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Email Marketing ROI Statistics 2026

In Litmus's 2025 State of Email survey, 35% of companies earned $10 to $36 for every $1 spent on email and another 35% earned more than $36, while 21% did not measure ROI at all. Omnisend's 2026 report shows automated emails were 2% of sends but 30% of email revenue in 2025, and Brevo found automated emails averaged a 7.39% click-through rate against 2.27% for standard campaigns. Gartner puts total marketing budgets at 7.8% of company revenue in 2026.

Download CSVCite this pageUpdated November 4, 2026 · 13 sources · 50/50 quotes re-checked

This page collects figures on what email marketing returns, where its revenue comes from, what engagement to expect, what the platforms that sell email software earn, and what deliverability, compliance and budgets cost. Most figures describe 2025 and 2026. ROI and workflow data come from surveys of marketers, engagement benchmarks from email platforms' own sending data, platform figures from SEC filings, budgets from Gartner's CMO survey, and rules and penalties from Google, Microsoft and the US Federal Trade Commission.

Email is one of the few channels where most teams report double digit returns per dollar. Litmus's 2025 State of Email survey of nearly 500 marketers found 35% of companies get $10 to $36 back for each $1 spent, 30% get $36 to $50, and 5% get more than $50. The weak point is measurement: 21% still do not measure email ROI, and only 41% attribute revenue directly to campaigns. Litmus also reports that teams with advanced AI adoption are 75% more likely to reach returns above 45 to 1. These are self-reported figures from a vendor survey, not audited returns.

Most of the return comes from a small share of sends. In Omnisend's 2026 Ecommerce Marketing Report, automated messages were 2% of email sends but 30% of email revenue in 2025, earning 16 times more per send than scheduled campaigns, and abandoned cart and welcome flows produced 76% of automation orders. Brevo's 2025 data point the same way: automated emails averaged a 30.63% open rate and 7.39% click-through rate, against 20.73% and 2.27% for standard campaigns.

Engagement benchmarks vary by platform, audience and method, so pick the one closest to your list. MailerLite's median open rate across 3.6 million campaigns was 43.46%, Omnisend measured 30.7% for ecommerce senders, and Brevo's average was 20.73% once bot-triggered Apple Mail Privacy Protection opens are removed, or 33.87% with them. Because opens are inflated, clicks and conversions are a better base for ROI math. Unsubscribes are rising: MailerLite's rate more than doubled to 0.22% after Gmail made one-click unsubscribes easier.

The cost side is set by budgets, inbox providers and regulators. Gartner found marketing budgets flat at 7.8% of company revenue in 2026, with 15.3% of those budgets going to AI. Google and Microsoft apply bulk sender rules to domains sending more than 5,000 messages a day, and Google tells bulk senders never to reach a 0.30% spam complaint rate. Kaspersky found that 44.99% of global email traffic in 2025 was spam, which is why filters are strict. In the US, each email that breaks the CAN-SPAM Act can cost up to $53,088 in penalties, according to the FTC.

01

Return on email spend

These figures come from Litmus's State of Email surveys of marketing professionals, so returns are self-reported and depend on how each team attributes revenue. Litmus sells email software, so treat the survey as vendor research. The pattern is still useful: most teams that measure ROI put it well above $10 per $1, and a fifth do not measure it at all. Treat any single ROI ratio as a rough guide, not a forecast for your own list.

Share of marketing leaders by return per $1 spent on email, 2025

Litmus State of Email 2025 survey of marketing leaders worldwide. Remaining respondents earn less or do not measure ROI.

  • $10 to $3635%
  • $36 to $5030%
  • More than $505%

Source: Litmus, The ROI of Email Marketing [Infographic]

  • 35%

    35% of companies in Litmus's 2025 State of Email survey of nearly 500 marketing professionals earn $10 to $36 for every $1 spent on email marketing.

    Litmus · The ROI of Email Marketing [Infographic] (2025)

    Exact quote

    In fact, 35% of companies see a whopping $10-$36 for every $1 spent.

