---
title: "The Email Preflight Checklist"
description: "A complete, practical checklist of what to verify before an email goes out - and how to automate it."
canonical: "https://memo.ly/email-preflight-checklist"
updated: "2026-07-31"
---

# The Email Preflight Checklist

A complete, practical checklist of what to verify before an email goes out - and how to automate it.

*Pillar · 8 min read · Updated 2026-07-31*

Preflight is the quality pass an email should clear before it moves forward. Borrowed from aviation, the idea is simple: a fixed checklist catches the predictable problems every time, so they never reach a recipient.

## Metadata

- Subject line is set and meaningful.
- Preview/preheader text is intentional, not a stray first line.
- From name and address are correct for the context.

## Variables and content

- No unresolved merge variables or raw placeholders.
- No leftover lorem ipsum, test copy, or internal notes.
- Dates, prices, and names are accurate.

## Links and images

- Every link resolves and points to the right place.
- Every image has alt text and a reachable source.
- Tracking or UTM parameters (if any) are correct.

## Brand and footer

- Colors, type, and logo match the brand.
- Footer includes the required address and unsubscribe details.

## Accessibility, rendering, and size

- Sufficient color contrast and a sensible heading structure.
- Email-safe markup that renders across major clients.
- Reasonable total size, and a coherent plain-text alternative.

## Make the checklist automatic

A checklist you have to remember is a checklist you’ll skip under deadline. Memo’s [preflight](https://memo.ly/docs/understand-email-preflight.md) runs these checks on the compiled output and gates approval, export, and test send on them. See [Resolve preflight findings](https://memo.ly/docs/resolve-preflight-findings.md) when something is flagged.

## FAQ

### What should an email preflight check include?

At minimum: metadata, unresolved variables, links, images and alt text, brand and footer rules, accessibility, email-safe rendering, and size - plus a coherent plain-text version.

### Can preflight be automated?

Yes. Memo runs these checks automatically on compiled output and blocks risky actions until blocking findings are resolved.

## Related
- [Understand Email Preflight](https://memo.ly/docs/understand-email-preflight.md)
- [Resolve preflight findings](https://memo.ly/docs/resolve-preflight-findings.md)
- [What to check before you send](https://memo.ly/blog/what-to-check-before-you-send.md)
- [Glossary: Preflight](https://memo.ly/glossary/preflight.md)

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