When you're reviewing geolocation data in email insights, you might see information that does not match up to the contact's actual location. This information is reported back to email insights directly from Litmus.

Geolocation is captured by the IP address that opens the email. The location is then provided by Litmus.

Many ISPs don't provide the exact locations with the IP addresses. Laptops may also cache the IP from a previous location. Mobile opens made on a mobile data network (not using wifi) can be tracked differently. For apps running on mobile devices, the apps can use GPS and cell tower triangulation to determine the location. For an image loading in an email client, the IP is the same IP everyone else on that network in that area is using. AT&T in Boston, for example, is routed via New York and that is where the IP’s location displays in reporting.

Geolocation is also affected by Google image caching. Since the open tracker pixels used to relay information about Gmail opens are now cached on Google servers, you see the IP address or location of Gmail proxy servers. To avoid inaccuracies in reporting, Litmus excludes Gmail opens from geolocation reports.