  • 30%

    30% of marketing leaders in the 2025 Litmus survey earn $36 to $50 for every $1 spent on email.

    Litmus · The ROI of Email Marketing [Infographic] (2025)

    Exact quote

    35% receive $10-$36 in return 30% receive $36-50 in return 5% receive more than $50 in return

  • 5%

    5% of marketing leaders in the 2025 Litmus survey earn more than $50 for every $1 spent on email.

    Litmus · The ROI of Email Marketing [Infographic] (2025)

    Exact quote

    5% receive more than $50 in return

  • 21%

    21% of marketing leaders do not measure email ROI, down from 36% in 2023, according to Litmus.

    Litmus · The ROI of Email Marketing [Infographic] (2025)

    Exact quote

    21% of marketing leaders do not measure ROI, which is down from 36% in 2023.

  • 41%

    Only 41% of marketing leaders in Litmus's 2025 State of Email survey attribute revenue directly to email campaigns.

    Litmus · The ROI of Email Marketing [Infographic] (2025)

    Exact quote

    41% direct revenue attribution to email marketing campaigns

  • 75%

    Email teams with advanced AI adoption are 75% more likely to achieve ROI above 45 to 1, according to Litmus's State of Email research.

    Litmus · State of Email Reports 2025-2026: Email Marketing Trends (2026)

    Exact quote

    Advanced AI adopters are 75% more likely to achieve ROIs above 45:1, but adoption is uneven.

  • 36%

    36% of high-ROI email teams report advanced AI adoption, per Litmus.

    Litmus · State of Email Reports 2025-2026: Email Marketing Trends (2026)

    Exact quote

    36% of high-ROI teams report advanced AI adoption.

02

Where email revenue comes from

Omnisend's 2026 Ecommerce Marketing Report is based on campaigns sent by online stores on its platform in 2025, and Brevo's benchmark covers more than 175,000 of its customers in the same year. Both show that automated flows triggered by customer behavior earn far more per send than scheduled newsletters. For budgeting, that means the first money in an email program is best spent on abandoned cart, welcome and back-in-stock flows. Omnisend's data cover ecommerce brands only, so B2B and publisher returns will differ.

Automated emails versus standard campaigns on Brevo, 2025

Brevo 2026 Marketing Orchestration Benchmark, unweighted averages across more than 175,000 active customers in 2025; open rates exclude Apple Mail Privacy Protection opens.

30.6%
20.7%
7.39%
2.27%
Open rate, automatedOpen rate, all campaignsClick-through rate, automatedClick-through rate, all campaigns

Source: Brevo, Email Marketing Benchmarks: Region & Industry Data (2026)

  • 30%

    Automated emails made up 2% of email sends by Omnisend's ecommerce customers in 2025 but generated 30% of email revenue.

    Omnisend · Omnisend’s 2026 ecommerce marketing report (2026)

    Exact quote

    Automations made up just 2% of all email sends , yet generated 30% of total email-driven revenue .

  • 16×

    Automated emails earned 16 times more per send than scheduled campaigns in Omnisend's 2025 data.

    Omnisend · Omnisend’s 2026 ecommerce marketing report (2026)

    Exact quote

    They represented just 2% of email sends , but drove 30% of revenue , earning 16× more per send than scheduled campaigns by reaching shoppers at high-intent moments.

  • 76%

    Abandoned cart and welcome messages produced 76% of all automation-generated orders for Omnisend's ecommerce customers in 2025.

    Omnisend · Omnisend’s 2026 ecommerce marketing report (2026)

    Exact quote

    Abandoned cart and Welcome messages drove 76% of all automation-generated orders

  • 19×

    Automated messages had 19 times higher conversion rates and 24% higher open rates than other emails in Omnisend's 2025 data.

    Omnisend · Omnisend’s 2026 ecommerce marketing report (2026)

    Exact quote

    Across the board, automated messages delivered 24% higher open rates, 6× stronger click engagement, and 19× higher conversion rates.

