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Email Text-to-Image Ratio Checker

Analyze your email HTML to check the text-to-image ratio. Spam filters flag image-heavy emails with too little text content. Optimize your ratio for better deliverability.

About this tool

Spam filters at Gmail, Outlook, and Yahoo analyze the balance between text and images in your emails. Emails that are mostly images (like a single large image with no text) are a red flag because spammers use this technique to evade text-based content filters. Aim for at least 60% text to 40% images for optimal deliverability. Use this tool alongside our email word counter to keep total file size under 100KB, and run your content through our spam word checker to avoid trigger words. For maximum deliverability, check your deliverability score and review the full deliverability checklist.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a good text-to-image ratio for emails?

The ideal ratio is 60% text to 40% images, often called the 60/40 rule. At minimum, aim for at least 40% text content. Emails with less than 20% text are at high risk of being flagged as spam by major email providers.

Why do spam filters check the text-to-image ratio?

Spammers historically used single large images to bypass text-based content scanning. Spam filters learned to flag emails with very high image ratios as suspicious. Text-heavy emails also perform better because they load faster and are accessible to screen readers.

Does alt text count toward the text ratio?

Alt text is part of your HTML but is not typically visible content that spam filters count. However, it is extremely important for accessibility and displays when images are blocked (which is the default in many email clients). Always include descriptive alt text on every image.

Are background images counted in the ratio?

Yes. Background images defined via CSS or HTML attributes are detected by this tool. They contribute to the visual weight of images in your email, even though they are rendered differently from inline images.

What if my email is a single image?

Single-image emails (one large image with no text) are the worst case for deliverability. They get flagged by spam filters, are invisible when images are blocked, are not accessible, and cannot be indexed by email search. Always include real HTML text alongside images.

How do I improve my text-to-image ratio?

Add descriptive headings and body text in HTML (not embedded in images). Use HTML/CSS for buttons instead of button images. Replace image-based headers with styled text. Add captions below images. Include a text-based footer with contact information and links.

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