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For many eCommerce and business websites, sending transactional emails isn’t just about the design and content; it is more about the delivery and security. This is where a Simple Mail Transfer Protocol server comes in.
With an SMTP server, you can trust your transactional emails are sent, received, and relay to the correct recipient.
However, if you’re just starting in the eCommerce business, you may want to try some of the best free SMTP servers providers before going for a paid option.
So, in this post, we will walk through some of the best and most affordable Simple Mail Transfer Protocol server providers.
I will cut to the chase and hit straight to the list…
Best Free SMTP Servers
Though some of these SMTP servers to send emails are not free, others allow free access to limited features; you will always get the best value when you upgrade to a paid plan.
For example, Getresponse offers its SMTP server in its MAX plan, which costs $97.58/m when subscribing to the annual plan.
So, walk through the list, and find the option that best fits your business needs; if the provider offers a free trial, take advantage and see which provider is more suitable for you.
1. Getresponse SMTP
The Getresponse SMTP allows you to send transactional emails through Getresponse. And set up email sending in your e-commerce applications like Magneto, Shopify, Woocommerce, Prestashop, etc.
To access the Getresponse Simple Mail Transfer Protocol service and send emails, you must be a MAX plan user, purchase the transactional add-on, and integrate with the SMTP server to start sending emails.
Also, you can use the Getresponse API to send and track transactional emails from your CMS; there are options to choose from – SMTP or API.
Top Features
- Monitor outgoing emails and sending volume.
- Access to 60 days of email sending data – track recipient, sent message, and time.
- Get detailed reports – open, undelivered, send emails, etc.
- Integrates with popular e-commerce stores like Shopify, BIGcommerce, Prestashop, Woocommerce, Magento, etc.
Pricing.
The Getresponse SMTP is not free; as mentioned above, you must be on the MAX plan.
If you’re already a MAX user, or considering subscribing to it, contact the Getresponse sale rep for a demo on this page.
2. Google SMTP
Do you know Google also provides free Gmail SMTP server services to send and manage automated transactional emails?
The free SMTP relay services through Google servers allow you to send emails from your website and other email clients’ applications from secured ports – 465 and 587. The default Gmail server is smtp.gmail.com, which you can use to send emails globally.
Even using other email applications like Microsoft Exchange, you can route outgoing emails through Google SMTP relay services.
Top Features.
- Manage all emails through your Gmail account.
- Enjoy Google’s state-of-the-art security and spam protection.
- Get free 15 GB of data storage shared between Drive, Photos, and Gmail.
- Access premium Google Workspace features for 14 days.
- Use the Google Mail search operator as you would on Gmail.
- Enjoy access to two secured ports (465 and 578) over SSL and TLS, respectively.
Pricing.
Google’s free SMTP server offers a 14-day free trial of up to 500 emails daily.
After the 14-days, you can subscribe to one of its paid plans, which starts at $6/month. The starter plan allows up to 30GB of storage space, standard support, and advanced security and management tools.
3. Brevo SMTP
Brevo is an all-in-one marketing solution provider, allowing you to use many business tools, such as SMS, WhatsApp marketing, onsite live Chat, web push notifications, CRM, etc.
It also provides marketing tools like transactional emails and SMS, marketing automation, meetings, Brevo inbox, Facebook ads, and lots more.
And Brevo also offers third-party integration with many popular digital marketing tools.
Brevo offers a developer-friendly SMTP relay service, fully customizable and guaranteed to deliver your email message within 20 seconds.
You can generate a new SMTP key anytime from your account dashboard to integrate with your application.
Top Features
- Dedicated infrastructure built to deliver email faster than a New York Light.
- Unlimited email sending – free account cap at 300/daily.
- Dedicated IP address
- Over 40 responsive email templates design
- Drag and drop editor.
- Real-time email performance statistics.
- GDPR compliance and data protection with customized log retention.
- Support popular programming languages with API – Python, PHP, Ruby, Java, C#, etc.
- Integrates with your CMS – WordPress, Prestashop, Magento, Woocommerce, Shopify, etc.
- Support via email
Pricing.
There is a free plan with a daily limit of 300 emails. The paid plan starts at $15/m for a maximum of 20,000 monthly emails.
Check out the complete pricing plan on the Brevo page.
4. Moosend SMTP
If you want a simple yet effective SMTP relay service to send transactional emails like password reset, invoice notifications, and order confirmation, Moosend could make a better choice.
Moosend is one of the industry’s best beginner-friendly email marketing automation solutions.
With its SMTP relay service, you can send a direct message to a single recipient or an email list already on the Moosend platform. And connecting to other applications is simple; you can connect through API or integrate directly with hundreds of other apps.
Top Features.
- One-click integration with WordPress.
- Dedicated IP protection
- Track email performance with powerful analytics software.
- Support TLS encryption.
- Several connection ports are available.
Pricing.
Moosend SMTP is not offered on the free plan. However, the paid plan starts at $$9/month, which allows unlimited SMTP monthly email sending.
