Nick’s Review of Mysmtp Vs Mailgun

In a post on the Ghost Forum, a user named mgrizal expresses frustration with Mailgun’s limitations and poor customer support. After two months of using Mailgun’s Foundation plan and paying $35 per month, mgrizal has only been able to send under 100 emails. When they contacted support about the issue, they were told that their account had been placed on an evaluation period, limiting their sending capabilities. Mgrizal argues that it doesn’t make sense to pay for a service that restricts them so much, and mentions that there are better options available in the market such as Amazon SES, Sparkpost, or Mailenable. They even express a willingness to donate around $200 to support the development of these alternative connectors.

Another user named blueinversion sympathizes with mgrizal’s experience and suggests using Amazon SES for transactional emails. They also mention a Reddit thread that discusses alternatives to Mailgun. Blueinversion agrees that Mailgun’s limitations and inconsistent support are problematic and suggests that having alternatives like SendGrid integrated into Ghost could be a solution. However, they acknowledge that it is currently up to the community to develop these alternatives.

Mgrizal responds to blueinversion, thanking them for the information. They express frustration with Mailgun’s inconsistent policies and argue that if a company doesn’t have clear policies and their collaborators handle politics differently, they don’t deserve market share. Mgrizal mentions that they have asked for a refund and would prefer to manually send emails through other providers such as Intercom, Amazon SES, Mailchannels, or Sparkpost.

Blueinversion agrees that Mailgun should be held responsible for their customer support and faulty spam flagging system. They mention that Mailgun holds a monopoly in the field and that alternatives like SendGrid should be available on Ghost. They point out the importance of having robust newsletter tech stack options for self-hosted bloggers and suggest that the community should rally together to make this happen.

Another user named John agrees with the need for alternatives to Mailgun and suggests rallying the community to make it happen. They provide a link to the Ghost product principles and roadmap for more information.

Blueinversion finds a thread in the Ghost Forum’s “ideas” category that discusses the issue of Mailgun alternatives and mentions that one developer is already working on it. They note that most users just want to send newsletters and that Mailgun can sometimes ruin the experience. Blueinversion continues to express support for the development of alternatives and appreciates Ghost’s willingness to listen to the community.

A user named vados mentions that they are working on a solution outside of Ghost to bypass Mailgun’s limitations. They suggest that funding a developer to work on the issue within Ghost directly could be a long-term and sustainable solution.

Another user named nicgentile agrees with the frustration towards Mailgun and suggests making them just another option instead of the primary one. They also criticize Mailgun’s support and recommend exploring other services.

A user named GregFdz shares their negative experience with Mailgun’s support, mentioning that it took up to five days to receive a response to their questions. They express their dissatisfaction with Mailgun and suggest using a side-app with Budibase to bypass Ghost’s limitations.

In conclusion, this post on the Ghost Forum highlights the frustration and limitations associated with using Mailgun for email services. Users express dissatisfaction with Mailgun’s restrictions, inconsistent support, and poor customer service. They discuss alternative connectors like Amazon SES, Sparkpost, Mailenable, and SendGrid, and suggest the community’s involvement in developing these alternatives. There is a shared desire for more robust options and support within the Ghost platform.

Tina’s Review of Mysmtp Vs Mailgun

In this blog post, we will compare two transactional email software: Mailgun and SMTP. Mailgun is a powerful email API service that helps developers with their email sending, receiving, and tracking processes. It offers features such as personalization, segmentation, and A/B testing to optimize email marketing campaigns. Mailgun integrates with SMTP and HTTP API, making it easy to send emails in bulk. It also provides SPF, DMARC, and DKIM customizations for enhanced email security. The software offers a validation API to reduce invalid sign-ups and email templates for collaboration between teams. It can be seamlessly integrated with other tools like Omnisend and customer.io.

On the other hand, SMTP is an email relay service designed for businesses and developers. It allows users to send emails in minutes and ensures a good reputation among mailbox providers. SMTP offers dedicated servers and high delivery rates to ensure that emails reach the right recipients on time. It supports authentication standards such as SPF and DKIM for secure sending. SMTP is easy to implement, integrates flexibly, and provides powerful reporting and tracking capabilities.

When it comes to features, both Mailgun and SMTP offer a range of functionalities. Mailgun provides features like A/B testing, automated IP warmup, custom metadata, custom reverse DNS, custom spam filter, dashboard, email history, email personalization, email suppression, and more. SMTP offers features like access monitoring, 24/7 support, online deployment, API, mobile compatibility, and scalability.

In terms of pricing, Mailgun offers different plans based on the number of emails sent. It has plans like Flex, Foundation, Growth, Scale, and Enterprise, with varying features and capacities. SMTP also has different plans, including Essentials, Starter, Growth, Business, and Custom. The pricing plans for both software vary based on the number of emails sent and specific requirements.

Both Mailgun and SMTP have their own strengths and are suitable for different businesses and developers. Mailgun is known for its advanced features like personalization and segmentation, making it a popular choice among marketers. SMTP, on the other hand, is known for its scalability and secure sending, making it a reliable option for businesses with high email volumes.

In conclusion, choosing between Mailgun and SMTP depends on your specific needs and requirements. Both software offer powerful features and reliable email sending capabilities. It is recommended to evaluate your business goals, email marketing strategies, and scalability needs before making a decision.

Steve’s Review of Mysmtp Vs Mailgun

Replacing Mailgun

In the digital age, email has become an essential part of communication. Whether it’s for personal use or business purposes, having a reliable email service is crucial. Many people, myself included, have used Mailgun as their go-to service for sending and receiving emails. However, recent changes to Mailgun’s pricing and plans have left many users searching for alternatives. In this blog post, I will explore some options for replacing Mailgun and share my personal choice.

Background

For years, I have used Mailgun to handle my email needs for my domain, nathanv.me. It was a great service, especially since it was part of the GitHub Student Developer Pack. With Mailgun, I could easily send emails from my applications and even forward inbound emails to my personal Gmail account. This allowed me to have a vanity email address, [email protected], which was a great addition to my resume. However, things recently changed when I received an email from Mailgun informing me of their new plan changes.

The Email That Changed Everything

The email from Mailgun was not good news. As shown in the screenshots I provided, inbound emails were no longer included in the free plan. Instead, Mailgun introduced a $75/month charge for the ability to receive email. While I understand that running email servers involves costs, I was not willing to pay such a hefty price just to receive email. This led me to search for alternatives.

Exploring Options

To find a suitable replacement for Mailgun, I considered various options. I looked into different transactional email services like SendGrid, AWS SES, and PostSpark. However, all of these services had their limitations. Some didn’t support inbound email, while others charged a high fee for it. I couldn’t find any provider that offered the same email forwarding feature that Mailgun provided. Although AWS had a workaround for inbound email forwarding, it required additional code, setup, and AWS services.

Another option I considered was using Google Domains’ free inbound email forwarding since I used Google Domains for my domain registration. However, this option was not ideal as it required changing my domain’s name servers to Google’s. I preferred using Cloudflare for DNS and caching, and I didn’t want to risk losing that by swapping the name servers temporarily.

During my research, I came across ForwardEmail.net and ImprovMX, both of which offered free email forwarding. While these services solved the problem of inbound email forwarding, they didn’t offer a solution for sending outbound emails.

My Choice: ForwardEmail and SendGrid

After trying out different options, I ultimately settled on a combination of ForwardEmail and SendGrid to replace Mailgun. Setting up SendGrid was relatively easy, thanks to the GitHub Student Developer Pack. I only had to configure a few CNAME records for DKIM/SPF.

ForwardEmail, on the other hand, required more setup. I had to configure multiple DNS records to set up the email forwarding. While the MX record for incoming mail servers and the TXT record for specifying the email address to forward made sense, I was puzzled by the need for a TXT record for SPF. I always thought SPF was only necessary for sending emails, which ForwardEmail didn’t do. Even after going through ForwardEmail’s guide on using Gmail for “Send Mail As,” I still didn’t fully understand the purpose of the SPF TXT record in this context.

Conclusion: DNS and the Future

Replacing Mailgun was not an easy task, but it was necessary due to the changes to their plans. Although I was sad to see Mailgun go, I managed to find a solution using ForwardEmail for inbound email forwarding and SendGrid for outbound emails. The setup required some effort, and I had to update my SMTP credentials on all my servers and applications that send emails. However, I believe this new setup will be more sustainable in the long term, and I have the flexibility to replace individual components if needed.

As always, it was DNS that played a significant role in this transition. DNS records are crucial for configuring email services and making everything work seamlessly. While the process had its challenges, I am confident that I made the right choice for my email needs.

In conclusion, if you’re facing similar issues with Mailgun or simply looking for an alternative email service, consider exploring options like ForwardEmail and SendGrid. Remember to evaluate your needs and choose a solution that best fits your requirements. Good luck in your quest for a reliable and affordable email service!

References:

• Mailgun: https://www.mailgun.com
• ForwardEmail: https://forwardemail.net/
• ImprovMX: https://improvmx.com/
• SendGrid: https://sendgrid.com/docs/ui/account-and-settings/how-to-set-up-domain-authentication/

Rick’s Review of Mysmtp Vs Mailgun

SMTP and API are both methods of sending emails. SMTP stands for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol, which is used to transfer emails across the internet. It involves sending emails through an SMTP server, which is dedicated to sending, receiving, and transferring emails. On the other hand, API stands for Application Programming Interface, and it is a software that enables different applications and systems to communicate with each other, usually through HTTP.

SMTP is ideal for applications that do not allow API functionality. It can be used for both transactional and bulk emails. However, there are some disadvantages to using SMTP, such as slow performance for large volumes of emails, changing deliverability of emails due to shared IP addresses, and the possibility of blockage of Port 25. On the other hand, using SMTP has advantages such as easy migration between platforms, ease of setup, and simpler troubleshooting.

API, on the other hand, is recommended for applications where you can integrate it. It is more flexible and faster than SMTP. With an email API, you can automate sending emails based on triggered actions. It reduces complexity in your app, removes load from your servers, and provides analytics on your email sending. However, using an email API requires coding knowledge and can have a steep learning curve.

In summary, SMTP is recommended when you cannot add API functionality to your applications, while an email API is recommended for applications where you can build it in. SMTP is often slower and less flexible than an email API, but it is easier to set up and troubleshoot. API provides more control and automation, but it requires coding knowledge and may have a steeper learning curve.

Beth’s Review of Mysmtp Vs Mailgun

In this text, a user on Stack Overflow asks a question about changing their SMTP email to identify their website by domain name rather than an IP address. The user explains that they are currently running Tiki Wiki on Google Cloud Compute and have successfully set up Mailgun, but when their website sends emails, only the sender address indicates that it’s from their website, while everything else identifies the website by its IP address. The user seeks guidance on what they need to change in MyPhPAdmin or with Mailgun to resolve this issue.

The first response to the user’s question suggests that if they’re using Tiki mail sending in SMTP mode, they can specify the “Local server name” on the General Control Panel. This might be the solution the user is looking for.

The blog post writer emphasizes the importance of configuring SMTP email properly to ensure that the website is identified by its domain name instead of the IP address. They highlight the user’s specific situation of running Tiki Wiki on Google Cloud Compute and using Mailgun for email. The writer explains that while the sender address correctly identifies the website, other identifying information still shows the IP address. They advise the user to check their Tiki mail sending settings in SMTP mode and specify the “Local server name” on the General Control Panel. By doing so, the website’s domain name should be correctly identified in all aspects of the email.

Overall, this blog post highlights the user’s question about changing SMTP email to identify their website by domain name. It explains the user’s current setup and the issue they’re facing, and provides a potential solution to resolve the problem. The focus is on helping the user understand the steps they can take to ensure their website is properly identified in email communications.

Jim’s Review of Mysmtp Vs Mailgun

In this text, the author is asking about where to find their SMTP credentials (login and password) for Mailgun. The author suggests that these credentials can be found in the domain’s settings in Mailgun. They provide a screenshot showing the location of the credentials in the Mailgun settings. The author also mentions that additional information can be found in the Mailgun Help Center under the section titled “Sending Email” and specifically in the article titled “Where can I find my API key and SMTP credentials?” The text includes some links to relevant pages on the Mailgun website.

Overall, the text is fairly short and straightforward, providing a simple answer to the question. The author does not go into extensive detail about the process or the significance of the SMTP credentials. The text does not mention any alternative methods or providers for SMTP services.

Dan’s Review of Mysmtp Vs Mailgun

In a forum post on Discourse Meta, a user named Timelord expressed frustration with the deliverability of emails sent by their site using Sparkpost as the SMTP provider. Despite having all the necessary DNS records in place, the majority of their emails ended up in users’ spam folders. To test an alternative option, Timelord switched to Mailgun and found that the email deliverability was nearly 100%. However, Mailgun’s free trial only allowed them to whitelist five email addresses without a credit card. Seeking recommendations for another free service with good deliverability, Timelord emphasized the importance of this factor.

A user named codinghorror, who is also a member of the Discourse team, responded that the official documentation on GitHub covers this topic and cautioned that free options are unlikely to be effective. They hinted that paying for a service is necessary to achieve good email deliverability.

Another user named bts shared their positive experience with Mailgun, stating that it has been working well for them and their medium-sized forum. They mentioned occasional hiccups in deliverability, usually when one of Mailgun’s IP addresses is blacklisted by a mail provider, but overall, the service is affordable and suitable for a large forum as well.

Ljpp, another user, recommended Pepipost’s free plan, which they used for a long time with good deliverability. They highlighted that Pepipost manually verifies domains and has a reward/penalty system for opened/unopened mails, making it unlikely to attract spammers. Recently, they switched to Amazon SES (Simple Email Service) because of its affordability.

Jose_C_Gomez shared their positive experience with Amazon SES, stating that they use it to send a large volume of emails without any issues. They described it as fairly affordable.

In a later update from Peter_Backgren, they mentioned considering switching to Mailgun due to Gmail discontinuing access for third-party applications. However, they discovered that Mailgun now requires payment. Peter_Backgren then asked if Mailjet would be the best free alternative or if they should set up their own mail server, expressing a preference for avoiding the latter.

Another user named sau226 recommended partnering with sites that offer free SendGrid accounts with up to 12,000 emails per month. They suggested reaching out to these partners to have an account provisioned and access controls set up.

In a follow-up post, Timelord shared their positive experience with MXRoute, stating that it has been working flawlessly for them.

Peter_Backgren later updated their post, stating that they got things to work, although not in the way they initially wanted. They mentioned successfully using Mailjet and expressed gratitude for the help provided in the forum.

In a response to their post, pfaffman clarified that the process of editing the app.yml file and then running the rebuild app command is a faster way to test outgoing mail than the rebuild process suggested in a previous post.

Overall, the forum discussion revolves around users sharing their experiences and recommendations for SMTP providers that offer good email deliverability. The consensus is that while free options exist, paying for a service is generally necessary to achieve reliable deliverability. Users mentioned positive experiences with Mailgun, Pepipost, Amazon SES, MXRoute, and Mailjet.