WhatsApp vs email:what open rate to expect from each channel
WhatsApp messages get opened almost every time; emails get opened less and less, and on top of that their metrics are inflated. This is the honest comparison: what the benchmarks say, where the catch is and when each channel makes sense.
What open rate does WhatsApp have vs email?
WhatsApp messages show open rates of 90% to 98%, according to the WhatsApp Business Blog and 2025-26 compilations, while email averages around 20%, according to Chatarmin. The comparison is directional: email benchmarks such as MailerLite's 43.46% are inflated by Apple Mail Privacy Protection, which counts as opened emails that nobody looked at. Even with that caveat, the direction is unmistakable.
The open, though, is the beginning of the conversation and not the end: you choose a channel based on conversion, cost and context. WhatsApp is paid per message and shines in high-value messages; email is still unbeatable on cost per contact for long-form content and nurturing. The mature question is not which one kills the other, but which message goes where.
What the benchmarks say, source by source
No single benchmark settles the debate, because each source measures different populations and definitions: an open is not the same as a read, and an e-commerce dataset cannot be compared with a B2B one. The serious approach is to look at several sources and keep the direction, which is consistent across all of them.
The picture, source by source:
| Metric | Source | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Open rate | 90 to 98% | ~20% | WhatsApp Business Blog; Chatarmin (2026) |
| Read rate (alternative dataset) | ~68% | ~20% | Hyperleap/AiSensy (2026) |
| Click-through | 15 to 25% | 2 to 5% | Industry benchmark |
| Cart recovery | 22 to 38% | 8 to 12% | Kanal; Klaviyo |
| B2B email open rate (inflated measurement) | n/a | 43.46% | MailerLite (2025) |
Directional figures: definitions and populations vary between sources. The MailerLite row illustrates the inflation caused by Apple Mail Privacy Protection, not a comparable benchmark.
Apple Mail inflates email open rates
Since 2021, Apple Mail Privacy Protection has preloaded email images on Apple devices, which fires the open pixel even if the recipient never opened the message. The result: email open rates went up in the dashboards without anyone reading more.
That is why a modern benchmark like MailerLite's (a 43.46% open rate across 3.6 million campaigns, 2025) cannot be compared head-on with WhatsApp's open rate, which comes from the actual delivery and reading of the message. And for the same reason, it is best not to caricature email with figures skewed low either: methodological honesty cuts both ways.
The practical takeaway: use email open rates as an internal trend (is it getting better or worse from one campaign to the next?) and not as absolute truth, and judge channels by clicks, replies and sales, which do not inflate on their own.
How to read benchmarks without getting hurt: compare ranges and directions, not decimals; ask yourself what population each source measured; and measure your own base, which is the only benchmark that pays the bills.
WhatsApp complements email, it does not replace it
The question in the title has a short answer: it complements it. Each channel has its own physics of cost, format and attention, and the teams that convert best use both with clear roles instead of moving everything over in one block.
- WhatsApp for high value: win-back, abandoned carts and quotes, time-sensitive notices, confirmations and sales conversations. Short, urgent, two-way messages, where an immediate open changes the outcome.
- Email for volume and depth: newsletters, educational content, documentation, formal B2B communications. The cost per contact is marginal and the format handles long texts and attachments.
- Cost defines the cut: WhatsApp is paid per message (in Colombia, USD 0.0125 per marketing message, according to EngageLab), so every template has to justify its send; email tolerates cheap experiments.
- Together, not mixed up: email nurtures and educates; when the message calls for immediate action or a conversation, it moves to WhatsApp. Opt-in is managed per channel, without recycling consent.
How to split your messages between WhatsApp and email
A simple rule for deciding what goes where, before you touch any tool.
Map your messages by value
List every kind of message you send (campaigns, notices, content) and mark what needs an immediate reply or action and what is background reading.
Keep volume on email
Newsletters, educational content and formal communications stay where the cost per contact is marginal.
Move high value to WhatsApp
Win-back, carts, expirations and any message whose outcome changes if it is read in minutes instead of days.
Ask for opt-in per channel
Email consent does not cover WhatsApp. Capture and record each permission separately.
