Updated 2026-03-15

Best Email Marketing Tools for AI & ML Startups

Onboard users, manage credit-based billing communication, and convert free-tier AI users to paying customers.

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AI startups face unique email marketing challenges. Your users consume credits or tokens, not seats. Pricing is usage-based, not subscription-based. Onboarding involves API keys, model selection, and integration guides. Most email tools were built for subscription SaaS or e-commerce - not credit-based AI products. Here are 13 platforms ranked by their ability to handle usage-based triggers, developer audiences, and the AI product lifecycle.

TL;DR

Sequenzy is ideal for AI startups because its event-driven architecture handles usage-based triggers natively and the free tier (up to 2,500 emails/mo) lets you start without adding to your burn rate. Customer.io is the strongest alternative for funded AI startups with complex multi-channel needs, though its $100/month starting price is steep for early-stage companies.

Why AI Startups Need Email Marketing

Usage-Based Onboarding

AI products require users to understand credits, tokens, rate limits, and model selection. A good onboarding sequence walks users through their first API call and helps them choose the right model for their use case.

Credit and Usage Alerts

When users approach credit limits, automated emails prevent surprise charges and encourage upgrades. Usage milestone emails show value and reinforce the ROI of your AI product.

Free-to-Paid Conversion

Most AI startups offer free credits to get users started. Converting free users to paid requires usage-based triggers - not time-based drip campaigns.

Model and Feature Updates

AI products ship new models, improve accuracy, and add capabilities frequently. Product update emails keep users informed and drive re-engagement with improved features.

AI & ML Startups Email Marketing Benchmarks

Know these numbers before you start. They'll help you set realistic goals and pick the right tool.

25-35%
Average Open Rate

AI startup emails with technical, relevant content see higher open rates than average because developer audiences engage strongly with product-specific information.

3-6%
Average Click Rate

Emails with code snippets, documentation links, and direct API dashboard links see the highest click-through rates among developer audiences.

Tuesday-Thursday, 10 AM-12 PM (user timezone)
Best Send Time

Developers tend to check product emails during work hours. Usage alert emails should send immediately regardless of time.

3-8%
Free-to-Paid Conversion Rate

AI startups with usage-triggered conversion sequences typically convert 3-8% of free users to paid plans, with the best results from emails sent when free credits are exhausted.

Important Tips Before You Choose

Lessons from ai & ml startupswho've been doing this for years. Save yourself the trial and error.

Trigger emails on usage events, not time delays

AI products have unpredictable usage patterns. A user who burns through 10,000 credits in a day needs different emails than one who makes 5 calls per week. Base your email triggers on credit consumption, API calls made, and model usage rather than days since signup.

Include working code snippets in onboarding emails

Developer users judge your product by technical quality. Include copy-pasteable code examples in your onboarding emails - a curl command they can run immediately, SDK initialization code, or a minimal working example. This reduces time-to-first-API-call dramatically.

Send credit alerts before users hit limits

Alert users at 75% and 90% of their credit limit rather than waiting until they are out. Include their current usage breakdown, projected depletion date, and optimization tips alongside upgrade options. This prevents surprise charges and builds trust.

Segment by model and endpoint usage

Users consuming your most expensive model at high volume are better upgrade candidates than occasional free-model users. Segment your emails based on which models and endpoints each user calls most frequently.

Use the conversion window when free credits expire

The moment free credits run out is your highest-intent conversion window. Show users what they accomplished with free credits and present paid plans that match their usage pattern. This behavioral trigger converts far better than time-based upgrade emails.

Keep product update emails technical

AI developers want benchmarks, latency improvements, and accuracy metrics - not marketing fluff. Lead product update emails with specific performance data and include migration guides when you release new model versions.

13 Best Email Marketing Tools for AI & ML Startups

Our Top Pick for AI & ML Startups
#1
Sequenzy

Email marketing with native payment integrations and event-driven automation for AI products.

