--- title: Email Deliverability Guide description: Most marketers have no idea if their emails reach the inbox. This free 65-page guide explains email deliverability in plain English, and how to fix it. image: https://weareastral.co.uk/hubfs/REmarkable%20logo%20by%20astral%20(700%20x%20500%20px)%20(700%20x%20350%20px).png --- [Skip to content](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-deliverability-guide#main-content) ![astral.](https://weareastral.co.uk/hs-fs/hubfs/astral.%20new%20logo%20no%20background%20large.png?width=500&height=200&name=astral.%20new%20logo%20no%20background%20large.png) - Email services Show submenu for Email services - [Email Strategy Workshops](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-strategy-workshops) - [Email Audit](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-audit) - [Deliverability Audit](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-deliverability-audit) - Email & CRM resources Show submenu for Email & CRM resources - [Deliverability Hub](https://weareastral.co.uk/deliverability-hub) - [Email & CRM Vault](https://weareastral.co.uk/thevault) - [Email Copy & Psychology Guide](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-copy-psychology-guide) - [Email Design Handbook](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-design-handbook) - [Email Deliverability Guide](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-deliverability-guide) - [Email Health Check tool](https://www.emailhealthcheck.co.uk/) - [Deliverability Health Check tool](https://www.emaildeliverabilitycheck.co.uk/) - [astral academy](https://weareastral.co.uk/academy) Show submenu for astral academy - [Deliverability Certification](https://weareastral.co.uk/emaildeliverability/training) - [Email Design Masterclass](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-design-masterclass) - [Inbox Psychology Masterclass](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-psychology-masterclass) - [Free Deliverability Training](https://weareastral.co.uk/free-email-deliverability-training) Open main navigation Close main navigation - Email services Show submenu for Email services - [Email Strategy Workshops](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-strategy-workshops) - [Email Audit](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-audit) - [Deliverability Audit](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-deliverability-audit) - Email & CRM resources Show submenu for Email & CRM resources - [Deliverability Hub](https://weareastral.co.uk/deliverability-hub) - [Email & CRM Vault](https://weareastral.co.uk/thevault) - [Email Copy & Psychology Guide](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-copy-psychology-guide) - [Email Design Handbook](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-design-handbook) - [Email Deliverability Guide](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-deliverability-guide) - [Email Health Check tool](https://www.emailhealthcheck.co.uk/) - [Deliverability Health Check tool](https://www.emaildeliverabilitycheck.co.uk/) - [astral academy](https://weareastral.co.uk/academy) Show submenu for astral academy - [Deliverability Certification](https://weareastral.co.uk/emaildeliverability/training) - [Email Design Masterclass](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-design-masterclass) - [Inbox Psychology Masterclass](https://weareastral.co.uk/email-psychology-masterclass) - [Free Deliverability Training](https://weareastral.co.uk/free-email-deliverability-training) - [Work with Beth](https://weareastral.co.uk/work-with-beth) [Work with Beth](https://weareastral.co.uk/work-with-beth?hsLang=en) # Get the Email Deliverability Guide Deliverability is the most important part of your email marketing, but it is the most hidden. Your ESP says you're 98% delivered, and you believe it, because nobody ever told you that "delivered" and "in the inbox" are two completely different things! This guide takes you through the glossary, what impacts deliverability, the metrics and so much more.  ![The guide](https://weareastral.co.uk/hs-fs/hubfs/guide-fan.png?width=1000&height=473&name=guide-fan.png "The guide") ### Get the Email Deliverability Guide ## What you'll take away: By the end of the guide, you'll understand: - What deliverability is, and why "delivered", "deliverability" and "inbox placement" are three different things (getting this wrong is the root of most problems). - The metrics that matter: inbox placement rate, spam placement rate, complaint rate vs count, and why opens and clicks stopped telling you the truth (loads more email metrics!) - What affects whether you land in the inbox, and the things everyone worries about that make no difference at all - How to spot the red flags in your own setup, and recognise the symptoms of a problem before it costs you - How AI is changing deliverability right now, why the inbox got smarter, and