Sparkpost API
performance benchmarks
Browse Sparkpost'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) |
|---|---|---|---|
<1M | 10th of 10 ↓ | 2 | 8 |
From August 13th to November 11th, Knock routed <1M messages through Sparkpost. For adoption, Sparkpost ranks 10th of 10 providers based on new channel connections, with adoption slowing over the period. Sparkpost reported 8 status page updates over the last 90 days, 2 of which were in the last 30 days.
Sparkpost response time
Response time measures how long Sparkpost 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
317ms | 540ms | 563ms | 721ms |
From August 13th to November 11th, Sparkpost averaged a daily median response time (p50) of 317ms across all days in the range, meaning half of all requests on a typical day complete in under 317ms. The 99th percentile averaged 721ms, with a peak daily p99 of 931ms. This is slightly higher than some providers, which may reflect additional processing Sparkpost performs on message acceptance.
Sparkpost 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% | 0.00% | Aug 13 | 91 | 0 |
From August 13th to November 11th, Sparkpost averaged a 0.00% daily error rate for 5xx responses and timeouts, with the highest single-day error rate reaching 0.00%. 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 Sparkpost during the specified period. Response time measures time from Knock to provider acceptance. Error rate includes only provider 5xx responses and timeouts.
Recent Sparkpost incidents
Recent status page incidents for Sparkpost
Started Oct 31, 2026 — Resolved Oct 31, 2026
Oct 31, 13:23 EDT Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Oct 30, 16:02 EDT Identified - We have identified the issue and are working on a resolution; delivery latencies are recovering. Oct 30, 15:21 EDT Investigating - We are investigating a small increase in delivery latency for some outbound messages. (NOTE: This does not impact our customers hosted in the EU.)
Started Oct 28, 2026 — Resolved Oct 28, 2026
Oct 28, 16:37 EDT Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Oct 28, 16:37 EDT Monitoring - A fix was implemented and we are seeing sustained delivery recovery. Oct 28, 16:03 EDT Identified - We are continuing to work on a fix for this issue. Oct 28, 16:00 EDT Monitoring - A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results. Oct 28, 15:48 EDT Identified - The issue has been identified and a fix is being implemented. Oct 28, 15:37 EDT Investigating - We are investigating
Started Oct 11, 2026 — Resolved Oct 11, 2026
Oct 11, 16:57 EDT Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Oct 11, 14:17 EDT Monitoring - A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results. Oct 11, 14:17 EDT Update - We are continuing to work on a fix for this issue. Oct 11, 14:09 EDT Update - We are continuing to rollout the new root signing keys from ICANN. We continue to see recovery across our global clusters. Oct 11, 13:51 EDT Identified - We are investigating an increase in delayed (deferred) messages in both
Started Oct 1, 2026 — Resolved Oct 1, 2026
Oct 1, 13:36 EDT Resolved - This issue has been resolved. Since our changes went in, we've seen no further delivery delays, including through peak sending periods. Email is being delivered normally. We apologize for the disruption and thank you for your patience. Oct 1, 13:16 EDT Monitoring - We've made changes to address the intermittent delivery delays. Since then, email has been delivered without delay, including during peak sending periods that previously caused the slowdowns. We're wa
Started Sep 17, 2026 — Resolved Sep 17, 2026
Sep 17, 06:00 EDT Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Sep 17, 05:47 EDT Monitoring - A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results. Sep 17, 05:06 EDT Investigating - We are investigating an increase in delivery latency for some outbound messages. (NOTE: This does not impact our customers hosted in the EU.)
Sparkpost pricing calculator
See how Sparkpost's monthly cost changes as your email volume grows.
Compare Sparkpost with other providers
See how Sparkpost compares on performance, reliability, and pricing.
About Sparkpost
SparkPost is a data-driven email delivery platform with advanced analytics and predictive tools for high-volume senders.
Pros
- Delivers nearly 40% of all commercial email worldwide
- Subaccount support for isolated sending streams under one billing account
- On-premise mail sending solution available for very high volume workloads
- Great analytics tools with predictive health scores for email deliverability
Cons
- Documentation can be hard to navigate with less beginner-friendly getting started content
- Higher price point than basic providers
- Now part of Bird (formerly MessageBird), which may affect product direction
Frequently asked questions
Sparkpost is an email service provider commonly used for high-volume transactional email, data-driven email optimization, enterprise email delivery. SparkPost is a data-driven email delivery platform with advanced analytics and predictive tools for high-volume senders.
Free tier includes 500 emails per month with community support. Paid plans start at $20/month for 50,000 emails with premium deliverability features. Sparkpost offers a free tier with up to 500 emails, with a hard sending limit on that plan.
Based on real-world data from messages sent through Knock, Sparkpost accepts API requests with a median response time of 317ms (p50) and 721ms at the 99th percentile.
From August 13th to November 11th, Sparkpost showed an error rate of 0.00% for 5xx responses and timeouts across <1M messages sent through Knock. Knock automatically retries failed requests, so transient provider errors rarely affect end-user delivery.
Key strengths include delivers nearly 40% of all commercial email worldwide and subaccount support for isolated sending streams under one billing account. On the other hand, documentation can be hard to navigate with less beginner-friendly getting started content and higher price point than basic providers.
Yes. Knock has a native Sparkpost integration that enables you to send email notifications through Sparkpost as part of a cross-channel workflow. You can combine Sparkpost with other channels like in-app feeds, push, SMS, and Slack from a single API call.