Measure conversion, not opens
Compare the channels by replies, clicks and sales per message. The open rate is vanity if it does not end in a conversation.
The comparison figures, with their fine print
Third-party figures, with a published source, to compare the channels. None of these figures is our own result.
90-98%
Open rate of WhatsApp messages in 2025-26 compilations
Source: WhatsApp Business Blog (2025)
~20%
Average email open rate in the same industry comparison
Source: Chatarmin (2026)
43.46%
Email open rate measured by MailerLite across 3.6 million campaigns, inflated by Apple Mail Privacy Protection
Source: MailerLite (2025)
Caveats: opens and reads are defined differently depending on the source (Hyperleap/AiSensy reports a ~68% read rate for WhatsApp in 2026); the datasets mix industries and regions; and email metrics after 2021 are distorted by Apple Mail Privacy Protection. Use the comparison directionally and measure your own base.
Revio: the high-value channel, run with judgment
Moving campaigns to WhatsApp without a plan gets expensive and burns the channel. Revio exists so that the right message travels over WhatsApp only when it is worth it.
Revio
WhatsApp marketing and customer win-back
Revio is Vantegrate's AI agent for WhatsApp marketing: it segments your base, runs campaigns with Meta-approved templates and measures opens, clicks and sales per message, so WhatsApp coexists with your email instead of cannibalizing it.
Explore RevioSecure AI agents
Revio runs 100% on Salesforce and Oracle Cloud infrastructure, certified SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001. Vantegrate enables, the customer operates and certifies.
See the security modelISV and Consulting PartnerRuns inside your Salesforce
Revio reads and writes your objects, respects your profiles and permissions, and works alongside Agentforce and your existing flows.
Vantegrate and SalesforceFrequently asked questions about WhatsApp vs email
The comparisons marketing teams make before splitting their budget between channels.
Does WhatsApp replace email or complement it?
Does WhatsApp replace email or complement it?
It complements it. WhatsApp wins on open rate, speed and two-way conversation, which makes it ideal for win-back, carts and urgent notices; email is still the cheapest channel for newsletters, long-form content and formal B2B communication. A mature strategy assigns roles: email builds the foundation of the relationship and WhatsApp handles the moments where immediacy converts. Moving everything to WhatsApp makes every send more expensive and wears out the channel.
Why does the email open rate look higher in newer benchmarks?
Why does the email open rate look higher in newer benchmarks?
Because of Apple Mail Privacy Protection: since 2021, Apple devices preload email images and fire the open pixel even if nobody reads the message. Benchmarks such as MailerLite's 43.46% (2025) partly reflect that inflation, not more actual reading. That is why a serious comparison with WhatsApp is made directionally and validated with metrics that do not inflate: clicks, replies and sales.
Is the click-through rate also higher on WhatsApp?
Is the click-through rate also higher on WhatsApp?
Industry benchmarks put WhatsApp's click-through rate between 15% and 25%, versus 2 to 5% for email, and in cart recovery, data from Kanal and Klaviyo reports 22 to 38% on WhatsApp versus 8 to 12% for email. These are directional ranges that depend on the base and the offer, but the gap repeats across every source: a message that gets opened within minutes drives more action than one waiting in an inbox.
When does it still make sense to use email?
When does it still make sense to use email?
Whenever the message is long, educational or formal: newsletters, technical content, proposals, documentation, periodic summaries. Also when cost is the deciding factor: email lets you experiment at scale for pennies, while WhatsApp charges per message and requires approved templates. And with corporate B2B audiences, email is still the expected channel for documented communication.
What does it cost to send marketing on WhatsApp?
What does it cost to send marketing on WhatsApp?
Meta charges for the API per delivered message, with rates that vary by country and template category (marketing, utility, authentication). As a reference, in Colombia a marketing message costs USD 0.0125, according to EngageLab (2026). The rate table changes often: check your country's current cost in Meta's official documentation, and reserve the channel for messages whose expected value comfortably exceeds that cost.
Reach your customers where they actually look
Tell us what you send by email and we will show you which part is worth moving to WhatsApp with Revio, with approved templates and metrics per message. A 30-minute conversation, no commitment.
Francisco Morales, co-founder, takes your call. We reply on WhatsApp within 4 business hours, no strings attached.