Overview
Resend and Loops are both popular with SaaS companies, but they're fundamentally different tools. Resend is a developer-focused transactional email API - think password resets, receipts, and system notifications. Loops is a marketing email platform designed for SaaS - think onboarding sequences, product updates, and newsletters. See our Resend comparison and Loops comparison for more details.
When to Use Each
Many SaaS companies use both. Resend handles the transactional emails that need to be triggered programmatically with clean API calls. Loops handles the marketing side with visual editors and automation workflows. The question is whether you want to manage two tools. Both platforms require setup effort and learning curves, so consolidation can save time and costs.
Developer Experience
Resend wins on API quality and React Email integration. If you want to build emails as React components and trigger them via code, Resend is excellent. Loops is more about the visual editor and workflow builder - great for marketing teams, less exciting for developers. For pure development focus, consider our guide on SaaS email sequences.
Marketing Capabilities
Loops is the clear winner here. Full-featured campaigns, automation workflows, user segmentation, and a clean visual editor. Resend has Audiences in beta, but it's not their focus. If you need serious marketing automation with drip campaigns and A/B testing, Loops is purpose-built for it.
Pricing Comparison
Resend charges per email sent (transactional focus). Loops charges per contact with unlimited sends (marketing focus). At 5,000 contacts, Loops is $49/month. Resend's Pro plan is $20/month for 50k emails. You might need both, which adds up. Check our pricing page to see how alternatives compare.
The Sequenzy Alternative
Instead of juggling Resend for transactional and Loops for marketing, consider Sequenzy. We offer unified transactional email, email campaigns, AI-powered sequences, and Stripe integration all in one platform.