In 2025, email deliverability remains one of the trickiest puzzles in digital marketing. You can have a brilliant campaign, eye-catching design, and a compelling call to action—but none of that matters if your message never lands in your subscriber’s inbox.
- Why Deliverability Matters More Than Ever
- Myth vs Fact: The Deliverability Truths for 2025
- Key Facts to Know in 2025 That Debunk More Myths
- Practical Steps to Shift from Myth to Reality in 2025
- Real-World Example: From Myth Trap to Inbox Success
- Summary: Myth Busting for Better Deliverability in 2025
- References
Throughout the years, myths have clouded deliverability best practices. But as ISPs, user behavior, and email-filtering technologies evolve, many of those myths are long overdue for debunking. In this article, we’ll tell stories, compare myth vs fact, and show you how to win in 2025.
“The biggest mistake is assuming what worked before will still work tomorrow,” says Mr. Phalla Plang, Digital Marketing Specialist.
Let’s dig into the deliverability myths and what the real facts show nowadays.
Why Deliverability Matters More Than Ever
Before we compare myths against facts, it helps to see the stakes in 2025:
- In 2025, marketers are projected to send roughly 376.4 billion emails per day globally. (EmailToolTester, 2025) EmailTooltester.com
- The global email user base is expected to reach 4.6 billion people in 2025. (SoCal News Group, 2025) socalnewsgroup.com
- The latest 2025 Email Deliverability Benchmark Report by Validity shows that global inbox placement declined in 2024, meaning it’s getting harder to make it to the inbox than before. Validity
- In a survey by Mailgun, 78.5% of senders rated deliverability an 8+ out of 10 in importance. Mailgun
These numbers underscore a simple fact: reach is not automatic—you must earn deliverability every time.
Myth vs Fact: The Deliverability Truths for 2025
Below, I break down seven common myths and contrast them with updated 2025 facts. If you’re still operating under these myths, your emails might be sinking without you noticing.
Myth 1: “I only care about delivery (accepted by server), not deliverability (inbox vs spam).”
Fact: Delivery is just the first hurdle. Even if your email is accepted (i.e. not bounced), it may still land in the spam folder, or a promotions tab—so you lose visibility. Litmus defines deliverability exactly this way: whether a message reaches the subscriber’s inbox, not just the mail server. Litmus
ISPs evaluate sender reputation, authentication, content, engagement behavior, and other signals before deciding where your message lands.
Myth 2: “Unsubscribes or small list growth will sink my reputation.”
Fact: Having a few unsubscribes isn’t the problem. In fact, it’s worse to keep uninterested or inactive users than to let them leave. Litmus debunks the idea that unsubscribes are automatically bad for reputation. Litmus
Engagement (opens, clicks, replies) tells ISPs your content is wanted. If many recipients ignore or delete your emails, your reputation suffers more than from unsubscribes. But yes, if unsubscribe processes are broken or ignored, that doesharm deliverability.
Myth 3: “Switch to a new IP or new domain and deliverability problems vanish.”
Fact: It’s not a magic fix. Using a new IP or domain resets history—but it also resets trust. You must warm up the new IP gradually, with small volumes and high-engagement audiences. Litmus calls this a myth because new infrastructure alonewon’t fix reputation issues. Litmus+1
Also consider: Some ISPs now share reputation between domain and IP, or apply sender-level scoring.
Myth 4: “I only need to obey my home country’s spam laws.”
Fact: If you email international recipients, you must comply with their local rules (e.g. GDPR, Canada’s CASL, India’s rules, etc.). A domain or IP getting flagged in one region can affect your global deliverability. Litmus warns that avoiding other country’s laws is a myth. Litmus
Additionally, major ISPs often rely on global blocklists or feedback loops not tied to one jurisdiction.
Myth 5: “Just avoid words like ‘free’ or excessive punctuation in subject lines and you’ll be safe.”
Fact: Spam filters have matured far beyond simple “spammy words.” Content matters—but user behavior signals outweigh keyword filters. If users consistently open and interact with your messages, you gain trust. Litmus calls the overemphasis on “spam trigger words” a myth. Litmus
Still, subject line hygiene matters—don’t mislead, overuse gimmicks, or flip between extremes.
Myth 6: “If my deliverability is poor, it must be the inbox service provider’s fault.”
Fact: Sometimes, but more often the issue is internal—your domain, IP, content, list hygiene, or your email service provider (ESP). Across reports, marketers often blame ISPs first, when many problems trace back to sender factors. Litmus
Use diagnostics and seed-list testing to pinpoint the root cause.
Myth 7: “I want 100% deliverability—anything less is failure.”
Fact: 100% is idealistic. Realistically, anything below ~90% inbox placement is a red flag. Stripo calls 100% deliverability a myth and suggests more realistic goals. Stripo.email
Because email lists always include bounces, filtered emails, and undeliverable addresses, aiming for 100% distracts from optimizing the real levers of success.