  • 6.46%

    Back-in-stock emails converted at 6.46% in 2025, the highest rate of any automation type Omnisend tracked.

    Omnisend · Omnisend’s 2026 ecommerce marketing report (2026)

    Exact quote

    Back-in-stock emails delivered the highest conversion rates (6.46%) of any automation type

  • $744.37

    Orders from birthday emails averaged $744.37 in 2025, more than four times the average order value, per Omnisend.

    Omnisend · Omnisend’s 2026 ecommerce marketing report (2026)

    Exact quote

    Birthday messages produced average order values more than 4x higher than average ($744.37)

  • 9%

    Email click-to-conversion rose 53% in 2025 to 9%, up from 5.9%, across Omnisend's ecommerce senders.

    Omnisend · Omnisend’s 2026 ecommerce marketing report (2026)

    Exact quote

    Click-to-conversion jumped 53% YoY , rising from 5.9% to 9% .

  • 16.54%

    UK ecommerce emails had the highest click-to-conversion rate in Omnisend's 2025 data at 16.54%.

    Omnisend · Omnisend’s 2026 ecommerce marketing report (2026)

    Exact quote

    The UK led with a 16.54% click-to-conversion rate , followed by Australia (12.25%) and South Africa (11.99%) , where email functioned less as a browsing channel and more as a direct path to purchase.

  • 7.39%

    Across more than 175,000 Brevo customers in 2025, automated emails averaged a 30.63% open rate and 7.39% click-through rate, against 20.73% and 2.27% for standard marketing campaigns.

    Brevo · Email Marketing Benchmarks: Region & Industry Data (2026) (2026)

    Exact quote

    Automation emails dramatically outperform standard marketing campaigns: 30.63% open rate and 7.39% CTR vs. the 20.73% / 2.27% averages.

03

Open, click and unsubscribe benchmarks

Benchmarks come from each platform's own sending data, so they reflect that platform's customers and method. MailerLite reports medians and its base leans toward creators, nonprofits and small businesses; Omnisend serves ecommerce stores; Brevo reports unweighted averages and shows open rates with and without Apple Mail Privacy Protection. That is why headline open rates range from about 21% to 43%. Clicks and unsubscribes are more reliable inputs for estimating return than opens.

Email open rate by industry on MailerLite, 2025

Median open rates from 3.6 million campaigns sent December 2024 to November 2025. Opens are inflated by Apple Mail Privacy Protection.

  • Non-profits52.4%
  • Health and fitness47.8%
  • Consulting46%
  • Authors43.1%
  • Software and web apps39.3%
  • Ecommerce32.7%

Source: MailerLite, Email marketing benchmarks by industry and region for 2026

  • 43.46%

    The median email open rate across 3.6 million MailerLite campaigns sent from December 2024 to November 2025 was 43.46%, up from 42.35% in 2024.

    MailerLite · Email marketing benchmarks by industry and region for 2026 (Dec 2025)

    Exact quote

    The median email open rate across all 3.6 million campaigns in our dataset was 43.46%.

  • 2.09%

    The average email click rate on MailerLite in 2025 was 2.09%.

    MailerLite · Email marketing benchmarks by industry and region for 2026 (Dec 2025)

    Exact quote

    The average email click rate in 2025 was 2.09%.

  • 6.81%

    The average click-to-open rate on MailerLite in 2025 was 6.81%.

    MailerLite · Email marketing benchmarks by industry and region for 2026 (Dec 2025)

    Exact quote

    The average email click-to-open rate in 2025 was 6.81%.

  • 0.22%

    The average unsubscribe rate on MailerLite rose to 0.22% in 2025, more than double the 0.08% of 2024.

    MailerLite · Email marketing benchmarks by industry and region for 2026 (Dec 2025)

    Exact quote

    The average unsubscribe rate in 2025 was 0.22%.

