Will using non-breaking spaces and soft hyphens in email templates affect inbox placement?
Summary
What email marketers say9Marketer opinions
Email marketer from HubSpot responds that bloated HTML code in emails will impact deliverability, and to keep your HTML code clean and minimal to reduce the chances of emails being marked as spam.
Email marketer from Mailjet Blog explains that while non-breaking spaces ( ) were previously used for layout purposes, modern CSS should be used instead. Overuse of can increase email size and potentially affect deliverability.
Email marketer from Reddit responds that hidden code (often using zero-width spaces or similar techniques) used excessively for preheader text or other purposes, can sometimes be flagged as suspicious by spam filters, especially if it's perceived as an attempt to manipulate content.
Email marketer from EmailGeek forum user shares that in their experience, the _judicious_ use of either or ­ is unlikely to dramatically impact deliverability, though excessive usage could increase the spam score due to increased email size and the potential for it to be flagged as an attempt to hide content.
Email marketer from Email on Acid Blog shares that excessive or unnecessary HTML code, including unusual character entities, can trigger spam filters. Clean, semantic code is always preferable.
Email marketer from Stack Overflow suggests that using too many non-breaking spaces ( ) can increase the size of the email, which might affect deliverability negatively. The user advises using CSS for spacing instead.
Email marketer from Gmass shares that non-breaking spaces are likely not going to cause emails to go to spam filters. However, it is more likely that images with no alt text and URL shorteners will affect inbox placement.
Email marketer from Sendinblue shares multiple factors that will affect email deliverability. One of these is using valid HTML, so make sure that the email is not bloated with unnecessary code.
Email marketer from ActiveCampaign explains the importance of using valid HTML in order to improve email deliverability and to avoid spam filters. Therefore, it is best practice to avoid unnecessary and bloated HTML.
What the experts say4Expert opinions
Expert from Email Geeks explains that the code is regular padding to shove the non “preheader” content out of the way and mailbox providers won’t care.
Expert from Email Geeks shares that it's pre-header hiding code and to test it in Gmail web and Apple Mail as sometimes some versions of the code will show up. Potentially as a row of little boxes in the preheader area, not leaking into the body.
Expert from Word to the Wise shares that improper or unnecessary HTML coding can lead to rendering issues and potentially trigger spam filters. While not directly addressing non-breaking spaces and soft hyphens, the site suggests keeping email code clean and efficient.
Expert from SpamResource explains that 'character stuffing,' which involves adding excessive or meaningless characters (including non-breaking spaces) to manipulate content or bypass filters, negatively impacts deliverability and sender reputation.
What the documentation says4Technical articles
Documentation from Litmus explains that using clean, well-structured HTML code in your email templates is crucial for consistent rendering across different email clients. Avoid unnecessary code and focus on semantic HTML.
Documentation from Microsoft addresses junk email and spam filters, and although it doesn't directly mention or ­ it does provide information on factors that contribute to emails landing in the junk folder. One factor is the sender's reputation. Another factor is the content of the email.
Documentation from MDN Web Docs explains that the soft hyphen (­) element is a suggestion to the browser where to break a word in order to improve layout. Whether or not the hyphen is visible depends on the browser's layout algorithm. While not directly related to deliverability, unexpected rendering could impact user experience.
Documentation from Campaign Monitor responds that bad or excessive code can affect deliverability. While they do not specifically mention or soft hyphens, they do suggest keeping your code clean and using modern standards.