35 Email Bounce Rate Statistics Every E-Commerce Brand Needs to Know in 2025

Data-driven insights revealing how bounce rates impact revenue and why inbox placement determines email marketing success

Email bounce rates silently drain revenue from e-commerce brands while most marketers focus solely on open rates and click-throughs. With over 3.8 billion emails sent through Klaviyo each month, even minor bounce rate improvements translate to millions in recovered revenue. E-commerce brands using Mailmend report dramatic improvements in inbox placement that directly reduce bounce-related losses, with some achieving 50-100% increases in email revenue through better deliverability.

Key Takeaways

• E-commerce bounce rates vary significantly – Industry benchmarks range from 0.19% to 0.62%, with best-in-class Klaviyo accounts maintaining rates under 0.35%

• Database decay creates ongoing risk – At least 25% of email databases decay annually, making list hygiene essential

• Email delivers exceptional ROI – Brands see $36-$40 return for every $1 spent on email marketing

• Automated flows outperform campaigns – Email flows generate 30x more revenue per recipient than one-off campaigns

• Bounce rates above 5% damage reputation – ISPs flag senders with elevated bounce rates as potential spam sources

• Inbox placement directly impacts engagement – Moving emails from Promotions to Primary inbox significantly increases open and click rates

• Mobile dominates e-commerce – With 62.1% of sales happening on mobile, deliverability affects the majority of transactions

Understanding What is a Good Bounce Rate for Email Marketing

1. E-commerce email bounce rates average 0.31%

The average e-commerce bounce rate sits at 0.31%, setting a baseline for DTC brands to measure performance. This benchmark represents emails that fail to reach recipient inboxes due to invalid addresses, full mailboxes, or server issues.

2. Alternative e-commerce data shows 0.19% average bounce rates

Some industry data indicates e-commerce bounce rates as low as 0.19%, though this varies by source and methodology.

3. Healthy bounce rates should remain below 2%

Industry standards indicate that bounce rates under 2% represent acceptable deliverability for most industries. Rates exceeding this threshold signal list quality issues or technical problems requiring immediate attention.

4. Retail sector sees 0.62% average bounce rate

The broader retail industry experiences a 0.62% bounce rate, higher than e-commerce-specific averages due to varying list management practices across traditional and digital retailers.

5. Hard bounce rates average 0.19% globally

Permanent delivery failures from invalid addresses account for just 0.19% of emails globally. These hard bounces permanently remove recipients from active lists and directly impact sender reputation.

6. Soft bounce rates average 3.6% globally

Temporary delivery issues including full inboxes and server timeouts result in a 3.6% soft bounce rate across all industries. Unlike hard bounces, these recipients may receive future messages once the temporary issue resolves.

7. Bounce rates above 5% trigger reputation damage

ISPs and email providers consider bounce rates exceeding 5% a red flag that can damage sender reputation and future deliverability. Brands reaching this threshold face increased spam folder placement.

Impact of Bounce Rates on Your Email Open Rate

8. Klaviyo flow open rates reach 52.04%

Automated email sequences achieve 52.04% open rates when deliverability remains strong. This exceptional engagement depends on emails landing in the Primary inbox rather than the Promotions tab.

9. Campaign open rates average 39.74%

Standard email campaigns see 39.74% open rates in Klaviyo, though this figure drops significantly when emails land in secondary folders. Brands working with Mailmend's case studies demonstrate how Primary inbox placement dramatically improves these metrics.

10. Beauty and personal care brands maintain 0.26% bounce rates

The beauty industry achieves a 0.26% bounce rate, reflecting the high engagement levels typical of personal care email marketing.

11. Food and beverage sees 0.30% bounce rates

F&B brands experience 0.30% bounce rates, slightly higher than beauty but still within healthy ranges for subscription and promotional campaigns.

12. Automated flows generate 30x more revenue per recipient

The revenue impact of deliverability becomes clear when considering that automated flows produce 30x more revenue per recipient than one-off campaigns. Poor inbox placement undermines this massive revenue potential.

