Email and notifications · Comparison
Resend vs SendGrid vs Amazon SES vs Postmark
Four common ways to send email from an app. All offer an API and SMTP and help you set up SPF and DKIM; they differ in price, tooling and how much work they leave to you.
4 options · 8 questions side by side · updated
| Compare | Resend | SendGrid | Amazon SES | Postmark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | Developer-first email API | Large email platform owned by Twilio | AWS's low-cost sending service | Email service focused on app mail |
| Best for | JavaScript apps and small teams | App mail plus marketing at scale | High volume, especially on AWS | Login codes, resets and receipts |
| Free allowance | 3,000 emails a month (100 a day) | 60-day trial, 100 emails a day | None of its own; AWS credits for new accounts | 100 emails a month for testing |
| Entry paid plan | $20 a month for 50,000 emails | Essentials from $19.95 a month | About $0.10 per 1,000 emails (à la carte) | From $15 a month for 10,000 emails |
| Setup effort | Low: DNS records and an API key | Moderate, with account checks | Higher: sandbox, IAM and event wiring | Low, after account approval |
| Tooling | Logs, webhooks, React Email | Templates, Inbound Parse, marketing tools | Basic console; extras through AWS | Templates, 45-day history, inbound |
| Marketing email | Broadcasts, billed by contacts | Marketing Campaigns, billed separately | Possible, with no campaign tools | Broadcast streams in the same account |
| Watch out for | 100-a-day cap on the free plan | No permanent free plan | Sandbox until AWS approves you | Higher price per extra email |
How to choose between Resend, SendGrid, Amazon SES and Postmark
- Pick Resend for a JavaScript or TypeScript app that needs email working quickly, with a free plan that covers small projects.
- Pick Postmark when password resets and receipts must arrive fast and be easy to trace.
- Pick Amazon SES for large volumes, especially on AWS, and accept more setup work.
- Pick SendGrid when one account must cover both app email and marketing campaigns at scale.
The options
- ResendA developer-focused email API for sending app emails, known for quick setup and for React Email, which builds emails from React components.
- SendGridA long-established email platform, owned by Twilio, that sends both app emails and marketing campaigns at large scale.
- Amazon SESAmazon's email sending service, built for large volumes at a low price per email, with fewer ready-made tools than dedicated email providers.
- PostmarkAn email service focused on fast, reliable delivery of app emails such as password resets and receipts, with bulk mail kept on a separate stream.
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