Saturday morning. Quieter inbox. Fewer messages. It might be the perfect time to stand out. But is it really effective to send emails on the weekend? This practice divides opinions: some see an opportunity, others a trap to avoid. Yet data and behaviors are changing. Let’s explore the stakes of weekend emailing, the best practices to adopt, and the mistakes to avoid so you can boost performance without overwhelming your audiences.
Table of contents- What are the benefits of sending emails on the weekend?
- What are the risks of sending on Saturday or Sunday?
- 5 best practices to make your weekend campaigns succeed
- Weekday vs. weekend performance comparison table
- In short: Sending emails on the weekend—good or bad idea?
What are the benefits of sending emails on the weekend?
The weekend is often underused by marketers. And yet, audiences are available, relaxed, and less solicited. Emails sent on Saturday or Sunday can surface more easily in a lighter inbox. Key advantages include:
- Less competition, therefore more visibility
- Sometimes higher open rates depending on the target
- Great timing for inspirational, editorial, or event-driven emails
- Well-suited to B2C, lifestyle, culture, and media sectors
What are the risks of sending on Saturday or Sunday?
If your audience is mainly B2B, weekends are often a lull. And even for consumer audiences, expectations shift. Sending a marketing email on the weekend can fall flat if the content isn’t the right fit. Main risks include:
- Fewer clicks if the subject line isn’t engaging
- Unsubscribes if the message feels too intrusive
- Poor timing if you target an audience that’s highly active on weekdays
- More fragile weekend email deliverability without a history of regular sends
5 best practices to make your weekend campaigns succeed
- Finely segment your audience and test by day
- Prioritize inspirational, cultural, or entertaining content
- Optimize the subject line for mobile, since weekend email reading often happens on smartphones
- Use monitoring tools to measure Sunday email engagement
- Automate based on past behavior with weekend marketing automation
Weekday vs. weekend performance comparison table
| Metric | Weekdays (Tue–Thu) | Weekend (Sat–Sun) |
|---|---|---|
| Open rate | 22% | 24% |
| Click rate | 2.9% | 2.5% |
| Unsubscribe rate | 0.15% | 0.12% |
| Mobile CTR | 55% | 72% |
| Post-click engagement | Average | Varies by content |
Short on time? Here’s the recap
In short: Sending emails on the weekend—good or bad idea?
- Sending emails on the weekend helps you stand out in a less crowded inbox.
- Saturday or Sunday email campaigns can achieve solid open rates depending on the audience.
- Mobile is the primary reading channel, so a clear subject line and mobile-friendly content are essential.
- Overly commercial or poorly targeted emails can hurt engagement or sender reputation.
- Weekend email deliverability depends on a controlled strategy and solid sending history.
- Testing, segmentation, and inspirational content are key to making the most of weekend emailing.
Why can sending emails on the weekend boost—or hurt—your marketing results?
Sending emails on the weekend can be very effective… if you target well! There’s less inbox competition, but a different audience: test, segment, and analyze. The right message, at the right time, to the right person—that’s the key.
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