How many emails can you send per day without deliverability issues?

When launching a cold email campaign, one of the most important questions you need to answer is: how many emails can you send per day without damaging your sender reputation? Sending too many emails at once can get you marked as spam, which can seriously affect your email campaigns and online reputation. In this article, we’ll discuss the sending limits of different Email Service Providers (ESPs), how to stay within these limits, and why you should be cautious with cold email strategies.

Sending limits of popular email service providers

Each email service provider has its own limits to prevent their services from being abused by spammers. It is essential to know and respect these limits to ensure that your emails do not end up in the spam folder and your campaigns remain effective.

Gmail and Google Workspace

Gmail is designed for businesses of all sizes, and offers powerful email marketing tools, including Google Workspace integration. However, Gmail places clear limits on the number of emails you can send:

• 2,000 emails per day for paid Google Workspace accounts.
• 1,500 emails per day for mail merge (formerly multi-send).
• 500 emails per day for trial accounts.

If you exceed these limits, you will receive an error message and your ability to send emails will be temporarily blocked. This can range from one to 24 hours, depending on the severity of the overage. Learn more about Gmail limits.

iCloud Mail

iCloud Mail, Apple's email service, is seamlessly integrated with other Apple devices and offers solid security and reliability. However, its limits are more restrictive compared to other providers:

• 1,000 messages per day.
• 1,000 recipients per day.
• 500 recipients per message.

Exceeding these limits will result in error messages that vary depending on the device, such as on your iPhone or through iCloud webmail. Learn more about iCloud limits.

Microsoft Outlook

Outlook.com is a robust solution for businesses that need powerful email capabilities combined with Office integration. Sending limits are generous, especially for paying subscribers:

• 5,000 daily recipients.
• Maximum 500 recipients per message.
• 1,000 unrelated recipients per day (recipients you have not emailed before).

These limits make Outlook ideal for businesses with larger mailing lists. If you exceed the limits, your account may be temporarily blocked. Learn more about Outlook limits.

Yahoo! Mail

Yahoo! Mail offers a user-friendly interface and is available on both desktop and mobile devices. However, the limits are stricter, especially in view of anti-spam policies:

• About 100 emails per hour.
• About 500 emails per day.
• About 100 recipients per email.

Yahoo does not publicly disclose the exact limits to combat spammers, but exceeding them will result in temporary restrictions. Learn more about Yahoo! Mail.

Proton Mail

Proton Mail is known for its privacy-first approach, using end-to-end encryption and zero-access encryption to secure users’ communications:

• 150 emails per day for free accounts.
• Unlimited number of emails for the Proton Unlimited Plan.

If you exceed the limits, your account may be temporarily blocked.

Zoho CRM

Zoho CRM is a comprehensive cloud-based solution that seamlessly integrates with other business apps, ideal for businesses looking to implement advanced email marketing strategies:

• 150 emails per day for free subscriptions.
• 250-2,000 emails per day for paid subscriptions, depending on the package.

It is important to stay within these limits to keep your campaigns effective. 

If you are marked as spam, you will receive a list of recommendations to get your account back into good standing. 

AOL Mail

AOL Mail, a service of Yahoo! Inc., provides a simple, Web-based email solution with basic functionality:

• About 100 recipients per message.
• About 500 recipients per day.

As with Yahoo! Mail, exact limits are not disclosed, but exceeding them will result in warnings and restrictions. 

Recommended Sending Limits for Success

While many email service providers allow you to send large volumes of emails, that doesn’t mean you should take advantage of those limits. In fact, it can be much more effective to build your email campaigns gradually and spread your sending activities strategically.

• Start with 20-30 emails per day: Start small and increase the number of emails as your domain warms up.
• Maximum 100-150 emails per day: For most cold email campaigns, this is a safe limit to protect your sender reputation.
• Spread your emails throughout the day: Avoid sending all emails in one batch. Spread them out over work hours to avoid spam filters.

This approach reduces the risk of being marked as spam and ensures your campaigns remain effective.

How much is too much?

In the world of cold email campaigns, less is often more. By adhering to your email service provider’s sending limits and strategically planning your campaigns, you can protect your sender reputation and increase your chances of success. Remember that email campaigns are a long-term strategy—it’s more important to be consistent and reliable than to grow quickly.

Want to learn more about crafting effective cold emails? Check out our article on how to write a cold email that gets read. And for more technical tips on improving your email deliverability, check out our guide on DMARC, DKIM and SPF.

Google Workspace in pictures

Watch a short video below about one of the popular choices, Google Workspace.