Is Gmail Postmaster reputation the same as inbox placement?

Myth: Postmaster reputation directly equals inbox placement rate.

Reality: They are related but not identical.

Postmaster reputation:

Overall domain/IP standing

Aggregated across all sends

Influences but does not determine placement

Inbox placement:

Where specific messages land

Influenced by reputation

Also influenced by user-specific factors

Can vary by recipient

The gap:

High reputation does not guarantee 100% inbox

Low reputation does not mean 0% inbox

Individual user behavior affects their inbox

Reputation is one input to placement decisions, not the only one.

Good port authority rating helps, but each shipment is also inspected individually.