Let’s say you’re a sales rep tasked with contacting cold prospects to drum up more interest in your company’s products. You’ve researched your target audience, identified the decision-makers you want to reach, and even crafted a compelling cold email template to use as a starting point. But, as you sit down to send out the emails, you can’t help but wonder: Is now the right time to send these out? What if I wait a few days and send the emails then? Will they get better responses? If you’ve ever felt this way, you’re not alone. Figuring out the best time to send cold emails is an often overlooked yet critical consideration in cold outreach strategy. This blog will help you identify the best time to send cold emails to achieve higher engagement, improved open rates, and meaningful responses from prospects.

Inframail’s email infrastructure can help you pinpoint the perfect time to send cold emails by giving you access to valuable data and insights on your email performance. With these cold emails tips, you can determine the best time to send cold emails so you achieve your goals. 

Table of Contents

• Why Timing Matters for Cold Emails

• When is the Best Time to Send Cold Emails to Get a Response?

• 7 Tips To Remember When Choosing a Time To Send Your Cold Email

• Start Buying Domains Now and Setup Your Email Infrastructure Today

Why Timing Matters for Cold Emails

When it comes to cold email outreach, timing matters a lot. When you send a cold email, it significantly influences its open rate; you’ll generate more conversions when your emails are opened more frequently. You can only convert a cold prospect if they open your email. Even the best-written email is useless if it isn’t opened. The timing of the cold email is the most critical component of an outreach or marketing strategy. For example, sending 1,000 cold emails to potential leads at 3 AM isn’t likely to lead to a reasonable open rate. And on weekend nights, there’s even less chance of cold business or marketing emails getting a response. 

Best Days and Times to Send Cold Emails

Backlinko said that Saturdays are the worst days to send outreach emails. Sending 1,000 cold emails during the weekdays, when professionals actively use communication channels like emails, could change that. Again, Backlinko indicated that Wednesdays could be the best days to send outreach emails. Weekdays are the best days to send outreach and marketing emails. The period to do that is anywhere between 9 AM to 3 PM. GetResponse claims that early mornings (4 AM to 6 AM) and late afternoons (5 PM to 7 PM) have the highest email engagement rates.

The Impact of Timing on Cold Email Success

Timing can make or break the success of your cold email outreach. 

Here’s how it plays a role: 

• Visibility: Sending emails when your prospects are most likely to check their inbox increases the chances of your email being seen. Emails sent during low-activity times often get buried under newer messages. 

• Engagement: Reaching out during peak productivity hours, like mid-morning or early afternoon, aligns with when recipients are more focused, making them more likely to engage with your email. 

• Avoiding overload: Sending emails at the right time helps you stand out, as you avoid the inbox clutter that builds up overnight or during non-business hours. 

• Higher response rates: Well-timed emails show an understanding of your recipient’s routine and habits, increasing the likelihood of a positive response. 

In short, thoughtful timing ensures your cold email gets noticed, read, and acted upon, making it a critical factor in outreach success.

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When is the Best Time to Send Cold Emails to Get a Response?

When it comes to cold emails, timing is everything. Recent data shows that the best time to send cold emails is during working hours, between 9 AM and 5 PM. Within that timeframe, several studies point to optimal windows.  

What Time of Day Should You Send Cold Emails?  

Research from CampaignMonitor analyzed over 192 million opened emails. The findings revealed that 53% of those emails were opened during working hours—9 AM to 5 PM. Within this time frame, the highest open rates occurred between 10 AM and 4 PM. SuperOffice showed different results. Their 2018 research revealed that 3 PM had the highest open rates by far, with 12 PM to 6 PM being the most substantial extended period. Open rates dropped significantly before and after this window.  

Analyzing Optimal Email Open Times: Key Insights from Omnisend and Moosend Research

Omnisend analyzed over three years of email data from 2019 to 2021. Their research aimed to determine what time of the day had the best open rates. The hours with the highest open rates were 4 PM, 1 PM, 3 AM, and 8 AM. 

Here are the percentages:  

• 4 PM: 22.7%  

• 1 PM: 22.39%  

• 3 AM: 21.07%  

• 8 AM: 20.32%  

Research from Moosend found that email open rates were highest from 8 to 9 AM and dropped significantly after 6 p.m.  

Comparing Study Findings: The Best Timeframes for Sending Cold Emails During Working Hours

The studies show that the results can vary. Some show more substantial open rates for earlier, around 8 AM to 10 AM. Others suggest the afternoon is better, from 1 PM to 4 PM. 

Here’s what each study found:  

• CampaignMonitor: 10 AM to 4 PM  

• SuperOffice: 3 PM  

• Omnisend: 1 PM and 4 PM  

• Moosend: 8 AM to 9 AM  

We advise sending cold emails at any point during working hours and avoiding sending them too early or too late in the day.   

What Is the Best Day to Send Cold Emails?  

The day you send a cold email is even more important than the time of day. Most studies show that email open rates are lower on Saturday and Sunday. Research from Cience found that Wednesday was the best day to send an email, followed by Tuesday and Thursday. 

Here are the results for each day of the week:  

• Monday: 15.98%  

• Tuesday: 20.84%  

• Wednesday: 23.07%  

• Thursday: 21.32%  

• Friday: 18.52%  

• Saturday: 0.03%  

• Sunday: 0.24%  

Weekday Consistency in Email Open Rates: Why Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday Perform Best

Although Wednesday was the most vigorous performing day, Thursday and Tuesday weren’t far behind. The entire working week had strong results; the weekend was dramatically lower.  Another 2021 study from Moosend analyzed over 10 billion emails sent through its platform. They found Thursday had the highest open rate, followed by Tuesday in second place. If you look at the results, the open rate is consistent across the entire working week, from Monday to Friday. It’s only on the weekend, Saturday, and Sunday that the open rate drops significantly.  

