When sending marketing emails through HubSpot (or any other email platform), you may receive bounce notifications or out-of-office replies in your inbox. This article explains why this happens.
Why You Receive Bounce Emails
When an email is sent, the “From” address is treated as the technical sender of that message under SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) standards. If the recipient’s mail server cannot deliver the message — for example, because the address no longer exists or their mailbox is full — the receiving server automatically sends a bounce notification back to the sender.
👉 This behaviour is not unique to HubSpot. It occurs in all major platforms, including Gmail, Outlook, and Campaign Monitor.
Example
If your email is sent from marketing@yourcompany.com, any delivery failures (hard or soft bounces) will automatically return to that address.
Types of Notifications
| Type | Description | Who Receives It |
|---|---|---|
| Hard Bounce | Permanent failure (e.g. invalid email address). | Sent to the “From” address. |
| Soft Bounce | Temporary issue (e.g. mailbox full or server busy). | Sent to the “From” address. |
| Out-of-Office / Auto-Reply | Human response generated by the recipient. | Sent to the “Reply-To” address (if configured). |
| Unsubscribe or Spam Complaints | Managed within HubSpot automatically — not sent as email notifications. | Handled internally by HubSpot. |
Common Scenarios
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Using a Personal Address as the Sender
If you send emails fromjane@yourcompany.com, that person’s inbox will receive all bounce messages.
This can quickly flood an inbox, especially when sending to large lists. -
Using a Shared or No-Reply Address
If you send fromnoreply@yourcompany.com, bounces go to that inbox instead, keeping personal inboxes clean. -
Separate Reply-To Address
You can specify a different “Reply-To” address (e.g.marketing@yourcompany.com) for genuine customer replies, while still sending from a shared sender address.
Best Practices
✅ Use a shared sender address
Example: marketing@yourcompany.com or noreply@yourcompany.com
✅ Set a separate “Reply-To” address
Use a monitored inbox for genuine customer responses (e.g. support@yourcompany.com).
✅ Create inbox rules or filters
Automatically route bounce notifications to a folder or shared mailbox if you want to keep them for review.
✅ Avoid using personal staff emails
This prevents personal inboxes from being flooded with bounce notifications.
Key Takeaways
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Receiving bounce notifications is normal and follows universal email protocol standards.
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Hard and soft bounces always return to the “From” address.
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Out-of-office replies and human responses go to the “Reply-To” address (if configured).
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The simplest fix is to use a shared sender or no-reply address for campaigns and a monitored “Reply-To” address for responses.