13. Abandoned cart flows deliver $3.65 revenue per recipient

Cart abandonment sequences generate $3.65 per recipient, but only when emails successfully reach the Primary inbox. With 70% of carts abandoned in e-commerce, maximizing cart recovery email delivery is essential.

The Critical Role of Email Deliverability to Mitigate Bounces

14. Klaviyo recommends flow bounce rates under 0.35%

Best practices from Klaviyo specify that flow bounce rates should remain under 0.35% to maintain healthy sender reputation. Exceeding this threshold suggests list quality issues or authentication problems.

15. Email marketing delivers $36-$40 ROI per dollar spent

The stakes for deliverability are high when email marketing generates $36-$40 in revenue for every $1 invested. Poor inbox placement and elevated bounce rates directly erode this exceptional return.

16. Email marketing accounts for 10.4% of e-commerce sales

With email driving 10.4% of sales, deliverability issues affect a significant revenue stream. Brands cannot afford to let bounce rates or Promotions tab placement diminish this channel's contribution.

17. 100,000+ businesses rely on Klaviyo for email marketing

Over 100,000 businesses use Klaviyo for their email marketing, making platform-specific deliverability solutions essential for the e-commerce ecosystem.

18. Website bounce rates increased 9.04% year-over-year

Market data shows website bounce rates rose 9.04% from October 2024 to October 2025, climbing from 40.04% to 43.66%. This demonstrates the importance of email marketing, which delivers higher-quality traffic than other channels.

Leveraging an Email Deliverability Test for Proactive Bounce Management

19. Klaviyo automatically suppresses after 7 consecutive soft bounces

The platform suppresses profiles that soft bounce 7 consecutive times, automatically protecting sender reputation. Understanding this mechanism helps brands maintain list health through proactive testing.

20. Top-performing brands maintain at least 10 active flows

High-performing Klaviyo accounts run at least 10 flows simultaneously, requiring robust deliverability testing to ensure consistent inbox placement across all automated sequences.

21. Welcome flows generate $2.65 revenue per recipient

Welcome sequences produce $2.65 per recipient, but this revenue depends entirely on successful delivery to engaged subscribers at their peak interest moment.

22. Email conversion rates average 9.6% for e-commerce

With 9.6% conversion rates, email remains the highest-converting digital channel—when messages reach the Primary inbox. Testing deliverability before major campaigns protects this conversion potential.

23. Email traffic has the lowest website bounce rate at 35.20%

Compared to other traffic sources, email maintains the lowest website bounce rate at 35.20%, demonstrating the qualified intent of email traffic when deliverability is optimized.

Choosing the Right Email Deliverability Tool to Reduce Bounce Rates

24. Marketing and advertising businesses experience 1.33% bounce rates

Some industries face elevated challenges, with marketing and advertising seeing 1.33% bounce rates—more than four times higher than e-commerce averages.

25. Construction industry sees 1.31% bounce rate

The construction industry experiences a 1.31% bounce rate, illustrating how industry-specific factors affect deliverability and the need for specialized solutions.

26. B2B services maintain 0.5% average bounce rates

Professional services achieve 0.5% average bounce rates, setting a benchmark for B2B email marketers focused on account-based strategies.

27. SaaS industry maintains 0.5% average bounce rates

Technology companies mirror B2B services with 0.5% bounce rates, reflecting the digital-native audiences typical of software businesses.

For e-commerce brands using Klaviyo, specialized tools like Mailmend provide algorithmic inbox placement technology that moves promotional emails from the Promotions tab to the Primary inbox. This approach addresses the visibility challenge that affects open rates independently of bounce rate management. Brands interested in exploring partnership opportunities can integrate deliverability solutions directly into their existing workflows.

Strategies to Improve Your Email List Management and Prevent Bounces

28. At least 25% of email databases decay annually

Email lists lose at least 25% of their value each year through job changes, abandoned addresses, and subscriber churn. This decay directly increases bounce rates without active list hygiene.

