Does SES handle bounces?

Yes. SES processes bounces and complaints automatically, notifying your application via SNS.

Is SES good for transactional email?

Yes. SES is excellent for password resets, notifications, and order confirmations where you handle templates in your code.

Does SES have a sandbox mode?

Yes. New accounts start in sandbox mode (can only send to verified addresses). Request production access to send to any address.

Does SES support SMTP?

Yes. Send via SMTP relay or the SES API. Both methods use the same infrastructure.

Can I use SES for marketing email?

Yes, but SES does not provide contact management or templates. You need to manage lists and content yourself.

Does SES offer dedicated IPs?

Yes. Dedicated IP addresses at $24.95/month for senders who need to control their own IP reputation.

How does SES deliverability compare?

SES deliverability is competitive with premium services. Amazon maintains the IP infrastructure serving billions of emails.

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Amazon SES Coupon: Free 62K emails/mo

Free 62K emails/mo

Scalable email sending service from AWS with pay-as-you-go pricing.

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Free 62K emails/mo

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Cloud & Infrastructure

Amazon SES. Send Email at AWS Scale for Almost Nothing

Amazon Simple Email Service (SES) is the email sending infrastructure behind Amazon.com itself. It provides transactional and marketing email delivery at $0.10 per 1,000 emails. The cheapest email sending service available. If your startup sends email from EC2 instances, the first 62,000 emails per month are completely free.

Raw Power, Assembly Required

SES is not a marketing platform. There is no drag-and-drop editor, no contact management, no landing pages. SES is email infrastructure, an API that sends email at massive scale with excellent deliverability. You build the rest yourself or use it behind tools like SendGrid, Mailgun, or your own application.

When SES Makes Sense

SES is ideal when you already have email templates in your application code and need reliable, cheap delivery. Transactional emails (password resets, order confirmations, notifications), developer alerts, and high-volume sending where cost matters more than convenience.

Deliverability

SES manages IP reputation, handles bounce processing, and provides complaint tracking. Dedicated IP addresses are available for high-volume senders. Deliverability rates are competitive with premium services because Amazon maintains the underlying infrastructure.

SES vs SendGrid

SendGrid provides a complete email platform with templates, contact management, and analytics. SES provides raw sending infrastructure at 10x lower cost. Use SendGrid if you want convenience. Use SES if you want the lowest possible cost and already handle email logic in your code.

SES vs Resend

Resend offers a modern developer experience with React email templates and excellent DX. SES is cheaper at scale but has a clunky API and console. Resend is better for developer happiness. SES is better for pure cost optimization.

Getting Started

Enable SES in your AWS account
Verify your sending domain with DNS records
Request production access (starts in sandbox mode)
Send emails via API, SMTP, or AWS SDK

Pricing

Free 62,000 emails/month from EC2. Otherwise $0.10 per 1,000 emails. Dedicated IPs at $24.95/month each. No monthly minimum.

Amazon SES Alternatives

Looking for Amazon SES alternatives? While Amazon SES is a strong choice for cloud & infrastructure, it is not always the right fit for every team. Compare Amazon SES against the top alternatives in our category. Each with verified startup deals and credits. See all Amazon SES alternatives →

Many startups end up using a combination of tools, and there are no restrictions on claiming multiple deals through SaaSOffers. Whether you need a cheaper option, different features, or a better startup deal, there is an alternative worth considering.