In this article, we will explain the differences between a shared IP and a dedicated IP and how to choose between the two.
What is an IP?
Think of an IP as a digital address that can send and receive digital information, such as emails. When you send a letter by mail, you include your name, mailing address, and zip code. This would be your "From" address (your sender), your digital signature, and your IP address for an email.
Email service providers, like Brevo, use two methods to send emails on behalf of their customers:
What is a shared IP?
A shared IP is shared by several users or organizations (email senders) simultaneously, so the reputation is shared. By default, all emails are sent from our shared IPs so that you can begin sending emails immediately after your account is validated without additional setup.
What are the benefits of a shared IP?
- Low-volume senders can establish a reputation/history with ISPs and webmails.
- Shared IPs allow users to send messages according to their needs.
- Shared IPs are warm and already have a reputation, so there is no need to follow a warm-up process.
What are the disadvantages of a shared IP?
On a shared IP, the reputation is shared between many users. In other words, bad campaigns may have a negative impact on other organizations using the same IP simultaneously. If one sender generates many complaints (or other negative metrics), it will affect everyone else and impact their delivery and inbox placement rates.
To provide the best service quality, we monitor the performance of all email campaigns and transactional emails sent from Brevo's shared IPs. All emails must meet or exceed the minimum market baseline metrics, specifically:
- Opening rate of at least 10 - 12%,
- Unsubscription rate no higher than 1 - 2%,
- Hard bounce rate no higher than 2 - 3%,
- Complaint rate no higher than 0.2%.
If you notice that your campaign results are decreasing or getting closer to these minimum values, here are some tips to improve your performance stats.
If, for any reason, your email metrics do not meet these criteria, you may not be able to continue sending from IPs shared with other Brevo users. This is to preserve our service quality for all Brevo customers.
What is a dedicated IP?
A dedicated IP is used by only one single user or organization (email sender). We recommend using a dedicated IP to send large volumes of emails or take complete control of your reputation.
What are the benefits of a dedicated IP?
- You control your reputation. Instead of sharing your IP address reputation with other marketers, the reputation of your sending IP address depends only on your sending practices.
- Certification services (Senderscore certified, Goodmail) often require a dedicated IP address. These services enable marketers to better pass spam filters and display the highest image quality. These are usually paid services.
- You can take immediate action if you have reputation problems with your address or deliverability issues with your campaigns.
- Generating a whitelist with these providers is facilitated: Yahoo, AOL, and MSN.
- You sign your emails with the subdomain you have delegated, which provides the DKIM authentication.
What are the disadvantages of a dedicated IP?
It is not possible to immediately send significant volumes of emails from a new IP address. Instead, you will need to gradually increase your sending volumes, as explained in our dedicated article Warm up your dedicated IP, while ISPs learn to recognize your IP address. It's important to carefully manage your new IP address during the warm-up period.
It's also up to you to build your own IP address reputation. Having your own dedicated IP address doesn't necessarily give you a better reputation on the Internet. If you change your contact list regularly, create massive email campaigns, or generate many complaints, your dedicated IP's reputation will be heavily impacted, and you will be responsible for it.
You will also be responsible for managing your sending volume and its impact on your IP's reputation.
🤔 Have a question?
If you have a question, feel free to contact our support team by creating a ticket from your account. If you don't have an account yet, you can contact us here.
If you’re looking for help with a project using Brevo, we can match you with the right certified Brevo expert partner.