Check the Moosend pricing page for more information and available features.
5. Amazon SES SMTP
Amazon Simple Email Services delivers hundreds of billions of transactional emails annually and provides users with secured 2FA authenticated email delivery.
Amazon SES is the right choice if your business requires a powerful cloud-based email SMTP server infrastructure. It is ISO-certified, FedRAMP, HIPAA-eligible, and GDPR-compliant.
There are many use cases to consider Amazon SES Simple email transfer protocol server; it allows you to send automated transactional email messages, send timely email notifications, manage customer buying journeys effectively, and send bulk email messages to large email recipients.
Top Features.
- Pay-as-you-go plan – no contract. No subscription. No long-term commitment.
- Support for SPF, DMARC, and DKIM for high email delivery.
- Choose from several senders configuration options – Amazon SES API, AWS SDK, Amazon SES Console, SMTP, and Amazon API interface.
- Offer Virtual Deliverability Manager to ensure your email drop in the inbox.
- Get detailed performance statistics about your email delivery, open, bounce, spam compliance, etc.
Pricing.
The Amazon SES free SMTP server allows up to 62,000 free monthly emails. You could pay a few extra charges depending on your usage and the required email features.
Amazon SES pricing is transparent, allowing you to set your billing based on your use, resources, and features. You can learn more about Amazon SES billing on the pricing page.
6. MailChimp SMTP
Mailchimp lets you use its SMTP transactional email credentials to send from its servers. You can transfer an existing SMTP server, configure it using Mailchimp settings, and send emails.
Mailchimp offers API and SMTP sending options; you can select which configuration suits your needs.
However, the transactional API-sending option lets you view and access email performance reporting in your CMS or email clients.
Also, before sending emails through Mailchimp transactional, you must verify and authenticate SPF and DKIM records to verify account domains.
Top Features.
- Customize email sending and receiving with branded URLs.
- Apply rules to automate email delivery and triggers.
- Use a subaccount to manage multiple brand products or names.
- Create a custom return path for bounced and undelivered emails.
- Increase brand reputation with a custom DNS dedicated IP address.
- Access performance and reports with a custom analytics dashboard.
- Allow/block/delete emails with multiple rules and commands.
Pricing
New transactional users get up to 500 free emails to try Mailchimp SMTP transactional emails. Services.
Mailchimp has a different pricing model that requires some explanation, which you can find on their pricing page.
In summary, it uses a block to give credit. Each block is a credit for 25k emails, with $20/block. So if you purchase 2 blocks for $40, you get a maximum of 50k emails to send.
7. Postmark SMTP
One of the most popular SMTP relay providers is Postmark.
It has excellent customer support and a high deliverability rate. Postmark also supports TLS (Transport Layer Security), and you can send with either the API or SMTP.
Postmark guarantees the fastest email delivery time due to its global endpoint in many AWS global server locations, which could result in low latency.
Top Features.
- Worldwide SMTP relay server maintaining several endpoints globally.
- Dedicated IP addresses for large-scale email needs.
- Access to prebuilt email templates to make creating campaigns easier.
- Log every email activity, making analyzing, troubleshooting, and tracking performance easy.
- One of the best customer support at your services – email, phone, live chat, and a dedicated support team.
- 2FA authentication for an extra layer of security.
- Manage team members and give account permission and roles.
Pricing.
Postmark offers a free trial which allows 100 email sending per month. This is not sufficient if you send regular monthly emails.
However, you can pick the paid plan, which starts from $15/m for 10,000 emails. And if you send more emails, 50k email starts at $55.
8. SMTP2GO
SMTP2GO is a hands-on SMTP relay server solution that lets you focus on your business instead of the technical side of email management.
It offers best-in-class transactional email solutions for small and large enterprise businesses.
Whether you’re sending a few thousand or millions of monthly emails, SMTP2GO has the features and infrastructure to handle all your commercial email needs.
Top Features
- Send SMS messages to customers.
- Access up to 30 days of email reports.
- Dedicated IP addresses.
- Get support via chat, phone, and ticket.
- Spamtrack detention
- Deliver email globally from servers closer to your recipients.
- Built-in redundancy.
- Automatic SPF and DKIM.
- Real-time analytics and access to weekly summaries.
Pricing.
SMTP2GO has a free plan offering 1,000 free monthly emails. Also, there is a 14-day trial which lets you access premium features. No credit card is required to access the free plan.
The premium plan starts at $10 for up to 10,000 monthly emails. The professional plan starts at $75 if you send more emails, allowing 40k emails plus more features and access.
Conclusion.
Free SMTP servers are good options for beginners’ eCommerce store owners looking to cut expenses; you will get the best value for money with a paid option.
Premium SMTP relay server services will allow you to send more emails, access more features, and provide better infrastructure and a well-secure platform to protect users’ data.
There are many options; the best Simple Mail Transfer Protocol server depends on your needs, business management, and available features.
You can try Getresponse for a paid option and Google SMTP server for the free plan.
