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Email Marketing Glossary.

Clear, no-fluff definitions of every email marketing term that matters—from open rates to double opt-in. 

 

Sender Score

Sender Score is a reputation rating (0–100) assigned to a sending IP address based on its email behavior. A higher score signals trustworthiness to mailbox providers and improves inbox placement.

Also known as: sender reputation score, IP score

Think of Sender Score like a credit score for your sending IP. Mailbox providers use reputation signals like it to decide whether your mail belongs in the inbox — or the spam folder.

How is Sender Score calculated?

It's based on factors like complaint rates, bounce rates, spam-trap hits, sending volume and consistency, and blocklist appearances, scored from 0 to 100. Higher is better.

Why does Sender Score matter?

A low score means more of your mail gets filtered or blocked. Providers weigh reputation heavily, so protecting your score protects your revenue.

How do you improve your Sender Score?

Keep complaints and bounces low, authenticate your domain, warm new IPs gradually, mail only engaged subscribers, and stay off blocklists.

Related terms

Email Deliverability Sender Reputation SPF DKIM DMARC Hard Bounce

Related reading from Drip

How to Achieve a Great Email Sender Reputation What's a Good Email Deliverability Rate in 2026?

Frequently asked questions

What is a Sender Score?
Sender Score is a 0–100 rating of a sending IP address's reputation, based on its email behavior. A higher score signals trustworthiness to mailbox providers and helps your emails reach the inbox.
How is Sender Score calculated?
It draws on factors like spam complaint rates, bounce rates, spam-trap hits, sending volume and consistency, and blocklist appearances, expressed on a 0–100 scale where higher is better.
What's the difference between Sender Score and sender reputation?
Sender reputation is the broad concept of how mailbox providers view you; Sender Score is one specific numeric rating of a sending IP's reputation. Score is a measurable snapshot of the wider reputation.
How do I improve my Sender Score?
Keep spam complaints and bounces low, authenticate your domain with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC, warm up new IPs gradually, mail only engaged subscribers, and avoid practices that land you on blocklists.
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