Looking for some of the best tools to send emails and avoid deliverability issues? We’ve got you covered! In this post, we are going to show the best SMTP plugins for WordPress that you should use on your site.
Why Use SMTP Plugins for WordPress?
By default, most WordPress hosting services use the PHP mail() function to send emails. However, some services disable this function for security reasons and to prevent spam. And even if the PHP mail() function is working on your site, your emails may land on the recipient’s spam folder which can cause a lot of issues. For example, if the emails you send to confirm customers’ orders go to spam, you’ll receive a lot of complaints. Not only will it create a lot of extra work for your customer support team but also it can damage your reputation.
The good news is that you can easily fix this issue by relying on a dedicated SMTP plugin. SMTP stands for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol. These tools use proper authentication to send emails, so you’ll have much higher chances of them being delivered into the inbox.
In summary, by configuring an SMTP service on your WordPress site, you will be able to get rid of the PHP mailer function and use a specific tool to send emails to make sure that your emails reach the recipient’s inbox.
Most users don’t use SMTP plugins and leave the default PHP Mailer function to send emails which isn’t ideal. Especially if you consider that setting up an SMTP service on your site takes only a few minutes.
There are many tools to send emails out there but in this guide, we’ll show you the best SMTP Plugins for WordPress that you should use this year.
Best SMTP Plugins for WordPress
The best SMTP plugins for WordPress are:
- WP Mail SMTP
- Easy WP SMTP
- SendinBlue
- SendGrid
- Mailgun
- Mailjet
All these tools come with plenty of features to help you improve email deliverability. Let’s have a look at what each of them has to offer so you can choose the one that best suits your needs.
1) WP Mail SMTP
WP Mail SMTP is a popular SMTP and PHP mailer plugin developed by WPForms. It’s designed to help you improve email deliverability and ensure that your emails reach your users’ inbox.
WP Mail SMTP fixes email delivery problems by changing how your site sends emails reconfiguring the wp_mail() function and either using an SMTP host or leveraging a built-in SMTP mail provider.
What makes WP Mail SMTP one of the best SMTP plugins for WordPress is how effective and easy-to-use it is. As soon as you integrate it with the built-in SMTP mail providers, your site will start sending emails using the provider’s direct API. Not only does this ensure that your emails reach your customers’ inboxes but also that even if your web host is blocking the SMTP ports for some reason, you’ll be able to send your emails anyway.
WP Mail SMTP includes an Email Log that allows you to keep track of all the emails you send from your site, from password recovery to security to comment notification emails. Additionally, this tool generates a report where you can quickly see and analyze what types of emails you’re sending.
On top of that, if you don’t have experience setting up this type of tool, you can use White Glove Setup feature so that the WP Mail SMPT support team helps you install and configure the plugin on your site.
Main Features
Some of the WP Mail SMTP’s main features are:
- White-Glove set up to help you configure the plugin
- Email log
- Notification management
- SMTP.com integration
- SendinBlue integration
- Mailgun integration
- Compatible with GSuite and Outlook.com
- All other third-party SMTP server integration
Once you install and activate the plugin, you will be able to choose your SMTP server and integrate your site accordingly.
Pricing
WP Mail SMTP is a freemium plugin. It has a free version with limited features that you can download from the WordPress repository and four premium plans that start at 49 USD per year. It’s worth noting that all the premium plans come with a 14-day money-back guarantee, so if you aren’t happy with the plugin you can ask for a full refund.
2) Easy WP SMTP
If you are looking for a user-friendly SMTP plugin for your WordPress site, check out Easy WP SMTP. This tool allows you to send your emails via an SMTP server, preventing them from going into the spam folder and avoiding issues with the PHP mail() function.
Easy WP SMTP is an excellent plugin for both beginners and advanced users. It has a lot of features and requires minimal effort to set up. Additionally, you can send emails from Gmail, Yahoo, or Hotmail if you have accounts with these services.
This plugin comes with a debug logging feature that allows you to track every email to make sure that they’re being sent out properly. Most SMTP providers offer this, but with Easy WP SMTP, you can see that from your WordPress dashboard without having to log in to the SMTP server account.
Another interesting feature is the Import and Export that allows you to easily configure the same details on several sites. With this functionality, you can simply export your SMTP configuration and import it on as many websites as you want.
Main Features
Easy WP SMTP plugin comes with features such as:
- Gmail/GSuite, Yahoo, and Hotmail SMTP integration
- Simple setup process
- Secured delivery
- Debug logging
- Import and export SMTP configuration
- Specify reply-to email
Pricing
Easy WP SMTP is a free plugin that you can download from the WordPress repository and doesn’t require license authentication.
3) SendinBlue
If you need a complete solution for your marketing needs and email deliverability issues, SendinBlue is an excellent choice. After creating an account, you can integrate it with any SMTP plugin. SendinBlue also offers many marketing features which makes it a great fit for business owners looking to grow their businesses.
One of our favorite features is send-time optimization. Normally, when you send an email to your email list, you have to send it to all the recipients at the same time which isn’t ideal if you have an international audience with different time zones. With send-time optimization, SendinBlue automatically decides the best time to send emails to each contact based on their past email opens and clicks.
On top of that, you can keep unlimited contacts in your email marketing account. This is an advantage against other email marketing services such as MailChimp, that limit the number of contacts you can have in each plan.
