The Ultimate Guide To Email List Cleaning in 2025
Email list cleaning is more important than ever in 2025, especially with Klaviyo‘s new pricing model introduced on February 18, 2025. Businesses are now billed for every active profile, whether engaged or not. Here’s why list cleaning matters:
- Save Money: Removing inactive profiles can reduce costs by up to 25%, saving thousands annually.
- Boost Engagement: A cleaner list improves open rates by 20% and enhances deliverability.
- Avoid Billing Surprises: Klaviyo automatically upgrades plans if active profiles exceed limits.
Quick Steps to Clean Your List:
- Suppress Inactive Profiles: Remove users with no engagement in 180+ days.
- Handle Bounced Emails: Delete hard bounces and suppress soft bounces after 3 attempts.
- Run Re-Engagement Campaigns: Recover up to 10% of inactive subscribers.
- Use Verification Tools: Prevent invalid emails from ruining your sender reputation.
Example Savings:
If 30% of a 50,000-profile list is inactive, cleaning could save $3,600 annually.
Pro Tip: Automate list cleaning with Klaviyo’s tools like bulk suppression and sunset flows to stay efficient while managing costs.
Klaviyo 2025 Pricing Update: How To Clean Your Email List & Save Money Tutorial
Klaviyo’s 2025 Price Changes
Starting February 18, 2025, Klaviyo is updating its pricing for email marketing services.
How Profile Billing Works
Klaviyo now charges based on active profiles – contacts who receive an email or SMS during each billing cycle. If your active profile count exceeds your plan’s limit, the platform will automatically upgrade your account to the next pricing tier. For instance, if you’re on the $20/month plan (covering 251–500 profiles) and your active profiles surpass 500, your account will move to the next tier automatically.
This system makes it crucial to keep your list engaged and manageable to avoid unnecessary costs.
"Klaviyo is cracking down on accounts where their number of active profiles exceeds that allowed by their plan." – David Hutchison
To ease the impact of these changes, Klaviyo offers an Appreciation Discount, capping price increases at 25%.
Reducing Costs Through List Cleanup
Cleaning up your email list can reduce active profiles by 10–25%. Here’s how you can streamline your list:
| Profile Type | Action Required | Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Never Active | Suppress subscribers who’ve received 20+ emails without engagement | Immediate cost reduction |
| Bounced Emails | Remove hard bounces and contacts with 3+ soft bounces | Improved deliverability |
| Long-term Inactive | Suppress profiles inactive for 180+ days | Lower monthly costs |
Keep in mind, once you suppress a contact, you won’t be able to resuppress them for 90 days. Managing your list efficiently also helps handle seasonal spikes more effectively.
Managing Seasonal Email Volumes
Klaviyo’s Flexible Sending feature is designed to help manage costs during busy times like Black Friday or Christmas. For example, if you’re on a $900/month SMS plan with 100,000 monthly credits but need an extra 12,000 credits, you’ll only pay $112.50 for the additional usage. Once the billing cycle ends, your plan automatically reverts to its original settings.
This feature is available for email and SMS campaigns on plans priced at $495/month or higher. A well-maintained list reduces the need for expensive scaling during peak seasons.
List Cleaning Methods for 2025
Looking to keep your email list efficient and cost-effective? Here are some practical ways to clean it up while managing pricing pressures.
Finding and Removing Dead Weight
Start by identifying subscribers who haven’t engaged in a while. Research shows that about 20.94% of email addresses in an unverified list are invalid.
| Engagement Level | Definition | Recommended Action |
|---|---|---|
| Never Active | Received 5+ emails with no opens or clicks in 72 weeks | Suppress immediately |
| Dormant | No activity in 180+ days | Send a re-engagement campaign |
| Bounced | 3+ soft bounces or a hard bounce | Remove from list |
Tools like Klaviyo’s bulk suppression feature can help you quickly remove inactive profiles. Once you’ve handled these, shift your focus to re-engaging those who might still be interested.
Winning Back Inactive Subscribers
Before removing inactive subscribers, try running a short re-engagement campaign. On average, these campaigns recover about 10% of inactive users. This approach not only saves potential revenue but also keeps your list lean and efficient.
