Troubleshooting5 min read

Formatting Issues Across Email Clients

Troubleshoot layout problems, broken formatting, and rendering differences across email clients.

Last updated: Aug 3, 2024

Email signatures can render differently across email clients. This guide helps you identify and fix common formatting issues.

Why Formatting Differs

Email clients use different rendering engines:

  • Gmail: Chrome-based renderer
  • Outlook (Windows): Microsoft Word engine
  • Outlook (Mac): WebKit-based
  • Apple Mail: WebKit-based
  • Yahoo/AOL: Custom renderer

Each interprets HTML and CSS differently, leading to visual variations.

Common Formatting Problems

Layout Breaking

Symptoms:

  • Elements stacking when they should be side-by-side
  • Tables collapsing or expanding unexpectedly
  • Signature appearing too wide or too narrow

Solutions:

  1. Use fixed widths: Avoid percentages; use pixel values
  2. Simplify structure: Reduce nested tables
  3. Add cellpadding and cellspacing: Set to 0 explicitly
  4. Use inline styles: Email clients may strip <style> tags

Font Changes

Symptoms:

  • Different font appearing than expected
  • Font sizes varying across clients
  • Text appearing too large or small

Solutions:

  1. Use web-safe fonts:
  • Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif
  • Georgia, Times New Roman, serif
  • Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif
  1. Specify fallbacks: font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;
  1. Use explicit sizes: font-size: 14px; instead of relative sizes

Color Inconsistencies

Symptoms:

  • Colors appearing different
  • Dark mode inverting colors unexpectedly
  • Backgrounds not showing

Solutions:

  1. Use hex codes: #1a1a1a instead of color names
  2. Include background colors: Don't assume white backgrounds
  3. Test dark mode: Many clients now have dark themes

Spacing Issues

Symptoms:

  • Too much or too little space between elements
  • Padding not applied correctly
  • Margins collapsing

Solutions:

  1. Use table cells for spacing: Instead of margins
  2. Add explicit padding: On table cells, not rows
  3. Use spacer rows: Empty rows with fixed heights
  4. Avoid margin on block elements: Use padding instead

Symptoms:

  • Links not showing correct color
  • Underlines appearing unexpectedly
  • Hover states not working

Solutions:

  1. Inline styles on each link: Don't rely on global styles
  2. Include all link states: color: #0066cc; text-decoration: none;
  3. Accept no hover effects: Most email clients don't support them

Client-Specific Issues

Outlook (Windows)

Outlook uses Microsoft Word to render HTML, causing unique issues:

Known problems:

  • CSS background-image doesn't work
  • float property ignored
  • Rounded corners (border-radius) not supported
  • Line height behaves differently

Solutions:

  • Use VML for background images
  • Use tables for layout instead of floats
  • Accept square corners in Outlook
  • Use mso-line-height-rule: exactly;

Gmail

Known problems:

  • Strips <style> tags in <head>
  • May clip long emails
  • Removes position property

Solutions:

  • Use inline styles only
  • Keep signatures compact
  • Stick to simple layouts

Apple Mail / iOS Mail

Generally good support, but:

Known problems:

  • May auto-link phone numbers/dates
  • Can apply dark mode transformations

Solutions:

  • Use <meta name="x-apple-disable-message-reformatting">
  • Test in both light and dark modes

Yahoo Mail

Known problems:

  • Aggressive CSS stripping
  • May add extra spacing

Solutions:

  • Keep HTML simple
  • Use minimal CSS
  • Test thoroughly

Debugging Process

Step 1: Identify the Problem

  1. Send test emails to multiple clients
  2. Document which clients show issues
  3. Screenshot the problems

Step 2: Isolate the Cause

  1. Simplify your signature temporarily
  2. Remove elements one by one
  3. Find which element causes the issue

Step 3: Fix and Test

  1. Apply the relevant solution
  2. Regenerate the signature
  3. Re-test in the affected client

Best Practices for Cross-Client Compatibility

Use Tables for Layout

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0" width="600">
  <tr>
    <td>Content here</td>
  </tr>
</table>

Inline All Styles

<p style="margin: 0; padding: 0; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; color: #333333;">
  Text content
</p>

Set Explicit Dimensions

<img src="logo.png" width="150" height="50" alt="Logo">

Use Web-Safe Fonts

Stick to fonts available on all systems.

Keep It Simple

  • Limit to 2-3 columns maximum
  • Avoid complex nested structures
  • Use minimal CSS properties

Testing Tools

Email Preview Services

  • Litmus: Test across 90+ email clients
  • Email on Acid: Real device testing
  • Mailtrap: Email sandbox testing

Manual Testing

Send to these accounts:

  • Personal Gmail
  • Outlook.com
  • Yahoo Mail
  • Work email (if different)
  • Mobile devices

When to Accept Differences

Some rendering differences are acceptable:

  • Slight font variations: Web-safe fonts may vary slightly
  • Dark mode adaptations: Background colors may invert
  • Mobile reflow: Text may wrap differently

Focus on ensuring:

  • Content is readable
  • Links work
  • Images display
  • Layout is recognizable

Escalating Issues

If you can't resolve a formatting issue:

  1. Document the problem with screenshots
  2. Note which clients are affected
  3. Contact support@signkit.io
  4. Consider using a simpler template design
formattingtroubleshootingemail clientslayout

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