Email Newsletter Format: The Layout That Gets Read, Section by Section

Plenty of unread newsletters were written fine. The layout let them down.

The email newsletter format that gets read is a single column about 600 pixels wide, with body text of at least 14px, one lead story, two to four shorter items and one button. It closes with a footer showing your postal address and an unsubscribe link, which US law requires in every marketing email.

Below is how to format an email newsletter: the section order, sourced specs for width, type and images, mobile and dark mode, the footer rules, and one issue laid out three ways. For the words as well as the layout, our 30 newsletter templates follow this format.

What is the best email newsletter layout?

One column, read top to bottom, where every section has one job:

One lead item, because if everything gets equal space, nothing gets read. One main button; supporting items get text links. A few notes on the parts people get wrong:

• Preview text. If you leave it empty, the inbox shows whatever text comes first, which can be a "View in browser" link or your logo's alt text. Write it as the second half of the subject. Our email subject lines guide has examples.

• Header. Keep it short, so the lead story shows on the first screen. In our experience, a tall banner pushes it out of view, especially on a phone where the first screen is small.

• Button. Build it from HTML and CSS rather than an image. Email on Acid recommends these "bulletproof" buttons and warns that image-based buttons "can make your click-through rates and ROI suffer" (Email on Acid).

• Sign-off. A person's name, plus an invitation to reply. The replies tell you what to write next.

The order bends by type. A founder letter drops the header and supporting items; a link roundup swaps the lead item for a numbered list. The footer never moves.

What width should an email newsletter be?

600 pixels is the standard and a safe default. Email on Acid calls 600 pixels the most common email width, a habit that dates from the smaller screens of early HTML email. In its tests, roughly 650 pixels is the most that fits on screen in Outlook and Yahoo, so it recommends staying below 650 pixels or simply using 600 (Email on Acid).

Width also sets line length. The W3C's accessibility guidelines say lines should not exceed 80 characters, because long lines make it hard for people with some reading or vision disabilities to keep their place (W3C). If your lines run longer, add padding rather than shrinking the text.

What font size should an email newsletter use?

Use at least 14px for body text. Litmus's accessibility guidance says a font of at least 14px, and preferably larger, makes for a better reading experience, and notes that some devices, such as iPhones, automatically enlarge text under 14px (Litmus). Litmus itself rarely goes below 18px for body copy (Litmus).

How should images work in an email newsletter?

Treat every image as optional: the email has to make sense when images don't load. Email clients block images, usually for security reasons, and some readers turn them off on slow connections. Email on Acid doesn't recommend image-only emails, partly because screen readers can only read the alt text (Email on Acid). So:

• Put words in text, not in pictures. Headlines, prices, dates and the button label should all be live text.

• Write alt text and set width and height on every image. The dimensions give the alt text a placeholder box when images are off (Litmus).

• Export at about double the display size, and compress. Email on Acid advises image files as close to double their display size as possible, and notes Outlook on desktop only resizes images by the HTML width attribute: use width="600" plus style="width:100%;max-width:600px;". Large files slow loading, so compress them (Email on Acid).

Total size matters too. If an email's HTML is larger than around 102KB, Gmail will generally clip it (Email on Acid), hiding the rest, which can include your footer and unsubscribe link. Long issues add up, and Email on Acid notes that code your sending tool adds, such as tracking links, increases the size too.

See it in Spreeflo: the drag-and-drop email builder is responsive on desktop and mobile, so one design serves both. Try the email builder, no login →

How does the newsletter layout change on a phone?

On a phone, the layout should collapse to one column, keep text at least as large, and make buttons big enough for a thumb, with no sideways scrolling. The W3C's accessibility guidelines use a width of 320 CSS pixels as the test: content should work there without scrolling in two directions (W3C). Phones matter most. Litmus's Email Client Market Share, built from over 1.5 billion opens in September 2026, puts Apple at 76.56% of opens and Gmail at 16.10%, and says mobile devices "continue to be the primary reading environment for the majority of subscribers" (Litmus). (Apple's share includes privacy-protected opens, which Litmus doesn't treat as reliable.)

