While offering core email features and other robust customer solutions, looking for SendGrid alternatives is always great for your business. Even though it looks pretty similar to marketing emails, transactional emails are way more personalized.
Commonly, this kind of email comes with dynamic and personalized contact information so that it delivers the right message to customers. This is why you have to choose a platform that provides speed and deliverability as well as security on top of everything.
But what makes SendGrid popular and a go-to choice for many companies? Find out more about this thing below.
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What SendGrid Has to Offer
SendGrid is such a popular email solution for companies, especially large-scale ones. It comes with various features, including list management, signup forms, and email automation – Uber and Airbnb are two of several big companies that use this platform.
SendGrid offers both a free plan and several paid plans, starting at USD19.95 per month. Here are things that make this platform stand out and desirable by huge companies.
- It comes with plenty of email templates with conditional formatting abilities.
- You can apply advanced testing options.
- Compared to other similar services, SendGrid has an excellent email delivery rate.
- More useful features for paid customers.
- Supports both small and large enterprises.
Just like other things, this platform comes with some cons as well. Here are a few things that come up as drawbacks of SendGrid.
- While other platforms automatically remove contacts who complain about your email, SendGrid requires you to remove them manually.
- The transactional message history is only traceable for up to three days. If you want a longer period then you have to purchase the add-on.
- SendGrid allows you to receive SMS, chat, and push notifications but you have to purchase Twilio’s add-ons as well.
While a drag-and-drop email editor feature is available, it requires you to use another plan – unless you don’t mind coding your email manually.
Best SendGrid Alternatives for Your Business
When it comes to transactional email platforms, SendGrid might be one of the best names on the market. However, it requires you to purchase many add-ons in the first place.
So, if you are looking for other transactional email platforms that offer better features then here is the list.
1. SendInBlue
It is always intriguing to find out the results of SendGrid vs SendInBlue. According to users, SendInBlue is a cost-effective choice for those who prefer to find a replacement.
Other than providing SMTP relay and email marketing API for transactional email, this platform also allows you to connect SendInBlue with various e-commerce platforms through plugins.
While SendGrid only provides three days of message history, SendInBlue comes with unlimited logs that you can check anytime you need them. Other than that, this platform comes with user-friendly tools and templates.
Thus, even if you have no coding skills, you can always use SendInBlue. More than anything, this platform is a perfect choice for small businesses. Everything is accessible in one place.
2. Campayn
If you are looking for a transactional message platform with robust marketing email services then Campayn deserves your attention. Campayn enables users to track, create, and share marketing as well as enjoy the newsletter email feature.
Other than that, you can enjoy its Free for Life plans – which allows you to send more than 20k emails to at least 2,000 subscribers per month. This feature surely tops SendGrid, for sure.
In case you are not a tech-savvy user, you can choose other sign-up forms provided by this platform. Other than that, Campayn offers templates that look nice and beautiful across various devices – which helps a lot to create eye-catching campaigns.
3. Amazon SES
One of the best SendGrid alternatives is Amazon SES. This platform offers a series of basic solutions for email services. However, the users come from various big companies, including Duolingo, Netflix, and Reddit.
This platform is designed for all developers and you need to integrate Amazon SES into another standalone app. Compared to SendGrid, the UI design is not the most user-friendly.
Other than that, the email marketing functionality is not the best in class. Still, you will get the most benefits of this platform if you are hosted on Amazon. More than anything, the pricing offered by Amazon SES is highly affordable. It costs USD0.10 per 1,000 emails and you can pay it as you go.
4. ActiveCampaign
If you are looking for a SendGrid competitor that optimizes the conversion rates then ActiveCampaign is worth considering. This platform, however, is designed for advanced users – considering the advanced features offered by ActiveCampaign.
Compared to other similar platforms on this list, ActiveCampaign allows a seamless process when it comes to harvesting data from third-party apps. According to reviews, this platform is suitable for bloggers and content creators with targeted ideas.
If the email is unopened, ActiveCampaign will resend it within a stipulated time frame. However, the pricing is kind of pricey compared to SendGrid. Still, you can give the free trial a shot before deciding.
5. Mailgun
On the other hand, if you are looking for SendGrid similar services but specifically for B2B or developers then you should consider Mailgun.
This platform offers a series of API-first solutions with various additional services, such as email deliverability, inbox placement, transactional SMS, and email verification as well.
However, the UI design and how it works might be a bit intimidating for marketers in general. As mentioned earlier, this platform is more suitable for developers because you have to create all the commands in HTML
The good news is that you can utilize the drag-and-drop email builder after installing Mailjet. Later, this can be used to create transactional emails too.
Mailgun offers a free trial for one month that handles up to 5,000 emails. After the trial period has ended, the pricing starts at USD1 per 1,000 emails. In case you want to create marketing campaigns, the platform requires you to pay another plan that costs USD35 per month.
So, which one is better: SendGrid or Mailgun? Mailgun surely offers a cheaper option, but it’s not the only consideration you should make, right?
6. MailChimp
Mailchimp was formerly known as Mandrill. Today, this platform is quite popular for transactional emails, especially if you are looking for an alternative to SendGrid – a cheaper one.
