Can you recommend a reliable SMTP service for my forum, either free or paid? The number of emails sent per day, such as notifications and registration confirmations, is minimal, likely less than 10,000.



Ideally, I would like to find a service that can mask the real IP address of the server sending the emails to protect my privacy. Any suggestions on where I can find such a service?

My experience with Mailgan has been positive over the past few years in terms of reliability and deliverability. While there have been occasional downtimes, they were not critical and only occurred for a day or two within a 3-5 year period.

However, I have encountered issues with Soft/Hard Bounce and subsequent blocking, as well as the need for email validation services. Unfortunately, validating some mailboxes is impossible since any requests for existence receive a positive response, even if the mailbox does not actually exist. This results in a high failure rate of approximately 45%, leading to an excess of "bounces" and blocking.

To unblock these issues, I must rely on sending emails to resolve the problem, which can take several days.

SendPulse is a marketing and sales platform that collaborates with popular social networks and messengers. With offices in various countries like Ukraine, Belarus, Brazil, Mexico, and Nigeria, the service offers several options such as email marketing, SMS notifications, chatbots, web push notifications, lead generation, CRM integration, collaboration with colleagues, and more.

The free plan allows up to 15,000 emails per month, while paid plans start from $5 per month and include an unrestricted number of messages along with added services.

SMTP.COM has been providing services to over 100,000 companies for more than two decades, ensuring safe and dependable communication with customers, maintaining brand reputation, and creating products based on customer interaction.

The features of SMTP service include automatic email address verification for domain and sender protection, scalable infrastructure, high delivery rates, flexibility in volume changes, reliable sending, ease of API implementation, and a dedicated platform. The minimum cost for tariff rates starts from $25 per month for a minimum of 50,000 emails.

Sure, take a look at some reliable SMTP services that can help you with your objectives:

Sendinblue: This is a reliable SMTP service provider that specializes in providing transactional email services and marketing automation. Their free plan can take care of 300 emails per day, and if you need more, their paid options offer very competitive pricing.

Mailgun: This platform offers powerful and flexible conditions for developers and businesses. They have a pay-as-you-go option, so you're not locked into a fixed rate, which could be useful if your email volume fluctuates. Under their Flex plan, you're able to send 5,000 emails for your first 3 months for free, after which payment begins at $0.80 for every 1,000 emails.

SendGrid: This is another SMTP provider that is particularly popular for delivering transactional and marketing emails. SendGrid also has a free plan that lets you send up to 100 emails/day. For higher volumes, they offer different plans to suit various needs.

Mailjet: With their competitive pricing, you can use their SMTP servers to send, track, and manage your emails. On their free plan, you can send up to 200 emails per day. For larger volumes, they provide flexible pricing options.

Amazon SES (Simple Email Service): This service is designed to help digital marketers and application developers send marketing, notification, and transactional emails. Amazon SES is a pay-as-you-go service where you're only charged for what you use. With its integration with other AWS services, Amazon SES also provides some advanced features not available from regular SMTP servers.

As for the masking of the real IP address of the server sending the emails, do note that using an SMTP service will inherently provide a level of this. These services send your emails from their servers, so those receiving your emails should only ever see the SMTP service's IP address, protecting your server's IP. However, you might want to confirm this with your selected SMTP provider to ensure it aligns with your privacy requirements.

Don't forget to make sure that you set all the necessary SPF, DKIM, and possibly DMARC records to ensure good deliverability for your emails. Most SMTP services will guide you through this process.


Here are a few more services you may find useful:

Postmark: Postmark is another reliable service for sending transactional emails. They have a strong focus on delivering emails quickly and reliably, and they provide good analytics and reporting functions. They offer a free test plan which allows you to send up to 100 messages per month, and their paid plans start at $10 for 10,000 emails/month.

SparkPost: This platform touts itself as the world's fastest-growing email delivery service. It provides robust APIs, easy email analytics, and admirable deliverability rates. Though it doesn't have a free plan, the startup pricing allows for up to 50,000 emails/month at a cost of $20.

SMTP2GO: SMTP2GO looks out for things such as sender reputation and bounce handling so that your emails don't go to spam. They have a free plan that allows up to 1,000 emails a month, and their entry-level pricing begins at $14/month for up to 10,000 emails.

Pepipost: Known as one of the most affordable SMTP service providers, Pepipost offers a range of features like subuser management, live reporting, and 24/7 chat support. Pepipost does not offer a free plan, but its basic plan starts at $25 for 150,000 emails/per month. They also have a pay-as-you-go scheme for businesses with less frequent email schedules.

Elastic Email: This platform offers an all-in-one email delivery platform. They offer competitive pricing and a wide range of features, including templates, campaign creation tools, and detailed analytics. They offer a free tier for up to 100 emails/day, with paid plans that start at $10/month for unlimited emails.

Amazon SES (Simple Email Service): This is a cloud-based email sending service designed to help digital marketers and application developers send marketing, notification, and transactional emails. It's a cost-effective service for businesses that send lots of emails. Pricing is based on the number of emails sent in addition to the number of bytes sent.

Mailgun: This service is aimed at developers who need an email API for their applications. Mailgun offers powerful APIs for sending, receiving and tracking the success of your emails. It has a "pay as you go" payment model, which can be good for companies with fluctuating email volumes.

Mandrill by Mailchimp: This is an email API for Mailchimp users designed for sending data-driven transactional emails like order confirmations, password resets, etc. You'll need a paid monthly Mailchimp plan to access Mandrill.

Mailjet: A cloud-based email platform offering both bulk marketing email, as well as transactional email sending. Comes with an API, analytics, and a template editor. Free plan allows 6,000 emails per month.

moosend: An SMTP service providing a range of features including transactional emails, mailing list management, and marketing automation. No free plan, but their entry-level tier allows for up to 6,000 emails per month for around $8.

SendinBlue: This service provides a cloud-based email & SMS marketing tool. Their SMTP is used for transactional emails, while they also offer an API and plugins to connect the tool to your site or app.

SocketLabs: Offering a scalable SMTP service, SocketLabs provides dedicated IP addresses, a user-friendly control panel, and strong reporting features. You can start with a free account that gives you up to 2,000 messages per month.

Again, your choice would depend on the volume of emails you're planning to send, the features you require, as well as your available budget. Always remember to review each service individually to make sure it meets your specific needs.

A reliable SMTP service is crucial for efficient email delivery. Ensure your emails reach recipients' inboxes seamlessly with a robust SMTP service. Enjoy features like high deliverability rates, real-time analytics, security protocols, and scalability to meet the demands of your email marketing campaigns effectively.