Plain Text Email
Plain text email uses text without HTML styling. Learn how it differs from plain-looking HTML and how to include readable URLs and alternative message parts.
A plain text email uses a text/plain message body. It contains characters and line breaks without HTML styling, embedded images, or custom font instructions.
Plain text and plain-looking HTML
An email can look like a personal text message while still being HTML. Check the message’s MIME content type when the distinction matters. A text/plain part can include a written URL. Some email clients make that URL clickable. It cannot define an HTML link whose label hides the destination.
When sending multipart/alternative email, provide equivalent content in the text and HTML parts. Include the main action and any required unsubscribe information in both. The recipient’s client chooses the representation it displays. RFC 2046 defines these MIME formats.
When to use it
Plain text suits messages whose meaning does not depend on layout or images. Keep paragraphs short, write useful link destinations, and check long URLs and line wrapping in the clients your audience uses.
Choosing plain text does not guarantee inbox placement. Authentication, recipient permission, reputation, and filtering still apply. A plain-text part also has no embedded tracking image, so an open-tracking pixel cannot report reads of that part. Test the message’s actual content and delivery rather than assuming that a simpler appearance fixes either.