How to handle unsubscribes & suppression lists in HubSpot
HubSpot unsubscribes explained: rules, fixes, resubscribe, exclusions
Unsubscribes in HubSpot suck, but they’re a normal part of marketing.
When someone opts out of a campaign you carefully designed, it is unpleasant, but it’s also an opportunity to keep your data clean and respect contact preferences.
So, what happens to a contact when they unsubscribe in HubSpot? And how can you get them back? This guide breaks it down.
How contacts unsubscribe in HubSpot
HubSpot tracks opt-outs using the “Unsubscribed from all email” property on each contact record.
There are four primary ways this property is updated.
- When a contact unsubscribes from a marketing email
- You remove a subscriber manually on the contact record
- You import your opt-out list into HubSpot
- An integration marks the contact as unsubscribed
The important distinction is that if a contact unsubscribes themselves through an email link, you cannot resubscribe them manually.
If the opt-out was performed manually by a user in your portal or via an integration, you can manually resubscribe them, provided you have a legal basis for communication.
Manually unsubscribing and resubscribing contacts
To manually unsubscribe a contact, you can either import an opt-out list, mark them as unsubscribed through an integrated system, or select “Opt out of email” under Actions on the contact record.
If a contact was unsubscribed by mistake, you can reverse it.
Go to your Contacts list and filter for the individual.
Select the contact, click “More,” then “Edit communication subscriptions.”
From there, choose the subscription types the contact should receive, mark them as "Subscribed," remove the opt-out, and provide an explanation of how the contact gave consent.
This process only applies to manual errors.
If the contact opted out themselves, HubSpot does not allow you to override it.
How contacts can resubscribe on their own
For Marketing Hub Professional or Enterprise accounts, you can enable resubscription emails.
When an unsubscribed contact fills out a form, HubSpot prompts them to resubscribe.
They receive an automated resubscription email with a confirmation link. Clicking the link opts them back in and allows them to finish submitting the form.
This works for contacts who are 'Unsubscribed from all email' or those who have previously opted out of the specific subscription type associated with that form.
The resubscribe prompt appears if the contact is either 'unsubscribed from all email' or has opted out of the specific subscription type associated with the form they are currently viewing.
To enable this, go to Settings → Marketing → Email → Subscriptions, and ensure you have a 'resubscription email' configured and published for each relevant language.
What happens after a contact unsubscribes
Once a contact unsubscribes, they no longer receive marketing emails from your account.
They can still receive transactional emails; however, one-to-one sales emails sent through the CRM will be blocked unless you have specific GDPR settings disabled or provide a one-time legal basis override.
This can inflate your send numbers and drag down performance reports. To keep reporting accurate, you should build exclusion lists.
Creating and using an exclusion list in HubSpot
To create an unsubscribed and bounced list, go to Contacts → Lists and create a new active list called “Unsubscribed and Bounced.”
Apply filters so that 'Unsubscribed from all email = True' OR 'Email hard bounce reason is known' OR 'Invalid Email = True'.
Once you have this list, you can add it to the “Don’t send to” field when scheduling an email, which will automatically update your recipient count.
You can also add the list to suppression settings before activating a workflow.
This prevents unsubscribed or bounced contacts from enrolling and ensures your workflow metrics remain accurate.
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Or, if you want to explore solutions on your own, we cover plenty of the tough HubSpot and Salesforce problems you’re likely running into.
