Cold Emailing

How many emails should you send to protect your deliverability?

lemlist team
LAST UPDATED
August 6, 2024
READING TIME
7 min.

Sending too many cold emails can hurt your deliverability.

But how many is too many?

Is this article, we’ll discuss two types of sending limits and how to stay out of trouble.

What kind of limits are there? And what happens when you exceed them?

Limits are there for a reason…

So, before we dive into sending out our email campaigns we need to revise closely how many emails we can actually send out without risking our sender reputation.

To begin with, if we exceed the limit set by our provider, we run the risk of being suspended. This could last 24 hours or it could be permanent. Not an ideal situation.

In addition:

If we send a large amount of emails and a large percentage bounces back due to an exceeded limit we could face further risks where our brand image and sender reputation can take a serious hit. When that happens, our email deliverability will suffer greatly.

How can I respect email-sending limits?

The best way to respect email-sending limits is by having sending schedules.

If you choose to do this with a cold email tool, you can adjust your settings so that emails are spread out throughout the day and not sent out in the form of blasts.

We recommend sending around 100 emails a day, spread out throughout the day so you mimic actual human behavior and protect your email deliverability as much as possible.

For scheduling stick to these tips:

  • Respect the weekends
  • Chose timeframes that suit your target audience’s working hours
  • Stick to a 100-daily email limit
  • Leave some space between each email you send so you're not sending multiple emails at the same time

Slow and steady wins the race

Email algorithms are tricky and on a daily basis, we see more spammers and scammers pop up, so protecting recipients has become a major concern for email service providers, which is why it is crucial to be sensible about our email campaigns.

We don’t want to send out 300 emails in one day and get a super low response percentage, because that will seriously harm our domain.

If you want to make sure you’re protecting your email deliverability, you should have a good deliverability checklist to ensure you’re following every step correctly.

Whether you’re losing sleep over exceeding limits or just want to save some time, use a tool such as lemlist, where you can automate all of your cold emails and adjust your own limits and schedules!

What are the limits?

We can take into consideration two different types of limits. The limits imposed by our email service providers, and on the other hand the recommended limit to ensure success.

ESP Limits

Generally, email service providers set limits in order to avoid spammers and scammers.

In most cases, the ESP (Email Service Provider) could flag our account as SPAM and shut it down altogether. Which is obviously far from our goal

Here’s a list of 8 of the most popular email service providers, so you can take into account the limitations of your provider.

ESP Sending Limit/Day Pricing
Gmail
and
Google Workspace
Google Workspace - 2000 emails
Mail merge - 1500 emails
Trial accounts - 500 emails
Free plan,
from $6
(Business Starter)


iCloud Mail
1000 messages
1000 recipients
500 recipients/message
The size of incoming and outgoing messages (20MB)

Free,
starts at $0.99
(for 50GB)

Microsoft Outlook
5,000 recipients
Up to 500 recipients/message
1000 non-relationship recipients

Free

Yahoo! Mail
Approx. 100 emails/hour
Approx. 500 emails
Approx. 100 recipients

Free

Proton Mail
‍Free plan - 150 emails
Proton Unlimited plan - unlimited
Free,
from $3.99/month
(Mail Plus)


Zoho CRM
Free plan - 150 emails
Standard Edition - 250 emails
Professional Edition - 500 emails
Enterprise Edition - 1000 emails
Ultimate Edition - 2000 emails

Free,
from $15
(Standard Edition)

GMX Spamhaus (spam filtering software) in place Free

AOL Mail
Approx. 100 recipients/messages
Approx. 500 recipients/connections

Free

Gmail and Google Workspace

Gmail is designed for businesses of all types and sizes, it is a cloud-based email marketing solution that assists with creating custom professional email addresses, sending bulk emails, etc.

Plus it is integrated into Google Workspace.

📊 Email sending limits per day
2,000 emails with a paid Google Workspace account
1,500 emails for mail merge (previously called multi-send)
500 emails for trial accounts

Should you exceed an email sending limit, you’ll get an error message, such as:

  • You have reached a limit for sending email.
  • You reached a Gmail sending limit.
  • You exceeded the maximum number of recipients.

💰Pricing  Free plan, from $6 (Business Starter)

iCloud Mail

iCloud Mail is an email service provider brought by Apple, which seamlessly integrates with all your other Apple devices.