what it means for how you send. - The tools worth using, what each one does, and what it can't tell you # Online Email Deliverability Certification & Training #### Self-paced deliverability training for B2B, B2C, and D2C marketers Practical email deliverability training for marketers who want to understand, measure, and fix email deliverability - and clearly communicate issues using data-backed audits and testing. This email deliverability training teaches you how inboxes really work, how to audit your own email deliverability and how to protect (or recover) email performance long-term. [Email Deliverability Certification →](https://weareastral.co.uk/emaildeliverability/training?hsLang=en) ###### ENROLMENTS CLOSE 31 JULY ## £148 **✓** All 3 modules: Learn → Audit → Fix **✓** The 6-step deliverability audit process **✓** Fillable templates & frameworks **✓** Up to 3 monthly live sessions with Beth **✓** Deliverability Certification on completion [Get started →](https://www.astralacademy.co.uk/order?ct=65647af1-d58b-421e-ae9d-24a32b4797ff) # More on Email Deliverability What is email deliverability? Email deliverability is the ability to land your emails in a recipient's inbox rather than the spam or junk folder. It's the ongoing health of your sending reputation, a condition shaped by your behaviour over time, not a single metric you can check once. What's the difference between delivery and deliverability? Delivery just means the receiving server accepted your email and it didn't hard bounce. Deliverability is whether it actually reached the inbox. An email can be "delivered" and still land straight in spam, which is why delivery rate can be misleading. What is inbox placement rate? Inbox placement rate (IPR) is the percentage of your emails that actually land in the inbox, rather than spam, promotions, or going missing. It's the metric that truly reflects deliverability, and most email platforms don't show it to you by default, so you have to test for it. Why do my emails go to spam? Emails usually land in spam because of your sender reputation, not the words you use. Poor list quality, low engagement, sending to disengaged contacts, missing authentication, and sudden changes in sending behaviour are the most common causes. BUT it's normal for up to 15% of every send to go to spam. You just have to find out your spam placement rate is WORSE than this benchmark.  What affects email deliverability? The biggest factors are your sender reputation, authentication (SPF, DKIM and DMARC), engagement signals, data quality, and your sending behaviour. Inbox providers weigh all of these to decide whether you belong in the inbox. How do I check my email deliverability? You can't rely on your ESP's delivered rate. To see where you actually land, use inbox placement testing across providers, monitor your spam complaint rate, and check tools like Google Postmaster and Microsoft SNDS. Testing over time matters more than a single check. Do spam words affect deliverability? No, this is one of the most persistent myths. Modern spam filters use machine learning and engagement data, not keyword matching. There's no list of "spam words" to avoid. What matters is whether people actually want and engage with your emails. What are SPF, DKIM and DMARC? They're the three email authentication records that prove you are who you say you are. SPF lists who can send on your behalf, DKIM signs your emails so they can't be tampered with, and DMARC tells providers what to do if a message fails. Together they're a deliverability essential. Does AI affect email deliverability? Yes. The machine learning that inbox providers use to filter email is getting smarter and stricter, reassessing your reputation on every send. AI is also increasingly filtering cold email on the recipient's side, so "landed" no longer guarantees "seen." How do I improve my email deliverability? Focus on the fundamentals: set up authentication correctly, keep your data clean, send consistently to people who actually want to hear from you, and monitor the right metrics. There's no quick fix, sustainable deliverability is built through good practice over time (and with a good email strategy).  ## Ways we can work together on email From email workshops and audits to training, 1:1 consultancy and full programme transformation — I support teams and marketers at every stage of their email journey. Whether you need ad-hoc guidance or more in-depth, long-term support, you know who to call.  [Get in touch](https://weareastral.co.uk/work-with-beth?hsLang=en) ![a. final -2](https://weareastral.co.uk/hs-fs/hubfs/a.%20final%20-2.png?width=100&height=100&name=a.%20final%20-2.png "a. final -2") Get in touch: [www.astral-digital.co.uk](http://www.astral-digital.co.uk) Email me: [beth@astral-digital.co.uk](mailto:beth@astral-digital.co.uk) Copyright © Astral Digital ™. All Rights Reserved By Astral Digital. Registered company number 1460594