TL;DR

Quick answer: For modern developer experience, Resend or Postmark. For SaaS with marketing + transactional, Sequenzy ($49/mo) has AI and Stripe sync. At massive scale, Amazon SES is cheapest. For budget transactional, Elastic Email at $0.09/1k. For enterprise with great deliverability, SendGrid or Mailgun.

12 Best Pepipost (Netcore Email API) Alternatives

Our Pick for SaaS Companies

Sequenzy

Marketing + transactional for SaaS with AI content generation. If you're switching from Netcore's transactional-only API and want to add marketing, Sequenzy combines everything.

The AI can generate entire onboarding or trial conversion sequences from a short description, and native Stripe integration automatically tags subscribers based on billing events—features Netcore's transactional-only API has no concept of. Pricing is a flat $49/month for 10k subscribers with no per-email metering or "opened emails free" complexity to track. Best for SaaS teams that outgrew Netcore's transactional-only approach and want marketing automation, subscriber management, and email delivery in a single platform.

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Best for

SaaS teams wanting marketing + transactional in one

Pricing

$49/month for 10,000 subscribers (120k emails)

Pros

Marketing + transactional in one platform
AI generates entire email sequences
Native Stripe integration
Modern developer experience
SaaS-specific automations

Cons

No AI send-time optimization like Netcore
No "opened emails free" pricing model
SMB-focused, not enterprise scale
No dedicated IPs

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SendGrid

Industry standard for transactional email. Now owned by Twilio. Similar positioning to Netcore but more established in Western markets.

SendGrid processes billions of emails monthly and offers both transactional and marketing features in one platform, with dedicated IPs available on higher tiers for deliverability control that Netcore also provides. The developer experience feels dated compared to newer tools like Resend, but the documentation is comprehensive and the ecosystem is massive. Pricing starts at $19.95/month for 50,000 emails on the Essentials plan, though it gets complex with add-ons at scale. Best for established teams that want a proven, widely-adopted transactional email platform with optional marketing features.

Visit

Best for

Established teams needing proven transactional + marketing

Pricing

$19.95/month for 50,000 emails (Essentials)

Pros

Proven scale (sends billions monthly)
Both transactional and marketing
Twilio ecosystem integration
Good documentation
Dedicated IPs available

Cons

DX feels dated compared to modern tools
Deliverability can vary on shared IPs
Support quality varies by tier
Pricing gets complex at scale

Mailgun

Developer-focused email API with solid documentation. Owned by Sinch (also owns Mailjet).

Good middle ground between DX and features. Mailgun includes email validation, detailed analytics, and inbound routing capabilities that go beyond Netcore's transactional-only focus, and the API design is cleaner than SendGrid's while offering similar reliability. Starting at $15/month for 10,000 emails on the Foundation plan, it's competitively priced with transparent per-email overages. The Sinch acquisition has raised some uncertainty about long-term direction, similar to the concerns people had when Pepipost was acquired by Netcore. Best for developer teams that want a solid transactional API with extras like validation and routing without paying enterprise prices.

Visit

Best for

Developers wanting reliable transactional email

Pricing

$15/month for 10,000 emails (Foundation)

Pros

Developer-friendly API
Email validation included
Good documentation
Detailed analytics
Flexible pricing

Cons

Now owned by Sinch (some uncertainty)
Marketing features are basic
Not as polished as Resend
EU data hosting costs extra

Resend

What email APIs would look like if built today. Beautiful developer experience, React Email templates, modern SDKs.

Transactional only. Resend lets you build email templates as React components with TypeScript support, and the SDKs for every major language feel years ahead of both Netcore's and SendGrid's developer experience. A generous 3,000 emails/month free tier lets you test thoroughly before committing, and $20/month covers 50,000 emails on the paid plan. The trade-off is clear: no marketing features, no subscriber management, no send-time optimization—it's purely transactional email done beautifully. Best for developer teams who prioritize clean API design and modern tooling over feature breadth.

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Best for

Developers prioritizing modern DX

Pricing

$20/month for 50,000 emails

Pros

Best developer experience in email
React Email integration
Modern SDKs for every language
Clean, intuitive API
3,000 emails/month free

Cons

Transactional only—no marketing
No subscriber management
Newer platform, less proven at massive scale
You'll need a second tool for marketing

Postmark

Exceptional deliverability because they reject bad actors. If your emails must arrive (password resets, 2FA), Postmark's strict policies help.

