Covered in this article:

What is the list-unsubscribe header?

Why list-unsubscribe header is good for email deliverability

Can this be disabled?

Why I'm not getting the unsubscribe option in the email header

What is the list-unsubscribe header?

The list-unsubscribe header is an additional ‘unsubscribe’ link generated by some of the most common email providers (Gmail, Outlook, etc.). When list-unsubscribe instructions are detected in the email header, it allows email recipients to remove their email addresses from your distribution list without searching for the unsubscribe link in your email.

Why list-unsubscribe header is good for email deliverability

This feature is a deliverability best practice! It helps reduce complaints by giving subscribers a quick method to safely unsubscribe without negatively impacting your sending reputation. It is an additional, preferred option that recipients can use – rather than report spam or an abuse complaint.

Can this be disabled?

No, this cannot be disabled, as this is an RFC/industry standard.

Why I'm not getting the unsubscribe option in the email header

The unsubscribe option is only shown for senders with a high reputation. This only works for some senders right now. We're actively encouraging senders to support auto-unsubscribe — we think 100% should. We won't provide the unsubscribe option on messages from spammers: we can't trust that they'll actually unsubscribe you, and they might even send you more spam.

So you'll only see the unsubscribe option for senders that we're pretty sure are not spammers and will actually honor your unsubscribe request. We're being pretty conservative about which senders to trust in the beginning; over time, we hope to offer the ability to unsubscribe from more emails.