  • 32.67%

    Ecommerce emails on MailerLite had a 32.67% open rate and a 1.07% click rate in 2025, among the lowest of any industry.

    MailerLite · Email marketing benchmarks by industry and region for 2026 (Dec 2025)

    Exact quote

    The benchmark open rate for e-commerce is 32.67% and the click rate is 1.07%

  • 55.71%

    Email open rates by industry on MailerLite ranged from 30.1% to 55.71% in 2025.

    MailerLite · Email marketing benchmarks by industry and region for 2026 (Dec 2025)

    Exact quote

    Email open rates by industry ranged from 30.1% to 55.71%.

  • 30.7%

    Omnisend measured an average open rate of 30.7% for ecommerce email in 2025, up from 26.6% in 2024 and the fifth straight annual rise.

    Omnisend · Omnisend’s 2026 ecommerce marketing report (2026)

    Exact quote

    Open rates rose for the fifth consecutive year , climbing from 26.6% in 2024 to 30.7% in 2025 , even as both click-to-open and click-to-send rates declined.

  • 20.73%

    Brevo's average marketing email open rate in 2025 was 20.73% when bot-triggered Apple Mail Privacy Protection opens are excluded, and 33.87% when they are counted.

    Brevo · Email Marketing Benchmarks: Region & Industry Data (2026) (2026)

    Exact quote

    The average open rate is 20.73% ( 33.87% including Apple MPP).

  • 0.46%

    The average unsubscribe rate across Brevo marketing campaigns in 2025 was 0.46%, with the top performers as low as 0.05%.

    Brevo · Email Marketing Benchmarks: Region & Industry Data (2026) (2026)

    Exact quote

    The average unsubscribe rate is 0.46% , with top performers as low as 0.05%.

  • 15.50%

    Retail and ecommerce senders on Brevo had below-average open rates in 2025, at 16.67% and 15.50%.

    Brevo · Email Marketing Benchmarks: Region & Industry Data (2026) (2026)

    Exact quote

    Retail and ecommerce sit below average (16.67% and 15.50% open rates respectively), reflecting the competitive inbox environment and the importance of personalization and automation to stand out.

  • 22.83%

    Europe had the highest engagement of any region on Brevo in 2025, with a 22.83% open rate and 2.29% click-through rate.

    Brevo · Email Marketing Benchmarks: Region & Industry Data (2026) (2026)

    Exact quote

    Europe leads for engagement with a 22.83% open rate and 2.29% CTR (36.90% / 2.29% including MPP).

04

What email platforms earn

Klaviyo and Braze are the two large listed companies built mainly around marketing messages, so their SEC filings show how much businesses are paying for email and SMS software. Both grew revenue by more than 25% a year in 2026, well ahead of overall marketing budgets. Klaviyo's net revenue retention of 109% means existing customers spent 9% more than a year earlier, partly because plans are priced by profiles stored and messages sent. Rising list sizes therefore raise software bills automatically.

  • 205,000

    Klaviyo had more than 205,000 customers as of June 30, 2026.

    Klaviyo · Klaviyo, Inc. Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2026 (Aug 2026)

    Exact quote

    As of June 30, 2026, our platform had efficiently scaled to over 205,000 customers.

  • $728.6 million

    Klaviyo's revenue was $728.6 million in the first half of 2026, up 27.2% from $572.9 million a year earlier.

    Klaviyo · Klaviyo, Inc. Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2026 (Aug 2026)

    Exact quote

    Our revenue was $728.6 million and $572.9 million for the six months ended June 30, 2026 and 2025, respectively, representing a growth rate of 27.2%.

  • 4,477

    4,477 Klaviyo customers paid more than $50,000 a year as of June 2026, up 36% from 3,291 a year earlier.

    Klaviyo · Klaviyo, Inc. Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2026 (Aug 2026)

    Exact quote

    As of June 30, 2026, we had 4,477 customers generating over $50,000 of ARR, compared to 3,291 customers generating over $50,000 of ARR as of June 30, 2025, representing growth of 36% year-over-year.