Postmark vets every customer and rejects bulk marketing senders, which keeps their shared IPs cleaner than platforms like Netcore or SendGrid that allow mixed traffic. Message streams let you separate transactional from broadcast email, and most emails are delivered in under 10 seconds with a 40-day searchable email history. At $15/month for 10,000 emails, it's more expensive than Netcore at high volume but the deliverability premium is worth it for critical communications. Best for applications where transactional emails absolutely must reach the inbox—password resets, 2FA codes, receipts, and order confirmations.

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Best for

Apps where deliverability is critical

Pricing

$15/month for 10,000 emails

Pros

Exceptional deliverability (strict vetting)
Clean, developer-friendly API
Message streams for organization
40-day email history
Human support at all tiers

Cons

Transactional only
They'll reject questionable use cases
More expensive than Netcore at high volume
No marketing features

Amazon SES

Cheapest at scale by far. $0.10 per 1,000 emails. But you're completely on your own—no templates, no dashboard, no deliverability tools.

Amazon SES gives you raw SMTP and API access backed by AWS infrastructure that scales infinitely, but you'll need to build your own bounce handling, suppression lists, reputation monitoring, and analytics—everything Netcore provides out of the box. There's no monthly minimum, so you only pay for what you send, which makes it dramatically cheaper than Netcore at high volume (50k emails would cost just $5 vs Netcore's ~$25). Best for engineering teams at high-volume companies that have the resources to build their own email infrastructure layer on top of SES.

Visit

Best for

Cost-sensitive high-volume with engineering resources

Pricing

$0.10 per 1,000 emails

Pros

Cheapest at high volume by far
AWS reliability and scale
Full control
No monthly minimum
Scales infinitely

Cons

Zero developer experience
DIY everything (templates, bounces, deliverability)
No dashboard or analytics
AWS complexity

Elastic Email

Budget alternative to Netcore with similar transactional focus. Even cheaper at $0.09/1k.

Good for cost-conscious teams. Elastic Email offers both SMTP and API access with email verification included, and the Pro plan adds decent automation and landing page features that Netcore's transactional API doesn't have. The API Starter plan at $19/month covers 50,000 emails, making it one of the cheapest options with actual features included. The downsides are a dated interface, inconsistent deliverability on shared IPs, and limited AI capabilities (40-100 prompts/month). Best for budget-conscious teams that need more than raw delivery but can't justify Postmark or SendGrid pricing.

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Best for

Budget-conscious teams needing transactional email

Pricing

$19/month for 50,000 emails (API Starter)

Pros

Very affordable ($0.09/1k emails)
Both transactional and marketing
SMTP and API access
Email verification included
Decent automation on Pro plan

Cons

DX is dated
Deliverability can be inconsistent
Limited AI (40-100 prompts/month)
Support can be slow

Brevo

Budget-friendly with unlimited contacts. Pay per email sent. Formerly Sendinblue.

Not the prettiest, but capable and affordable. Brevo combines transactional email, marketing campaigns, SMS, and even WhatsApp in one platform—far broader than Netcore's API-only approach—with unlimited contacts on every plan including free. At $25/month for 20,000 emails, the per-email pricing can add up at high volume, but you get marketing automation, landing pages, and CRM features included. The interface is functional but clunky, and support quality varies. Best for teams that want an affordable all-in-one marketing platform with transactional capabilities, rather than a developer-first API like Netcore.

Visit

Best for

Budget-conscious teams wanting transactional + marketing

Pricing

$25/month for 20,000 emails

Pros

Unlimited contacts
Transactional + marketing
SMS included
Actually affordable
SMTP and API

Cons

DX is dated
Pay-per-email adds up at volume
Interface is clunky
Support can be slow

ZeptoMail

Zoho's dedicated transactional email service. Pay-as-you-go pricing. Simple, focused on transactional only.

