A guide to Gmail's sender guidelines
If you have read anything about email in the last couple of years, you have probably come across Gmail’s and Yahoo’s push against spam. Gmail introduced three requirements that took effect in February 2024, under the heading “Protections for a safer, less spammy inbox”.
Who do they apply to?
Strictly speaking, to bulk senders — anyone sending more than 5,000 messages a day to Gmail inboxes.
Are they relevant to everyone else who works with email and newsletters?
Very much so. The requirements lean on what has long counted as good email practice. Following them lowers the number of your messages that end up in spam or never arrive at all, whatever your volume.
1. Authenticate your sending
Most of us have had the email from a parcel carrier saying a delivery is waiting, and all we need to do is click a link. It is fraud. Some spoofing attempts are convincing; others are easier to see through.
To limit the abuse of company names and brands in spoofing attacks, and to make it easier for the recipient to judge whether a sender is genuine, Gmail now requires that your sending address is authenticated. In practice that means setting up SPF and DKIM. Doing so demonstrates that you are who you claim to be, and Gmail can pass your message on with confidence.
If you are not sure where to start, our post on why SPF matters and how to set it up covers the first of the three records.
When you send through Ubivox, we help with SPF, DKIM and DMARC. You are always welcome to ask us for a call.
2. Make unsubscribing easy
It has to be easy for a recipient to leave your list. Gmail now requires that they can do it in a single click.
You also have to act on the unsubscribe within two days — although in most email platforms, including ours, an unsubscribe takes effect immediately anyway.
The point of the requirement is to reduce the volume of unwanted mail sitting in people’s inboxes.
3. Send content people want
Gmail judges the relevance of your content on several measures. For these requirements, the one that matters most is your spam rate. Google’s own guidelines recommend keeping it below 0.10 per cent, with 0.30 per cent as the ceiling. You can read the full text in Google’s email sender guidelines.
Ways to keep the rate down:
- Clear out your lists regularly and remove inactive recipients
- Remove anyone who has previously marked your mail as spam
- Send more relevant content — the more segmented and targeted it is, the more interesting it is to each individual
For more on the same ground, see our five tips for staying out of the spam folder.