--- title: "Inbox Placement Testing & Monitoring | FirstSales.io" description: "Real-time inbox placement monitoring across Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo. Track sender reputation. Know where emails land every time." canonical: "https://firstsales.io/inbox-placement/" --- [Home](/) Inbox Placement Inbox Placement # 87% lands in the inbox. Not spam. The AI SDR loop only works if your email actually reaches a human. That means smart 21-day warm-up, automatic list cleaning before every send, and real-time blacklist monitoring. FirstSales ships all three. Most competitors skip them. * 87% lands in the primary inbox. Industry average is 60-70%. * Spam analysis catches triggers before you hit send. * Blacklist monitoring runs in the background, 24/7. * List cleaning included. Competitors charge +$47/mo extra. [Start your $1 trial](https://app.firstsales.io)[See pricing](/pricing/) $1 for 3 days · Cancel anytime · Live in 8 minutes 87% Inbox placement Under 2% Bounce rate 21 days Smart warm-up Free List cleaning Built for founders & SDRs running outbound Blacklists 400+ Tests Run Unlimited Alert Time Real-time Inbox Placement Test: Complete Your test results are ready Primary Inbox 87% Inbox 10% Promo 3% Spam Deliverability ScoreExcellent Gmail: 97% Outlook: 94% Yahoo: 85% Bounce Rate <2% Tests Today Unlimited Test Time 2 min By the numbers ## The numbers behind 87% inbox placement Every number here is a direct input to whether your AI SDR books a meeting or lands in a folder nobody reads. 87% Average inbox placement Industry average sits at 60-70% with basic warm-up tools. Smart 21-day warm-up delivers 87% average placement, verified. Under 2% Bounce rate Without list cleaning, bounce rates average 5-8% and burn your domain. Auto list cleaning before every send keeps bounces under 2%. 2 hrs Time to catch a dip Most tools surface deliverability problems after 2 weeks of damage. Real-time monitoring flags issues within 2 hours, not 2 weeks. Free List cleaning Competitors charge an extra $47/mo add-on for email verification. Included in every plan. No add-on, no upsell, no gotcha. How it works ## From cold domain to 87% inbox in 4 steps Setup takes 8 minutes. The hard parts, authentication, warm-up, list cleaning, run automatically from there. Step 12 minutes ### Connect your email accounts Link Gmail, Outlook, or any SMTP account in two clicks. No DNS panic, no IT team needed. * One-click connection * Gmail, Outlook, custom SMTP * Unlimited accounts Step 2Automatic ### We configure SPF, DKIM, DMARC Authentication is set up for you automatically. Every email you send is verified from day one. * Auto SPF configuration * Auto DKIM signing * DMARC policy applied Step 321 days ### Smart warm-up builds your reputation Human-like engagement patterns across Gmail and Outlook turn a cold domain into a trusted sender. * Variable timing signals * Gradual volume ramp * Multi-provider coverage Step 4Ongoing ### Send on clean lists, monitor live Every list is verified before it goes out. Blacklist monitoring runs in real time so you catch problems in hours, not weeks. * Auto list cleaning before send * Real-time blacklist alerts * Hourly inbox placement score [Start your $1 trial](https://app.firstsales.io) $1 for 3 days · Cancel anytime · Live in 8 minutes Deliverability engine ## Every tool your AI SDR needs to reach a real inbox The SDR loop finds leads, writes, and follows up. This engine makes sure the email actually arrives. ### Blacklist monitoring By the time you notice a blacklist hit, your domain reputation is already damaged. Runs 24/7 in the background. Alerts you within hours so you can act before campaigns are hurt. ### Spam content analysis Spam trigger words and bad image ratios are invisible until your open rates crater. Scans subject lines and body copy before you send. Plain-English fixes, not cryptic scores. ### Real-time inbox score Static monthly reports miss the window when you could still fix the problem. Updated hourly. See placement by provider so you know exactly where Gmail vs Outlook stands. ### 21-day smart warm-up Basic warm-up bots send identical patterns