Reporting on email campaigns can seem straightforward, but a few important differences between standard and transactional sends can affect how you interpret your data.
Can I report on transactional emails in the same way as standard email campaigns?
Yes. You can use the same reporting tools for both, but transactional emails sent through the Transactional Email API are not tracked in the same way as standard email campaigns. They use action_type = transactional_email, track fewer event properties, and use different campaign identification logic.
Why are my transactional emails not appearing in the same report as my marketing emails?
First, confirm how the email was sent. Emails sent through the Transactional Email API are tracked as action_type = transactional_email, which you can use as a metric filter in the report to isolate transactional emails. If the tracked event shows action_type = email, the message was not sent through the Transactional Email API and will not appear in reporting as a Transactional Email API send.
I need to create a report for a transactional email, but I can’t find its campaign_id. Why?
Unlike standard campaigns with predefined campaign IDs, transactional emails sent through the Transactional Email API do not use a separately generated campaign_id. Instead, the value you set in campaign_name is also used as campaign_id.
Why do transactional email delivery results look different from standard marketing email results?
The Transactional Email API does not follow standard bounce management rules. In general, it attempts to send the email unless the address fails basic syntax validation or is blocked by the global suppression list.
Why do some attributes seem to be missing on transactional email events?
This is expected. The Transactional Email API is tracked similarly to standard emails, but it records fewer event properties. For example, campaign_policy is not tracked for Transactional Email API sends.
Why don’t my transactional email metrics exactly match my standard email metrics?
Transactional Email API sends use a different action_type, track fewer event properties, and handle campaign identification differently. As a result, reports originally designed for standard campaign emails may need to be adjusted for transactional email reporting.
Why was a transactional email sent even though the customer had email_invalid = true?
This is expected for Transactional Email API sends. The API ignores email_invalid and generally attempts to send unless blocked by syntax validation or suppression list.
Why do two emails that are both considered “transactional” by the business show up differently in reporting?
Business terminology and reporting terminology do not always match. In reporting, emails sent through the Transactional Email API are identified by action_type = transactional_email. If the event shows action_type = email, the message was not sent through the Transactional Email API, even though it was considered transactional from a business perspective.