Gmail processes roughly one billion attachments each day. Over 3.6 billion people use email daily for communication, a scale that invites significant security challenges. This breakdown presents the latest data on spam, market size, and the financial impact of phishing campaigns.
Key Takeaways
- 2.8 trillion spam emails were sent per day globally in 2019, according to Symantec (Broad scope estimates of daily spam).
- 16.7% of messages were reported as unsolicited bulk in 2022 in the U.S. (FCC reporting on unwanted communications categories).
- In 2023, 93% of organizations used at least one cloud service for security operations (survey share).
- 3.2% of emails were flagged as malware in 2023 by Google Workspace security reports (percentage of emails).
- 1 in 5 Americans reported they had been victims of phishing or had been tricked by a phishing email in the past 12 months (survey).
- In 2023, 35% of breaches involved the use of stolen credentials (Verizon DBIR credentials data).
- 25.0% of U.S. adults use a web-based email service rather than an email client (survey-based webmail share).
- 4.4 billion people worldwide are expected to use email in 2024
- As of 2023, 3.6 billion individuals used email daily for personal or business communications (consumer usage estimate)
- USPS delivered 43.7 billion packages in FY 2023 (USPS packages metric in FY 2023).
- USPS delivered 129.7 billion pieces of mail in FY 2022 (FY 2022 delivery volume).
- The U.S. Postal Service processed 1.8 billion packages in December 2023 (monthly peak processing volume).
- The average email phishing campaign cost per company was $1.0 million in 2023 (estimated breach cost per phishing).
- Time to contain a breach averaged 73 days in 2023 (IBM data breach study).
- A 2019 study found that 23% of phishing emails included attachments that carried malware
Spam and phishing keep escalating as billions of emails move daily and organizations pour more into security and marketing automation.
Related reading
01 · Category
Market Size10 stats
01
USPS delivered 43.7 billion packages in FY 2023 (USPS packages metric in FY 2023).
02
USPS delivered 129.7 billion pieces of mail in FY 2022 (FY 2022 delivery volume).
03
The U.S. Postal Service processed 1.8 billion packages in December 2023 (monthly peak processing volume).
04
The global email marketing software market was valued at $5.1 billion in 2020 (base year valuation).
05
The global enterprise email security market was valued at $7.7 billion in 2023
06
The global email security market was valued at $8.7 billion in 2022 and forecast to reach $22.0 billion by 2030
07
The global email marketing software market reached $5.4 billion in 2023 (vendor and analyst estimates)
08
The global email marketing services market was valued at $12.8 billion in 2022
09
The global transactional email market size was $6.3 billion in 2023
10
The global marketing automation market was valued at $7.7 billion in 2018
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
For the Market Size view, physical delivery remains massive with USPS handling about 43.7 billion packages in FY 2023 and 129.7 billion mail pieces in FY 2022, while the broader email ecosystem shows rapid growth with email security expanding from $8.7 billion in 2022 to an expected $22.0 billion by 2030.
02 · Category
Industry Trends5 stats
01
2.8 trillion spam emails were sent per day globally in 2019, according to Symantec (Broad scope estimates of daily spam).
02
16.7% of messages were reported as unsolicited bulk in 2022 in the U.S. (FCC reporting on unwanted communications categories).
03
In 2023, 93% of organizations used at least one cloud service for security operations (survey share).
04
In 2024, 64% of organizations said they use marketing automation to personalize emails (survey)
05
In 2024, 70% of marketers reported using AI for at least one marketing task (survey)
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
Industry Trends in mail communications are being reshaped by escalating unsolicited activity and the push toward smarter defenses and targeting, from 2.8 trillion daily spam emails in 2019 to 64% of organizations using marketing automation for personalized emails and 70% of marketers using AI in 2024.
03 · Category
Security & Risk3 stats
01
3.2% of emails were flagged as malware in 2023 by Google Workspace security reports (percentage of emails).
02
1 in 5 Americans reported they had been victims of phishing or had been tricked by a phishing email in the past 12 months (survey).
03
In 2023, 35% of breaches involved the use of stolen credentials (Verizon DBIR credentials data).
Interpretation
Security & Risk Interpretation
For the Security & Risk angle, 2023 saw 3.2% of emails flagged as malware and 35% of breaches driven by stolen credentials, reinforcing how phishing and credential misuse remain a major threat that reaches as many as 1 in 5 Americans.
More related reading
04 · Category
User Adoption3 stats
01
25.0% of U.S. adults use a web-based email service rather than an email client (survey-based webmail share).
02
4.4 billion people worldwide are expected to use email in 2024
03
As of 2023, 3.6 billion individuals used email daily for personal or business communications (consumer usage estimate)
Interpretation
User Adoption Interpretation
With email adoption still surging to 4.4 billion expected users worldwide in 2024 and 3.6 billion people using it daily as of 2023, the user adoption story is clear that email is becoming ever more universally embedded in everyday communication rather than just being confined to traditional clients.
05 · Category
Cost Analysis2 stats
01
The average email phishing campaign cost per company was $1.0 million in 2023 (estimated breach cost per phishing).
02
Time to contain a breach averaged 73 days in 2023 (IBM data breach study).
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
From a Cost Analysis perspective, the data shows email phishing can cost an average of $1.0 million per company in 2023 while breaches take about 73 days to contain, meaning direct financial impact and prolonged recovery effort are tightly linked.
06 · Category
Industry Overview4 stats
01
A 2019 study found that 23% of phishing emails included attachments that carried malware
02
A 2020 paper reported that phishing kits reduce attacker cost by enabling rapid “drop-in” campaign setup
03
In a 2022 study, average time-to-report a phishing email after training was 30 minutes
04
In 2023, Gmail handled an average of 1 billion attachments per day (Google Workspace operational metric reported by a third-party analyst)
Interpretation
Industry Overview Interpretation
Across the industry overview, phishing remains scalable and fast-moving, with 23% of phishing emails in 2019 carrying malware and 30 minutes being the average reporting time after training in 2022, all while Gmail processes about 1 billion attachments per day in 2023.
report visual · Comparison
Mail Industry Snapshots
Email-related fraud and security concerns show up across multiple metrics, alongside large-scale mail and package delivery volumes.
USPS delivered 129.7 billion pieces of mail in FY 2022 (FY 2022 delivery volume).129.7
In 2023, 35% of breaches involved the use of stolen credentials (Verizon DBIR credentials data).
35%
16.7% of messages were reported as unsolicited bulk in 2022 in the U.S. (FCC reporting on unwanted communications catego
16.7%
3.2% of emails were flagged as malware in 2023 by Google Workspace security reports (percentage of emails).
3.2%
source-verifiedcloud.google.com · verizon.com · fcc.gov · about.usps.com2023
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Henrik Dahl. (2026, February 13). Mail Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/mail-industry-statistics
MLA
Henrik Dahl. "Mail Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/mail-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Henrik Dahl. 2026. "Mail Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/mail-industry-statistics.
Sources & references
27 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+6 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)