Mailgun vs Postmark: Which Email API Should You Use?

A practical comparison of Mailgun and Postmark for transactional and marketing email — pricing, deliverability, features, and which one fits your team.

Updated 2026-09 · 2026

Mailgun

Email API for transactional and marketing email

$15mo (Foundation, 10k emails)

Strengths

+Supports both transactional and bulk/marketing sends on one platform
+Built-in email validation API
+US and EU region hosting options

Weaknesses

-Deliverability reputation has been inconsistent, especially on shared IPs
-Pricing structure has changed multiple times, confusing for existing customers
-Support quality complaints at lower tiers

Best for

Teams that need one platform for both transactional and marketing/bulk email sends.

Postmark

Fast, reliable transactional email delivery

$15mo (10k emails)

Strengths

+Best-in-class deliverability for transactional email
+Fast, responsive human support
+Clean dashboard with per-message search and history

Weaknesses

-Bulk/marketing sends are discouraged and throttled on a separate stream
-Fewer hosting regions than Mailgun
-No email validation API built in

Best for

Teams sending transactional email only (receipts, password resets, notifications) who need reliable delivery.

Feature Comparison

Feature	Mailgun	Postmark
Transactional email	Yes	Yes
Bulk/marketing email	Yes	Discouraged/throttled
Free tier	100 emails/day for 3 months (trial)	100 emails/month, no expiry
Deliverability track record	Mixed, shared IP issues reported	Consistently strong
Email validation API	Built in	Not included
Dedicated IP add-on	~$59/mo	~$50/mo
Templates	Yes	Yes
Webhooks	Yes	Yes
Message-level analytics	Basic	Detailed, per-message search
EU data hosting	Yes	Limited
Support responsiveness	Ticket-based, slower at lower tiers	Fast live support
SMTP + API access	Yes	Yes

The Verdict

Postmark wins on deliverability and support if you're strictly sending transactional email — receipts, resets, alerts. Mailgun makes more sense if you also need marketing/bulk sends on the same platform, but be prepared for occasional deliverability inconsistency. For pure transactional workloads, Postmark is the safer bet.

How to switch from Mailgun to Postmark

1Export your suppression lists (bounces, unsubscribes, spam complaints) from Mailgun's dashboard or Logs API as CSV files, and pull your domain's DNS records (SPF, DKIM, MX).
2Create a Postmark account, add your sending domain, and add the required DKIM and Return-Path DNS records Postmark provides.
3Upload your exported suppression lists into Postmark's Suppressions tool so you don't re-email bounced or unsubscribed addresses.
4Recreate your email templates in Postmark's template editor or push them via the Templates API if you have many.
5Update your app's SMTP credentials or API keys (e.g., in Rails ActionMailer, Django settings, or Zapier connections) to point to Postmark.
6Run both providers in parallel for a short test period, confirm deliverability and open/bounce rates are healthy in Postmark, then remove Mailgun's DNS records and cancel the account.

Mailgun vs Postmark: common questions

How do I export my data from Mailgun before switching to Postmark?+

Use Mailgun's Logs API or dashboard to download your suppression lists (bounces, unsubscribes, complaints) as CSV files. Also export your domain's DNS records (SPF, DKIM, MX) so you can recreate them under Postmark's requirements. There's no one-click full account export — you're moving suppression data and templates manually.

What do I lose moving from Mailgun to Postmark?+

You lose easy bulk/marketing sending — Postmark separates transactional and broadcast streams and throttles or restricts marketing-style volume. You also lose Mailgun's built-in email validation API and EU hosting flexibility, since Postmark's regional options are more limited.

Is Postmark's free tier enough for a small team?+

No, Postmark's free tier caps at 100 emails/month, which only covers testing or a very early-stage app. Most small teams will need the $15/mo plan (10,000 emails) almost immediately once they go live.

Does Postmark integrate with the same tools as Mailgun?+

Mostly yes — Postmark has SDKs for major languages, plugins for Rails ActionMailer, Django, Laravel, and integrates with Zapier and most SaaS platforms. It has fewer third-party integrations overall than Mailgun, but covers the common cases used by small teams.

Will switching to Postmark cost more or less over time?+

At low-to-mid volume (under ~50k emails/month) pricing is close between the two. At higher volumes Postmark tends to cost more per email since it doesn't discount bulk sending the way Mailgun does, because Postmark isn't built for marketing-scale volume.