Mailgun is good at sending newsletters and poor at being a newsletter tool. It delivers reliably through its API or SMTP, and $90 a month on the Scale plan covers 100,000 emails with a dedicated IP. But you supply the subscriber list, signup forms and campaign app yourself, and its policy caps spam complaints at 0.08%. Developers who already run an app like Mautic or Listmonk get a solid sender. Anyone wanting an all-in-one newsletter product should look elsewhere.
What Mailgun gives a newsletter sender
| Need | Mailgun | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Delivery by API or SMTP | yes | its core product |
| Unsubscribe links | yes | required in every marketing email by its policy |
| Mailing lists | yes, via API | list storage, not a subscriber dashboard |
| Template builder | Foundation and Scale | design and store templates |
| Signup forms, subscriber screens | no | bring your own app |
| Campaign scheduling UI | limited | send time optimization on Scale |
| Dedicated IP | included on Scale | extra IPs $59 a month each |
The pattern is clear: everything that touches sending is strong, everything that touches running a list is thin. That is fine if you already have a list app. It is a gap if you expected Mailchimp with cheaper pricing.
What it costs at newsletter volumes
From Mailgun's pricing page, October 2026 list prices:
| Monthly volume | Cheapest Mailgun route | Monthly cost |
|---|---|---|
| 10,000 | Basic | $15 |
| 50,000 | Foundation | $35 |
| 100,000 | Scale | $90 |
| 500,000 | Scale + 400K overage at $1.10 per 1,000 | about $530 |
| 1,000,000 | Scale + 900K overage at $1.10 per 1,000 | about $1,080 |
Overage rates are "from" prices and larger contracts can be negotiated, so treat the top two rows as the list ceiling. Our Mailgun pricing breakdown walks through the tiers in more detail.
List prices before any newsletter software
Remember that every Mailgun figure above is only the sending. Add the cost of the newsletter app on top, whether that is a hosted tool or your own server running Mautic or Listmonk.
The policy lines newsletter senders hit
Mailgun's acceptable use policy is stricter than most people expect, and it names numbers.
| Metric | Mailgun limit | Gmail for comparison |
|---|---|---|
| Spam complaints | 0.08% or less | 0.3% ceiling, 0.1% target |
| Bounces | 5% or less | no published number |
| Unsubscribes | 1.4% or less, 1% if above clicks | no published number |
| Blocks | under 20% | n/a |
| Consent | clear, explicit, provable opt-in | required for bulk senders |
Mailgun's complaint line sits below Gmail's target
The 0.08% line is the one that matters for newsletters. On a 100,000 send that is 80 complaints. One reactivated segment of people who forgot they subscribed can produce that in a morning. The unsubscribe rule also bites newsletters with low engagement: if more people unsubscribe than click, the limit drops to 1%.
Bought lists are banned outright, and the policy says proof of consent must be produced if a complaint is escalated. If you are not sure where part of your list came from, read why Mailgun disables accounts before you import it.
Where Mailgun fits and where it does not
Pick by what you already have, then by volume
Good fit:
- You already run Mautic, Listmonk or MailWizz and need a reliable sender.
- You also send app email, and want receipts and newsletters on one platform with separate streams.
- Volume is around 100,000 a month, where Scale's $90 with a dedicated IP is fair.
Poor fit:
- You want a drag-and-drop editor, signup forms and subscriber screens in one place.
- Your list has old segments that could push complaints past 0.08%.
- You send 500,000 or more a month on a steady schedule, where the per-email bill keeps growing.
Mailgun vs the alternatives for newsletters
| Option | Monthly cost at 100K | Newsletter tools | Who owns the IP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mailgun Scale | $90 | bring your own | Mailgun |
| Amazon SES | about $10 | bring your own | AWS |
| All-in-one ESP | priced by contacts | built in | the ESP |
| Own dedicated server | about $11 hosting after a one-time setup | campaign platform included | you |
SES is far cheaper per email but has the same "bring your own app" gap, plus its own review process. All-in-one tools charge by contact count, which is the bill most newsletter senders are trying to escape. See Mailgun alternatives for the full list, or Mailgun vs a dedicated SMTP server for the head-to-head.
A practical setup if you stay on Mailgun
- Split streams. Send newsletters from a subdomain such as news.yourdomain.com, separate from receipts.
- Turn on double opt-in in your signup app. Mailgun's policy accepts single opt-in, but double keeps complaints far from 0.08%.
- Sunset quietly. Stop mailing people with no open or click in 6 to 12 months.
- Use one-click unsubscribe. Gmail and Yahoo require it for bulk senders, and it pulls complaints down.
- Watch the dashboard weekly. Complaints and unsubscribes per campaign, not monthly averages.
How BulkEmailSetup helps
If your newsletter has outgrown per-email pricing, we set up a dedicated SMTP server you own, with a campaign platform, bounce handling, SPF, DKIM, DMARC and a warm-up plan included.
| Plan | One-time fee | Emails per day | IPs | Hosting you pay your host |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | $549 | 25,000 | 3 | about $11 a month |
| Advance | $1,199 | 200,000 | 15 | about $49 a month |
No contact limits and no monthly fee to us. A weekly newsletter to 100,000 subscribers fits Basic if you spread each send over four days at 25,000 a day. If it has to go out in one morning, Advance's 200,000 a day covers it. See Basic plan details or compare all pricing.
Frequently asked questions
Can Mailgun send newsletters?
Yes. Mailgun will deliver newsletters through its API or SMTP, and it supports unsubscribe links, mailing lists and templates. Its acceptable use policy allows marketing mail to people who gave clear, provable consent through single or double opt-in. What it does not give you is a full newsletter product, so most senders pair it with a separate campaign tool.
Does Mailgun have a campaign editor?
Mailgun lists an email template builder on its Foundation and Scale plans, which helps you design and store templates. It is not a campaign tool in the Mailchimp sense, with signup forms, subscriber management screens and scheduled sends built around a list. For those you connect an app such as Mautic, Listmonk or MailWizz and use Mailgun only for sending.
How much does Mailgun cost for 100K a month?
The Scale plan is $90 a month for 100,000 emails, with one dedicated IP and 30 days of logs. Foundation covers 50,000 for $35, so 100,000 there costs about $100 after overage at $1.30 per 1,000. Scale is the cheaper route at exactly 100K, and both prices are before any newsletter software.
What is better than Mailgun for newsletters?
If you want one tool with an editor, Brevo, MailerLite or Mailchimp fit better. If you want the lowest sending cost, Amazon SES is $0.10 per 1,000 but needs the same separate app. At steady volume, a dedicated SMTP server you own, such as BulkEmailSetup's Basic plan at $549 one-time with about $11 a month hosting, removes the per-email bill.
What are Mailgun's complaint and bounce limits?
Mailgun's acceptable use policy sets bounces at 5% or less, unsubscribes at 1.4% or less (1% if unsubscribes exceed clicks), spam complaints at 0.08% or less, and blocks under 20%. The complaint line is stricter than Gmail's 0.3% ceiling, so a newsletter with a stale segment can trip Mailgun before it trips Gmail.
Can I send a purchased list through Mailgun?
No. Mailgun's policy says sending to a third-party mailing list is prohibited and that lists bought, rented or scraped from third parties are banned. It also requires proof of consent if an abuse complaint is escalated. Newsletter senders who imported a bought list are one of the most common Mailgun suspension cases.
