Why does Gmail block emails with unicode characters or emojis in the from address?
Summary
What email marketers say10Marketer opinions
Email marketer from Mailjet warns that while emojis can be effective in subject lines and email body, using them in the 'From' address can negatively impact deliverability and trigger spam filters.
Email marketer from Litmus explains that unconventional characters, including certain unicode characters and emojis, can trigger spam filters and negatively impact email deliverability, particularly if they are not properly encoded or supported by receiving email clients.
Email marketer from Campaign Monitor advises against using special characters or symbols in the 'From' name as it can reduce email deliverability and negatively impact the credibility of the sender.
Email marketer from an Email Marketing Forum explains that even if a character looks fine on the sending side, different systems might interpret the encoding differently, leading to display errors or triggering spam filters in Gmail.
Email marketer from Reddit suggests that Gmail might block emails with unicode characters in the 'From' address due to potential phishing and spoofing concerns. Bad actors could use these characters to mimic legitimate senders.
Email marketer from GlockApps shares that using unusual characters or symbols in the sender's name can increase spam scores, leading to emails being blocked or sent to the spam folder by email providers like Gmail.
Email marketer from Sender.net advises against using emojis in the 'From' name as it might be considered unprofessional, harm deliverability, and cause rendering issues with different email service providers.
Email marketer from Email Geeks shares that the client had a :white_check_mark: (U+2705 : WHITE HEAVY CHECK MARK) in the from address, which caused the Gmail error.
Email marketer from HubSpot shares that using non-standard characters or symbols in the sender's information can negatively impact sender reputation and email deliverability, as it may be perceived as spammy or untrustworthy.
Email marketer from Email on Acid warns that email clients interpret encoding differently and issues can occur in email subject lines and 'From' names, with the use of unicode characters.
What the experts say6Expert opinions
Expert from Word to the Wise explains that while emojis can increase engagement in subject lines and body copy, including them in the From: field can create display issues across different email clients and may trigger spam filters due to encoding variations, ultimately impacting deliverability.
Expert from Email Geeks points to a resource ([https://www.spamresource.com/2023/01/pro-tip-no-emojis-in-friendly-from.html](https://www.spamresource.com/2023/01/pro-tip-no-emojis-in-friendly-from.html)) advising against using emojis in the friendly from address and notes that Google updated the error message for this issue.
Expert from Spam Resource advises against using emojis in the friendly from address of emails because some mail systems will not display them, some will display them as a "?" and Google will reject the message.
Expert from Email Geeks suggests the unicode character error in Gmail might be due to bad encoding on the email or a restricted Emoji in the friendly from.
Expert from Email Geeks confirms that Google disallows some images in the from field, as they may want to use them themselves.
Expert from Email Geeks explains that there are several specific emojis that Gmail doesn't allow, especially those that try to trick users into thinking it's a verification mark.
What the documentation says4Technical articles
Documentation from Unicode Consortium explains that while Unicode supports a vast range of characters, the display and interpretation of these characters can vary across different systems and applications, leading to potential compatibility issues in email headers.
Documentation from RFC 5322 (Internet Message Format) details the specifications for email headers and character encoding, highlighting restrictions on certain characters to ensure compatibility and prevent misinterpretation by email systems.
Documentation from Google Support explains that messages might be blocked if they contain disallowed header content, potentially including unicode characters, and directs users to their message and header content guidelines.
Documentation from DKIM standard suggests that while DKIM primarily focuses on authenticating the sender and message content, using unconventional characters in the 'From' address might interfere with the authentication process or raise suspicion from email providers.