  • 109%

    Klaviyo's net revenue retention rate was 109% as of June 30, 2026, up from 108% a year earlier.

    Klaviyo · Klaviyo, Inc. Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2026 (Aug 2026)

    Exact quote

    As of June 30, 2026 and 2025, our NRR was 109% and 108%, respectively.

  • 26.2%

    Braze's revenue rose $47.1 million, or 26.2%, in the quarter ended July 31, 2026.

    Braze · Braze, Inc. Form 10-Q for the quarter ended July 31, 2026 (Sep 2026)

    Exact quote

    Revenue increased by $47.1 million, or 26.2%, for the three months ended July 31, 2026, compared to the three months ended July 31, 2025.

  • 2,789

    Braze had 2,789 customers as of July 31, 2026.

    Braze · Braze, Inc. Form 10-Q for the quarter ended July 31, 2026 (Sep 2026)

    Exact quote

    As of July 31, 2026, we had 2,789 customers across a broad range of sizes and industries.

  • 3%

    Intuit's online ecosystem paying customers, which include Mailchimp paying customers, grew 3% in the year to July 31, 2026.

    Intuit · Intuit Inc. Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended July 31, 2026 (Sep 2026)

    Exact quote

    Online Ecosystem paying customers, which we define as the sum of all QuickBooks Online paying customers, QuickBooks Time customers, Mailchimp paying customers, and customers who subscribe to standalone services outside of QuickBooks Online, increased 3% as of July 31, 2026 compared with July 31, 2025.

05

Spam and deliverability

Deliverability is a hidden cost in email ROI: messages that land in spam earn nothing. Kaspersky's data show that close to half of all email traffic is spam, which is why Google and Microsoft require authentication and low complaint rates from senders. These rules are thresholds, not averages, and apply per sending domain. Senders who miss them see mail routed to junk or rejected.

  • 44.99%

    Spam made up 44.99% of global email traffic in 2025, down 2.28 percentage points from 2024, according to Kaspersky.

    Kaspersky · Kaspersky spam and phishing report for 2025 (2026)

    Exact quote

    In 2025, the average share of spam in global email traffic was 44.99%, representing a decrease of 2.28 percentage points compared to the previous year.

  • 144,722,674

    Kaspersky Mail Anti-Virus blocked 144,722,674 malicious email attachments in 2025.

    Kaspersky · Kaspersky spam and phishing report for 2025 (2026)

    Exact quote

    Kaspersky Mail Anti-Virus blocked 144,722,674 malicious email attachments

  • 554,002,207

    Kaspersky's anti-phishing system stopped 554,002,207 attempts to follow phishing links in 2025.

    Kaspersky · Kaspersky spam and phishing report for 2025 (2026)

    Exact quote

    Our Anti-Phishing system thwarted 554,002,207 attempts to follow phishing links

  • 5,000

    Google requires senders of more than 5,000 messages a day to Gmail accounts to meet its bulk sender requirements, in force since February 1, 2024.

    Google · Email sender guidelines (2026)

    Exact quote

    Starting February 1, 2024, email senders who send more than 5,000 messages per day to Gmail accounts must meet the requirements in this section.

  • 0.30%

    Google tells bulk senders to keep spam complaint rates in Postmaster Tools below 0.10% and never reach 0.30%.

    Google · Email sender guidelines (2026)

    Exact quote

    Keep spam rates reported in Postmaster Tools below 0.10% and avoid ever reaching a spam rate of 0.30% or higher.

  • 5,000

    Microsoft's Outlook requires SPF, DKIM and DMARC authentication from domains sending more than 5,000 emails a day.

    Microsoft · Strengthening Email Ecosystem: Outlook’s New Requirements for High‐Volume Senders (Apr 2025)

    Exact quote

    What's Changing? For domains sending over 5,000 emails per day, Outlook will soon require compliance with SPF, DKIM, DMARC.