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Sequenzy works well for AI startups because of the event-driven architecture and native Stripe integration. When a user's credits run low, the event flows into Sequenzy and triggers an upgrade nudge automatically. New subscription events trigger plan-specific onboarding. Failed payments trigger dunning sequences. The free tier supports up to 2,500 emails per month, which is enough for early-stage AI startups to run onboarding sequences, credit alerts, and conversion flows without adding to their burn rate. Once you grow, the pay-per-email pricing ($29 for 50,000 emails) scales efficiently with credit-based AI businesses where you might have thousands of free-tier users who rarely receive marketing emails. The AI sequence builder is fitting for AI companies - use it to generate onboarding flows, upgrade campaigns, and usage alert sequences in seconds rather than spending engineering time building email workflows.

Best for
AI startups wanting event-driven automation with native Stripe integration
Pricing
Free up to 2,500 emails/mo, then $29/mo for 50K emails (unlimited contacts)

Pros

  • Native Stripe integration for credit-based billing events
  • Event-driven triggers for usage milestones
  • AI sequence builder for onboarding and conversion flows
  • Pay per email - large free tiers do not inflate cost

Cons

  • Newer platform with smaller community
  • No built-in in-app messaging
  • Template library still growing
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#2
Customer.io

Powerful event-driven messaging platform for technical teams.

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Customer.io is arguably the strongest option for AI startups with complex user journeys. The event pipeline handles usage-based triggers beautifully - credit consumption, model switches, API error rates, anything you can track as an event becomes an automation trigger. The visual workflow builder supports branching logic based on usage tiers, and multi-channel support (email, push, in-app) covers the full engagement spectrum. You can build workflows that send different onboarding content based on which model a user selects or which SDK they integrate. The data warehouse sync keeps your event data in sync with your analytics stack. The $100/month starting price is the main barrier for early-stage AI startups, but for funded companies with a growth team, the investment pays back quickly.

Best for
Funded AI startups with complex usage-based user journeys
Pricing
$100/month for 5,000 profiles

Pros

  • Excellent event-driven automation
  • Complex branching and conditional logic
  • Multi-channel messaging
  • Strong API

Cons

  • Expensive starting price
  • Complex setup
  • Steep learning curve
#3
Loops

Modern email platform for SaaS with clean event-based automations.

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Loops is a solid mid-range option for AI startups that want event-based automation without the complexity and cost of Customer.io. The interface is clean and modern, event-based automations handle usage triggers well, and the combined transactional and marketing email support means fewer tools to manage. You can send credit alerts, onboarding emails, and marketing campaigns from the same platform. The design-first approach means your emails look professional without needing a designer. For AI startups that want something simpler than Customer.io but more capable than basic newsletter tools, Loops hits a practical sweet spot.

Best for
AI startups wanting clean event-based automation without complexity
Pricing
Free up to 1,000 contacts, then $49/month

Pros

  • Clean modern interface
  • Event-based automations
  • Combined transactional and marketing

Cons

  • Per-contact pricing
  • Less flexible than Customer.io
  • No native payment integration
See Full Comparison
#4
Resend

Developer-first email API with React Email for building templates in code.

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Resend is popular with AI startup engineering teams because of the developer experience. React Email lets you build usage alert templates and onboarding emails as React components that live in your codebase alongside your product. The API is clean and well-documented with SDKs for every major language. TypeScript support is first-class. The limitation is scope - Resend is an email sending API, not a marketing automation platform. There is no sequence builder, no segmentation engine, and no visual workflow tool. It is perfect if your engineering team wants to own the email flow in code and build custom logic around usage events, but you will need to build the automation layer yourself.

Best for
AI startups with engineering-led growth teams
Pricing
Free for 3,000 emails/month, then $20/month

Pros

  • Excellent developer experience
  • React Email templates
  • Clean API

Cons

  • No marketing automation
  • No sequence builder
  • Limited segmentation
See Full Comparison
#5
Postmark

Reliable transactional email with fast delivery.

