Resend vs Mailgun
An honest, mathematical pricing and capability comparison for developers and engineering leaders.
What this comparison covers
Outbound transactional email, one recipient per send, shared IPs and one sending domain. Monthly billing without introductory discounts. Deliverability and support differ. Marketing automation, inbound processing, validations and dedicated IPs are excluded.
Evaluating 2 products from 5 published in this category. USD monthly equivalents, before tax. Features and service compatibility need separate evaluation.
- Emails sent
- 50,000 emails / month
- Peak daily sending
- 2,000 emails / day
- Average message size
- 32 KB / email
Resend
A developer-focused email API with React templates.
$20.00 / month
Pro · 50,000
Official pricing · Checked 2026-10-05
Cost breakdown and exclusions
- Monthly subscription: $20.00
- Additional emails (50,000 included): $0
- Pay-as-you-go must be enabled. Additional emails are charged in whole 1,000-email buckets. Higher prepaid volume plans are not modeled.
- Inbound processing, dedicated IPs, email validation, marketing automation and premium support.
Mailgun
Email API and SMTP delivery with tiered operational features.
$35.00 / month
Foundation
Official pricing · Checked 2026-10-05
Cost breakdown and exclusions
- Monthly subscription: $35.00
- Recurring price after any trial. Only the included allowance is verified; higher-volume quotes are unavailable.
- Inbound processing, dedicated IPs, email validation, marketing automation and premium support.
Detailed Verdict: When to Choose Which
Based on sourced pricing models, included allowances, and the stated workload requirements.
Holding other usage fields fixed, Resend becomes the lower-cost option near 10,001 emails / month. This is a modeled price transition, not a migration payback calculation.
Evidence for Resend:
- Pro · 50,000: $20.00/month at this workload.
- Pay-as-you-go must be enabled. Additional emails are charged in whole 1,000-email buckets. Higher prepaid volume plans are not modeled.
- Excluded: Inbound processing, dedicated IPs, email validation, marketing automation and premium support.
- Pricing observation: 2026-10-05.
Evidence for Mailgun:
- Foundation: $35.00/month at this workload.
- Recurring price after any trial. Only the included allowance is verified; higher-volume quotes are unavailable.
- Excluded: Inbound processing, dedicated IPs, email validation, marketing automation and premium support.
- Pricing observation: 2026-10-05.
Specification & Capability Matrix
Side-by-side comparison of baseline pricing, free allowances, supported developer capabilities, and verification dates.
| Feature / Metric | Resend | Mailgun | Edge |
|---|---|---|---|
| Selected plan | Pro · 50,000 | Foundation | Tied |
| Monthly cost at stated workload | $20.00/month | $35.00/month | Resend |
| Billing commitment | Monthly pricing model | Monthly pricing model | Tied |
| Dedicated IPDedicated sending IP address for isolated sender reputation. | Not confirmed on selected plan | Not confirmed on selected plan | Tied |
| Delivery trackingOpen, click, bounce, and delivery webhook tracking. | Documented on selected plan | Documented on selected plan | Tied |
| Pricing observation date | 2026-10-05 | 2026-10-05 | Tied |
Real-World Workload Scenarios
Compare estimated monthly costs across stated workload profiles before deploying.
Transactional Alerts
Password resets, signup confirmations, and account alerts
Weekly Newsletter
Batch marketing sends with high peak daily volume
Enterprise Volume
High-throughput operational emails across thousands of users
Interactive Workload Calculator
Slide to match your projected monthly volume and watch how each pricing model reacts.
Resend vs Mailgun FAQ
Direct answers to key technical, pricing, and migration questions.
Is Resend cheaper than Mailgun?
Resend costs $15.00 less per month than Mailgun at this workload. This compares modeled charges, not overall product quality.
What does this comparison cover?
Outbound transactional email, one recipient per send, shared IPs and one sending domain. Monthly billing without introductory discounts. Deliverability and support differ. Marketing automation, inbound processing, validations and dedicated IPs are excluded. Estimates cover modeled fees at the stated usage. Review selected-plan warnings and exclusions; taxes, migration effort and unmodeled requirements are not a savings promise.
How is pricing freshness handled?
The displayed observation dates belong to the selected plans. Stale, future-dated, quote-only or otherwise ineligible estimates do not receive a price ranking. Consult the linked vendor sources before purchasing.