SparkPost, the email delivery API once used by many of the biggest senders, is now a product of Bird, the company formerly called MessageBird. Bird says it announced the SparkPost acquisition in 2021, and its post SparkPost is now Bird Email says SparkPost.com became Bird Email, with existing accounts still supported and the same team running delivery. The API still works, but plans and billing now follow Bird's model.
On the Bird email pricing page, the free plan includes 1,000 emails a month, capped at 50 a day, and stops sending at the limit. Paid plans are monthly deposits into a Bird balance: Startup at $15 (about 37,500 emails by Bird's estimate), Growth at $250 and Scale at $1,000. If the rebrand or the prepaid wallet is why you are looking, the six picks below cover developer APIs first, then a marketing platform that also sends transactional mail.
Prices below are as of November 8, 2026. Our method is on How we review tools.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Best for | Price | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mailgun | The closest swap for a SparkPost-style API | Free 100/day; Basic $15/month | API, SMTP |
| Amazon SES | The lowest price at high volume | From $0.10 per 1,000 emails | API, SMTP (AWS) |
| Postmark | Fast password resets and receipts | Free 100/month; Basic $15/month | API, SMTP |
| Resend | Developers building with React Email | Free 3,000/month; Pro $20/month | API, SMTP |
| SendGrid | Teams that want marketing and API under Twilio | 60-day trial; Essentials from $19.95/month | API, SMTP |
| Brevo | Marketing campaigns plus transactional sends | Free 300/day; Starter $9/month | Web app, API, SMTP |
Mailgun
Mailgun is the most familiar landing spot for SparkPost users. It offers the same kind of REST API and SMTP relay, inbound routing, webhooks for opens and bounces, and dedicated IP pools on higher plans. Mailgun is part of Sinch, which also sells SMS and voice, so the setup looks a lot like SparkPost under Bird.
The Mailgun pricing page lists a free plan with 100 emails a day, Basic at $15 a month for 10,000 emails, Foundation at $35 for 50,000 and Scale at $90 for 100,000, each billed monthly in US dollars. Overage runs from $1.80 per 1,000 on Basic down to $1.10 on Scale, and Scale includes one dedicated IP.
Best for: SaaS products moving a SparkPost integration with webhooks and inbound mail.
Pricing:
- Free: 100 emails a day
- Basic: $15/month for 10,000 emails
- Foundation: $35/month for 50,000 emails
- Scale: $90/month for 100,000 emails, dedicated IP included
- Enterprise: custom quote
Watch out for:
- Per the pricing page, logs are kept for 1 day on Free and Basic and 5 days on Foundation, so debugging a bounce from last week needs Scale's 30 days.
Official site: Mailgun.
Amazon SES
At high volume nothing here is cheaper. Amazon Simple Email Service charges from $0.10 per 1,000 emails on pay-as-you-go; AWS added Essentials, Pro and Enterprise plans in July 2026. On pay-as-you-go, a million emails cost $100 before extras. It sends through an API or SMTP and fits naturally if your app already runs on AWS.
The SES pricing page also lists plan rates from $0.16 per 1,000 (Essentials) that bundle more features, standard dedicated IPs at $24.95 a month each, managed IPs at $15 a month plus $0.08 per 1,000 emails, and attachments at $0.12 per GB. New AWS customers get up to $200 in Free Tier credits that also cover SES.
Best for: Engineering teams on AWS that send millions of emails a month.
Pricing:
- Pay as you go: from $0.10 per 1,000 emails
- Plans: from $0.16 per 1,000 emails (Essentials)
- Dedicated IP: $24.95/month each; managed IPs $15/month plus $0.08 per 1,000
- New AWS accounts: up to $200 in Free Tier credits
Watch out for:
- Deliverability insight is a paid extra: Virtual Deliverability Manager adds $0.07 per 1,000 emails, which SparkPost users may have expected in the base price.
Official site: Amazon SES.
Postmark
Postmark keeps transactional and bulk mail on separate message streams, so a newsletter blast never slows a password reset. That focus on fast, predictable delivery suits receipts and login codes. The site is run by ActiveCampaign.
The Postmark pricing page lists a free Developer plan for 100 emails a month. Basic costs $15 a month for 10,000 emails with $1.80 per extra 1,000, Pro $16.50 with $1.30 overage and up to 365 days of retention, and Platform $18 with $1.20 overage. Default retention is 45 days.
Best for: Apps where login codes and receipts must arrive in seconds.
Pricing:
- Developer: free, 100 emails a month
- Basic: $15/month for 10,000 emails
- Pro: $16.50/month for 10,000 emails
- Platform: $18/month for 10,000 emails
- Dedicated IP: from $50/month
Watch out for:
- Dedicated IPs start at $50 a month and need 300,000 or more emails a month on Pro or higher, so smaller senders share pools.
