MailerSend vs SendGrid
Compare MailerSend and SendGrid based on observed API performance, features, and pricing
Live performance comparison
Real-world performance data from messages sent through Knock
| Provider | Message volume | Growth | Status page updates (30d) | Status page updates (90d) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| <1M | 7th of 10 ↓ | 0 | 1 |
| 500M+ | 2nd of 10 → | 8 | 24 |
From May 3rd to August 1st, Knock routed <1M messages through MailerSend and 500M+ through SendGrid. MailerSend reported 1 status page update over the last 90 days, while SendGrid reported 24.
Response time
Response time measures how long each provider takes to accept an API request from Knock, including connection overhead and any automatic retries. Lower values mean faster message hand-off.
| Provider | Median (p50) | p90 | p95 | p99 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 218ms | 454ms | 549ms | 835ms |
| 22ms | 78ms | 83ms | 263ms |
The chart above shows each provider's daily median response time (p50) from May 3rd to August 1st. The top-line number is an average of these daily values: MailerSend averaged 218ms compared to 22ms for SendGrid. MailerSend's highest daily p50 was 586ms; SendGrid's was 36ms. SendGrid is 196ms faster at the median, which can add up at high volumes.
The 90th percentile (p90) captures the slowest 10% of requests, revealing how each provider handles moderate stress. Averaged across all days, MailerSend has a p90 of 454ms compared to 78ms for SendGrid. The highest daily p90 was 1993ms for MailerSend and 89ms for SendGrid. SendGrid handles these slower requests 376ms faster, suggesting more consistent performance across the board.
The 99th percentile (p99) represents the long tail — the slowest 1% of requests. Averaged across all days, MailerSend reached 835ms at p99 while SendGrid reached 263ms. The highest daily p99 was 8277ms for MailerSend and 1743ms for SendGrid, indicating the worst-case response time during spikes or provider-side congestion. SendGrid shows a tighter tail, which may matter for time-sensitive notifications like one-time passwords or real-time alerts where even rare delays can impact user experience.
Error rate
Error rate tracks the ratio of 5xx responses and timeouts to total requests. Knock automatically retries failed requests, so transient provider errors rarely affect end-user delivery.
| Provider | Avg. daily error rate | Highest daily rate | Peak error date | Zero-error days | Days above 0.01% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.00% | 0.11% | Jun 30 | 88 | 3 |
| 0.00% | 0.02% | May 8 | 90 | 1 |
Averaged across the date range, MailerSend shows a 0.00% daily error rate compared to 0.00% for SendGrid. The highest single-day error rate was 0.11% for MailerSend and 0.02% for SendGrid. Both providers show similar reliability levels, with error rates well within acceptable thresholds. Knock automatically retries failed requests to both providers, minimizing the impact of transient errors on end-user delivery.
About these metrics: Data represents messages sent through Knock during the specified period. Response time measures time from Knock to provider acceptance. Error rate includes only provider 5xx responses and timeouts.
Recent MailerSend incidents
Recent status page incidents for MailerSend
Started Jul 1, 2026 — Resolved Jul 1, 2026
Status: Complete Maintenance has completed Affected components Bulk endpoint (Under maintenance) SMTP (Under maintenance) Delivery time (Under maintenance) Email sending API (Under maintenance)
Recent SendGrid incidents
Recent status page incidents for SendGrid
Ongoing since Jul 29, 2026
Jul 29, 09:00 PDT In progress - Scheduled maintenance is currently in progress. We will provide updates as necessary. Jul 9, 05:10 PDT Scheduled - On July 29, 2026 at 9:00 AM PT (originally planned for July 22), SendGrid incident and maintenance notifications will move to the Twilio Status Page: https://status.twilio.com. Your existing SendGrid Status Page subscription will be migrated. Depending on how you currently receive notifications, you may need to confirm your subscription to conti
Started Jul 24, 2026 — Resolved Jul 24, 2026
Jul 24, 12:31 PDT Resolved - Our engineers have monitored the fix and confirmed the issue has been resolved. All services are now operating normally at this time. Jul 24, 05:09 PDT Monitoring - At 4:21 PST our engineers have isolated the degraded region and removed it from load balancing and are now mitigated and observing. We will provide another update in an hour or as soon as more information becomes available. Jul 24, 05:06 PDT Investigating - Starting around 4:09 am PST on Jul/24, ou
Started Jul 24, 2026 — Resolved Jul 24, 2026
Jul 23, 21:07 PDT Resolved - Our engineers have monitored the fix and confirmed the issue with shared Ips has been resolved. All services are now operating normally at this time. Jul 23, 20:33 PDT Update - Our engineers are continuing to monitor the fix. Please note that email requests are now being delivered as expected for customers using shared IPs.We will provide another update in 4 hours or as soon as more information becomes available. Jul 23, 19:22 PDT Monitoring - Our engineers ha
Started Jul 16, 2026 — Resolved Jul 16, 2026
Jul 16, 11:15 PDT Resolved - Our engineers have monitored the fix and confirmed the issue with delay with account actions has been resolved. All services are now operating normally at this time. Jul 15, 20:12 PDT Monitoring - Our engineers have implemented a fix and are monitoring system performance. We will provide another update as soon as more information becomes available. Jul 15, 18:58 PDT Update - Our engineers are still investigating an issue with account actions. Users may experi
Started Jul 14, 2026 — Resolved Jul 14, 2026
Jul 14, 10:50 PDT Resolved - Our engineers have investigated and resolved the issues with email delays that involved a certain subset of users. From 10:20 AM PST to 10:25 AM PST customers may have experienced delays with email deliverability for a certain subset of users. This would have impacted Email API and Marketing mail sending. There was no data loss due to this incident. The issue has been resolved and all impacted services are operating normally.
