Understanding dedicated vs. shared IPs

Understanding dedicated vs. shared IPs

Estimated 4 minute read

Updated Mar 31, 2026, 12:00 AM EST

Table of contents

You will learn
Dedicated vs. shared IPs
Staying on a shared IP
Moving to a dedicated IP
Dedicated IP warming
Viewing your dedicated IPs
Additional resources

You will learn

Learn more about dedicated vs. shared IPs, their benefits and drawbacks, and how IPs are used in your sending infrastructure.

Note that dedicated IPs are only available to accounts that qualify. To learn if you qualify for a dedicated IP, please reach out to your Customer Success Manager (CSM) for more information. For more information on plans and success support, learn more in our article, How free and paid plans differ.

Dedicated vs. shared IPs

Mailbox providers look at your overall reputation, including your IP's, when determining where to place an email (inbox, spam, etc.). IP reputation, domain reputation, and recipients' positive and negative engagement are just a few of the factors that influence your overall deliverability.

Sending from a shared IP address means that you will send alongside several other Klaviyo customers, which also means a shared sending reputation. Moving to a dedicated IP address (not to be confused with branded sending domains) will allow you to take full ownership over the IP's reputation as you will be the only one using it for email traffic.

Staying on a shared IP

Benefits of keeping the default shared IP Most small businesses or those just starting out with Klaviyo will be on shared IPs. Depending on your email practices and volumes, this should suffice for your sending and reputation needs. Klaviyo automatically assigns shared IP addresses to most new accounts. With shared IPs, you can benefit from other senders keeping the IP pool reputation up and warm with overall volume. Klaviyo constantly monitors these IPs and removes any harmful senders.

Drawbacks of staying on a shared IP Shared IPs are intended for use by small senders that don't send on a regular cadence. The reasoning for this is that the small senders can band together to create a reputation. Even if you send high volumes regularly, other senders in the shared pool can still affect its reputation. During holidays and other high traffic periods, volumes can fluctuate and it can affect your performance. If you qualify for a dedicated IP it is best to move to using one.

Moving to a dedicated IP

Benefits of moving to a dedicated IP The main benefit of using a dedicated IP address is that the reputation of the IP address can only be influenced by the single account that is using it. This gives you control over your IP reputation. Your domain reputation and recipient engagement still affect overall deliverability. Similarly, you also have complete control over your sending volumes, and will not be affected by other senders' volume spikes on shared IPs during busy times of year once warming is complete. In addition, if you encounter deliverability issues, you can more easily pinpoint the root causes since it’s only your messaging. When several senders use the same IP, it's hard to figure out where an issue originated from and how to fix it. By using a dedicated IP, you’re only maintaining your own sends and IP address. Even though you are solely responsible for the dedicated IP's reputation, if you see deliverability issues, our Support Team can better help you identify the cause and provide solution options.

Drawbacks of moving to a dedicated IP The potential negative of using a dedicated IP address is that you must send at a consistent cadence with a high volume. This helps ensure you can maintain a healthy sender reputation for deliverability and are seen as a reputable sender by mailbox providers.

Additionally, dedicated IP setup includes DNS configuration and a more engagement-focused warming process. Learn more about dedicated IP warming.

Dedicated IP warming

When getting started on a new IP address, you must go through the warming process to establish a healthy sender reputation that inbox providers trust. During the warming process, emails must be sent gradually to avoid being blocked by inbox providers that have not previously seen activity from that IP.

Klaviyo initially sends a small portion of emails through the dedicated IP while routing the rest through shared IPs. Over time, the proportion of emails sent via the dedicated IP increases progressively until all traffic is sent through the dedicated IP.

There are a few key aspects to note about dedicated IP warming:

The duration of the warming period depends on sending volume but typically lasts about 30-40 days.
Sending volume on the dedicated IP(s) during warming increases on a non-linear curve, with most of the sending volume increase occurring towards the end of warming.
The segmentation recommendations provided by your Customer Success Manager or Klaviyo Support help you build a strong sending reputation with engaged recipients. Continue sending consistently, since low sending volume can delay warming.

Viewing your dedicated IPs

If your account has 1 or more dedicated IP addresses, you can view them in Klaviyo by navigating to Settings > Email > IP addresses. This tab only appears for accounts with dedicated IPs.

On the IP addresses page, you can see the following for each dedicated IP:

IP address — The IP number itself. You can use this with external monitoring tools like Google Postmaster Tools or MxToolbox.
Email type — Whether the IP is used for Marketing or Transactional email.
IP status — The current state of the IP: Warming, Active, or Inactive.
Open the three-dot Actions menu for an IP and select View IP.
Review the Hostname. To copy it, click Copy.

If the IP has a Warming status, the panel also shows warming information. Klaviyo gradually moves traffic to a new dedicated IP over about 30-40 days. For your specific timeline, contact your CSM or Klaviyo Support.

If you want to make changes to your dedicated IP configuration, contact your CSM or Klaviyo Support.

Additional resources

Understanding dedicated IP warming

Learn more about the process for warming and setting up dedicated IP addresses. Dedicated IP addresses (not to be confused with dedicated sending domains) are used by Klaviyo managed accounts that meet certain sending criteria on Klaviyo. The main benefit of using a dedicated IP address is that the reputation of the IP address can only be influenced by the single account that is using it. Learn more about the benefits and drawbacks of using a dedicated IP. To learn if you qualify for a dedicated IP and more details about the warming process, please reach out to your Customer Success Manager for more information. And for more information on plans and success support, read more about how our free and paid plans differ. - Getting started with email deliverability monitoring and performance metrics

Learn what good email deliverability metrics look like by industry, and which strategies to use to help improve your email performance. In this guide, find out about the specific open and click rate, both for email campaign and flow messages, that you should strive for after depending on what vertical or industry you are in. Additionally, learn ways to help mitigate potential deliverability issues and how to continue to monitor these rates over time. - Understanding which warming process to use in Klaviyo

Learn how to choose the right warming process in Klaviyo, so you can establish a strong initial sender reputation and be viewed favorably by inbox providers.

Was this article helpful?

YesNo

Use this form only for article feedback. Learn how to contact support.