The magic Mailchimp time and energy calculator
A lot of time and effort goes into creating email campaigns in Mailchimp. So you want to make sure that they’re worth the effort, right?
Will your newsletters and campaigns actually be read by the people you send them to?
When you’re creating your email campaigns in Mailchimp on a desktop, it’s easy to lose sight of how much time and effort you are also expecting your recipients to give you.
This is even more important if they’re viewing your email on their mobile instead which typically turns every one line of text into three = equals thumb scrolls = more effort. I imagine you don’t want them to get RSI from scrolling through your 14”, 600 line email on their phone?
Try this handy calculator before you send an email - it might make you think differently…
How much time and effort does it take someone to read your email campaign?
Silent read time (assuming no distractions): seconds / minutes
Desktop length: lines
Mobile length: lines
Mobile scrolling: thumb scrolls
How these estimates work
Reading time assumes an average silent reading speed of 250 words per minute. It may be longer with distractions when on mobile for example.
Line counts are based on typical Mailchimp formatting using a single-column layout.
Mobile emails are estimated to display ~3× more lines than desktop.
Images are estimated to add ~10 lines on desktop and ~5–6 lines on mobile.
Assumes images are decorative and not infographics containing text (if they are, we need to talk!)
Thumb scrolls are based on an average of ~9–10 visible lines per mobile screen.
Estimates assume standard paragraph font size and exclude additional lines created by large headings and white space.
These figures are intended as practical estimates, not exact measurements, and will vary by device, formatting, and reader behaviour.