address correctly can damage your sender reputation and deliverability. Email providers will consider you a spammer as they can't verify the legitimacy of your sending practices. It will lower your sender reputation and your emails will bounce or end up in the spam folder.

September 2022 - SparkPost