An honest comparison to help you pick the right email tool in 2026.
| Feature | Amazon SES | Mailgun |
|---|---|---|
| Category | ||
| Free Tier | No | Yes |
| Paid Plan | $0.10 per 1,000 emails | $15/mo |
| Enterprise | Volume pricing | Custom |
| Best For | Teams already on AWS who want the cheapest per-email price and are fine wiring up their own tooling | Developers who need flexible email infrastructure with inbound processing and validation |
| Feature 1 | Pay-per-email pricing | Email validation |
| Feature 2 | Very high scale | Inbound routing |
| Feature 3 | AWS/SDK integration | Analytics |
| Feature 4 | Dedicated IPs | Suppressions |
| Feature 5 | Configuration sets & analytics | IP management |
| Website | Amazon SES | Mailgun |
Amazon SES and Mailgun are both popular choices in the email category, but they serve different types of developers. Amazon SES is amazon's high-scale transactional and bulk email service, priced per email with deep AWS integration and strong deliverability. Meanwhile, Mailgun is email API service by Sinch for sending, receiving, and tracking email with powerful routing and validation.
From a cost perspective, Mailgun has the edge with a free tier available, whereas Amazon SES starts at $0.10 per 1,000 emails. However, Amazon SES's paid offering may deliver more value depending on your specific needs.
Amazon SES stands out with Pay-per-email pricing and Very high scale, while Mailgun differentiates itself through Email validation and Inbound routing. The right choice depends on which capabilities matter most for your workflow. Ultimately, teams already on AWS who want the cheapest per-email price and are fine wiring up their own tooling, while Mailgun is best for developers who need flexible email infrastructure with inbound processing and validation.
Amazon SES: No free tier. Paid plans start at $0.10 per 1,000 emails. Enterprise pricing: Volume pricing.
Mailgun: Free tier available. Paid plans start at $15/mo. Enterprise pricing: Custom.
Choose Amazon SES if you value pay-per-email pricing and very high scale. Go with Mailgun if developers who need flexible email infrastructure with inbound processing and validation. Both are solid email options in 2026 — the best pick depends on your team size, budget, and technical requirements. We recommend trying both (especially if they have free tiers) before committing to one.
Not sold on either Amazon SES or Mailgun? Check out these other email tools:
See all Amazon SES alternatives or Mailgun alternatives.
Read more about email on our Apps page.
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