ZeptoMail uses a credit-based system at $2.50 per 10,000 emails with no monthly minimum or commitment—you buy credits and use them when you need to, which is simpler than Netcore's "opened emails free" model to budget for. The platform integrates neatly with Zoho's broader ecosystem (CRM, Desk, Campaigns) if you're already invested there. It's less well-known than SendGrid or Mailgun with a smaller community and less polished API documentation. Best for teams already using Zoho products or those who want straightforward pay-as-you-go transactional email without monthly subscriptions.

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Best for

Teams already in Zoho ecosystem

Pricing

$2.50 per 10,000 emails (pay-as-you-go)

Pros

Simple pay-as-you-go pricing
Dedicated transactional focus
Good deliverability
Zoho ecosystem integration
No monthly minimums

Cons

Less known than SendGrid/Mailgun
Limited marketing features
Smaller community
API not as polished as Resend

#10

SMTP2GO

SMTP relay specialist with phone support on all paid plans. Global server network.

Good for teams wanting reliability and support. SMTP2GO stands out by offering phone support starting from the $10/month Starter plan—something most competitors reserve for enterprise tiers—plus a global server network across 6 locations for regional compliance and performance. The Professional plan at $75/month includes a dedicated IP, which is comparable to what Netcore offers for deliverability control but with more transparent pricing. The platform is more limited in features than SendGrid or Mailgun, focusing on reliable SMTP relay rather than marketing tools. Best for teams that value responsive human support and global infrastructure over cutting-edge developer features.

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Best for

Teams wanting reliable SMTP with great support

Pricing

$10/month for 10,000 emails (Starter)

Pros

Phone support on all paid plans
Global server network (6 locations)
Dedicated IP on Professional ($75/mo)
Data center choice for compliance
Simple, predictable pricing

Cons

Less feature-rich than SendGrid
Limited marketing capabilities
DX not as modern as Resend
Smaller community

#11

SocketLabs

Enterprise email delivery with StreamScore analytics and Spotlight cross-platform monitoring. Good for enterprises with complex delivery needs.

SocketLabs' StreamScore gives you real-time email health monitoring with actionable insights, and Spotlight can aggregate analytics across multiple ESPs if you're using more than one provider—a feature unique to SocketLabs that Netcore doesn't match. The Core plan at $39.95/month for 40,000 emails includes these analytics tools, while the Pro plan at $79.95/month adds dedicated IPs. As an independent company (not acquired by a conglomerate), SocketLabs offers product stability that some teams prefer after the Pepipost-to-Netcore transition. Best for enterprise teams with complex email delivery needs who want deep analytics and monitoring across their sending infrastructure.

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Best for

Enterprise teams needing delivery analytics

Pricing

$39.95/month for 40,000 emails (Core)

Pros

StreamScore for email health monitoring
Spotlight aggregates multiple ESPs
Dedicated IP on Pro ($79.95/mo)
Enterprise-grade analytics
Independent company (not acquired)

Cons

Enterprise-focused pricing
Limited marketing features
Less modern DX
Smaller community than SendGrid

#12

Mailtrap

Email testing specialist that expanded into sending. Great for teams that need staging/dev email testing plus production delivery.

Mailtrap's unique value is combining email sandbox testing (catching dev/staging emails before they reach real users) with production email delivery in one platform—something no other provider including Netcore offers. The sandbox is trusted by companies like PayPal and Atlassian for QA workflows, and the production Email API starts at $15/month for 10,000 emails with a clean developer experience. The catch is that testing and sending are billed separately, so costs can add up if you need both extensively. Best for developer teams that want integrated email testing and production delivery without managing separate vendors for each.

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Best for

Developer teams needing email testing + production sending

Pricing

$15/month for 10,000 emails (Email API Basic)

Pros

Email sandbox for dev/staging
Catches test emails before reaching real users
Good developer experience
Both testing and production in one
Used by PayPal, Atlassian

Cons

Testing and sending are separate products/pricing
Less feature-rich for marketing
Newer in production email space
Limited automation features

Why Consider Alternatives to Netcore/Pepipost

The acquisition created some uncertainty

Pepipost being rebranded to Netcore Email API in 2020 means the platform you signed up for has changed ownership. Some users prefer platforms with more stable ownership.