For tap size, WCAG 2.2 sets 24 by 24 CSS pixels as the minimum at level AA and 44 by 44 at level AAA (W3C, W3C). Aim for the larger size on your main button.

Dark mode changes your colours for you

Litmus says dark mode is used by over 25% of the total user base (Litmus), and some clients recolour your email to match. Its dark mode guide describes three behaviours: clients that leave your colours alone (such as Apple Mail and Gmail on desktop), clients that invert only light backgrounds (such as Outlook.com and the Gmail app on Android), and clients that invert everything (such as the Gmail app on iOS and Outlook on Windows) (Litmus).

You can't control full inversion, so design to survive it:

• Use transparent PNG logos, with a thin light outline on dark ones.

• Avoid pure white on pure black; Litmus warns it can strain eyes and may be inverted automatically.

• Add the color-scheme and supported-color-schemes meta tags, and a prefers-color-scheme media query for the clients that support it, such as Apple Mail.

Chapter 8 of the Email Marketing Bible, Make it look good, goes deeper on dark mode and accessibility.

Which footer elements are required by law?

In the US, every commercial email must include your valid physical postal address and a clear way to opt out, honoured within 10 business days (FTC). Canada and the UK have their own rules, and Google adds its own for bulk senders to Gmail.

This is a summary, not legal advice; in the EU and UK, consent matters more than the footer, as our chapter on email rules explains. Google's one-click unsubscribe lives in the email headers, which your sending tool adds. A footer that covers the visible parts of all four:

[Company legal name] · [Street address or registered PO box, city, postcode, country]
You're getting this because you [signed up at / bought from] [where], on [date if you have it].
Update your preferences · Unsubscribe from all marketing email

The visible link can lead to a preferences page rather than unsubscribing in one click (Google), but under CAN-SPAM that page must offer a way to stop all marketing email.

Should a newsletter be plain text or HTML?

Use designed HTML for newsletters with images, products or several items. Use a letter-style layout (minimal HTML, no banner, plain links) for founder letters and anything where you want replies.

In our experience, the letter-style version is underrated: quick to write, and it invites replies. Keep the legal footer either way.

Here are three email newsletter format examples, compared on the same content

Here is one illustrative issue laid out three ways: a SaaS company has shipped saved filters, fixed two bugs and is hosting a webinar on Thursday.

Format 1: designed.

[Logo] Product update · November

[Screenshot of saved filters, alt text: "Saved filters panel with three filters"]
Save any filter and get back to it in one click
Build a filter once, name it, and it's in your sidebar from now on.
[Button: Try saved filters]

Also this month
- CSV exports now keep your column order. [Link]
- Fixed: dates showing in the wrong time zone. [Link]
- Webinar, Thursday 2pm ET: Filters for busy teams. [Link: Save a seat]

[Footer]

Format 2: letter-style.

Hi Sam,

Short one this month. The thing you asked for most, saved filters, is live:
build a filter once, name it, and it sits in your sidebar. Try it here: [link]

Two fixes too: CSV exports keep your column order, and dates no longer
show in the wrong time zone.

I'm walking through filters live on Thursday at 2pm ET. Save a seat: [link]

What should we build next? Just reply.
Cyril

[Footer]

Format 3: digest.

[Logo] November digest

NEW      Saved filters: build once, reuse in one click. [Link]
IMPROVED CSV exports keep your column order. [Link]
FIXED    Dates no longer show in the wrong time zone. [Link]
EVENT    Thursday 2pm ET: Filters for busy teams. [Link: Save a seat]

[Footer]

To choose, send the same content in two formats to two random halves of your list and compare clicks and replies. Skip opens, which Apple's privacy protection makes unreliable.

