9 Best SendGrid Alternatives (2026), Tested
Recommendations for teams leaving SendGrid after the May 2025 free-tier removal.
criteria
- Free tier
- API ergonomics
- Deliverability
- Migration effort
- 01
Postmark
TransactionalFor teams that valued SendGrid as transactional only.
- 02
Mailgun
TransactionalClosest API ergonomics if you used the SMTP plus API combo.
- 03
Amazon SES
TransactionalFor volume-heavy senders with AWS infrastructure.
- 04
Mailtrap
Transactional TestingTesting plus sending with a generous free tier.
- 05
Loops
Marketing TransactionalIf you used SendGrid for marketing as well as transactional.
- 06
Brevo
Transactional MarketingClosest replacement for SendGrid Marketing Campaigns.
- 07
Elastic Email
Transactional MarketingLower-cost API and SMTP relay if price matters more than brand recognition.
- 08
SendPulse
Transactional MarketingBest SendGrid alternative when free SMTP volume is the deciding factor.
- 09
Resend
TransactionalModern API for new React stacks. Confirm volume pricing fits.
All 9 compared
Every provider in this ranking against the priorities SaaS product teams weigh. Free tier and entry price sit with each pick above.
| Provider | Multi-tenant | Event stream | Suppressions API | Operating since | Scheduling | Best published rate per 1,000 | Webhooks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Postmark | Yes | Yes | Yes | 2010 | No | $1.50 | Yes |
| Mailgun | Yes | Yes | Yes | 2010 | Yes | $0.70 | Yes |
| Amazon SES | No | Yes | Yes | 2011 | No | $0.10 | No |
| Mailtrap | Yes | Yes | Yes | 2014 | No | Tiers not published in comparable form | Yes |
| Loops | No | Yes | Yes | 2022 | Yes | Tiers not published in comparable form | Yes |
| Brevo | No | Yes | Yes | 2012 | Yes | Tiers not published in comparable form | Yes |
| Elastic Email | Yes | Yes | Yes | Not published | Yes | Tiers not published in comparable form | Yes |
| SendPulse | No | Yes | Yes | Not published | Yes | Tiers not published in comparable form | Yes |
| Resend | No | Yes | Yes | 2023 | Yes | $0.35 | Yes |
If you are SaaS product teams
A SaaS product sends on behalf of its customers, so the deciding factors are tenant isolation, whether suppressions can be scoped rather than global, and whether support can answer why one specific account did not receive one specific email. Lifecycle automation and transactional sending usually need to coexist.
The order above is the general editorial ranking. Re-sorted against multi-tenant support, event stream, and the suppressions API, the shortlist for trial expiry notices, dunning, onboarding sequences, and per-tenant transactional mail becomes Mailgun, Elastic Email, and Postmark. That differs from the headline order, which weighs all audiences together.