Zeta Global has just released its Q1 2026 Email and SMS Marketing Benchmark Report, giving marketers fresh performance data to measure their campaigns against real industry standards. According to Spam Resource, the report covers open rates, click-through rates, and unsubscribe percentages across sectors including Retail, Financial Services, Travel and Hospitality, and Media. For any marketer who has been guessing whether their numbers are healthy or simply hoping for the best, this report removes the guesswork.
What the Report Covers
Zeta's benchmark methodology analyzes data on sends, unique opens, unique clicks, unique unsubscribes, and corresponding rates across four core sectors: Retail, Travel, Hospitality and Entertainment, Financial Services and Insurance, and Media. The analysis draws on insights from over 100 U.S. marketers.
The Q1 2026 edition follows the same structured approach Zeta has applied in previous quarters. Zeta's benchmark reports share aggregated data covering sends, open rates, click rates, click-to-open rates, and unsubscribe rates, including year-over-year changes. That year-over-year layer is what makes this data particularly useful: it shows whether your sector is trending up or declining, not just where it sits today.
The report also extends beyond email. SMS performance data is included, reflecting growing marketer interest in how the two channels compare and where they complement each other.
Why Industry-Specific Benchmarks Matter
Comparing your email results to a generic cross-industry average is close to useless. Email marketing benchmarks vary significantly by industry, and performance metrics only make real sense when compared against similar businesses. A "good" open rate or click-through rate in one sector may be average or even weak in another.
In 2026, an estimated 392.5 billion emails are sent every day. With inboxes that crowded, small differences in performance can create meaningful differences in leads, revenue, or retention.
