Metrics

Open rate

Definition

Open rate is the share of emails recorded as opened via a tracking pixel. Privacy features now inflate it, so it is unreliable for outbound.

Open rate in practice

Opens are tracked with an invisible image that loads when the email is displayed. Apple Mail Privacy Protection, introduced in 2021, preloads remote images for users who enable it, which records an open whether or not anyone read the email. Some security filters do the same. The number is now inflated and noisy.

Many outbound teams switch open tracking off entirely, since the tracking pixel adds a remote image to every message and the data is not trustworthy. Judge campaigns on replies and meetings instead.

Reply rateDeliverabilityPositive reply rateOpen rate
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Last updated 2026-10-14 by Ishan Vats.

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