📊 Email sending limit
1,000 messages per day
1,000 recipients per day
500 recipients per message
The size of incoming and outgoing messages (20MB)

Should you exceed the sending limit, you could receive one of these error messages:

  • On your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch: A copy has been placed in your Outbox. Sending the message failed because you exceeded your sending limit.
  • On your Mac: Cannot send messages using the server iCloud.
  • On iCloud webmail: Cannot send message. You have exceeded the total number of messages you can send each day (or you have exceeded the total number of recipients you can message each day). Or, Recipient limit exceeded. This message cannot be sent because it has too many recipients.

💰 Pricing Free, starts at $0.99 (for 50GB)

Microsoft Outlook

Work efficiently with email, calendar, contacts, tasks, and more—together in one place. Office integration lets you share attachments right from OneDrive, access contacts, and view LinkedIn profiles.

📊 Email sending limits
5,000 daily recipients
500 maximum recipients per message
1,000 non-relationship recipients per day

Should you exceed the sending limit, you could receive a message such as this:

  • Our daily message limit was meant to stop spammers--we're sorry that it's getting in your way. You can wait a day to send your message.

💰 Pricing  Free

Yahoo! Mail

Yahoo Mail is a web-based email app that can be accessed on desktops and mobile devices. It includes features for document and image storage, travel confirmations, package delivery tracking, etc.

📊 Email sending limits
100 emails per hour approximately
500 emails a day  approximately
100 recipients  approximately

Yahoo! Mail does not disclose the exact email-sending limit in order to better enforce anti-spam policies. However, should you exceed their limits, you will receive a notification where they state the time you have to wait to continue sending emails.

💰 Pricing Free

Proton Mail

Proton Mail is a private email service that uses open source, independently audited end-to-end encryption and zero-access encryption to secure your communications.

📊 Email sending limits
150 emails per day for free plans
Unlimited message with the Proton Unlimited Plan

Should you exceed the sending limit, you could receive a message such as:

• You are temporarily banned from sending because of spammy or undeliverable emails

💰 Pricing Free, from $3.99/month (Mail Plus)

Zoho CRM

This omnichannel, cloud-based software solution is a centralized platform to track leads, automate sales workflows, generate invoices, and seamlessly integrate with 500+ third-party apps.

📊 Email sending limits
150 emails per day Free plan
250 emails per day Standard Edition
500 emails per day Professional Edition
1000 emails per day Enterprise Edition
2000 emails per day Ultimate Edition

Should you exceed the sending limit you could receive an email stating

  • Error (5.4.6 Mail rate exceeded)

💰 Pricing Free, from $15 (Standard Edition)

GMX

GMX is another multi-faceted provider, with just one of its services being free email accounts.

📊 Email sending limits
Spamhaus (spam filtering software) in place

Should you be flagged as spam, you will receive a fair warning in your inbox. GMX gives you a list of recommendations to follow if you have been flagged as spam.

💰 Pricing Free

AOL Mail

AOL Mail is a free web-based email service provided by AOL, a division of Yahoo! Inc.

📊 Email sending limits
100 recipients/message approximately
500 recipients/connection approximately

AOL does not disclose the exact email-sending limit. Should you exceed this limit, you will receive a notification, where it generally states the waiting time.

💰 Pricing Free

Recommended limits

Even if we have the capacity to send thousands of email a day, it wouldn’t serve our personal interests.

The fact that we can sit around all day and watch TV doesn’t mean that we should, does it?

We recommend warming up your account starting at 10-20 emails per day, and ramping up to 100 emails per day by the fourth week or so.

After your account has been properly warmed up you could send up to 150-200 emails a day.

We do not recommend exceeding this amount due to the fact that not all your emails will be answered, opened, or maybe even delivered. Bear in mind that bounced email addresses will surely hurt your send reputation and email deliverability.

You want to take a slow and steady pace which will give you the opportunity to stop, check, and tweak if there are any issues arising along the way.

It’s also essential to verify all emails before using them to minimize bounces.