06

Budgets, compliance and production costs

Several costs sit outside the software bill. Marketing budgets as a whole are flat in Gartner's 2026 survey, so email competes with AI and other channels for the same money. Legal risk is another: US law sets a per message penalty, so a single non-compliant campaign to a large list carries a large theoretical liability. Production time is the third: Litmus data show most teams now ship an email in days rather than weeks, which lowers the labor cost behind each send.

FAQ

What is the average ROI of email marketing?

There is no single audited average. In Litmus's 2025 State of Email survey, 35% of companies earned $10 to $36 per $1 spent, 30% earned $36 to $50 and 5% earned more than $50, while 21% did not measure ROI.

Which emails make the most money?

Automated emails. Omnisend's 2026 report found automations were 2% of sends but 30% of email revenue in 2025, and Brevo measured a 7.39% click-through rate for automated emails against 2.27% for standard campaigns.

What is a good email open rate?

It depends on the platform and how opens are counted. MailerLite's median was 43.46% across 3.6 million campaigns, Omnisend measured 30.7% for ecommerce senders, and Brevo's average was 20.73% excluding Apple Mail Privacy Protection opens, or 33.87% including them.

What spam rate do Gmail and Outlook allow?

Google asks bulk senders to keep spam complaints below 0.10% and never reach 0.30%. Google and Microsoft apply their bulk sender rules to domains sending more than 5,000 messages a day.

How much do companies spend on marketing overall?

Gartner's 2026 CMO Spend Survey found marketing budgets at 7.8% of company revenue, up slightly from 7.7% in 2025, with an average of 15.3% of marketing budgets allocated to AI.

How much can a CAN-SPAM violation cost?

The FTC says each separate email that violates the CAN-SPAM Act can carry a penalty of up to $53,088.

Methodology note

We chose figures that bear on the money side of email: return per dollar, revenue by message type, the engagement rates that drive revenue, what businesses pay email platforms, overall marketing budgets, and the rules and penalties that add cost. ROI and workflow figures are from Litmus surveys of marketers and are self-reported. Engagement and revenue figures come from MailerLite, Omnisend and Brevo sending data and reflect their own customer bases and methods (medians for MailerLite, unweighted averages for Brevo). Platform figures come from Klaviyo, Braze and Intuit SEC filings, and budget figures from Gartner's 2026 CMO Spend Survey of 401 marketing leaders. Open rates are inflated by Apple Mail Privacy Protection. Sender thresholds and penalties are rules as published by Google, Microsoft and the FTC when checked in November 2026. Every quote is re-fetched from the source by our checker. See how we rank and verify.

Sources

  1. 1Braze: Braze, Inc. Form 10-Q for the quarter ended July 31, 2026
  2. 2Brevo: Email Marketing Benchmarks: Region & Industry Data (2026)
  3. 3Federal Trade Commission: CAN-SPAM Act: A Compliance Guide for Business
  4. 4Gartner: Gartner 2026 CMO Spend Survey Finds CMOs Allocate 15.3% of Marketing Budgets to AI, But Only 30% Are Ready to Scale AI Capabilities
  5. 5Google: Email sender guidelines
  6. 6Intuit: Intuit Inc. Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended July 31, 2026
  7. 7Kaspersky: Kaspersky spam and phishing report for 2025
  8. 8Klaviyo: Klaviyo, Inc. Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2026
  9. 9Litmus: The ROI of Email Marketing [Infographic]
  10. 10Litmus: State of Email Reports 2025-2026: Email Marketing Trends
  11. 11MailerLite: Email marketing benchmarks by industry and region for 2026
  12. 12Microsoft: Strengthening Email Ecosystem: Outlook’s New Requirements for High‐Volume Senders
  13. 13Omnisend: Omnisend’s 2026 ecommerce marketing report

Cite this page

Rankozo. (2026, November 4). Email Marketing ROI Statistics 2026. https://rankozo.com/email-marketing-roi-statistics

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