29. 30-40% of B2B lead lists contain catch-all emails

B2B marketers face additional challenges as 30-40% of lists consist of catch-all email addresses that may not reach intended recipients.

30. Hospitality and travel maintain 0.5% bounce rates

Service industries like hospitality achieve 0.5% bounce rates through careful subscriber management and transactional email focus.

31. Nonprofit organizations average 0.8% bounce rates

The nonprofit sector experiences 0.8% bounce rates, reflecting the engaged donor audiences typical of charitable organizations.

Effective list management combines regular validation, re-engagement campaigns, and proper opt-in processes. However, even perfect list hygiene cannot solve the Promotions tab placement issue that affects Gmail users—the primary challenge that Mailmend's technology addresses.

Beyond Email: Understanding Bounce Rate Website and Its Implications

32. E-commerce website bounce rates range from 20-45%

Website bounce rates for e-commerce sites fall between 20-45%, a separate metric from email bounce rates but equally important for conversion optimization.

33. Organic search traffic sees 43.60% website bounce rate

Visitors arriving from search engines bounce at 43.60%, highlighting the importance of landing page relevance for SEO traffic.

34. Social media traffic has the highest website bounce rate at 54%

Social visitors show the lowest intent, with 54% bouncing before engaging further—making email's 35.20% website bounce rate even more impressive by comparison.

Real-World Impact: How Improved Inbox Placement Reduces Bounce-Related Losses

35. Mobile accounts for 62.1% of e-commerce sales

With 62.1% of e-commerce sales occurring on mobile devices, email deliverability to mobile Gmail users becomes critical. The Promotions tab is particularly impactful on mobile, where users often ignore this folder entirely.

The global e-commerce market is expected to reach $6.3 trillion in 2024, with email marketing capturing a meaningful share of this revenue. Brands that optimize both bounce rates and inbox placement position themselves to capture more of this growth.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between a hard bounce and a soft bounce in email marketing?

A hard bounce represents a permanent delivery failure, typically caused by invalid email addresses, deleted accounts, or blocked domains. Hard bounces average 0.19% globally and should trigger immediate removal from your list. A soft bounce indicates temporary delivery issues like full mailboxes, server timeouts, or temporarily unavailable addresses, averaging 3.6% globally. Klaviyo automatically suppresses profiles after 7 consecutive soft bounces.

How does a high email bounce rate affect my sender reputation and future email deliverability?

Bounce rates above 5% signal to ISPs that your list contains outdated or invalid addresses, triggering reputation penalties. These penalties result in more emails landing in spam folders or the Promotions tab, creating a negative cycle that compounds over time. With email marketing generating $36-$40 ROI per dollar spent, reputation damage has significant revenue implications.

What specific metrics should I track in an email deliverability test to identify bounce risks?

Monitor hard bounce rate (target under 0.2%), soft bounce rate (target under 2%), overall bounce rate (target under 0.35% for Klaviyo flows), open rates (52.04% benchmark for flows, 39.74% for campaigns), and inbox placement rate. Track these metrics separately for flows versus campaigns to identify specific issues.

How quickly can I expect to see improvements in my bounce rate if I implement a deliverability solution?

List hygiene improvements typically show results within 1-2 email sends as invalid addresses are removed. Inbox placement solutions like Mailmend often demonstrate results within 24 hours, as documented in case studies showing same-day improvements in open rates and click-through rates. The key distinction is that bounce rate improvements require list cleanup, while inbox placement improvements require algorithmic optimization.

Is website bounce rate related to email bounce rate metrics?

These are entirely separate metrics. Email bounce rate measures failed message delivery (averaging 0.31% for e-commerce), while website bounce rate measures visitors who leave without interaction (ranging 20-45% for e-commerce). Interestingly, email traffic produces the lowest website bounce rate at 35.20% compared to social media at 54%, demonstrating email's superior traffic quality when deliverability is optimized.