Shopify + Klaviyo Email Deliverability Optimization Guide

The Shopify-Klaviyo Architecture

The Shopify + Klaviyo stack is the most popular ecommerce email setup. Understanding which platform sends what — and how to authenticate both — is critical for deliverability.

Sending Responsibilities

Email Type	Platform	Authentication
Order confirmation	Shopify	Shopify's SPF
Shipping notification	Shopify	Shopify's SPF
Refund confirmation	Shopify	Shopify's SPF
Welcome series	Klaviyo	Klaviyo's DKIM
Abandoned cart	Klaviyo	Klaviyo's DKIM
Post-purchase flow	Klaviyo	Klaviyo's DKIM
Marketing campaigns	Klaviyo	Klaviyo's DKIM
Win-back / re-engagement	Klaviyo	Klaviyo's DKIM

Authentication Setup

Step 1: Klaviyo Sending Domain

1. In Klaviyo, go to Settings > Domains
2. Click Add Sending Domain
3. Enter your root domain (e.g., yourbrand.com)
4. Klaviyo generates two CNAME records for DKIM and one TXT record for verification

Add these to your DNS:

kl._domainkey.yourbrand.com  CNAME  dkim.klaviyo.com
kl2._domainkey.yourbrand.com CNAME  dkim2.klaviyo.com

Step 2: SPF Record

Your SPF record needs to include both Shopify and Klaviyo:

v=spf1 include:shops.shopify.com include:send.klaviyo.com ~all

If you also use Google Workspace for business email:

v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com include:shops.shopify.com include:send.klaviyo.com ~all

Watch the SPF 10-lookup limit. Each include: mechanism uses at least one lookup.

Step 3: DMARC

Add your DMARC record if you haven't already:

_dmarc.yourbrand.com  TXT  "v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:[email protected]"

Start with p=none, verify both Shopify and Klaviyo pass authentication in your DMARC reports, then advance to p=quarantine.

Practitioner note: Shopify's transactional emails sometimes fail DMARC alignment because Shopify uses their own return-path domain. With p=none this doesn't matter. Before advancing to p=quarantine, verify Shopify's emails are passing DKIM alignment at minimum. Most Shopify plans handle this correctly now, but check your DMARC reports to confirm.

Disabling Overlapping Emails

The most common deliverability mistake with Shopify + Klaviyo is sending duplicate emails. Both platforms can send abandoned cart, welcome, and post-purchase emails.

Disable in Shopify

Go to Settings > Notifications and disable any email types you've moved to Klaviyo:

• Customer welcome email (if using Klaviyo welcome flow)
• Abandoned cart email (if using Klaviyo abandoned cart flow)
• Marketing emails (always send through Klaviyo)

Keep in Shopify

Always keep these transactional emails in Shopify:

• Order confirmation
• Shipping confirmation
• Delivery confirmation
• Refund notifications

These transactional emails have 60-80% open rates and build strong sender reputation.

Klaviyo Flow Optimization for Deliverability

Welcome Flow

• Trigger: Subscriber signs up
• Entry filter: Exclude existing customers (they should get a different flow)
• Timing: Email 1 immediately, Email 2 at 24 hours, Email 3 at 72 hours
• Smart Sending: Enable (prevents over-emailing if subscriber triggers multiple flows)
• Deliverability tip: High engagement in the welcome flow trains Gmail that your email is wanted. Send your strongest content here.

Abandoned Cart Flow

• Trigger: Started checkout, didn't complete
• Wait: 1 hour minimum (catching genuine abandonments vs slow buyers)
• Flow filter: Exclude people who purchased since the trigger
• Deliverability tip: Limit to 3 emails maximum. Each additional email gets lower engagement and higher complaint risk.

Post-Purchase Flow

• Trigger: Order placed
• Wait: Coordinate with Shopify's transactional emails. First Klaviyo email should be 3-5 days after purchase to avoid overlap.
• Deliverability tip: Product review requests have high engagement. Cross-sell emails need careful targeting to avoid complaints.

Practitioner note: The number one Shopify + Klaviyo deliverability killer is the aggressive popup that signs up everyone who visits. You end up with a huge list of window-shoppers who never engage. Set your popup to trigger after 30+ seconds on site, or after 2+ page views. Better signups = better engagement = better deliverability.

Suppression Strategy

Use Klaviyo's predictive analytics for intelligent suppression:

Engagement-Based Suppression

Create a suppressed segment:

• Has not opened OR clicked any email in 120+ days
• AND predicted churn risk is "High"
• AND has not placed an order in 180+ days

Exclude this segment from all campaign sends. Review monthly and permanently suppress contacts who don't re-engage after a re-engagement flow.

Complaint Prevention

• Suppress anyone who has bounced 2+ times
• Exclude subscribers who opened their last email but immediately deleted it (low engagement signal)
• Use Smart Sending to prevent over-emailing across flows and campaigns

Monitoring the Stack

Weekly Checks

1. Google Postmaster Tools — domain reputation and spam rate
2. Klaviyo Analytics — open rates, click rates, unsubscribe rates by flow and campaign
3. Shopify email performance — transactional email delivery rates

Monthly Checks

1. List growth vs suppression ratio — healthy lists grow and suppress simultaneously
2. Engagement decay trends — watch for declining engagement before it becomes a problem
3. Blacklist checks — verify no listings

Red Flags

Signal	Action
Domain reputation drops to Medium	Reduce volume, tighten suppression
Spam rate exceeds 0.1%	Identify offending campaign/flow, pause and fix
Open rates drop below 15%	Review list quality and segmentation
Unsubscribe rate exceeds 0.5% per send	Content or frequency problem

Practitioner note: The Shopify + Klaviyo stack is the best ecommerce email setup available, but it needs active management. I audit about 10 Shopify/Klaviyo accounts per month, and the most common issues are always the same: no authentication, overlapping emails, no suppression strategy. Fix those three things and deliverability improves dramatically.

If you want a full deliverability audit of your Shopify + Klaviyo setup, book a consultation — I'll review your authentication, flows, suppression rules, and metrics.

Sources

• Klaviyo: Setting Up a Dedicated Sending Domain
• Shopify: Email Notification Settings
• Klaviyo: Smart Sending
• Google: Email Sender Guidelines
• Klaviyo: Predictive Analytics

---

v1.0 · April 2026