Email Marketers may observe incline in their complaint rate at Microsoft domains which may cause a problem to their deliverability further down because Microsoft recently made an update to their Mail Filtering system and the algorithm how they calculate complaint rates from their email users. Though the change is minor at first instance this isn’t. This may cause a bit more problematic for those senders whose email doesn’t clarify their motto or if the user doesn’t find the easy unsubscribe method.

Microsoft update

To calculate the complaint rate earlier all Mailbox provider used to take the total amount of complaints divided by the total amount of emails delivered to the inbox. But now as per the update from Microsoft – they also started counting messages moved to the junk folder as a complaint. This is applicable to all Microsoft webmail clients, IMAP based email (i.e. Microsoft emails moved to the spam folder in iOS Mail will generate a complaint) and mobile apps.

However, marketers may see some higher complaint reports, and as a result, a temporary decrease in their inbox placement rates. Marketers signed up for Microsoft’s Junk Mail Reporting Program (JMRP) will receive an FBL report when subscribers move their messages to the junk folder. If you’re not enrolled in Microsoft’s JMRP, you should do so as soon as possible. Over time, marketers should see their complaint rates return to normal as email addresses are unsubscribed through the use of JMRP. If not then you need to get an appointment from an Email Doctor 🙂
Don’t hesitate to make a comment if you need any help from my side.

Anyway don’t be afraid because you are a real email marketer, and this is a good news for you. How?? Read below points –

  • Microsoft mobile mail users and email users that use non-Microsoft email clients now have a way of reporting email as junk without the need for a native “report junk” button.
  • It provides an easier way for people to opt-out of emails, especially for mobile readers, ensuring marketers can maintain clean email lists of subscribers that want their emails. Maintaining clean lists of engaged subscribers is paramount to getting your email delivered to the inbox.
  • Pankaj Kumar is an Email Deliverability Expert and Product Leader with 13 years of experience in email deliverability, CRM, marketing analytics, deliverability onboarding, implementation, and automation. He combines deep technical expertise in email infrastructure, inbox placement, sender reputation, and authentication protocols with a product-driven approach to solving complex deliverability challenges at scale. Having worked with Zeta and Blueshift, Pankaj has helped hundreds of clients improve email performance through data-driven strategies, technical troubleshooting, and scalable automation. His focus extends beyond resolving deliverability issues to building smarter deliverability products, monitoring systems, and AI-powered solutions that help businesses proactively identify risks and improve inbox placement. Through his blog at University of Email, Pankaj shares practical insights on email deliverability, CRM strategy, marketing analytics, and emerging deliverability technologies to help email marketers and technical professionals make informed decisions and achieve better results. Connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/pankajkumar-deliverability

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