useSend: Open Source Email Sending Infrastructure Alternative

useSend: Open Source Email Sending Infrastructure Alternative

Summary

useSend is an open-source platform designed as a self-hostable alternative to commercial email sending services like Resend, Sendgrid, and Postmark. It leverages Amazon SES for reliable and cost-effective email delivery, offering a comprehensive dashboard for managing both transactional and marketing emails.

Repository Info

Updated on October 13, 2025
View on GitHub

Introduction

useSend is an innovative open-source project that provides a robust and self-hostable email sending infrastructure. Built as an alternative to popular services such as Resend, Sendgrid, and Postmark, useSend empowers developers and businesses with full control over their email operations. It utilizes Amazon SES (Simple Email Service) under the hood, ensuring high deliverability and cost efficiency. The platform includes a feature-rich dashboard for monitoring delivered, opened, clicked, and bounced emails, alongside capabilities for managing contacts and sending bulk emails for newsletters or product updates.

Key features include:

  • Domain management
  • Transactional email sending
  • REST API for integration
  • Comprehensive dashboard analytics
  • Marketing email campaigns
  • SMTP support
  • Schedule API

Installation

Getting started with useSend is straightforward, offering multiple deployment options to suit various needs.

For local development, follow the detailed guide:
Local Development Guide

useSend also provides official Docker containers for easy deployment. You can pull images from:

Refer to the Docker documentation for configuration details.

For self-hosting on your own infrastructure, consult the:
Self-Hosting Overview

A quick way to deploy useSend is via Railway:
Railway Self-Hosting Guide
Deploy on Railway

Examples

useSend offers a flexible API and SMTP support for sending both transactional and marketing emails. While specific code examples are best found in the official documentation, the platform's features allow for:

  • Transactional Mails: Integrate via the REST API to send automated emails like password resets, order confirmations, or notifications.
  • Marketing Emails: Utilize the dashboard to create and send bulk email campaigns, managing subscriptions and tracking engagement.
  • SMTP Support: Connect existing applications or email clients using standard SMTP protocols.

The project's README highlights its robust capabilities, and the documentation provides comprehensive guides on how to leverage these features effectively.

Why use useSend?

Choosing useSend offers several compelling advantages for managing your email infrastructure:

  • Open Source Freedom: Gain full transparency and control over your email sending solution, with the ability to customize and extend it as needed.
  • Cost-Effective: By leveraging Amazon SES, useSend provides a highly economical way to send emails, especially at scale, without the premium costs of proprietary services.
  • Comprehensive Features: From a powerful dashboard for analytics and contact management to support for both transactional and marketing emails, useSend covers a wide range of email needs.
  • Self-Hostable: Deploy useSend on your own servers or preferred cloud provider, ensuring data privacy and compliance.
  • Future-Proof: With plans to expand beyond email to SMS, push notifications, and WhatsApp, useSend aims to be a versatile sending infrastructure.
  • Community Driven: Benefit from an active community, contributing to its development and providing support.

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