Fix RSS Email Showing HTML Tags in Sparkforge

By Sparkforge Support Team ·Last reviewed May 3, 2026

Use the Custom RSS Item element in the email builder and replace {{rss_item.content}} with {{{rss_item.content}}} so Sparkforge renders the HTML instead of printing it.

If your Sparkforge RSS email is showing raw <p>, <br>, or &amp; tags in the body, the variable is being HTML-escaped. Switch to the triple-stash syntax to render the markup correctly.

The fix

  1. Open the email and switch to a Custom RSS Item element rather than the Basic block.
  2. Replace {{rss_item.content}} with {{{rss_item.content}}}.
  3. Save and resend.

Why this happens

By default, Sparkforge escapes RSS variables for safety. {{rss_item.title}} and {{rss_item.content}} output HTML-encoded text — for example, & becomes &amp; and tags like <p> appear as plain text instead of rendering.

Triple-stash syntax ({{{...}}}) tells the email builder to skip escaping and render the value as HTML. Use it only on RSS values you control, since unsafe HTML in your feed will pass through unfiltered.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my RSS email show p and br tags as text?
Sparkforge HTML-escapes RSS variables by default. Switch to {{{rss_item.content}}} (triple stash) so the markup renders instead of printing.
Is triple-stash safe to use?
Use it only on feeds you control. Triple-stash skips HTML escaping, so any unsafe HTML in the source feed will pass straight through to the email.
Where do I find the Custom RSS Item element?
Open the RSS Items block in the email builder and switch the RSS Editing Options dropdown from Basic to Custom.
Will triple-stash work on titles too?
Yes. Use {{{rss_item.title}}} if your feed titles contain ampersands or HTML you want preserved.

Was this article helpful?

Related Articles