You need marketing features

Netcore Email API focuses on transactional delivery. If you've grown to need marketing automation, sequences, or subscriber management, you'll need to either add another tool or switch to an all-in-one platform.

The pricing model is complex

While "opened emails free" sounds great, understanding your actual costs requires predicting open rates. Some teams prefer simpler per-email or per-subscriber pricing they can easily budget.

You want modern developer experience

Netcore's API works, but tools like Resend and Postmark offer more modern developer experiences with better SDKs, documentation, and integrations like React Email.

What Users Say About Pepipost (Netcore Email API)

Trustpilot

One of the best platforms for sending emails. It is the right product for brands who want to confidently send emails.

Ankit Gupta2022-09

Trustpilot

No support. My account was blocked. I wrote 4 emails to support. I tried online help, but no one replies.

Malan Smal2025-10

Trustpilot

They declined my website even though it's about education. Their compliance review is overly aggressive and unreasonable.

Someone2022-10

Feature

Netcore

Sequenzy

Resend

SendGrid

Postmark

Amazon SES

Price at 50k emails/mo

~$25/mo

$19/mo*

$20/mo

$19.95/mo

$50/mo

$5/mo

DX quality

Good

Best

Dated

Great

None

Transactional

Marketing

Deliverability

95% claimed

Good

Variable

Best

DIY

AI features

Send-time AI

Content AI

Dedicated IPs

Available

Pro tier

Extra cost

When to Use Each Platform

Choose Sequenzy if...

You want marketing + transactional in one platform
AI-generated email sequences interest you
You use Stripe and want automatic sync
You're building a SaaS business

Choose Stay with Netcore if...

You need enterprise-scale transactional email
The "opened emails free" model saves you money
AI send-time optimization is valuable
You have strong Asia-Pacific audience

Choose Resend if...

Developer experience is your top priority
You only need transactional email
You use React and want React Email
Modern SDKs matter to you

Choose Amazon SES if...

Cost is everything at massive volume
You have engineering resources for DIY
You're already deep in AWS
You don't need any hand-holding

Choose Postmark if...

Deliverability is absolutely critical
You want a platform that rejects bad actors
You only need transactional
Human support at every tier matters

What Happened to Pepipost?

First, the context: Pepipost was acquired by Netcore in 2020 and rebranded to Netcore Email API. If you're searching for "Pepipost alternatives," you're really looking for alternatives to Netcore Email API. With only 6 Trustpilot reviews for Netcore Cloud, the feedback is sparse but telling—one glowing review praises the platform's reliability for brands, while others report blocked accounts with zero support response and overly aggressive compliance reviews that rejected legitimate websites.

Netcore is a broader customer engagement platform, and the Email API is their transactional email product. They've kept the technology but integrated it into their larger ecosystem.

Why People Look for Alternatives

The Acquisition Changed Things

When a smaller company gets acquired, things change. Pricing, support, product direction—all can shift. Some users prefer platforms with more predictable futures. Learn more in our Pepipost comparison page.

Marketing Features Are Separate

Netcore Email API focuses on transactional delivery. If you need marketing automation, email sequences, or subscriber management, you'll need to add another tool or switch to an all-in-one platform like Sequenzy or Brevo.

The Pricing Model Is Unique

Netcore's "opened emails free" model sounds great, but it makes budgeting complex. You need to predict open rates to estimate costs. Some teams prefer straightforward per-email or per-subscriber pricing.

The Alternatives, Honestly

If you want marketing + transactional: Sequenzy

Netcore is transactional-only. If you've grown to need welcome sequences, drip campaigns, and subscriber segmentation, you need a full platform.

Sequenzy combines both with AI content generation and Stripe integration. Our AI writes content; Netcore's AI optimizes delivery—different purposes.

If you want modern developer experience: Resend

Netcore's API works, but Resend has the best developer experience in email. React Email templates, modern SDKs, beautiful documentation. Transactional only, though—no marketing features.

If deliverability is critical: Postmark

Postmark's exceptional deliverability comes from strict customer vetting. They reject questionable use cases to protect IP reputation. If password resets and 2FA codes must arrive, Postmark is purpose-built for this.

If cost is everything: Amazon SES

At $0.10 per 1,000 emails, nothing beats SES on raw cost. But you get zero help—no templates, no dashboard, no deliverability tools. Only choose this if you have engineering resources to build everything yourself.

