Single or Double Opt-In: Which One for Your Newsletters?

One decision you can make that will have a dramatic impact on the both quality and quantity of subscribers is whether to use single or double opt-in with your forms.

It’s a debate that’s been around for decades, as some brands swear by double opt-in. Others prefer to gather as many subscribers as possible and then use good list-cleaning practices later. 

Let’s talk pros and cons of each, what the popular newsletters do, and what’s right for your brand.

What’s Double Opt-In?

Double Opt-in provides an extra layer of consent from each lead, ensuring that your subscriber is a real person and interested in joining your list.

Upon entering their email, most brands will prompt the new subscriber to confirm their email. Here’s what that looks like on the popular newsletter TLDR:

Then, they send an email with a link that the subscriber must click before they’re actually opted in to the list. Many newsletter owners also take this opportunity to ask subscribers to whitelist the email, move to a “Primary” folder, or even reply to the email. Each of those activities improves the likelihood of future emails being delivered.

Here’s TLDR again with their confirmation email:

Yes, it’s longer than most, but they’re serious about their deliverability… and still have well over a million subscribers.

Why Should You Use Double Opt-In?

Here are the best arguments in favor of using double opt-ins.

Legitimate Emails

When you require would-be subscribers to click a link in an email, you ensure that only real email addresses are added to your list.

Bots, spam traps, fake emails, or even just typos will all be excluded from your list—keeping the overall quality much higher. If you use single opt-in, you’ll have to go back in later and clean out bad emails. 

Higher Engagement

According to GetResponse, subscribers who are double opted-in open emails at 35%, while single opt-ins open at around 27%. Click rates see similar boosts among those required to confirm emails, coming in at around 2.4% for single opt-in and 4.2% for double opt-in. 

Improved Deliverability

Anytime a new subscriber gets on your list, there’s a chance that person will unsubscribe, mark your email as spam, or never engage with your newsletter. Any of those three things hurt your sender reputation, meaning inbox providers are less likely to deliver your email to the people who do want to hear from you.

With a double opt-in process, each subscriber has already taken an extra step to prove they want your emails. They’re more likely to engage with your email and less likely to unsubscribe.

Trained Subscribers

Double opt-in also trains people to go to their inbox to look for your email, which is a powerful way to build a habit. 

Also, if that first email goes right to spam or a Promotions folder, they’re more likely to go dig it out so they can find the confirmation link. You can instruct them on how to whitelist the email or just drag it to their Primary Folder.

Why Wouldn’t You Use Double Opt-In?

The primary reason to avoid double opt-in is a good one: 

According to a study by GetResponse, single opt-in newsletters generate about 4 times as many subscribers!

Even though newsletters requiring double opt-ins generate higher opens and clicks, it doesn’t even come close to overcoming that 4-1 subscriber advantage.

In fact, we can see this play out with the world’s biggest newsletters:

We get one lonely newsletter of the world’s biggest that requires double opt-in.

Single vs Double Opt-In for Your Business

In reality, every newsletter is a bit different. There’s likely a very good reason that the TLDR newsletter has decided to go with a double opt-in while none of the other top newsletters do. They have over 1 million subscribers, so they’ve certainly tested both.

When Single Opt-In is Advantageous

The benefit is clear and obvious: subscriber count. The sheer number of subscribers generated usually more than makes up for the higher quality leads generated by double opt-in.

Single opt-in works especially well if you have great list cleaning practices in place. For example, you should be doing at least the following:

• Validating Emails - Most ESPs these days will do basic validation, but employing a third-party service that specializes in email validation can help keep the worst offenders off your list.
• Re-engage Inactive Subscribers - If someone hasn’t opened a newsletter in a bit, send them an email with the sole purpose of getting them to open and click a link in the email. Use something along the lines of “Hey, it looks like you haven’t read a newsletter in a while. If you don’t do anything, I’ll stop sending you emails. Otherwise, click this link.”
• Deleting Unengaged Contacts - At regular intervals, delete contacts that aren’t engaging with your emails, especially after a re-engagement campaign. If someone hasn’t opened the past ten emails, they’re only hurting your open and click rates—and your deliverability.

Overall, the numbers show that single opt-in is usually the best option, provided you stay on top of your list cleaning.

When Double Opt-In is Advantageous

From what you’ve read so far, you’ve probably decided that single opt-in is the better option! However, each newsletter business is different and yours may be an exception.

Here’s when double opt-in actually might make more sense for your business

• The Numbers Say Otherwise - Above, we mentioned the GetResponse study that single opt-in lists generate 4x the subscribers. What if, for your business, that number is only 1.5x? In that case, the higher engagement rate of double opt-ins might make you more money. The smart bet is to test both.
• No List Cleaning - This is more for smaller newsletters or newsletter owners without much time on their hands. If you don’t want to worry as often about list cleaning, then double opt-in is for you. You should never ignore list cleaning completely, though.
• Deliverability Issues - If you’re noticing steadily declining opens and clicks, you may have a deliverability issue. To help that improve, you can try switching to double opt-in.
• Attract Low-Quality Subscribers - If your niche attracts low-quality subscribers, such as if you sell info products that teach people to make money online, double opt-in can help you keep the quality of your list much higher.

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