Getting your emails delivered isn’t just about pressing “send.” True deliverability means your emails land in the right place, the inbox, and not the spam folder or disappear entirely. While content and list hygiene play a big role, your email service provider also matters. Some platforms make it easier to follow best practices and maintain a solid sender reputation.
That’s why we’ve moved away from seed list testing. These tests are increasingly unreliable and don’t reflect real-world sending conditions. Instead, our new deliverability rating criteria focus on what matters most – the tools each platform provides to help you reach the inbox and follow email deliverability best practices.
Let's look at how ActiveCampaign performs.
What is Email Deliverability?
If you think email deliverability means your emails get delivered to your recipients, you're not wrong. But, you're only half right. That's actually just email delivery.
Email deliverability, email delivery – what’s the difference? Well, here's the deal.
Email deliverability is the ability of your email to be delivered to your recipients’ inboxes. This includes the main inbox, social folder, or promotions tab. On the other hand, email delivery is when your emails are successfully sent to the receiving server, even when they land in the spam box. This measures the proportion of emails that didn’t bounce against the proportion of emails that did (read more about how to calculate email delivery rate.)
ActiveCampaign Email Deliverability Feature Breakdown
Authentication Compliance
ActiveCampaign requires proper domain authentication before sending emails. SPF and DKIM are part of the standard setup, and DMARC is encouraged. The platform provides clear setup instructions and in-platform warnings if your domain isn’t properly authenticated, especially important given Gmail and Yahoo’s recent requirements.
Spam Complaint Handling
The platform automatically suppresses emails to contacts who bounce, unsubscribe, or mark emails as spam. There’s also a built-in spam check tool to help flag risky content before you send. This can help prevent sudden dips in your sender's reputation.
Dedicated Deliverability Support
While ActiveCampaign doesn’t offer a dedicated deliverability dashboard, support is available through live chat and email. Enterprise users can access more hands-on assistance. Resources like deliverability guides and onboarding documentation are well-maintained and accessible to all users.
List Hygiene
ActiveCampaign allows you to automate the removal of unengaged or inactive contacts using its robust automation builder. While there’s no proprietary list cleaning tool, integrations with services like NeverBounce are available. Importantly, ActiveCampaign prohibits the use of purchased email lists.
IP Reputation and Warmup
Dedicated IPs are available for higher-volume accounts, and guidance is provided for warming up your sending reputation. This is especially useful for larger businesses or those migrating from another platform.
Final Thoughts: Is ActiveCampaign Good for Email Deliverability?
Yes, ActiveCampaign offers one of the most complete deliverability feature sets among email marketing platforms. From enforced domain authentication to automation-based list hygiene, the platform gives senders strong foundational tools to help keep their emails out of the spam folder.
While no platform can guarantee 100% inbox placement, ActiveCampaign makes it easier to follow best practices and stay in control of your sender reputation.
If you're unsure how your emails are performing, our Deliverability Audit can help. We'll review your sending setup, run multiple tests, and give you personalized recommendations to boost your inbox rates.
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29 July 2025 - Updated article
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This article has been written and researched following our EmailTooltester methodology.
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