What transactional email provider is the best deal?

Dave Swift

Sep 21, 2022 — 2 min read

Overview

This episode provides an in-depth analysis of the costs associated with using three popular email sending services: Amazon SES, Mailgun, and Elastic Email. The discussion is aimed at individuals or businesses starting out with email marketing or transactional email sending, emphasizing the importance of reliability, security, and cost-effectiveness.

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Key Points

Amazon SES: An Economical Choice for Starters

Ideal for those just beginning with email marketing, offering the lowest cost at $0.10 per 1,000 emails for up to 50,000 emails.
While highly cost-effective, Amazon SES is noted for its complexity and challenging setup process.
Limited support is available unless additional fees are paid.

Mailgun: Scaling with Costs

Initially competitive, but costs escalate quickly due to a $1.00 charge per 1,000 emails.
Offers a dedicated IP at the 100,000 email/month threshold, which significantly impacts pricing.
Additional dedicated IPs are available at $59 per month each.

Elastic Email: A Consistent Contender

Maintains a steady price with $0.15 per 1,000 emails and a $1 daily fee.
Allows the purchase of a dedicated IP at any volume, costing $1 per day, providing flexibility and cost savings at higher volumes.

Pricing Analysis

At 100,000 emails, Mailgun's prices increase notably due to the inclusion of a dedicated IP.
Elastic Email remains an economical option, especially when considering the addition of dedicated IPs.
A comparative cost analysis at 1 million emails/month shows Mailgun at $975, Elastic Email at $210, and Amazon SES at $100, plus dedicated IP costs.

Decision-Making Factors

The choice of service may depend on the specific requirements of the user's platform and compatibility with email sending services.
Users should consider both initial and scaling costs, ease of use, and the availability of support when choosing an email service provider.

Conclusion

The episode concludes with a recommendation to assess individual needs and compatibility requirements when selecting an email sending service, highlighting the significant cost differences at scale between Amazon SES, Mailgun, and Elastic Email.