Despite predictions of its demise, email marketing continues to deliver the highest ROI of any channel. Recent innovations in personalization and integration with other channels are breathing new life into this foundational tactic.
Latest Email Marketing Statistics and Benchmarks
Email marketing continues to be a powerful channel in 2025, with approximately 380 billion emails exchanged daily, reflecting a 14% year-over-year growth1. The global email user base has expanded to nearly 4.73 billion users, creating immense opportunities for marketers.
Key performance benchmarks to note:
- Average click-through rate (CTR): 2.41%.
- Average click rate: 2.00%.
- Industry-specific CTRs range from 1.5% to 3.01%.
Campaign performance varies significantly, with top-performing campaigns achieving:
- 5x higher order rates for the top 10% of campaigns across both email and SMS.
- 7x higher revenue per recipient (RPR) for top-performing campaigns.
Interestingly, automated flows generate up to 30x more RPR than campaigns due to their timely and targeted nature. For example, abandoned cart flows average $3.07 RPR compared to $0.10 for regular email campaigns.
Advanced Personalization Techniques Driving Higher Engagement
Personalization has evolved far beyond using a recipient’s name in the subject line. In 2025, advanced techniques are driving significantly higher engagement:
Hyper-Personalization Through Unified Data
Leading European retailer NA-KD achieved a 72X ROI and 25% increase in customer lifetime value by powering personalized campaigns with a unified customer data platform that provided a 360-degree view of customer behaviors.
Interactive Content
AMP for email has transformed static messages into interactive experiences through elements like quizzes, surveys, scratch cards, and click-through elements that prompt active participation.
Segmentation Evolution
Smart segmentation has become essential, with 46% of people stating they open all emails from a brand primarily because the brand consistently sends relevant messages. The most effective approach combines:
- Behavioural segmentation based on past interactions.
- Customer journey stage targeting.
- Predictive segmentation using AI to anticipate needs.
Content Length Optimization
67% of respondents prefer short emails, while only 6% enjoy longer emails. However, for 28% of people, email length is irrelevant if the content is tailored to their interests.
Integration of AI for Content Optimization and Send-Time Personalization
AI has become integral to email marketing strategy in 2025, with 63% of marketers now employing AI in their email marketing tools.
Content Personalization
Content personalization is the top use case for AI, with 50% of surveyed email marketers utilizing it to tailor messages to individual subscribers. AI analyses customer data such as past purchases, browsing behaviour, and engagement history to craft personalized messages.
Send Time Optimization
AI determines the optimal times for sending emails by analysing historical engagement data, ensuring messages land when recipients are most likely to engage. This is particularly important as 42% of people check their inboxes three to five times a day, and 35% spend between two and five hours daily in their inbox.
AI-Generated Content
AI tools now automate the creation of email content and visuals by analysing trends and user data to generate personalized subject lines, body text, and images that align with recipient preferences.
Continuous Optimization
AI continuously monitors and fine-tunes campaigns in real-time through A/B testing, experimenting with different email elements to identify the most effective versions.
Best Practices for Deliverability in 2025’s Complex Inbox Environment
With 45% of email traffic consisting of spam messages, deliverability has become more critical than ever. Here are the essential practices for 2025:
Email Authentication
Implement all three key authentication protocols to prevent spoofing and phishing:
- SPF (Sender Policy Framework).
- DKIM (Domain Keys Identified Mail).
- DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting and Conformance).
List Hygiene
Maintain a clean email list by:
- Using double opt-in to verify subscribers.
- Regularly removing invalid or inactive addresses.
- Avoiding purchased or scraped lists.
Engagement Monitoring
Monitor and optimize engagement metrics as they directly impact deliverability:
- Segment your audience based on engagement levels.
- Re-engage or remove dormant subscribers.
- Track open and click rates to identify potential deliverability issues.
Spam Complaint Prevention
80% of people will mark an email as spam simply because it “looks like spam,” while 55% report messages when senders didn’t ask permission to email them. Additionally, 47% will submit a spam complaint if the email doesn’t provide an unsubscribe option.
Mobile Optimization
64% of people primarily check their email on mobile devices, making mobile-first design essential for deliverability and engagement.
Sending Frequency Management
For 43% of people, the primary reason they unsubscribe from an email list is that the sender emails them too frequently. Carefully manage your sending cadence to avoid overwhelming subscribers.
By implementing these strategies and staying current with the evolving email landscape, marketers can continue to leverage email as a high-performing channel in 2025’s complex digital environment.