Other than offering a range of features – from dynamic content and webhook to A/B testing – you can take a look at the Mailchimp demo version before committing to its paid plan.
If you put SendGrid vs Mailchimp, the latter’s demo version is quite satisfying. You can get up to 200 emails to test without paying for anything. Thus, you can consider Mailchimp as one of the SendGrid free alternatives – even though other limitations may apply.
Once you have signed up for its paid plans, you can unlock more add-ons that will be useful for your business. Mailchimp’s paid plan starts at USD17 per month. All in all, if you are looking for an alternative to SendGrid that performs excellently then you should consider using Mailchimp.
7. Postmark
Postmark is one of the alternatives to SendGrid that provides robust features for transactional emails. This solution is specifically designed for tech-savvy users that require detailed reporting.
However, Postmark might not be the best choice if you need a campaign-building tool. Still, you can take advantage of its pre-built email templates. Postmark also provides an open-source toolset that uses CSS called Malmaison.
The pricing offered is way cheaper than SendGrid. Postmark costs USD10 per month that handles up to 10,000 emails.
8. AWeber
When it comes to similar services like SendGrid, you should include AWeber on the list. This platform is widely used in the industry, especially for SMEs and startup companies.
Even though the entire thing is more advanced than SendGrid, all the features and services are considerably similar. Yet, AWeber provides a cleaner and smoother UI/UX design in the first place.
Compared to SendGrid, this platform allows you to access more than 700 HTML email templates that you can customize as needed. Other than that, AWeber provides a better thoroughness for both segmenting and targeting customers.
Despite all the good things offered by this platform, a few drawbacks may need to be considered as well. For instance, uploading data is considered tedious compared to most platforms on this list. Other than that, the monthly subscription starts at USD19 which handles up to 500 contacts.
9. SendPulse
Compared to most platforms on this list, SendPulse can turn all the service agents into superhumans. It utilizes AI technology which makes this platform an ideal choice for a wide range of companies.
Other than that, SendPulse is an integrated messaging platform system. It allows you to make the entire thing as personalized as needed while still utilizing AI to optimize interactions through multiple channels.
Another nice perk offered by SendPulse is that you can enjoy the push notifications services for free, whether or not you sign up for services with email. All in all, SendPulse is a perfect alternative for medium-sized enterprises that target international clients.
10. Klaviyo
Klaviyo is a provider that offers marketing services specifically for e-commerce marketers. As one of the best players on the market, this platform integrates really well with Shopify, Spree Commerce, BigCommerce, and CV3.
Another interesting thing about Klaviyo is its email templates that support full customization. Other than that, you can keep the campaigns as organized as possible. It allows you to track sales, utilize marketing, and use the reporting tools as much as you need.
Klaviyo, on the other hand, offers unlimited users, emails, and marketing automation features, regardless of the paid plan. So, if you are looking for an email marketing platform with robust and beneficial features then Klaviyo deserves a shot.
11. MailerLite
MailerLite is a SendGrid cheaper alternative that you can use to target international business. The UI design comes in 10 different languages and customer support is available in at least seven languages.
You can even give the free plan a try, especially if your company has less than 1,000 subscribers. The features offered include marketing automation and a landing page editor. Even if you sign up for its paid plans, the pricing is relatively affordable.
The only thing that SendGrid could top is a more advanced tool for tracking and reporting. Otherwise, MailerLite is a perfect choice for your small businesses.
12. Netcore
When it comes to SendGrid alternatives open source, Netcore (previously Pepipost) surely has to be on the list. Other than being an open-source platform, Netcore also offers free plans that you can try before committing to its paid plans – the paid ones start at USD25 per month.
As one of the best SMTP providers, Netcore offers several prominent features that include:
- Template APIs.
- Fully customized metadata.
- Webhooks and email tracking tools.
- Effortless process to set up SMTP Relay.
Another interesting thing about this platform is that you can stay away from traps and prevent getting blacklisted – it uses AI-powered tools. Netcore also has a feature that allows you to predict engagement.
By using Netcore, you can connect it to various services and apps, including WordPress. Even though it comes with a free plan, the features and functions are highly limited.
13. GetResponse
If you run a startup or SME and plan to scale up the company then you have to upgrade your email marketing solutions. GetResponse, on the other hand, is a perfect choice for that scenario. This platform offers tons of features needed to handle email marketing tasks.
While being a result-oriented platform, you can establish more engaging campaigns by using GetResponse. On the other hand, the paid plan starts at USD10 per month. Other than providing a robust email marketing solution, this platform also provides a powerful tool to create a landing page.
The only thing that comes up as a drawback is the hassle of transferring data from other email marketing platforms to GetResponse. Still, startups and SMEs should give this platform a shot.
SendGrid is one of the oldest services that provide transactional email features. All the alternatives and competitors mentioned above also offer the same basic business mailing features.
Thus, if you are looking for a SendGrid alternative, make sure you’ve weighed and considered all the factors. Besides, some of the options are free, which is a great choice for small businesses.
