Blog

What’s the best time of day to send an email?

Do you ever wonder if your emails are actually being read?

Outlook offers the read receipt option, but receiving a message every time someone reads your email can be tiring.  Another option would be strategically sending your email at a time when it is most likely to be read.

USA Today published an article with this tip:

If you want to increase the chances of your message being read, you may want to know when experts say the best time of day is to send an email. Some say just before 9am because most people start their work day then — and thus, it’ll be one of the first messages they’ll see in their inbox. Before lunch might not be ideal, on the other hand, because people might be more focused on their stomach than the contents of their inbox. According to Pure360, an email marketing service firm, the best time to send an email is during the “Post Work Peak,” as people are finishing up at work and heading home. More than a quarter (26%) of marketing emails sent between 5pm and 6pm are opened, which is 9% more than other times of the day.

Consider the Delay Delivery option in Microsoft Outlook. It makes it easy to send emails at a specific time:

  • In the email, click on the Options tab. Find the More Options section and select Delay Delivery.
  • Under Delivery Options, select the Do not deliver before check box, and then select your preferred delivery date and time.
  • After you click Send, the message remains in the Outbox folder until the delivery time.