How to Tell if Someone Read an HTML Email

Know if your emails have been read using read receipts.

Aside from waiting for a reply, there is another way to check and see if an email recipient has read a message you've sent them. You can do this using Microsoft's "read receipt" feature that prompts the recipient to click a button indicating they've read an email. This feature is available to users of Outlook, Outlook Express, Windows Mail, or Web-based Windows Live Mail. It can also be used on Apple's Mail program.

Things You'll Need

• Compatible email client

Instructions

1. Open your email client such as Outlook Express or Windows Mail, or log into your Web-based Windows Live Mail account. Select "Compose new message" to start writing your email.

2. Click on "Tools" from the message's top menu. (In Windows Live Mail, you may have to click "Alt" on your keyboard to see this). Click on "Request Read Receipt" from this menu, if it is not already checked.

3. Type your email and the recipient's address and click "Send" when you are finished. The recipient will be prompted to notify you when they open the email. You will receive a message in your inbox indicating the message has been read.

Tips & Warnings

• Not all Web mail clients are compatible with read receipts. Some users won't be notified that a receipt has been attached to a message. Others may just choose to ignore your read receipt.

• Several services on the Web allow you to sign up for a free account that can be used to track emails to Web mail services. This method involves embedding a surreptitious image in a message that may not be considered ethical, and many would consider a privacy violation. In any case, Web mail clients will block these images by default and prevent them from working.

References

• About: How to Request Read Receipt for a Message in Win Live Mail or Outlook Express

Resources

• Windows Live Mail