If you want your email marketing to truly support your business, it helps to understand what’s working—and what’s not. There are plenty of numbers you could track, but let’s focus on the few that actually matter and can guide your next steps with clarity.

Some are more helpful than others, depending on your goals. That’s why it’s important to understand the difference between click rate and click-through rate—especially when it comes to email marketing.

A lot of coaches get these confused, and it’s easy to see why. They sound similar, they’re often used interchangeably, and both have the word “click” in them. But when you’re using email marketing to grow your business, understanding the difference matters—because each one tells a different part of the story.

Click rate and click-through rate may sound similar, but they measure very different things—and both can offer valuable insight. Knowing how to use them can help you understand what’s working, what’s not, and how to improve your email marketing strategy.

Here’s what to know, and how to use these metrics to set your future campaigns up for success.

Here are some examples of open rates and click rates. What do your rates look like?

What Is Click Rate?

Click rate (also called open rate in many platforms) is all about how many people opened the email you sent.

Let’s say you send an email to 100 people. Your click rate is the percentage of those people who opened it. That’s it.

It’s your subject line’s moment to shine. If it doesn’t catch someone’s attention, they’re not even going to read the rest of the email—no matter how good it is.

Things like spam filters, poor deliverability, or people simply skipping over your message in their inbox all affect this number.

And What About Click-Through Rate?

Click-through rate (CTR) tells you something different. It measures how many people clicked on a link inside your email.

So first, they opened the email.

Then, they saw your call to action.

And finally—they clicked.

It’s one step deeper than click rate, and it shows how engaging and relevant your email actually was for the people who opened it.

Why Both Metrics Matter

Click rate helps you understand how effective your subject lines are. If your click rate is low, chances are your emails aren’t getting opened in the first place. Doesn’t matter how good the offer is if nobody sees it.

Click-through rate helps you understand how well your email content performs once someone does open it. If people open your email but don’t click, the message might be unclear, the link might not stand out, or the offer might not land.

Tracking both tells you what’s working—and what isn’t.

Example:

You send a promo email to 1,000 people.

100 people open it → Your click rate is 10%.
20 of those people click on a link inside → Your click-through rate is 20% of the 100 who opened it.

These are different numbers, and they serve different purposes. Click rate tells you how many people are paying attention. Click-through rate tells you how many people are taking action.

What’s a “Good” Click-Through Rate?

Honestly? It depends.

There’s no one-size-fits-all answer because it depends on the type of email, your industry, and your audience. A 2% CTR might be great for one business, while another might consistently hit 5%.

Instead of obsessing over benchmarks, track your own numbers over time.

Ask: Is my CTR improving? Is it dropping? What did I do differently?

If you notice a big change—good or bad—that’s your cue to investigate.

What If You Have a High Click Rate… But Low Sales?

Here’s where we dig a little deeper.

If people are opening your emails, but not clicking (or not buying), there are usually two reasons:

1. You might be targeting the wrong audience.

If your message is going to the wrong people, it won’t matter how good the offer is. People may open the email because the subject line was interesting, but they don’t click because it’s not what they need. This is a sign it’s time to take a closer look at your list:

Are you attracting the right folks?
Are your offers aligned with what they’re actually struggling with?
Are you segmenting your list in a meaningful way?

2. Your buying experience might be clunky.

If your email is getting opened and people are clicking, but they’re not purchasing, it could be a breakdown in your sales process.

Is the landing page slow or confusing?

Is the checkout page too complicated?

Are you asking for too much too soon?

You don’t need a “funnel” overhaul—you need to step into your reader’s shoes and test the path from click to conversion. Make it simple, clear, and as friction-free as possible.

A Quick Recap

When you’re sending emails, it’s easy to get caught up in wondering, “Is this even working?” The truth is, email marketing becomes so much more powerful when you understand what to look for. You don’t need to track everything—just the right things. A few key metrics can show you what’s landing, what’s not, and where to focus next.

Here are two important ones:

Open Rate = How many people opened your email
Click-Through Rate = How many people clicked on a link inside your email

They measure different things, but together they offer valuable insight into how your emails are performing—and how engaged your list really is.

One More Thing: Watch the Trends

It’s easy to overanalyze a single email and spiral into second-guessing—but one email isn’t the full story. What really matters is what you see over time. Trends and patterns tell you so much more than a one-off result. When you take a step back and look at your metrics with a wider lens, you start to see what’s working, what’s resonating, and where there’s room to grow.

Is your click rate going up or down?
Are your click-through rates consistent?
Are certain subject lines getting better results?
Are certain types of content driving more clicks?

These patterns help you write better emails and connect with your audience more effectively.

Tools That Can Help

You don’t need to figure all this out on your own. Email platforms like Mailchimp, Kit, or Flodesk all have tools that help you track both click rate and click-through rate. You can see what’s working, what’s not, and what to improve.

Use the data, but trust your gut too. Numbers are information—not identity.

Final Thoughts

Click rate and click-through rate aren’t just numbers to glance at and forget. They’re meaningful indicators that help you understand how your audience is engaging with your content. When you look at them as part of the bigger picture, they show you if your emails are being seen, resonating, and doing the job they’re meant to do—not just to sell, but to serve. To build trust. To connect with real people on the other side of the screen.

Getting seen
Getting clicked
Making Money

Because that’s the point of email marketing.

Not just to sell.

But to serve.

To connect.

To guide someone toward something that can solve a problem or make their life easier.

That’s what real email marketing does.

And once you understand the story your numbers are telling, you’ll know exactly where to show up, how to help, and what to tweak next.

Click Rate vs. Click-Through Rate And What They Mean