How to set up this newsletter format in Spreeflo

Start from the template library and build the format once, with your postal address and an unsubscribe link ({{ spree.unsubscribe_url }}) in the footer; a broadcast can't go out without the link, and the address is yours to add. Hi {{ contact.first_name | default: "there" }}, means nobody gets "Hi ,".

Send it as a broadcast in four steps. Send a test fills the variables from a real contact, so you can check the layout on your phone in light and dark mode. Turn on Resend to people who didn't open with a new subject, or Follow up with people who opened but didn't click. Next issue, Duplicate last broadcast keeps the email, sender, audience and follow-ups, with a new subject.

Broadcasts and the email builder are on Starter, from $16 a month for 1,000 marketing contacts (pricing).

The broader point

A consistent format tells readers where the important thing will be, and issue after issue they learn to open, read the lead and click. Build it once, then spend your time on what goes in it.

Build this in Spreeflo

Spreeflo's email builder, template library and broadcasts with automatic follow-ups are all on Starter, and it's 2 to 3x more affordable than Mailchimp. Switching tools? We'll move your templates across free while migration slots last.

Browse the templates → · See pricing

Common questions

What is the best format for an email newsletter?

A single column about 600 pixels wide: a short header, one lead story, two to four supporting items, one main button, and a footer with your postal address and an unsubscribe link. It reads well on a phone and makes the main point obvious.

What is the size of an email newsletter?

600 pixels wide is the standard. Email on Acid calls it the most common width and found about 650 pixels is the most that fits in Outlook and Yahoo, so stay below that. On phones, the layout should shrink to the screen width. Keep the HTML under about 102KB, or Gmail will generally clip it.

What are the parts of an email newsletter?

Seven, in this order: a subject line and preview text, a header that says who it's from, one lead item, two to four supporting items, one call to action, a sign-off from a person, and a footer with your postal address and an unsubscribe link. Founder letters drop the header and supporting items; the footer never moves.

What should a newsletter footer include?

Your company name, a valid physical postal address, a line explaining why the reader is receiving the email, and a clear unsubscribe link. In the US, the address and the opt-out are required by CAN-SPAM, and opt-outs must be honoured within 10 business days.

Should a newsletter be plain text or HTML?

HTML suits newsletters with images, products or several items. A letter-style layout with minimal formatting suits founder letters and emails where you want replies. Either way, keep the legal footer.

Read these next

• Email newsletter templates: 30 free layouts and when to use each

• Email Marketing Bible, chapter 8: Make it look good

• Email subject lines: 150+ examples sorted by the job they do

• Email marketing for small business: the five automations to set up first

• Spreeflo's email builder

Sources

• Email on Acid: The basics of email design, read 28 October 2026

• Email on Acid: Gmail email clipping and how to avoid it, read 28 October 2026

• Email on Acid: Image blocking, read 27 October 2026

• Email on Acid: Fluid retina images for email, read 27 October 2026

• Litmus: Accessible design best practices for email designers, read 27 October 2026

• Litmus: Email typography and fonts, read 27 October 2026

• Litmus: The ultimate guide to styled alt text in email, read 27 October 2026

• Litmus: The ultimate guide to dark mode for email marketers, read 27 October 2026

• Litmus: Email client market share, read 27 October 2026

• W3C: Understanding SC 2.5.8 Target Size (Minimum), read 27 October 2026

• W3C: Understanding SC 2.5.5 Target Size (Enhanced), read 27 October 2026

• W3C: Understanding SC 1.4.8 Visual Presentation, read 28 October 2026

• W3C: Understanding SC 1.4.10 Reflow, read 28 October 2026

• FTC: CAN-SPAM Act, a compliance guide for business, read 27 October 2026

• CRTC: Frequently asked questions about Canada's anti-spam legislation, read 27 October 2026

• ICO: Electronic mail marketing (PECR), read 27 October 2026

• Google: Email sender guidelines FAQ, read 27 October 2026

• Spreeflo pricing, read 27 October 2026