# AcelleMail vs SendGrid

> Canonical HTML: https://acellemail.com/vs/sendgrid
> Content-Type: text/markdown

SendGrid (Twilio) is an **SMTP transport service** — it sends email, hands you delivery stats, exposes an API. AcelleMail is a **marketing UI** that sits on top of any SMTP transport (SendGrid included). They are complementary, not direct competitors.

## When you actually need SendGrid alone

If you already have a custom application that needs to send transactional email (password resets, receipts, alerts) and you want a high-deliverability SMTP API — SendGrid is a fine choice. You don't need AcelleMail for that.

## When AcelleMail (+ SendGrid as transport) wins

If you need a **marketing dashboard** — campaign builder, list segmentation, automation workflows, A/B testing, open/click analytics, drag-and-drop editor — SendGrid itself is thin. The "Marketing Campaigns" tier exists but is expensive and contact-tier-capped:

| Marketing tier | SendGrid Marketing Campaigns (Advanced) | AcelleMail (Regular) + SendGrid Email API (Free 100/day) or Essentials |
|---|---|---|
| 50,000 contacts | USD 250+/mo | USD 74 once + USD ~20/mo SendGrid Essentials = USD 314 year 1, then USD 240/yr from year 2 |
| 100,000 contacts | USD 700+/mo | USD 74 once + USD ~90/mo SendGrid Pro = USD 1,154 year 1 |
| Unlimited contacts | n/a (tier-capped) | USD 74 once + your SMTP rate |

(Rates illustrative; see live SendGrid pricing.)

## Hybrid setup

The popular pattern: use AcelleMail as the marketing application, plug it into SendGrid (or Amazon SES, or any SMTP) as the transport. Best of both worlds:

- AcelleMail gives you the marketing UX, automation, segmentation, reporting
- SendGrid handles deliverability infrastructure, IP warm-up, FBL handling
- You pay USD 74 once for the UI + usage-based SMTP via SendGrid

## Migration path (SendGrid Marketing → AcelleMail + SendGrid transport)

1. Export contacts from SendGrid Marketing Contacts → CSV
2. Install AcelleMail on your server
3. Add SendGrid as an SMTP transport inside AcelleMail (paste the API key)
4. Import the CSV
5. Rebuild templates + automations
6. Update DNS — your SPF/DKIM is already pointed at SendGrid, so deliverability stays intact

## Try it

- [Live demo](https://acellemail.com/demo)
- [Buy on CodeCanyon](https://codecanyon.net/cart/add_items?item_ids=17796082)
- [Integrations — SendGrid + other SMTP](https://acellemail.com/integrations.md)
- [Pricing](https://acellemail.com/pricing.md)