Plain-Text vs Designed Emails: Which One Actually Gets Read

14 September 2026·6 min read

Quick answer: For most regular sends — updates, announcements, "here's what's new" emails — a plain-text or plain-text-styled email out-performs a heavily designed one, because it reads like a real message instead of a broadcast. A properly designed email still earns its place for visual products, sales pushes, or building brand recognition. The honest answer is "it depends on the send," not "pick one forever." 📈

Here's the thing nobody wants to hear after spending weeks on a beautiful email template: the fancy version doesn't automatically win. We've watched businesses pour money into a polished, on-brand template, only to get better opens and replies from the scrappy one-paragraph update someone typed straight into their inbox. It's not that design is bad — it's that "designed" and "trustworthy" aren't the same thing, and readers can tell the difference between a message and a mail-out fast. 💖

What most businesses get wrong

The mistake is treating "which format" as a branding decision instead of a job-to-be-done decision. Businesses pick designed emails because it feels more professional, then wonder why engagement drops — or go fully plain-text because someone read that it "performs better," then use it for a genuine visual launch and lose all the impact. Format should follow the purpose of the email, not the other way around. A weekly note from the founder and a seasonal sale campaign are two different jobs, and need two different looks.

The Format Decision Checklist

Before you build (or keep) a template, run each email type through this:

What's the actual goal? Building trust/relationship → lean plain-text. Showing off a product, offer, or launch visually → lean designed.
Would this feel weird as a text message from a person? If yes, it's probably a plain-text job. If it genuinely needs images to make sense (a product grid, a before/after, a menu), it's a designed job.
Is this a one-to-one feeling email or a one-to-many feeling email? Updates, thank-yous, and "just letting you know" emails should feel one-to-one. Promotions and campaigns can feel one-to-many.
Test it before you commit budget. Send the same message as both a plain version and a designed version to a small split of your list, and check opens, clicks, and (if you can track it) replies — not just opens.
Keep one plain-text template on hand at all times for the emails that need to land fast and feel human — an apology, a delay notice, a quick heads-up — even if your main newsletter is designed.

The polished newsletter that underperformed a scrappy update: A business had a beautifully designed monthly newsletter — brand colours, header image, footer icons, the lot. Open rates sat in a low, steady range for months. One month, the person running it was travelling and instead sent a rushed, plain paragraph titled "quick one from me" with no images. It got noticeably better opens and several direct replies than the designed version ever produced. The lesson wasn't "scrap the newsletter" — it was that the plain format does something the designed one can't: it feels like it's from a person, not a system.

The subscription business A/B-ing announcement formats: A subscription-style business tested two versions of the same "price change" announcement — one with the full branded template, one as a short plain note. The plain version got a noticeably higher click-through to the FAQ page and fewer confused replies to support. For sensitive or important news, people want it to read like an explanation, not a marketing asset — the design was adding a layer of "sales-y" distrust to a message that needed to feel straight.

The local business unsure whether to invest in design: A local service business kept putting off email marketing because they thought they needed a designer and a proper template before they could start. They began instead with plain-text monthly updates written like a genuine note to a friend. Once the list was engaged and growing, they layered in a lightly designed template for occasional bigger promotions, but kept the plain format for the regular touch-points. Waiting for "properly designed" had been costing them a list that could've been warming up the whole time.

How to actually implement this

You don't need two entirely separate systems — most email platforms let you use a simple, mostly-text template that still carries your logo and colours lightly:

Sort your regular emails into two buckets: relationship (updates, thank-yous) and campaign (sales, launches, seasonal pushes).
Build one lightweight, mostly-text template for the relationship bucket — simple header, signed off like a person, minimal imagery.
Keep a fuller designed template for the campaign bucket, and use it deliberately rather than by default.
Write the plain-text version first, even for a designed email — if it doesn't hold up as plain text, more design won't save it.
Track opens and clicks separately by format for a few months so you're deciding on your own numbers, not a general rule.

💡 Check who the email is actually from. A generic business "From" name plus a heavily designed template reads as two layers of "not a person." Fixing the From name to an actual human often moves the needle more than any redesign.

Don't assume design = credibility. A clean plain-text email from a real person can read as more credible than a template.
Don't go plain-text for everything out of fear of "salesy" design. Product launches genuinely need imagery to do their job.
Don't skip a real "From" name and reply-to address — this affects trust more than font choice ever will.
Don't test once and call it settled. Engagement patterns shift as your list grows — recheck occasionally.
Don't confuse "plain-text" with "low effort." The best plain emails are often more carefully written, because the words have nowhere to hide.

Frequently asked questions

Does plain-text always get better open rates than designed emails?

Not always — open rate is also shaped by subject line, sender reputation, and list warmth, not just format. What's more consistent is that plain-text tends to earn better replies and click-through on relationship-type sends, while a well-designed email can outperform on clicks for a visual campaign. Match the format to the message rather than chasing a blanket rule.

Can I use some design without losing the "personal" feel?

Yes — a small logo, one brand colour, and a simple signature block can sit inside a mostly plain-text layout without reading as a mail-out. The line to watch is imagery: once you add a hero image or a grid of buttons, it starts reading as a campaign.

Is it worth paying for a professionally designed email template?

For genuine campaign emails — launches, sales, seasonal pushes — yes, since it needs to hold up visually across devices. For everyday relationship emails, it's often not worth the spend, because the whole point of that format is that it doesn't look built.

How do I know if my audience prefers plain or designed?

Send both versions of a similar message to a comparable split of your list and compare clicks and replies over a few sends, not just one — a single send can be skewed by timing or subject line.

Keep reading 🤍

Written by

Kate, founder of Chronically Online

I help Gold Coast and Brisbane businesses grow with branding, websites and marketing that actually works.

Work with me ✦