Pros and cons
MailerSend
SendGrid
Pros
- Designed for both developers and business users with API and visual editor
- Modern, intuitive UI that is easier to navigate than older platforms
- Multi-channel support with native email and SMS transactional messaging
- Affordable Hobby plan at $7/month for 5,000 emails with low overage rates
Pros
- Comprehensive documentation with SDKs for most major languages
- Rich analytics tools with programmatic API access to engagement data
- Strong focus on deliverability with AI-powered intelligent delivery
- Trusted by Uber, Booking.com, and Yelp for high-volume sending
Cons
- Available integrations with other tools are basic and limited
- Fewer advanced features than enterprise platforms
- Smaller ecosystem compared to established competitors
Cons
- Extended email activity history requires a paid add-on
- Pricing can become complex at higher volumes
- Support response times vary by plan tier
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between MailerSend and SendGrid?
Mailersend is an intuitive transactional email and SMS service by Mailgun, designed for growing businesses. SendGrid is a cloud-based email delivery platform owned by Twilio, known for high-volume transactional and marketing email. MailerSend is best suited for growing saas + e-commerce, while SendGrid is geared toward high-volume transactional + marketing.
Which is cheaper, MailerSend or SendGrid?
Free tier includes 500 emails per month. Paid plans start at $7/month for 5,000 emails on the Hobby plan, with the Starter plan at $35/month for 50,000 emails. Free tier includes up to 100 emails per day for 60 days. Paid plans start at $19.95/month for 50,000 emails on the Essentials plan, with an Essentials 100K tier at $34.95/month. Pro plans with dedicated IPs start at $249/month for 300,000 emails. The best value depends on your sending volume. Use the pricing calculator above to compare costs at your expected volume.
Which is faster, MailerSend or SendGrid?
Based on real-world data from Knock, MailerSend has a median API response time (p50) of 218ms compared to 22ms for SendGrid.
Which is more reliable, MailerSend or SendGrid?
From May 3rd to August 1st, MailerSend showed an error rate of 0.00% while SendGrid showed 0.00%. Both rates are within acceptable thresholds for production email delivery, and Knock automatically retries failed requests to minimize the impact of transient errors.
Which is more popular, MailerSend or SendGrid?
On the Knock platform, MailerSend handled <1M messages from May 3rd to August 1st compared to 500M+ for SendGrid. MailerSend is currently seeing declining volume, while SendGrid volume has remained stable.
Can I use both MailerSend and SendGrid together?
Yes. Knock enables you to integrate multiple email providers into a single notification workflow. You can use MailerSend and SendGrid side by side, route traffic between them, or migrate from one to the other without changing your application code.
What are the main pros and cons of MailerSend vs SendGrid?
MailerSend strengths include designed for both developers and business users with api and visual editor and modern, intuitive ui that is easier to navigate than older platforms. SendGrid strengths include comprehensive documentation with sdks for most major languages and rich analytics tools with programmatic api access to engagement data. On the other hand, MailerSend drawbacks include available integrations with other tools are basic and limited, while SendGrid drawbacks include extended email activity history requires a paid add-on.
Use either provider with Knock
Knock enables you to integrate MailerSend, SendGrid, or any combination of email providers into a single notification workflow. Manage templates, orchestrate cross-channel delivery, and switch providers without changing your code.