Email open rates used to be a simple, reliable metric. Today, they’re a bit more complicated. If you’ve noticed missing, inconsistent, or suspiciously low (or high) open metrics in digital marketing platforms like Click, Zoho Marketing Apps, HubSpot Marketing, or Constant Contact, you’re not alone.
However, before we get into the why, let’s take a step back and learn about how opens are tracked first! Most email platforms track an “open” using a tiny invisible tracking pixel embedded in the email. When the recipient loads the images in an email, that pixel triggers and records the email was opened.
So, if the pixel doesn’t load, no “open” is recorded, even if the email was read.
That detail is the main cause of most tracking issues.
Now that you have the background information, here are some of the reasons why email opens may not be tracked accurately anymore:
Privacy changes block open tracking
Major email providers have made open tracking more difficult through:
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- Stronger firewall and spam protection tools.
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- Prevention or delay techniques for accurate pixel triggering.
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- Blocking pixel tracking entirely.
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Images are disabled or not loaded
The tracking pixel may never load, and the open is never recorded if a recipient:
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- Has images turned off.
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- Reads emails in plain-text mode.
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- Uses security-focused email.
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Corporate security and spam filters interfere
Many organizations use email security tools that:
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- Scan emails before delivery.
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- Strip tracking pixels.
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- Open emails in sandbox environments.
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Again, these measures happen before the email ever reaches the recipient. As a result, open and engagement metrics may appear inflated, missing, or unreliable even when recipients are reading the email.
What should you rely on instead?
Since open tracking is becoming increasingly unreliable, most marketers now prioritize:
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- Click-through rates.
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- Email replies.
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- Website behavior.
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These actions have a greater chance of reflecting real engagement.
If your email open rates suddenly look unreliable, don’t panic. It doesn’t mean your emails aren’t being read, your system is broken, or your campaigns are failing; it means technology has evolved.
Today, open rates are a supportive metric, not an exact measure of success. The smartest move for marketing teams is to recognize this shift and adjust accordingly, focusing instead on meaningful engagement metrics that reflect real behavior like clicks, conversions, replies, and revenue impact.
If you need help with your email marketing campaigns or understanding best practices, reach out to TopLine at 1-800-880-1960 or email info@toplineresults.com .