How to Know If Someone Has Opened & Read Your Email

You work hard crafting the perfect email, but did it ever get read? In this tutorial, learn the multiple ways of how to know if someone opened your email.

Has this ever happened to you?

You send out an important email, expecting to hear back quickly. But. time passes, and nothing. After a while, you start to wonder whether your recipient ever read the email. There's no way to tell if an email has been read, or is there?

Fortunately, there are actually two ways to tell whether an email has been opened and read:

1. Request a return receipt
2. Use an email tracking tool

In this article, we'll discuss both methods of tracking email. We'll list some of the pros and cons of using return receipt messages or an email tracking tool. You'll also find out how to check if someone read your email using common email services. Finally, we'll provide you with a brief overview of seven popular email tracking tools.

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Now let's get into today's tutorial, and learn multiple ways to help you know when someone has opened and read your important emails. First, we'll look at using email return receipts:

The Pros and Cons of Return Receipt and Email Tracking

Finding out whether someone has opened and read your email may seem like something you'd like to use all the time. After all, aren't you curious? Email tracking tools are also popular with sales professionals.

But whether you use your email system's return receipt feature or an add-on tool, there are some drawbacks. First, let's look at some drawbacks to using native email return receipt capability:

• In most email platforms, a recipient can opt out of sending a return receipt—so there's no guarantee that you'll get a receipt even though you requested one.
• Not all mail clients support the return receipt feature. If you happen to use an email service that doesn't offer return receipt you'll need to use an app instead.

The following drawbacks apply to using either a native email return receipt feature or an email tracking tool:

• If the return receipt message goes to the Spam folder, your recipient will never have the chance to let you know they received it.
• Also, some recipients may be offended by an email return receipt request. They may view email tracking as an invasion of their privacy.

Return receipt requests and email tracking do not work for every situation. There are some circumstances, however, when an email return request might be appropriate. It's especially well suited for urgent messages or messages when you must know whether your message was received. For example:

• You just sent someone a time-sensitive proposal through email. You'll probably want to make sure that the message was received before the offer expires.
• You're a hiring manager trying to fill an open position. You just offered the slot to your top candidate and you want to make sure that they received your offer.
• You need to schedule a last-minute emergency meeting. You need to know who has opened the meeting invite and who you need to call so that you can tell them about the meeting.

For instances like these, return receipt messages and email tracking can be a valuable tool for your business. You can probably think of your own examples when you might need to find out whether someone has opened an email you sent. Just remember the drawbacks. If you decide you do want to send out return receipt request or to use an email tracking tool, make sure the situation warrants it.

Request a Return Receipt Through Your Email (In Outlook & Gmail)

The first way to discover whether someone has opened your email is by you requesting a return receipt through your email service. In this section, we'll look at how the return receipt feature works in Microsoft Outlook and then we'll examine how it works in GSuite Gmail. First, let's look at Outlook:

How to Tell If Someone Read Your Email in Outlook

Outlook provides two different options for requesting a return receipt:

1. Receipt when delivered
2. Receipt when read

With the first option, you receive a notification when an email has been delivered to the recipient. Of course, just because the message is delivered doesn't mean it was read. The message may sit unopened in someone's email inbox and you wouldn't know.

Which brings us to the next return receipt option in Outlook. With the second option, your recipient is prompted to send a notification when they open the email.

If you decide to use the return receipt feature in Outlook, click Options on the Main Menu as you're composing your message. A sub-menu with various options appears:

To request a delivery receipt when your message is sent, click the checkbox to the left of Request a Delivery Receipt. To request a receipt when your message is opened, click the checkbox to the left of the Request a Read Receipt option. You can select both options if you wish.

Now, send your message as usual. If you selected Request a Read Receipt, the recipient will be prompted to send a notification when they open your message. If they respond Yes to the prompt, you'll receive a read receipt—a short message to let you know that your original message was read.

You can also use Tracking options to automate how Outlook handles message receipts for outgoing and incoming messages. For helpful tips on how to better manage your Outlook inbox, study our tutorial: