Email API and SMTP relay — from $4/month (2026)
Bluey's Email API is SMTP and REST sending sold on its own, without the marketing platform. Essentials starts at $4 a month for 15,000 emails and runs to 300K; Pro starts at $29.95 for 50K and runs to 2.5M, adding subusers, unlimited API keys and longer activity logs. At published entry tiers it is 44–50% cheaper than Twilio SendGrid (September 2026).
Receipts, password resets, OTPs and alerts — sent over SMTP or REST, billed by volume, with no marketing platform attached.
The Email API is for teams that only need transactional sending. You authenticate a domain, create an API key, and send; Bluey handles bounces, suppression and delivery logging. If you also send campaigns, you do not need this product separately — the same API and SMTP relay are included on every marketing plan, on the same bill.
Plans and prices
| Emails / month | Essentials | Pro |
|---|---|---|
| 15,000 | $4 | — |
| 50,000 | $9.95 | $29.95 |
| 100,000 | $14.95 | $49.95 |
| 300,000 | $29.95 | $89.95 |
| 700,000 | — | $149.95 |
| 1,500,000 | — | $249.95 |
| 2,500,000 | — | $349.95 |
Prices are monthly, in USD; an INR toggle is on the pricing page under the Transactional tab. Essentials stops at 300K emails a month. Pro starts at 50K and runs to 2.5M. A dedicated IP is available as an add-on, and is required at the higher Pro volumes.
What each plan includes
Essentials
- SMTP + REST API
- Domain authentication (SPF/DKIM)
- Suppression management
- Full analytics
- 2 event webhooks
- 5 API keys
- 3 days of searchable activity
Pro
- Everything in Essentials, plus:
- 5 event webhooks
- Unlimited API keys
- Subuser management
- 7 days of searchable activity
- Volumes up to 2.5M emails/month
How it compares with SendGrid
| Plan | Bluey | Twilio SendGrid | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essentials, 50,000 emails | $9.95 | $19.95 | 50% cheaper |
| Pro, 100,000 emails | $49.95 | $89.95 | 44% cheaper |
Both vendors' published pricing, September 2026. Two caveats: SendGrid quotes "starting at" prices, so the comparison holds at entry tiers; and SendGrid Pro includes a dedicated IP, which is an add-on on Bluey. The full working is in SendGrid pricing explained.
Choosing an email API
The unit price is rarely the whole cost. Raw infrastructure such as Amazon SES is cheapest per thousand but leaves bounce handling, suppression, templates and support for you to build. Managed services cost more and ship those. The comparisons below cover the trade-offs with real numbers:
- Email API pricing compared — SendGrid, Postmark, Mailgun, SES, Resend and Bluey at the same volumes
- Best email APIs for developers and best transactional email services
- Postmark vs Amazon SES, Amazon SES vs Mailgun and SendGrid vs Mailgun
- Alternatives to Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark and Resend
Switching from another provider
Moving transactional sending is mostly DNS and a credentials swap, but a new sending setup has no reputation yet, so ramp volume over a few weeks rather than cutting over at once. The SendGrid migration guide walks through the sequence, and the SPF, DKIM and DMARC generator gives you the records to publish first.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need the marketing platform to use the Email API?
No. The Email API is sold on its own for teams that only send transactional email. If you later add campaigns, every marketing plan already includes the API and SMTP relay.
Is there a free tier?
The free-forever marketing plan includes 500 emails a month, and transactional sending through the API and SMTP is part of it. The standalone Email API starts at $4 a month for 15,000 emails.
SMTP or REST — which should I use?
REST if you are writing new code: it returns structured errors and message IDs you can track. SMTP if your application, CMS or framework already sends through an SMTP server and you would rather change credentials than code. Both are on every plan.
Do I get a dedicated IP?
It is an add-on on any plan, and it is required at the higher Pro volumes. Below roughly a few hundred thousand emails a month, a well-managed shared pool usually delivers better than a dedicated IP you cannot keep warm.
Can I pay in rupees or my local currency?
Yes. The pricing page has an INR toggle, and billing runs through Razorpay, which bills cards in 128 currencies.
Is the Email API good for agencies?
Pro is built for it: subuser management keeps each client's sending, API keys and logs separate under one account, and API keys are unlimited.
Related
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