that email providers flag within days. Variable timing, realistic replies, gradual ramp. Builds genuine sender trust over 21 days. ### Auto list cleaning Every invalid email you send chips at your sender score. Competitors bill this separately. Runs before every send. Strips invalid addresses, spam traps, and dead inboxes automatically. ### SPF / DKIM / DMARC Misconfigured authentication is the single fastest way to land in spam permanently. Configured for you on setup. Checked on every send. No DNS panic, no manual steps. ### Provider breakdown A 70% overall score hides the fact that Outlook is delivering 40% of your emails to junk. Placement split by Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo, and 50+ providers so you fix the right thing. ### Automated recurring tests One-off tests miss gradual reputation decay between campaigns. Schedule daily or weekly tests. Automated rules can pause campaigns if placement drops below your threshold. ### Historical tracking Without a trend line you cannot tie a placement dip to a specific campaign or change. Every test is stored. Correlate changes in placement with list swaps, new copy, or sending volume. Spam analysis ## Catch spam triggers before you hit send SpamAssassin integration, subject-line scanning, URL reputation checks. Fix problems on the draft, not after your domain takes the hit. Email analysis results5 / 6 passing SpamAssassin score Hundreds of heuristic rules checked against your content 1.2 / 5.0Pass Subject line analysis Detects trigger words and punctuation patterns 2 issues foundWarning Body content scan Spam phrases, excessive caps, and formatting flags CleanPass Image-to-text ratio Checks whether your email is too image-heavy 15% ratioPass URL reputation Every link verified against domain reputation feeds 1 suspicious linkFail Authentication check SPF, DKIM, and DMARC all validated before sending All configuredPass Recommendations ### 3 fixes to improve your score Remove 'FREE' from subject line Commonly flagged by spam filters. Use 'complimentary' or restructure the offer into the body. Replace the shortened URL One link uses a URL shortener. Shortened links are flagged by multiple providers. Use the full domain URL. Cut the exclamation marks to one Your subject line has 3\. Every additional one lowers your score. One is fine, three is a spam signal. Fixing these 3 issues raises the SpamAssassin score from 1.2 to under 0.5, putting you well inside the safe zone for every major provider. [Run a spam analysis](https://app.firstsales.io) Comparison ## They send. We run the whole loop and land it. Instantly, Lemlist, and Woodpecker focus on sending volume. FirstSales adds the deliverability engine, lead finding, and meeting booking that make the loop complete. | Feature | FirstSales | Instantly | Lemlist | Woodpecker | | ---------------------------------- | ------------- | --------- | ------- | ---------- | | 87% inbox placement | | | | | | 21-day smart warm-up | | | | | | List cleaning included (no add-on) | | | | | | Blacklist monitoring | | | | | | Spam content analysis | | | | | | Real-time inbox score | | | | | | SPF / DKIM / DMARC setup | | | | | | Provider breakdown (50+) | | | | | | Meeting booking built in | | | | | | Web scraping for lead lists | | | | | | Starting price | $29/mo | $47/mo | $39/mo | $49/mo | | Trial | $1 for 3 days | 14 days | 14 days | No | ## Your AI SDR is ready. Make sure it actually reaches people. Founders and SDRs use FirstSales to hit 87% inbox placement. Plans from $29/mo. List cleaning included. Competitors charge $94-358/mo and bill list cleaning on top. [Start your $1 trial](https://app.firstsales.io)[See pricing](/pricing/) $1 for 3 daysLive in 8 minutesCancel anytime ## FAQs Everything you need to know about warm-up, list cleaning, blacklist monitoring, and how FirstSales keeps 87% of your cold emails out of spam. Can't find what you're looking for? Contact our [customer support team](mailto:support@firstsales.io) ### General ### ### ### ### ### Deliverability ### ### ### ### Can't find what you're looking for? Contact our [customer support team](mailto:support@firstsales.io)