Official site: Postmark.
Resend
Resend is the newest of the group. It was built by the team behind React Email, so you write templates as React components, and its SDKs and docs are aimed at modern JavaScript stacks. Broadcasts for marketing sends sit in the same dashboard.
The Resend pricing page lists a free plan with 3,000 emails a month, capped at 100 a day, and 3 domains. Pro is $20 a month for 50,000 emails and Scale $90 for 100,000, with $0.90 per extra 1,000 on both. A dedicated IP is a $30 a month add-on on Scale.
Best for: Startups on Next.js or Node who want email set up in an afternoon.
Pricing:
- Free: 3,000 emails a month, 100 a day
- Pro: $20/month for 50,000 emails
- Scale: $90/month for 100,000 emails
- Overage: $0.90 per 1,000; dedicated IP $30/month on Scale
Watch out for:
- The pricing page shows 30 days of data retention on every self-serve plan, and a dedicated IP needs Scale plus more than 3,000 emails a day.
Official site: Resend.
SendGrid
SendGrid, owned by Twilio, is the default many tutorials assume, and it covers both an email API and a separate Marketing Campaigns product. For teams already paying Twilio for SMS, one vendor for messages and email is the appeal.
The SendGrid Email API pricing page lists Essentials from $19.95 a month and Pro from $89.95 a month, priced by volume, with Premier on request. Pro and Premier include one dedicated IP. There is no lasting free plan any more: new accounts get a 60-day trial at 100 emails a day.
Best for: Teams that already use Twilio and want email on the same account.
Pricing:
- Free trial: 60 days, 100 emails a day
- Essentials: from $19.95/month
- Pro: from $89.95/month, 1 dedicated IP
- Premier: custom pricing
Watch out for:
- Essentials has no dedicated IP, so senders who had their own IP on SparkPost need Pro at $89.95 a month or more.
Official site: SendGrid.
Brevo
Brevo, formerly Sendinblue, fits teams that used SparkPost for both product email and newsletters. It is a marketing platform with campaigns, automation and SMS, and every plan also includes transactional APIs, SMTP and webhooks.
The Brevo pricing page offers a free plan that sends up to 300 emails a day. Starter costs $9 a month for 5,000 emails and $32 for 20,000, and Standard $18 for 5,000 with automation and A/B tests. Yearly billing takes 10% off. Pay-as-you-go credits that never expire are an alternative to a monthly plan.
Best for: Small teams that send marketing campaigns and app emails from one account.
Pricing:
- Free: up to 300 emails a day
- Starter: $9/month for 5,000 emails; $32/month for 20,000
- Standard: $18/month for 5,000 emails
- Professional: from $499/month; yearly billing 10% off
Watch out for:
- Plans are sized for marketing volumes, so a high-volume transactional sender pays far more per email than on SES or Mailgun.
Official site: Brevo.
How to choose
| If you need | Pick |
|---|---|
| A like-for-like API with inbound mail and IP pools | Mailgun |
| The lowest cost per email at millions a month | Amazon SES |
| Password resets and receipts that must arrive fast | Postmark |
| React templates and a quick setup for a JavaScript app | Resend |
| Email on the same vendor as your Twilio SMS | SendGrid |
| Newsletters and app emails from one cheap plan | Brevo |
When to stay with SparkPost
Stay on Bird Email if your SparkPost integration works and your volume fits a wallet plan. The API and team carried over, and the Scale deposit of $1,000 works out to about $0.35 per 1,000 emails, which is competitive outside SES. Moving also means warming new IPs and re-authenticating domains. If your real problem is newsletters rather than app email, see our Mailchimp alternatives.
Frequently asked questions
Is SparkPost still available?
Yes, as Bird Email. Bird bought SparkPost in 2021, and existing SparkPost accounts are still supported. New sign-ups go through Bird and its email pricing.
Does SparkPost have a free plan?
Bird's email free plan includes 1,000 emails a month, capped at 50 a day, and sending stops at the limit. Dedicated IPs are not available on the free plan.
What is the cheapest SparkPost alternative?
Amazon SES, from $0.10 per 1,000 emails on pay-as-you-go. For low volumes, Resend's free plan covers 3,000 emails a month, and Brevo's free plan allows 300 emails a day.
Mailgun vs SparkPost, which should I pick?
Both offer an email API, SMTP and dedicated IPs. Mailgun's flat monthly plans (from $15 for 10,000 emails) are easier to forecast than Bird's prepaid wallet. On the $1,000 Scale deposit, Bird Email works out to about $0.35 per 1,000 emails.