Key Takeaways

  • Limits are there to protect us
  • Slow and steady wins the race. Set out a schedule before jumping into the cold email pool.Stick to a 100-150 sending limit
  • Be consistent with your cold email campaigns
  • Don’t neglect your email deliverability and be conscious about it
  • Understanding the rules and limits put in place by our provider can save us a lot of pain
lemlist team
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G2 Rating
Price
Best for
Standout feature
Con
4.9
star
star
star
star
star
$30/mo
$75/mo
$2,999/mo
Large, distributed sales teams
AI evaluation precision, gamified KPIs
Lack of tracking system
4.6
star
star
star
star
star-half
Not publicly available
Sales operations and finance teams
Powerful configurability
Limited training resources and complex to navigate
4.4
star
star
star
star
star-half
Not publicly available
Mid-market and enterprise businesses
Comprehensive incentive management
Potentially high cost and steep learning curve
4.7
star
star
star
star
star-half
$15/user/mo
$40/user/mo
Enterprise: custom price
Complex sales structures and businesses of all sizes
Complex sales structures and businesses of all sizes
Steep learning curve
4.6
star
star
star
star
star-half
Not publicly available
Collaborative teams
Connected planning
Complexity and steep learning curve
4.6
star
star
star
star
star-half
Not publicly available
Companies with complex sales structures
Complex incentive compensation management (ICM) with high efficiency and accuracy
Complexity for smaller teams and potentially high costs
4.7
star
star
star
star
star-half
Not publicly available
Companies who want to automate commission calculations and payouts
Simplicity and ease of use
Lack of features like redirection
4.7
star
star
star
star
star-half
$30/user/mo
$35/user/mo
Custom: upon request
Businesses that need a comprehensive and user-friendly sales compensation management software
Ease of use and adoption
Lack of ability to configure the product based on user needs
4.8
star
star
star
star
star-half
Not publicly available
Companies with modern sales culture and businesses who want real-time insights
A built-in dispute management and real-time visibility
Users say it works slowly, customer support is slow
4.9
star
star
star
star
star
$30/user/mo
$50/user/mo
Smaller sales teams
Powerful automation
Lesser user base and average user interface
4.7
star
star
star
star
star-half
Not publicly available
Companies with scalable needs
Automated Commission Calculations
Lack of filtering by date, no mobile app
ERP vs. CRM
ERP
CRM
Summary
Backbone of a business's internal operations.
Backbone of customer-centric interactions and operations.
Goal
To centralize and streamline core business processes in a company.
To increase customer experience, satisfaction and loyalty, and boost sales.
Focus
Internal operations and processes across departments (finance, accounting, inventory, supply chain, HR, and sales).
All interactions with leads and customers.
Manages
Internal business data like financial data, inventory levels, production details, supply chain, HR info.
All customer data like contact info, purchase history, communication history, customer preferences and more.
Users
Finance, accounting, operations, supply chain, and HR departments.
Customer-facing teams like sales, marketing, and customer service.
Benefits
Streamlines operations, improves data accuracy, enhances decision-making, boosts collaboration, increases productivity.
Improves customer relationships, increases sales, strengthens customer service, personalizes marketing campaigns, provides insights.
Price
$150 per user per year on average.
$10 to $30 per user per month on average.
PRM Tool
Rating
Feature
Pro
Con
Mobile App
Integrations
Free Plan
Pricing
4.65
star
star
star
star
star-half
Org-wide alignment
User-friendly layout and database
Suboptimal as a personal CRM
square-check
Lack of tracking system
square-check
Team: $20/month
Business: $45/month
4.7
star
star
star
star
star-half
Social Media Integration
Easy contact data collection
No marketing/sales features
square-check
Lack of tracking system
square-xmark
7-day trial
$12/month
4.75
star
star
star
star
star-half
Block Functions
High customization capability
Not a dedicated CRM
square-check
Limited
square-check
Plus: €7.50/month
Business: €14/month
N/A
Open-source
Open-source flexibility
Requires extensive manual input
square-xmark
Limited
square-check
Self-hosted
$9/month or
$90/year
3.1
star
star
star
Simple iOS app
Ideal for non-tech-savvy users
iPhone only
square-check
iOS only
Limited
square-xmark
1-month trial
$1.49/month or
$14.99/month
3.6
star
star
star
star-half
Smart Contact Management
Feature-rich and flexible
Reported bugs
square-check
Rich
square-xmark
7-day trial
Premium: $13.99/month
Teams: $17.99/month
4.4
star
star
star
star
star-half
Customizable Interface
Customizable for teamwork
Pricey for personal use
square-check
Rich
square-xmark
Standard: $24/member
Premium: $39/member
4.7
star
star
star
star
star-half
Integrated Calling
Integrated Calling
Too sales-oriented & pricey
square-check
Rich
square-xmark
14-day trial
Startup: $59/user/month
Professional: $329/user/month
4.8
star
star
star
star
star
Business Card Scanning
Business Card Scanning
Mobile only
square-check
Limited