Here’s a simple re-engagement sequence to follow:
- Initial Email: A personalized note acknowledging their absence.
- Value Reminder: Highlight the main benefits they’re missing out on.
- Final Notice: Include a clear call-to-action about being removed from the list.
Make sure to include links to your preference center so users can adjust their email frequency or topics of interest.
Email Verification Tools
Protect your sender reputation by using email verification tools. Here are some reliable options:
| Tool | Accuracy Rate | Starting Price | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| ZeroBounce | 99% | $18 per 2,000 credits | Large enterprise lists |
| QuickEmailVerification | 99% | $4 per 500 credits | Small businesses |
| MyEmailVerifier | 99% | $5 per 1,000 credits | Mid-size companies |
These tools help you identify invalid emails, spam traps, disposable accounts, and role-based addresses. To keep your list in top shape, verify emails every 2-3 months or before launching major campaigns.
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Setting Up Automated List Cleaning
With Klaviyo’s updated pricing now charging for active profiles, keeping your list clean through automation is a smart way to manage costs and ensure your list stays effective.
Building Klaviyo Sunset Flows
Set up an automated process to remove unengaged subscribers from your list:
-
Define Inactive Subscriber Criteria
Decide what counts as "inactive" (e.g., no opens or clicks in the past 180 days). -
Design the Flow
Start with Klaviyo’s pre-built sunset flow and adjust it to fit your needs:Email Sequence Timing Action Initial Notice Day 0 Notify subscribers about removal Value Reminder Day 3 Emphasize benefits of staying Final Warning Day 7 Send a last-chance message Suppression Day 10 Mark profile as inactive -
Set Up Flow Actions
Improve the flow’s effectiveness by:- Adding dynamic filters to exclude engaged subscribers and suppress inactive ones automatically.
- Updating profile properties to track engagement levels.
List Maintenance Tools
Klaviyo provides built-in tools to simplify list cleaning and maintenance:
Bulk Suppression Tool
Easily suppress multiple profiles based on criteria like:
- No activity for 180+ days.
- Repeated soft bounces (3 or more).
- Hard bounces.
- Spam complaints.
Smart Segmentation
Use dynamic segments that update automatically to manage your list:
| Segment Type | Criteria | Action |
|---|---|---|
| High Risk | No opens in 90 days | Add to the sunset flow |
| At Risk | No clicks in 60 days | Focus on re-engagement efforts |
| Healthy | Opened or clicked in 30 days | Include in regular campaigns |
Keeping Your List Clean Long-Term
Maintaining a clean email list over time not only improves engagement but also helps manage costs, especially under Klaviyo’s active profile billing system.
Schedule Regular List Reviews
Regularly reviewing your email list is key to keeping it clean. The frequency of these reviews should depend on your list type and how often you send emails:
| List Type | Sending Frequency | Recommended Review Schedule |
|---|---|---|
| B2B Simple Opt-in | Weekly | Every 2 weeks |
| B2C Double Opt-in | Monthly | Quarterly |
For example, Brian Dean saw a 36% increase in open rates after removing 28,018 disengaged subscribers over four months.
Consistent reviews also help you segment your audience more effectively, ensuring your list stays focused and engaged.
Smart List Segments
Dynamic segmentation is a powerful way to organize your subscribers based on their engagement and behavior. Here’s how you can categorize them:
| Engagement Level | Criteria & Action Plan |
|---|---|
| High Value | Opens more than 50% of emails; reward with special offers |
| At Risk | Opens fewer than 10% of emails; adjust frequency and try re-engagement |
| Inactive | No activity for 120+ days; move to a sunset flow |
Big brands demonstrate the impact of smart segmentation. For instance, Groupon uses location-based segments to send relevant local deals, while Audible notifies users about book releases tied to their wish lists.
Smart segmentation helps improve engagement, but it’s equally important to stay compliant with email regulations to maintain trust and credibility.
Email Law Compliance
Staying compliant with email privacy laws is essential to keep your list healthy and avoid legal issues.
GDPR Requirements:
- Get explicit consent before sending marketing emails.
- Offer clear and easy opt-out options.
