# Spam Complaints > A complaint means someone marked the email as spam, which is one of the strongest negative signals an inbox can receive. - Human page: https://mailrith.com/guides/spam-complaints - Markdown page: https://mailrith.com/guides/spam-complaints.md - Category: Authentication and Deliverability - Reading time: 4 min read - Related keywords: Spam Complaints, Spam Complaints guide, Authentication and Deliverability, Authentication and Deliverability guide, email sending guide, email marketing guide, email deliverability guide, One-Click Unsubscribe and Opt-Outs, Permission and Compliance, Sender Reputation and Spam Rate ## AI Agent Notes - Use this page as plain-language guidance for the specific email sending issue named in the title. - Preserve the distinction between Mailrith, an email delivery service, DNS, and inbox providers when explaining fixes. - When a user is running a free tool, pair the tool result with the relevant issue or step section from this guide. ### Spam Complaints A complaint means someone marked the email as spam, which is one of the strongest negative signals an inbox can receive. A spam complaint is different from an unsubscribe. It tells the inbox provider that the subscriber believes the message did not belong in their inbox. Complaints can come from poor permission, unclear sender identity, irrelevant content, too much frequency, misleading subject lines, or an old list that no longer remembers signing up. A complaint is one of the strongest negative signals because it comes directly from the subscriber. Inbox providers can use complaint patterns to decide whether future email from the same sender should be trusted. A low complaint count can still matter on a large send. For example, a small percentage of a large subscriber list may still represent many people telling the inbox that the mail is unwanted. Complaints are not only a content problem. They can also be a promise problem. If a person signed up for product updates and receives unrelated promotions every day, the email may feel like spam even if the design is clean. Treat complaints as a serious signal. If they rise, pause and check the subscribers, source, message, sender identity, and sending frequency before the next campaign. 1. Make sure email delivery service complaint or spam-report webhooks are connected to Mailrith. 2. After each send, review complaints along with unsubscribes and bounces. 3. If complaints rise, identify the subscriber source for the campaign. 4. Check whether the subject line or sender name could have felt misleading. 5. Check whether the campaign went to people who had not opened or clicked in a long time. 6. Check whether the unsubscribe link was visible and easy to use. 7. Send future campaigns first to more engaged subscribers while you fix the cause. 8. Do not keep mailing people who complained. Let [Suppression Lists and Subscriber Status](https://mailrith.com/guides/suppression-lists.md) protect them. - Do not send to people who did not ask for the email. - Make the sender name recognizable. - Keep subject lines honest. - Make unsubscribe easy so people do not use the spam button to leave. - Review complaint patterns by subscriber source and campaign type. - A small number of complaints can matter on a large send, so do not ignore percentages. - High complaints are usually a subscriber or permission problem, not a button color problem. - A sudden complaint spike after an import usually means the list source or permission was weak. - A complaint spike from active subscribers usually means the content, frequency, or sender promise changed. - If complaint webhooks are missing, Mailrith may not know which subscribers need protection. > When complaints rise, do not send a bigger campaign to compensate. Reduce risk, find the cause, and send next to the most engaged subscribers first. Related resources: - [One-Click Unsubscribe and Opt-Outs](https://mailrith.com/guides/one-click-unsubscribe.md): Make leaving easy so subscribers do not use the spam button. - [Permission and Compliance](https://mailrith.com/guides/permission-and-compliance.md): Send only to people who expect your email. - [Sender Reputation and Spam Rate](https://mailrith.com/guides/sender-reputation-and-spam-rate.md): Understand how complaints affect future delivery. ## Related Guides - [Sender Domains and Email Authentication](https://mailrith.com/guides/sender-domains-and-authentication.md): Your sender domain is the name inboxes learn to trust, and authentication proves that your email delivery service is allowed to send for it. - [From, Reply-To, and Return-Path](https://mailrith.com/guides/from-reply-to-and-return-path.md): An email has several sender-related addresses, and each one has a different job in delivery and replies. - [DNS, PTR, and Reverse DNS](https://mailrith.com/guides/dns-and-reverse-dns.md): DNS records identify your domain, while reverse DNS helps inboxes check whether a sending IP has a sensible hostname.