Key Facts to Know in 2025 That Debunk More Myths
Beyond those myth-vs-fact contrasts, here are additional truths shaping deliverability in 2025:
- Inbox placement is down globally. Validity’s report shows global placement declined in 2024, making deliverability harder to maintain. Validity
- Authentication matters more than ever. Gmail and Yahoo rolled out stricter authentication enforcement in 2024, focusing on SPF, DKIM, DMARC, and unsubscribe behavior. Braze
- List hygiene and engagement are central. Omnisend emphasizes that healthy lists with active subscribers increase success in a crowded inbox environment. Omnisend
- AI and generative tools add complexity. AI-generated copy helps scale, but ISPs are more vigilant for unnatural patterns or misaligned content. (Litmus: generative AI trend) Litmus+1
- Low-quality SPF configs still rampant. A recent large-scale study found 56.5% of domains publish SPF records—but 2.9% have errors, and 34.7% have overly permissive policies. arXiv
- Deliverability varies by ESP and region. Some sectors hover at 98% delivery (e.g. B2B, mining) but others like SaaS struggle with ~80.9% placement. TrulyInbox
These facts reinforce that deliverability isn’t one-size-fits-all, and careful setup + ongoing testing are essential.
Practical Steps to Shift from Myth to Reality in 2025
Here’s a more story-driven look at how to act:
1. Start with diagnostics and a baseline
Before changing anything, seed your own deliverability measurement. Use a test list and check where your messages land (inbox vs spam vs promotions) across providers. Tools like Litmus Inbox Placement, or other seed-testing tools can help. (Litmus offers such monitoring) Litmus
2. Audit authentication & infrastructure
Check SPF, DKIM, DMARC settings. If misconfigured, you risk spoofing flags. The SPF study shows how common misconfigurations still are. arXiv
Also, add BIMI (Brand Indicators for Message Identification) to reinforce identity and possibly boost opens. Only ~8% of senders currently use BIMI, but it can help brand presence. Litmus
3. Warm up new IPs/domains carefully
If migrating or starting fresh, ramp volume gradually, sending first to your most engaged users. Don’t blast large volumes immediately. This approach builds positive signals.
4. Clean and segment your list aggressively
Remove bounced addresses, spam traps, and chronically inactive users. Rather than holding onto volume, prioritize engaged users. Act-On notes how large but disengaged lists hurt deliverability. Act-On
Segment your list by recency, engagement, and behavior. Tailor content to each segment.
5. Focus on content and user signals
Write subject lines and content that invite replies, clicks, and interactions. Don’t obsess over single “spam words” alone. Use pre-send spam tests (many ESPs include these) to flag risk.
Encourage recipients to allowlist your sender or drag you to primary tabs. Positive user engagement reinforces sender trust.
6. Respect unsubscribe rules everywhere
Make unsubscribe links clear and make sure they work. If recipients can’t easily opt out, they may complain or mark you as spam, which is far more damaging. Gmail and Yahoo now penalize senders whose unsubscribe mechanism fails. Braze
7. Monitor deliverability over time
Don’t “set and forget.” Track metrics like inbox placement, bounce rate, spam complaints, open rates, click-through rates, and domain reputation. If something drops, act fast.
8. Use AI wisely, not blindly
AI tools can help scale content and personalization—but you must human-review where possible. Avoid patterns that trigger filters. Also, be transparent about AI use (some privacy regulations may require this). Litmus notes generative AI is trending in email marketing. Litmus+1
Real-World Example: From Myth Trap to Inbox Success
Let me tell you a short story. A mid-sized B2C brand believed “adding more words to the subject line to hook the reader will automatically improve deliverability”. They filled emails with buzzwords like “FREE! URGENT!!” across multiple sends. Soon, their click rate dropped, complaints rose, and they fell into Gmail’s spam filter.
They then reversed course:
- They pulled seed-list data to see where their emails landed.
- Fixed SPF/DKIM and added DMARC.
- Removed inactive users (removing ~30% of their list).
- Segmented remaining users by recency.
- Halved sends to the most engaged segment first (warm-up).
- Tracked placement month over month.
Within three months, their inbox placement jumped to ~92% across Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook—far better than the ~75% they had. This story illustrates that in 2025, smart cleanup, testing, and treating your list like a living audience allows you to defeat old myths.
Summary: Myth Busting for Better Deliverability in 2025
- Myths mislead you into passive thinking—deliverability must be earned actively.
- True deliverability depends on reputation, authentication, engagement, and content, not magic.
- You can’t blame everything on ISPs—often the fault lies in sender setup or behavior.
- 100% deliverability is unrealistic in practice—aim to optimize within realistic ranges.
- You must monitor, iterate, and test continuously.
If you follow the facts—not the myths—you’ll build a foundation for consistent inbox placement, stronger engagement, and better ROI in 2025 and beyond.