square-check
$9.99/month
4.45
star
star
star
star
star-half
160+ app integrations
Comprehensive integrations
No free app version
square-check
Rich
square-xmark
14-day trial
$29.90/month or
$24.90/month (billed annually)
Capterra Rating
Free Trial
Free Plan
Starting Price (excluding the free plan)
Maximum Price (for the most expensive plan)
Best for
4.5
star
star
star
star
star-half
square-check
14-day
square-check
€15/month/seat billed annually
€792/month/3 seats billed annually + €45/month for each extra seat
Versatility and free plan
4.2
star
star
star
star
square-check
30-day
square-xmark
But it offers reduced price to authorised nonprofit organisations
€25/user/month
€500/user/month billed annually (includes Einstein AI)
Best overall operational CRM
4.3
star
star
star
star
star-half
square-xmark
square-check
Limited to 3 users
Comprehensive incentive management
€52/user/month billed annually
Small-medium businesses and automation
4.5
star
star
star
star
star-half
square-check
14-day
square-xmark
€14/seat/month billed annually
€99/seat/month billed annually
Sales teams and ease of use
4.1
star
star
star
star
square-xmark
square-check
Limited 10 users
$9.99/user/month billed annually
$64.99/user/month billed annually
Free plan for very small teams up to 10
CRM goal
Increase the sales conversion rate for qualified leads from marketing automation campaigns by 10% in the next 6 months.
SMART Breakdown
1. Specific: It targets a specific area (conversion rate) for a defined segment (qualified leads from marketing automation).
2. Measurable: The desired increase (10%) is a clear metric, and the timeframe (6 months) allows for progress tracking.
3. Achievable: A 10% increase is possible based on historical data and potential improvements.
4. Relevant: Boosting sales from marketing efforts aligns with overall business objectives.
5. Time-bound: The 6-month timeframe creates urgency and a clear target date.
Actions
Step 1: Refine lead qualification criteria to ensure high-quality leads are nurtured through marketing automation.
Step 2: Personalize marketing automation campaigns based on lead demographics, interests, and behavior.
Step 3: Develop targeted landing pages with clear calls to action for qualified leads.
Step 4: Implement lead scoring to prioritize high-potential leads for sales follow-up.
Step 5: Track and analyze campaign performance to identify areas for optimization.
Outcomes
Increased sales and revenue
Improved marketing automation ROI
Marketing and sales alignment
Data-driven marketing optimization
Table
CDP Software
CRM Software
Approach
Data-centric
Customer-centric
Focus
Interactions across various channels and touchpoints, both online and offline.
Sales, marketing, and customer service interactions.
Functionality
Automatically collects, organizes, tags, and makes data available in real-time.
Helps businesses track customer interactions, sales pipelines, prospects, and service requests.
Goals
Personalized customer experiences across all channels.
Better customer relationships, streamlined processes, and improved profitability.
Benefits
Data integration, management, and accessibility, allowing for detailed analysis and segmentation.
Better communication within teams and with customers by organizing information about customer interactions and history.
Data Handling
Handles both identified and anonymous data, stitches together various data points.
Deals primarily with identified customer data.
Use Cases
Personalized marketing campaigns, targeted advertising, content customization across multiple channels.
Managing campaigns and leads, enhancing customer service, providing better customer support, increasing customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Examples
Insider, Bloomreach, Salesforce Marketing Cloud CDP
HubSpot, Salesforce Sales Cloud Lightning Professional, and Zoho CRM
CRM
Free plan
Best feature
Best for
Con
1. HubSpot CRM
square-check
Sales automation
Sales teams
Up to 1,000 contacts
2. Insightly
square-check
Custom fields
Basic needs
Not enough info about the free plan
3. Agile CRM
square-check
Deal and sales pipeline tracking
Small teams
Up to 10 users
4. Zoho CRM
square-check
Lead and contact management
Businesses of all sizes
Limited to 3 users
5. ClickUp
square-check
Unlimited tasks and unlimited members
Personal use
Up to 100MB storage
6. EngageBay
square-check
Live chat
Small and midsize enterprises
Up to 1,000 branded emails per month
7. Bitrix24
square-check
Unlimited users and 5 scrum teams
Big teams
Up to 5GB of cloud storage
8. FreshSales
square-check
Easy to use and simple setup
Beginners
Up to 3 users
9. Mailchimp
square-check
Very beginner friendly
Marketing teams
Send up to 500 branded emails per month
Type of Affiliate Marketing
Unattached
Related
Involved
Format
Paid advertising
Social media or YouTube channels
Dedicated website or blog
Focus
Quick income
Your niche
Your audience
Engagement with your audience
square-xmark
square-check
square-check
square-check
square-check
Very close connection with your audience
Pro
Little effort
Higher credibility thanks to your niche
Long-lasting and scalable
Con
Paid ads cost a lot
Potential for bias since you don’t use the thing you promote
Require time, effort, and dedication

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