Mailgun
performance benchmarks
Browse Mailgun's observed email API response time, error rates, and incident history over the last 90 days.
Live performance metrics
Real-world performance data from messages sent through Knock
| Message volume | Growth | Status page updates (30d) | Status page updates (90d) |
|---|---|---|---|
100M–500M | 5th of 10 → | 3 | 7 |
From February 10th to May 11th, Knock routed 100M–500M messages through Mailgun. For adoption, Mailgun ranks 5th of 10 providers based on new channel connections, with adoption holding steady over the period. Mailgun reported 7 status page updates over the last 90 days, 3 of which were in the last 30 days.
Response time
Response time measures how long Mailgun takes to accept an API request from Knock, including connection overhead and any automatic retries. Lower values mean faster message hand-off.
| Median (p50) | p90 | p95 | p99 |
|---|---|---|---|
130ms | 185ms | 228ms | 392ms |
From February 10th to May 11th, Mailgun averaged a daily median response time (p50) of 130ms across all days in the range, meaning half of all requests on a typical day complete in under 130ms. The 99th percentile averaged 392ms, with a peak daily p99 of 501ms. This is slightly higher than some providers, which may reflect additional processing Mailgun performs on message acceptance.
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.
| Avg. daily error rate | Highest daily rate | Peak error date | Zero-error days | Days above 0.01% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
0.00% | 0.03% | Mar 17 | 90 | 1 |
From February 10th to May 11th, Mailgun averaged a 0.00% daily error rate for 5xx responses and timeouts, with the highest single-day error rate reaching 0.03%. This is one of the lowest error rates among providers on Knock, indicating strong reliability and consistent uptime. Knock automatically retries failed requests, so transient provider errors rarely affect end-user delivery.
About these metrics: Data represents messages sent through Knock to Mailgun during the specified period. Response time measures time from Knock to provider acceptance. Error rate includes only provider 5xx responses and timeouts.
Recent Mailgun incidents
Recent status page incidents for Mailgun
Started May 7, 2026 — Resolved May 7, 2026
May 7, 11:42 PDT Resolved - This incident has been resolved.May 7, 05:40 PDT Monitoring - A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results.May 6, 12:46 PDT Update - We are continuing to work on a fix for this issue.May 6, 08:40 PDT Identified - Customers creating domains with Automatic Sender Security may have CNAME records with no corresponding TXT records reflecting DKIM keys. A fix for this issue is being prepared.
Started Apr 17, 2026 — Resolved Apr 17, 2026
Apr 17, 10:15 PDT Resolved - This incident has been resolved.Apr 17, 10:05 PDT Update - We are continuing to monitor for any further issues.Apr 17, 10:05 PDT Monitoring - A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results.Apr 17, 09:45 PDT Identified - The issue has been identified and a fix is being implemented.
Started Apr 15, 2026 — Resolved Apr 15, 2026
Apr 15, 08:34 PDT Resolved - This incident has been resolved.Apr 15, 07:02 PDT Monitoring - A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results.Apr 15, 06:42 PDT Identified - The issue has been identified and a fix is being implemented.Apr 15, 06:40 PDT Investigating - We are currently investigating an issue where customers making HTTPS requests to our API without Server Name Indication (SNI) enabled are being presented with an expired SSL/TLS certificate. This results in certificate va
Started Apr 7, 2026 — Resolved Apr 7, 2026
Apr 7, 10:42 PDT Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Elevated 500 errors beginning at 17:25 UTC resolved at 17:30 UTCApr 7, 10:32 PDT Monitoring - A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results.Apr 7, 10:30 PDT Identified - The issue has been identified and a fix is being implemented.
Started Mar 19, 2026 — Resolved Mar 19, 2026
Mar 19, 11:53 PDT Resolved - A fix has been deployed and systems are back to normal.Mar 19, 11:43 PDT Identified - Some requests may be incorrectly failing with 401 error codes in our US region.
Compare Mailgun with other providers
About Mailgun
Mailgun is a developer-focused email API platform owned by Sinch, known for flexible sending and receiving capabilities.
Pros
- Well-written documentation with comprehensive guides and best practices for deliverability
- Robust deliverability support with optional expert pairing to optimize sending
- Powerful inbound email processing with customizable routing rules
- Trusted by Lyft, American Express, and Wikipedia since 2010
Cons
- Requires familiarity with email protocols and API integrations
- Pricing tiers can be confusing
- Email template features are basic without the Mailjet editor
Frequently asked questions
What is Mailgun?
Mailgun is an email service provider commonly used for transactional email, application-generated email, inbound email processing. Mailgun is a developer-focused email API platform owned by Sinch, known for flexible sending and receiving capabilities.
How much does Mailgun cost?
Free tier includes 100 emails per day with no expiration. Paid plans start at $15/month for 10,000 emails with overages at $1.80/1K. Mailgun offers a free tier with up to 3,000 emails, with a hard sending limit on that plan.
How fast is Mailgun?
Based on real-world data from messages sent through Knock, Mailgun accepts API requests with a median response time of 130ms (p50) and 392ms at the 99th percentile.
How reliable is Mailgun?
From February 10th to May 11th, Mailgun showed an error rate of 0.00% for 5xx responses and timeouts across 100M–500M messages sent through Knock. Knock automatically retries failed requests, so transient provider errors rarely affect end-user delivery.
What are the pros and cons of Mailgun?
Key strengths include well-written documentation with comprehensive guides and best practices for deliverability and robust deliverability support with optional expert pairing to optimize sending. On the other hand, requires familiarity with email protocols and api integrations and pricing tiers can be confusing.
Does Mailgun work with Knock?
Yes. Knock has a native Mailgun integration that enables you to send email notifications through Mailgun as part of a cross-channel workflow. You can combine Mailgun with other channels like in-app feeds, push, SMS, and Slack from a single API call.
Use Mailgun with Knock
Knock enables you to integrate Mailgun alongside other notification channels, manage templates, and orchestrate cross-channel workflows from a single platform.