Finally, SendinBlue comes with several API keys that can help you add more features to your site such as Email API, SMS API, SMTP relay, webhooks, and more.
Main Features
The most popular features of SendinBlue are:
- Mobile optimized design
- Custom templates
- A/B testing
- Send time optimization
- Unlimited contacts
- Advanced reporting
- Device reporting
- Click rates and open rates tracking
Pricing
SendinBlue is a freemium service. With the free version, you can have unlimited contacts but you will be able to send up to 300 emails per day. If you want to send more emails, you need to upgrade your plan. The cheapest premium plan will set you back 25 USD per month.
4) SendGrid
SendGrid is one of the best SMTP plugins for WordPress for those who want to scale their businesses. They claim that they send more than 70 billion emails every month without any issues and work with companies such as Airbnb, Uber, and Spotify. This is one of the best SMTP plugins because it allows you to easily send all your WordPress emails using the SendGrid API or the plugin.
SendGrid includes a comprehensive analytics feature that lets you track every email on your account dashboard. Additionally, before the server sends emails, it validates every address to minimize bounces and maximize email deliverability. Even if you are a beginner, you can easily set up SendGrid SMTP on your WordPress site by following their step-by-step guide.
On top of that, with the reverse DNS feature, you can link the sender IP with your domain to make sure that your email deliverability rate is as high as possible. Finally, SendGrid also has a library with custom templates and 2-factor authentication to keep your account safe.
Main Features
- SMTP and API
- Setup guide
- Tech support
- Dedicated IP
- Globally distributed architecture
- Reverse DNS
- Link branding
- Analytics
Pricing
SendGrid is a freemium service. It has a free plugin available in the WordPress repository that allows you to send up to 100 emails per day which may be enough for small businesses. If you need to send more emails, you’ll need to choose one of the premium plans that start at 14.95 USD per month.
5) Mailgun
Mailgun is an excellent choice for those looking for a developer-friendly SMTP service. With features such as email API, email validation, and burst sending, you will be able to take your email deliverability to the next level.
Mailgun is a powerful tool designed for developers that allows you to easily send and track every email you send through the API and see its current status. The premium plans come with a dedicated IP address which is a great option for sites that send many emails every day.
The server will keep data of your last 15 days which is a good option if you need to check your emails’ status. Mailgun also comes with a great support team and complete support documentation to troubleshoot any issues.
Mailgun comes with Easy SMTP integration and a RESTful API that makes the process of sending transactional or bulk email easy. This tool is built for developers and businesses that need to send a high number of emails, so it focuses on big businesses.
Main Features
- Send time optimization
- Email log
- Dedicated IP
- Email address validation
- Email tracking
- Detailed Documentation
- Chat support
- Phone support
Pricing
Mailgun has a free plugin that hasn’t been updated for a while so we don’t recommend using it. It also offers a pay as you grow plan that allows you to send up to 5,000 emails in 3 months. After that, you just need to pay for what you use. Additionally, they also have premium plans that start at 35 USD per month.
6) Mailjet
MailJet is one of the best SMTP plugins for WordPress. It’s an affordable solution that’s widely used by business owners and small sites alike. It has more than 130,000 clients around the world including giants such as Microsoft, Kia, DHL, or American Express.
MailJet includes an email template gallery where you can select premade templates for your email campaigns. On the other hand, you can create your unique custom design with the drag and drop email builder. On top of that, it comes with Real-Time Collaboration to help teams work together when designing emails.
MailJet integrates with various platforms such as WordPress, Shopify, Magento, Zapier, and Evernote and the whole process only takes a few minutes. Finally, this tool lets you build your contact list in 4 different ways:
- Synchronizing your WordPress users
- Giving visitors the possibility to subscribe when they comment on your site
- Subscribing WooCommerce customers during checkout
- Through the built-in Contact Form 7 integration
Main Features
- Advanced email editor with real-time collaboration
- Email templates
- Unlimited contacts
- Personalization
- Email stats
- Supports shortcodes
- Sub accounts
- Activity logs
Pricing
MailJet is a freemium SMTP solution. With the free plugin, you will be able to send up to 6000 emails a month or 200 emails per day. If you need to send more emails, you’ll have to choose one of the premium plans that start at 9.65 USD per month.
Conclusion
All in all, using an SMTP service can help you improve email deliverability by making sure that your emails don’t go to the spam folder. There are many tools out there so to make your life easier, we’ve selected the best SMTP plugins for WordPress.
- WP Mail SMTP
- Easy WP SMTP
- SendinBlue
- SendGrid
- Mailgun
- Mailjet
If you are looking for a service that’s easy to use and has a good free plan, WP Mail SMTP, Easy WP SMTP, and SendinBlue are great options. On the other hand, if you’re looking for a premium solution that can handle a huge volume of emails, Mailgun is your choice. However, keep in mind that it’s a service built for developers so the setup process requires a bit of work.
If you’re looking for a premium solution that’s easy to use, we recommend Mailjet. It has affordable plans, it’s very easy to set up even for beginners, and has very powerful features.
Finally, you’ve noticed that most SMTP services have their own WordPress plugins. Additionally, you can use WP Mail SMTP by WPForms. It’s easy to use, and you can integrate it with any SMTP services such as SMTP.com, Sendinblue, Mailgun, SendGrid, and many others.
We hope you have enjoyed the read and found the right SMTP plugin for your site. Do you know any other tools that we should include in our list? Let us know in the comments section below!
