The Not-So-Basic Basics: Email Engagement In 2026

Welcome to the first blog in our brand-new series all about email and mobile marketing engagement. Over the coming weeks, Dotdigital’s marketing channel experts will be sharing their top tips for driving standout results in 2026, alongside the latest engagement benchmarks from Dotdigital’s Global benchmark report.

We’ll break down what the numbers really mean for your marketing, and share practical, actionable ways you can outperform the benchmarks.

In this first instalment, Brianna Martinez, Dotdigital’s Email Marketing Strategist, dives into everything you need to know about email engagement in 2026 and how to make sure your campaigns are set up for success.

What is a good email open rate?

The first step of engaging with an email is of course, an email open. Dotdigital’s 2026 Global benchmark report shows that email open rates are up across the globe year-on-year, even as send volumes continue to climb. This suggests audiences aren’t tiring of the channel – but how they interact with emails is changing. Click behavior tells a more nuanced story, which we’ll explore later in this blog.

The global average open rate for emails sits at 55.4%, with unique open rate sitting at 37.3% – highlighting the difference between total engagement and individual reach.

You can get open rate benchmarks for your particular industry or continent in the full 2026 Global benchmark report here.

How to calculate email open rate?

The formula to calculate email open rate is: (total number of opened emails ÷ total number of emails delivered) × 100

For unique email open rate, it’s: (number of unique recipients who opened the email ÷ total number of delivered emails) × 100

All good email marketing platforms will automatically calculate this metric for you and include it in your email reporting dashboard.

How can I increase my email open rates?

If you find your email open rates to be below the benchmark, don’t panic. There are lots of things you can do to improve this metric.

Three areas to start optimizing:

1. Rethink your subject lines
   • Create urgency and grab attention (e.g., “You’re invited to our VIP flash sale” or “You’re missing out on something big!”)
   • Add personalization where possible (“Natasha, see what everyone’s talking about!” or “You have $5 to redeem before December!”)
   • Use relevant emojis to stand out in crowded inboxes and add color to your subject line

Dotdigital’s WinstonAI analyzes your customers’ past behavior to suggest engaging subject lines and generate split-test variations for you to run.

2. Make the most of your preheader text
   This space is often overlooked, but it is an opportunity to build on your subject line. Use it to add context, include personalization, and bonus points if you can inject humor to grab your audience’s attention.
3. Experiment with your friendly from name
   While it shouldn’t change too often, this field can help your emails feel more human and familiar. Using a recognizable person’s name can create connection and trust, for example, “From: Milan Patel, CEO of Dotdigital” or “From: Brianna, your personal digital stylist.”

As well as these tips, find out what resonates with your unique audience. My number one rule is to always split test!

What is a good email click rate?

Open rates show that your brand is worth listening to, while click-through rates reveal how well you convert that attention into action. Together, they offer a view of performance combined with interaction.

This year’s report shows a slight decline in click rates year-on-year. Unique click-through rate has seen a decline of 1.6% and click-to-open rate has seen a decline of 8.3% year-on-year.

Consumer behavior is changing, and a decline in click rates is not because email is losing relevance, but because audiences are becoming more selective with what they interact with.

It’s a trend that mirrors what’s happening across digital channels: attention is fragmenting, and people are consuming information in more passive ways. Almost 60% of Google searches on mobile now end without any clicks.

Global email click rates:

• Click-through rate = 3.7%
• Unique click-through rate = 1.4%
• Click-to-open rate = 3.7%

You can get click rate benchmarks for your industry and region in the full 2026 Global benchmark report here.

Effective emails do more than drive clicks, they spark curiosity, strengthen relationships, and keep your brand top of mind.

How to calculate email click-through rates

The formula to calculate email click-through rate is: (total number of clicks ÷ total number of delivered emails) × 100

The formula for unique click-through rate is: (number of unique recipients who clicked at least one link ÷ total number of delivered emails) × 100

The formula for click-to-open rate is: (total number of clicks ÷ total number of opened emails) × 100

How can I increase email clicks?

Don’t worry about the slight year-on-year decline in unique CTR and CTOR, but you should pay attention to how subscribers interact with your content to know how to pivot.

When email clicks are down, there are different strategies to try. Here’s where to focus:

Three ways to increase email clicks

1. Analyze what’s working: Review your top-performing email campaigns to uncover what drove the most engagement and then use these insights to repeat what resonates.

• Do your top five click-driving emails share common traits, e.g., product type, tone, layout, or topic?
• Analyze which sections drove the most clicks, and also study which type of CTA worked best. Was it in-copy links or CTA buttons? Implement split tests to optimize what performs well, e.g., if buttons drive most of your clicks, test the language on your buttons, such as ‘Buy now’ versus ‘Learn more’.

2. Refine personalization and relevancy: We know that personalization and relevancy aren’t the same, and consumers crave both. Make your emails feel timely, helpful, and uniquely targeted to the individual by:

• Including product recommendations based on past purchases or browsing behavior
• Highlighting loyalty status exclusives and reward redemption opportunities
• Tailoring messaging to subscriber preferences, seasonal interests, or engagement patterns

3. Lead with attraction: Building on what you learned in points 1 and 2, focus on what your audience finds appealing and make it personally meaningful:

• If they engage most during promotions, focus on highlighting value that’s unique to the subscriber – highlight their exclusive access to VIP offers and run email-exclusive sales
• If they respond to social proof, use authentic UGC (user-generated content) and reviews related to the types of products they browse

Email engagement in 2026

Keeping track of your email engagement is how you know what’s working and what’s not. Sometimes trends will be down to something bigger than your own brand, such as Gmail changes or a shift in customer behavior across the board. These benchmarks give you the context to see what email marketing engagement numbers the wider industry is seeing, so you can tell if you’re falling behind or if you’re doing well against your competition.

These tips are designed to give you some pointers on where to start optimizing for stronger results, and always remember to test and find what works best for your email subscribers. If you’d like some direct support on your email marketing strategy, take a look at the email marketing services we provide to help you meet your marketing goals.