Overview

SendGrid and Amazon SES represent fundamentally different approaches to email. SendGrid is a complete, managed email platform with marketing features, analytics, and dedicated support. Amazon SES is raw email infrastructure - you get reliable sending at rock-bottom prices, but you build everything else yourself.

The Cost Difference

This is dramatic. Amazon SES charges $0.10 per 1,000 emails. At 100,000 emails, that's $10/month. SendGrid's Pro plan for the same volume is $89.95. If cost is your primary concern and you have engineering resources, SES is hard to beat.

What You're Paying For

SendGrid's higher price includes: marketing campaigns, visual email editor, advanced analytics, deliverability management, IP warmup, bounce handling, and dedicated support. With SES, you get sending infrastructure. Analytics, bounce handling, and management require building with AWS services like CloudWatch and SNS.

Deliverability Management

SendGrid manages your sending reputation, handles IP warmup, and optimizes deliverability. With SES, you're responsible for all of this. Poor management can hurt your delivery rates. For teams without email expertise, SendGrid's management is valuable.

Engineering Requirements

SES requires significant engineering investment. Bounce and complaint handling via SNS, analytics via CloudWatch, reputation monitoring - all DIY. SendGrid is ready to use immediately. Calculate whether engineering time offsets SES's cost savings.

AWS Ecosystem

If you're already deep in AWS, SES integrates naturally with your infrastructure. Lambda, SNS, CloudWatch - it all connects. For AWS-native companies with engineering resources, SES makes sense.

Making the Choice

Choose SES if you have AWS expertise, engineering resources for email ops, and cost is paramount. Choose SendGrid if you want a managed platform, marketing features, or don't have dedicated email engineering.