- Keep accurate records of consent.
CAN-SPAM Act Compliance:
- Use accurate sender information.
- Ensure subject lines are truthful.
- Process opt-out requests within 10 business days.
- Be aware of fines up to $43,280 per violation.
Measuring List Cleaning Results
Keeping your email list clean is key to saving money and improving engagement, especially with Klaviyo’s active profile pricing model. Here’s how to measure the impact.
Email Performance Metrics
A cleaned email list improves deliverability, engagement, and conversion rates. Here’s what to monitor:
| Metric | Industry Benchmark | What to Watch For |
|---|---|---|
| Delivery Rate | 90-98% | Below 80% signals urgent issues |
| Open Rate | 34.23% | Track weekly for trends |
| Hard Bounce Rate | 0.21% | Keep under 1% |
| Soft Bounce Rate | 0.79% | Watch for sudden increases |
| Click-Through Rate | 2.66% | Aim for 1-5%, depending on industry |
"Bounce rate is important to keep an eye on as it can lead to issues with delivery rates down the line. You always want to sanitize your email lists and make sure you aren’t getting high bounce rates." – Bryan Lozano, Ad-Apt
To evaluate the results of cleaning, compare data from before and after the process. Consider:
- Email deliverability across various platforms
- Changes in subscriber engagement patterns
- Growth versus decay rates in your list
- Revenue trends per recipient
These insights reveal not only how engaged your audience is but also how much more efficient your email marketing becomes under Klaviyo’s pricing.
Cost and ROI Analysis
List cleaning doesn’t just improve engagement – it also cuts costs and boosts revenue. Since email lists degrade by 22.5% annually, understanding the financial impact is critical.
1. Direct Cost Savings
- Calculate your monthly cost per subscriber under Klaviyo’s pricing.
- Multiply this by the number of inactive profiles removed.
- Factor in reduced sending costs and better deliverability.
2. Revenue Impact
- Measure conversion rates before and after cleaning.
- Track revenue per email for cleaned segments.
- Assess the ROI of re-engagement campaigns.
A clean list can improve deliverability by up to 25%, leading to better inbox placement and higher engagement:
| Benefit | Typical Impact |
|---|---|
| Open Rate Increase | 5-15% improvement |
| Deliverability Boost | Up to 25% higher |
| Cost Reduction | Savings from inactive removals |
| List Growth Quality | Better engagement from new subscribers |
"Quality is going to beat out quantity." – Kara Douglas, Senior Manager of Marketing Communications, JustAnswer
Keep a close eye on these metrics each month and perform a detailed review every quarter. Klaviyo’s deliverability hub can help you track progress and pinpoint areas needing improvement. Regular monitoring ensures your email list stays lean, cost-effective, and highly engaging.
Next Steps for 2025
With Klaviyo’s pricing changes starting on February 18, 2025, it’s a good time to fine-tune your email list management to stay efficient and control costs.
Start by enabling auto-downgrade in your Klaviyo billing settings. This feature ensures you avoid overpaying when the number of active profiles drops. Then, segment your contacts to clean up your list effectively:
| Profile Type | Action Needed | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Never Active | Remove after 20+ emails without engagement | Monthly |
| Hard Bounces | Suppress immediately | Weekly |
| Soft Bounces | Suppress after 3+ bounces | Weekly |
| Long-term Inactive | Suppress if no engagement for 180+ days | Monthly |
Set up a sunset flow to handle unengaged subscribers. This involves:
- Identifying those who haven’t engaged in the past 180 days.
- Sending a re-engagement email with a strong incentive.
- Suppressing profiles that remain unresponsive (note: once unsuppressed, profiles can’t be re-suppressed for 90 days).
Take advantage of Flex Sending to manage fluctuating email volumes during busy seasons.
Remember, Klaviyo’s pricing update takes effect on February 18, 2025, and includes an Appreciation Discount for current customers.
Finally, schedule monthly reviews of your profiles before each billing cycle. Concentrate on keeping an active, engaged subscriber list rather than simply growing the total number of contacts. This approach not only keeps costs in check under the new pricing model but also boosts the performance of your email campaigns.