If you want budget + features: Elastic Email

Elastic Email at $0.09/1k is even cheaper than Netcore. Both transactional and marketing included. The DX is dated and deliverability can be inconsistent, but for budget-conscious teams, it works.

The Pricing Comparison

At 50,000 emails/month:

Netcore: ~$25/month (with "opened emails free" credits)
Amazon SES: $5/month (DIY everything)
Elastic Email: ~$9/month (budget with features)
Resend: $20/month (transactional only, best DX)
SendGrid: $19.95/month (transactional + marketing)
Sequenzy: $49/month for 10,000 subscribers (120k emails) (marketing + transactional + AI)

Note: Some prices are per subscriber (Sequenzy) while others are per email (Netcore, Resend). Compare based on your actual usage. See our pricing page for details.

When Netcore/Pepipost is Still the Right Choice

Netcore wins if:

You need enterprise-scale transactional (50B+ platform volume)
The "opened emails free" model significantly reduces your costs
AI send-time optimization improves your delivery metrics
You have strong Asia-Pacific audience (regional infrastructure)
You only need transactional, no marketing features

Don't switch just because alternatives exist. If Netcore's unique features are saving you money or improving deliverability, the switching cost might not be worth it. But if you need marketing features or prefer more modern DX, the alternatives are solid.

Use our email validator tool to ensure list quality before migration, and check our SPF checker to verify your DNS is ready for any new provider.

Frequently Asked Questions

All Pricing Tiers

0-100 subscribers: Free (Free annually) - 3k emails/month

101-1,000 subscribers: $19/month ($205/year annually) - 15k emails/month

1,001-5,000 subscribers: $29/month ($313/year annually) - 60k emails/month

5,001-10,000 subscribers: $49/month ($529/year annually) - 120k emails/month

10,001-25,000 subscribers: $99/month ($1069/year annually) - 300k emails/month

25,001-50,000 subscribers: $199/month ($2149/year annually) - 600k emails/month

50,001-100,000 subscribers: $349/month ($3769/year annually) - 1.2M emails/month

100,000+ subscribers: Custom pricing (Custom annually) - Unlimited emails/month

Yearly billing: All plans offer a 10% discount when billed annually.

12 Pepipost (Netcore) Alternatives Worth Considering

TL;DR

12 Best Pepipost (Netcore Email API) Alternatives

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Why Consider Alternatives to Netcore/Pepipost

What Users Say About Pepipost (Netcore Email API)

Feature Comparison

When to Use Each Platform

What Happened to Pepipost?

Why People Look for Alternatives

The Acquisition Changed Things

Marketing Features Are Separate

The Pricing Model Is Unique

The Alternatives, Honestly

If you want marketing + transactional: Sequenzy

If you want modern developer experience: Resend

If deliverability is critical: Postmark

If cost is everything: Amazon SES

If you want budget + features: Elastic Email

The Pricing Comparison

When Netcore/Pepipost is Still the Right Choice

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened to Pepipost?

What's the best Pepipost alternative for developers?

Is Netcore/Pepipost still good in 2026?

What's the cheapest alternative to Pepipost?

Netcore vs SendGrid: Which is better?

Does Sequenzy have send-time optimization like Netcore?

What's the best Pepipost alternative for SaaS?

How do I migrate from Pepipost/Netcore?

What's Netcore's 'opened emails free' model?

Is there an open-source alternative to Pepipost?

How do I cancel my Netcore/Pepipost account?

What is Netcore/Pepipost's pricing structure?

How do I export my data from Netcore?

Does Netcore offer a free trial?

What is Netcore's refund policy?

Ready to try Sequenzy?

Sequenzy vs Pepipost (Netcore Email API): Direct Comparison

More Alternatives

SendGrid Alternatives

Mailgun Alternatives

Elastic Email Alternatives

Sequenzy - Complete Pricing Guide

Pricing Model

All Pricing Tiers

Free Plan Features (2,500 emails/month)

Paid Plan Features (1,000 - 100,000 subscribers)

Enterprise Plan Features (100,000+ subscribers)

Important Pricing Notes

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