Overview of the most popular email clients
Email clients are the applications and platforms people use to read and manage email. From mobile apps to desktop programs and web browsers, each email client interprets message content slightly differently. For businesses that send email for marketing, notifications, and service communication, understanding client usage helps ensure messages render correctly and deliver a consistent experience.
This article provides an overview of the most popular email clients worldwide, explains how client usage affects email design and testing, and outlines why this is relevant for business communication.
Most popular email clients globally
The table below summarizes leading email clients based on global email open share.
Sources: Litmus Email Analytics and Statista aggregated market data.
What an email client is
An email client is software that retrieves, displays, and sends email messages.
Clients may be:
Native applications installed on a device
Web-based interfaces accessed through a browser
Integrated tools within operating systems
Examples include Apple Mail, Gmail, Outlook, and Yahoo Mail. Each client handles HTML, images, fonts, and layout rules differently.
Why email client usage is relevant for businesses
Email client adoption varies by region, device, and user behavior. For businesses sending email campaigns, transactional messages, or service updates, client distribution influences how messages should be built and tested.
Key considerations include:
Which clients to prioritize during testing
How layouts render on mobile versus desktop
Feature support such as dark mode and fonts
Knowing which email clients your audience uses helps guide design and testing decisions.
Notes on leading email clients
Apple Mail leads globally due to default installation on Apple devices
Gmail is widely used across web and mobile environments
Outlook remains common in corporate and enterprise settings
Yahoo Mail maintains regional and legacy usage
Other clients include smaller regional and niche services
These figures represent aggregated analytics data. Actual distribution may vary by industry or audience.
How email client differences affect business email
Email clients differ in how they render HTML and CSS.
These differences affect:
Layout consistency
Image handling
Font support
Button behavior
Dark mode presentation
Testing across major clients helps prevent visual or functional issues from reaching recipients.
Testing and optimization across email clients
Recommended practices include:
Prioritizing Apple Mail, Gmail, and Outlook during testing
Reviewing both mobile and desktop views
Verifying images, links, and fallback styles
Checking dark mode behavior
Reviewing inbox previews
Testing helps ensure that campaigns behave consistently across inbox environments.
How LINK Mobility supports email communication
LINK Mobility provides solutions for different email use cases.
MyLINK Email API supports application-triggered and transactional email delivery
MyLINK MarketingPlatform supports campaign-based email marketing, segmentation, scheduling, and reporting
By combining audience insight with structured email delivery, businesses can align communication with how recipients actually use email clients.
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