What’s the difference between global vs list-specific unsubscribes?

A global unsubscribe removes a subscriber from all marketing email communications across your entire organization-every list, every campaign type, every brand if you operate multiple brands under one company. Once globally unsubscribed, the email address should be added to a master suppression list that prevents any future marketing sends regardless of source. This is the complete opt-out option for subscribers who want nothing further from you. It should be honored absolutely; attempting to re-add a globally unsubscribed address to any list is both legally risky and reputationally damaging.

A list-specific unsubscribe removes a subscriber from a particular email list or content category while leaving their subscriptions to other lists intact. This approach gives subscribers granular control. They umight unsubscribe from promotional emails while remaining on the product updates list, or opt out of one newsletter while continuing to receive another. List-specific unsubscribes require more sophisticated preference management but enable subscribers to customize their relationship with your brand rather than forcing an all-or-nothing choice.

Best practice is to offer both options clearly. When someone clicks unsubscribe, present a landing page that shows what they're unsubscribing from (the specific list) and offers both the list-specific option and a "unsubscribe from all" global option. Some senders also show other available lists at this point, allowing subscribers to switch preferences rather than leave entirely. Your email infrastructure must support both models, maintaining both list-level subscription status and a global suppression list that overrides all list memberships. Global unsubscribes are the emergency exit-always available, always honored. List-specific unsubscribes are the preference adjustment-offering nuance for subscribers who want some emails but not others.