Mailgun vs SendGrid
Default scenario: At 1M emails / month, estimated bills are $8,400/yr for Mailgun and $8,868/yr for SendGrid. That’s a $468 difference before accounting for different features or operating costs.
The services may differ in features, performance, support and the work you need to do yourself. Read the notes and test what matters to your setup.
Your selected usage
1M emails / month
- Mailgun: $8,400/yr estimated
- SendGrid: $8,868/yr estimated
Estimated costs at different usage levels
| Usage | Mailgun | SendGrid |
|---|---|---|
| 50k50K emails / month | $420/yrFoundation 50k · $1.3 per 1k over 50k | $239/yrEssentials 50k · $1.33 per 1k over 50k |
| 1M1M emails / month | $8,400/yrScale 1M · $0.5 per 1k over 1000k | $8,868/yrPro 700k · $0.8 per 1k over 700k |
| 20M20M emails / month | $99,000/yrScale 2.5M · $0.4 per 1k over 2500k | $118,188/yrPro 2.5M · $0.5 per 1k over 2500k |
Dedicated IPs, extra log retention and marketing-email features are extra on most vendors. Try your own numbers against all transactional email providers.
Side by side
| Mailgun | SendGrid | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Developer email API from Sinch with US and EU sending regions on all plans; one dedicated IP included from the Scale plan. | Twilio-owned email API and SMTP relay with Essentials and Pro volume tiers; dedicated IPs and EU data residency on Pro and above. |
| Headquarters | 🇺🇸 United States | 🇺🇸 United States |
| Parent jurisdiction | 🇸🇪 Sweden (Sinch) | 🇺🇸 United States (Twilio) |
| EU self-serve plan | Available; check eligible plans and regions | Available; check eligible plans and regions |
| GDPR DPA | Yes | Yes |
| Billing | subscription | subscription |
| Free tier | Free plan with 100 emails/day (about 3k/month), no overages. | 60-day free trial, 100 emails/day; no permanent free plan. |
| Open source | No | No |
| Source last checked | 2026-10-06 | 2026-10-06 |
| Pricing evidence | Published rates | Estimated rates |
Which should you choose?
Which one is cheaper changes more than once as usage grows, because of plan tiers and free allowances. Check the table at your usage.
Choose Mailgun if…
- it has the lower estimated bill at 1M and 20M usage
- you want a provider whose parent company is outside the US (Sweden)
Choose SendGrid if…
- it has the lower estimated bill at 50k usage
Based on estimated list-price bills and the facts above. Features, performance and support aren’t scored.
Mailgun pricing
Calculated from the listed vendor rates; exclusions still apply.
| Plan | Base fee / month | 1k additional emails |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 |
| Basic 10k | $15 | $1.8 |
| Foundation 50k | $35 | $1.3 |
| Foundation 100k | $75 | $1.1 |
| Scale 100k | $90 | $1.1 |
| Scale 250k | $215 | $0.9 |
| Scale 500k | $400 | $0.75 |
| Scale 750k | $550 | $0.6 |
| Scale 1M | $700 | $0.5 |
| Scale 2.5M | $1,250 | $0.4 |
Send plans (USD/month, overage per 1k): Basic 10k $15 ($1.80), Foundation 50k $35 ($1.30), Foundation 100k $75 ($1.10), Scale 100k $90 ($1.10), 250k $215 ($0.90), 500k $400 ($0.75), 750k $550 ($0.60), 1M $700 ($0.50), 2.5M $1,250 ($0.40); above 2.5M is custom. EUR list prices: Basic €14, Foundation €32/€69, Scale €82/€196/€363/€500/€636/€1,135. Scale includes one dedicated IP; Foundation and Scale start with a one-month free trial. Free plan is 100 emails/day, modelled as 3k/month. EU region selectable per domain. Mailgun Technologies Inc. (San Antonio, US), owned by Sinch AB (Sweden) since 2021.
Mailgun plan limits, full rates and cheaper alternatives · official pricing page
SendGrid pricing
At least one rate is approximate or not on a published rate card. Confirm with the vendor. Pro overages are approximate. EU residency requires Pro or above with a dedicated EU IP.
| Plan | Base fee / month | 1k additional emails |
|---|---|---|
| Essentials 50k | $19.95 | $1.33 |
| Essentials 100k | $34.95 | $0.9 |
| Pro 100k | $89.95 | $1 |
| Pro 300k | $249 | $0.9 |
| Pro 700k | $499 | $0.8 |
| Pro 1.5M | $799 | $0.6 |
| Pro 2.5M | $1,099 | $0.5 |
Email API plans from the pricing page calculator: Essentials 50k $19.95, Essentials 100k $34.95, Pro 100k $89.95, 300k $249, 700k $499, 1.5M $799, 2.5M $1,099 per month; Premier (5M+) is custom. Overage per extra email: Essentials 50k $0.00133 and 100k $0.0009 (Twilio changelog, July 2022); Pro 100k $0.001 and Pro 300k/700k/1.5M/2.5M $0.0009/$0.0008/$0.0006/$0.0005 come from Twilio help article 47303955374363 as quoted in search results (page not machine-readable), so treat Pro overages as approximate. The pricing page only says overages "may apply". Pro and Premier include a dedicated IP; Essentials is shared-IP only. EU data residency (api.eu.sendgrid.com, EU regional subusers) requires Pro or Premier and a dedicated EU IP. Twilio Inc., San Francisco; DPA available.
SendGrid plan limits, full rates and cheaper alternatives · official pricing page
Frequently asked questions
Is Mailgun cheaper than SendGrid?
Which one is cheaper changes more than once as usage grows, because of plan tiers and free allowances. Check the table at your usage. At 1M emails / month, the estimates are $8,400/yr for Mailgun and $8,868/yr for SendGrid. Estimates use list prices and leave out features, support and operating costs.
Do Mailgun and SendGrid offer EU data residency?
Both offer EU data residency on a self-serve plan. Check which plans and regions qualify.
Do Mailgun and SendGrid have a free tier or trial?
Mailgun: Free plan with 100 emails/day (about 3k/month), no overages. SendGrid: 60-day free trial, 100 emails/day; no permanent free plan.
Where are Mailgun and SendGrid based?
Mailgun is headquartered in the United States and owned by Sinch (Sweden). SendGrid is headquartered in the United States and owned by Twilio (the United States).