GetResponse 2020 Study: Why Weekdays Outperform Weekends for Cold Email Open Rates

GetResponse’s 2020 analysis of 2.85 million emails sent by its users found that Friday had the highest open rate, swiftly followed by Monday and Tuesday. 

Here’s what the open rate was for each day of the week:  

• Monday: 20.43%  

• Tuesday: 20.3%  

• Wednesday: 20.07%  

• Thursday: 19.85%  

• Friday: 20.58%  

• Saturday: 18.88%  

• Sunday: 18.47%  

Like the other studies, the open rate doesn’t vary much across the working week and drops off substantially on weekends. This research concludes that cold emailing should be avoided on Saturday and Sunday.  

Optimal Days for Sending Cold Emails: Insights from Omnisend, Moosend, Cience, and GetResponse

A three-year study from Omnisend concluded that Tuesdays are the best days to email. The data, which spans from 2019 to 2021, showed the following results:  

• Monday: 11.21%  

• Tuesday: 11.36%  

• Wednesday: 11.33%  

• Thursday: 11.29%  

• Friday: 11.07%  

• Saturday: 10.1%  

• Sunday: 10.27%  

When summarizing the research data, it’s clear that the optimal day varies. The top-performing day is different across all four of the studies provided.    

• Cience: Wednesday  

• Moosend: Thursday  

• GetResponse (2020): Friday  

• Omnisend: Tuesday 

We advise sending cold emails any day during the working week. Avoid sending them on the weekend.  

Days and Times to Avoid  

Knowing what days and times to avoid is as important as when to send cold emails. Generally speaking, the worst days to send a cold email are Saturday and Sunday—when your prospective targets are out of the office and away from work. They’re most likely spending time with their family or engaging in hobbies and activities. Although most people have smartphones these days, they avoid looking at emails on weekends and don’t want to think about work-related issues. To keep things simple, keep sending cold emails during the working week—Monday to Friday.  

Timing Cold Emails: Why Working Hours Are Key to Maximizing Open Rates

Avoid sending cold emails too late or too early in the day. Your prospective targets will be sleeping or getting ready for work early in the morning. After work, they’ll focus on getting home, going to the gym, and cooking dinner or dining out. Aim to send your cold emails during working hours, 9 AM to 5 PM. You can test and experiment to see what specific hour works best to maximize your email open rates.

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7 Tips To Remember When Choosing a Time To Send Your Cold Email

1. Know Your Audience's Work Schedule

Understanding your audience’s work schedule is critical for cold email success. Determine their typical workday structure. Do they work traditional hours or follow a different routine? For instance, tech companies often have flexible schedules, while finance or healthcare organizations tend to follow stricter working hours. Sending emails when your prospects are likely to be active and engaged with their inbox can significantly increase your chances of getting a reply. 

2. Consider the Time Zones of the Prospects

Always account for time zones when sending cold emails, mainly when contacting people in different regions. Sending an email at 10 A.M. EST to a prospect in California means it will arrive in their inbox at 7 A.M. PST. While they may appreciate your perfect timing, they likely won’t see your email until later, when it could be buried under other messages. Use email scheduling tools like SmartReach.io to ensure your emails arrive at the optimal time for the recipient, regardless of location. 

3. Avoid Early Mornings or Late Evenings

Sending emails too early (before 8 A.M.) or late in the evening (after 6 P.M.) can result in them being buried under a flood of messages or overlooked altogether. Most people receive hundreds of emails weekly, and sending cold emails during off-peak hours means they’ll likely miss your message entirely. Aim for mid-morning or early afternoon for better visibility and engagement. 

4. Don’t Overlook Midweek 

Research shows that emails sent on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday generally get better results than on Mondays (when people are catching up) or Fridays (when they’re winding down). Aim to send during these prime days for your next cold email outreach campaign, as there’s less competition, and prospects are more likely to engage with your email. 

5. Test and Optimize Your Email Timings 

Use A/B testing to experiment with different times and days to understand what works best for your audience. Pay attention to open, click-through, and reply rates to optimize your outreach strategy continuously. Email metrics will vary by industry, so finding the optimal timing for your specific targets is crucial. 

6. Keep Your Subject Line Compelling 

Even if you send your email at the perfect time, a lackluster subject line can cause your email to be ignored. Pair perfect timing with a strong, engaging subject line that piques curiosity and promises value. 

7. Be Consistent With Your Emails 

Sending emails consistently can help build familiarity. If your audience expects emails at a particular time of day or week, they may begin recognizing and prioritizing your outreach.

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Start Buying Domains Now and Setup Your Email Infrastructure Today

Inframail is a game-changer in the world of cold email infrastructure. It helps you improve outreach deliverability and efficiency. With Inframail, you can say goodbye to traditional cold email providers that limit your outreach with a per-inbox pricing model and complex technical setups. Instead, you get unlimited inboxes for a single flat rate and an automated technical setup to help you reach more prospects faster. 

Why Should Agencies, Recruiters, and SDRs Use Inframail? 

Inframail is built to support cold email outreach at scale, making it a perfect fit for: 

• Agencies

• Recruiters

• Sales development representatives (SDRs)

Agencies can use Inframail to help their clients with cold email outreach, recruiters can connect with potential job candidates, and SDRs can use It to boost sales for their organization.