Benchmark range
Cold outreach reply rates by channel
What three large datasets report, and why they disagree
Reply rates for cold outreach from three large datasets, shown as one dot per source. Cold email averages between 0.45% and 4.96% depending on who counted, three-message sequences roughly double a single message, and LinkedIn messages reply far more often than email. The data comes from sales and recruiting, so treat it as a planning floor for research invitations, not a forecast. Founders can use it to work out how many people to contact for their first 20 interviews.
Where this appears
What's in this benchmark range
| Hunter 2025 | Pin 2026 | Belkins 2025 | Range | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cold email, all sequences | 4.5% | 4.96% | 0.45% | 0.45% to 4.96% |
| Cold email, one message only | 3.3% | n/a | n/a | 3.3% |
| Cold email, three messages | 6.8% | n/a | n/a | 6.8% |
| LinkedIn message | n/a | 17.08% | n/a | 17.08% |
Sales and recruiting messages, not research invitations. Each source defines a reply its own way.
Use this image
Free to use in your docs, decks and posts under CC BY 4.0, as long as you credit Koji with a link to this page. To embed it, paste this into your page:
<a href="https://www.koji.so/visuals/cold-outreach-reply-rates-by-channel"><img src="https://www.koji.so/visuals/cold-outreach-reply-rates-by-channel/cold-outreach-reply-rates-by-channel.png" alt="Range chart of cold outreach reply rates: cold email 0.45% to 4.96% across three sources, three-message email 6.8%, LinkedIn messages 17.08%." width="1200" height="646" /></a>
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.koji.so/visuals/cold-outreach-reply-rates-by-channel">Cold outreach reply rates by channel</a>, Koji</p>
