Head to head
Loops vs Mailgun
As a transactional email API, Mailgun rates higher on the APIbenchmarks Index, 82.1 to 75.1, a 7-point gap. Here is how they compare on each criterion.
Criterion by criterion
| Criterion | Loops | Mailgun |
|---|---|---|
| Documentation & DX | ||
| Reliability | ||
| Ecosystem & SDKs | ||
| Accessibility | ||
| APIbenchmarks Index | 75.1 | 82.1 |
Specifications
| Loops | Mailgun | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Combined marketing + transactional for SaaS | Developer email infrastructure at scale |
| Free tier | 4,000 transactional/mo (1k contacts) | 100 emails/day (forever) |
| Pricing | Contact-based plan (transactional included) | Per monthly email volume |
| Official SDKs | 6 languages | 9 languages |
Is Loops better than Mailgun?
On the APIbenchmarks Index, Mailgun rates higher (82.1 vs 75.1). It leads on the four weighted criteria, but price is reported separately, so the best choice still depends on your budget.
Verdict in one line
Mailgun leads by 7 points (82.1 vs 75.1) and wins 2 of 4 criteria; Loops wins 1.
Winner by criterion
| Criterion | Winner | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Documentation & DX | 80 | 80 | Tie |
| Reliability | 68 | 86 | |
| Ecosystem & SDKs | 66 | 84 | |
| Accessibility | 88 | 78 |
Choose Loops if… / choose Mailgun if…
- →accessibility matters most to you (88 vs 78)
- →your use case matches its focus: combined marketing + transactional for saas
- →reliability matters most to you (86 vs 68)
- →ecosystem & sdks matters most to you (84 vs 66)
- →you need broad SDK coverage (9 official SDKs vs 6)
- →your use case matches its focus: developer email infrastructure at scale
Pricing side by side
- Model
- Contact-based plan (transactional included)
- Free tier
- 4,000 transactional/mo (1k contacts)
- Free$0/mo
- Starter$49/mo
- Growth$99/mo
- Scale~$249/mo
- EnterpriseCustom
- Model
- Per monthly email volume
- Free tier
- 100 emails/day (forever)
- Free$0/mo
- Basicfrom $15/mo
- Foundation$35/mo
- Scale$90/mo
- EnterpriseCustom (contact sales)
Vendor-published pricing, verified 2026-06-27 (Loops) and 2026-06-27 (Mailgun).
SDK and language coverage
Both · 2
RubyPHP
Only Loops · 4
Node.js / TypeScript (official npm 'loops' package)Next.jsNuxt.jsLaravel
Only Mailgun · 7
PythonJavaC#/.NETNode.jsGoREST APISMTP relay
Strengths and weaknesses
- +Transactional email is free and unlimited on any paid plan (previously ~$1 per 2,000 sends), so transactional volume never inflates the bill
- +Unified platform: marketing, product/lifecycle, triggered sequences, and transactional share one domain and one sender reputation, removing the need for a separate SendGrid/Mailgun
- +Modern developer experience: clean TypeScript/Node SDK, idempotency-key support, MJML template uploads, and well-regarded docs
- –Contact-based pricing penalizes large or dormant lists you pay per stored contact regardless of whether you email them
- –Transactional is treated as part of the broader workflow system, not a dedicated hardened delivery API less granular control than Postmark/Resend/SendGrid
- –Data variables limited to strings and numbers; no raw-HTML-at-send model (templates must live in Loops)
- +Clean, well-documented REST API plus SMTP relay; reviewers report integration in minutes
- +Seven official, actively maintained SDKs (Python, Ruby, PHP, Java, C#, Node.js, Go)
- +Contractual 99.99% uptime SLA on core API/SMTP/outbound delivery for all plan tiers
- –Pricing escalates steeply with volume; reviewers say it has gotten 'pricier and pricier'
- –Legacy pay-as-you-go Flex plan doubled to $2.00/1K in Dec 2025 and is closed to new users
- –Recurring abrupt account suspensions, sometimes right after signup or mid-integration, with no clear reason
Loops vs Mailgun: questions
- Which has better documentation, Loops or Mailgun?
- Loops and Mailgun score the same on documentation and developer experience (80).
- Which is more reliable, Loops or Mailgun?
- Mailgun scores higher on reliability: 86 vs 68 out of 100.
- Do Loops and Mailgun have a free tier?
- Loops: yes (4,000 transactional/mo (1k contacts)). Mailgun: yes (100 emails/day (forever)).
- How are Loops and Mailgun priced?
- Loops: Contact-based plan (transactional included). Mailgun: Per monthly email volume.
- Which has more official SDKs?
- Mailgun lists 9 official SDKs, Loops lists 6.