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For AI startups sending critical usage alerts, credit warnings, and API key notifications, Postmark's deliverability is unmatched. These emails need to arrive instantly - a delayed credit warning means unexpected charges or API cutoffs for your users. Postmark consistently delivers within seconds and maintains the highest inbox placement rates in the industry. Separate message streams let you isolate transactional delivery from any broadcast emails. Pair it with a marketing tool like Sequenzy or Customer.io for campaigns and sequences.

Best for
AI startups needing reliable delivery for usage alerts and credit notifications
Pricing
$15/month for 10,000 emails

Pros

  • Best-in-class deliverability
  • Fast delivery
  • Separate transactional streams

Cons

  • Not a marketing tool
  • No automation
  • No segmentation
See Full Comparison
#6
SendGrid

High-volume email infrastructure from Twilio.

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SendGrid handles the volume that AI startups need when they scale. If you are sending millions of usage digest emails, credit alerts, and API notifications per month, SendGrid's infrastructure holds up without breaking a sweat. The API is mature with SDKs in every language and comprehensive webhook support. Email validation and deliverability tools help maintain sender reputation at high volume. Marketing automation is functional but dated - most AI startups using SendGrid pair it with a separate lifecycle marketing tool.

Best for
High-volume AI products needing reliable email infrastructure
Pricing
Free for 100 emails/day, plans from $19.95/month

Pros

  • Handles massive volumes
  • Mature API
  • Good deliverability tools

Cons

  • Dated marketing features
  • Complex pricing
  • Not designed for product-led growth
See Full Comparison
#7
Userlist

Email automation for SaaS with company-level tracking.

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Userlist is useful for B2B AI startups where teams share API keys and credits. Company-level tracking lets you trigger emails based on team behavior - when a company's API usage spikes, when the team adds new members, or when the company's trial is ending. This account-level view is essential for B2B AI products where the buying decision happens at the team or company level, not the individual user level. Good SaaS focus with lifecycle patterns that work naturally for subscription and usage-based models.

Best for
B2B AI startups selling to teams
Pricing
$149/month for 5,000 users

Pros

  • Company-level tracking
  • SaaS-focused automation
  • Behavior-based segmentation

Cons

  • Higher starting price
  • Smaller ecosystem
  • Limited integrations
See Full Comparison
#8
ActiveCampaign

Advanced automation platform with CRM capabilities.

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ActiveCampaign has the most powerful automation builder available, which can model complex AI product journeys - free tier, credit-based usage, team plans, enterprise deals. The CRM integration helps track enterprise leads from API signup through sales conversations to closed deals. Conditional branching can route users through different experiences based on their usage patterns, plan type, and engagement level. Overkill for early-stage AI startups focused on PLG, but powerful for those with a dedicated growth team pursuing both self-serve and enterprise customers.

Best for
AI startups with complex user journeys and a marketing team
Pricing
$29/month for 1,000 contacts

Pros

  • Most powerful automation builder
  • Built-in CRM
  • Complex conditional logic

Cons

  • Complex interface
  • Expensive at scale
  • Not developer-focused
See Full Comparison
#9
Brevo

Affordable all-in-one marketing platform.

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Brevo is a budget option for early-stage AI startups that need functional email without spending precious runway. The free tier covers 300 emails per day with unlimited contacts, and per-email pricing on paid plans makes sense for large user bases where most accounts are free tier. The automation builder handles basic onboarding and credit alert sequences. Not developer-focused and the event tracking is basic compared to Customer.io or Sequenzy, but it is functional and affordable enough to get started.

Best for
Pre-revenue AI startups on a tight budget
Pricing
Free up to 300 emails/day, then $25/month

Pros

  • Generous free tier
  • Affordable paid plans
  • Per-email pricing

Cons

  • Not developer-focused
  • Basic event tracking
  • Limited API capabilities
See Full Comparison
#10
Mailchimp

The most well-known email marketing platform.

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Mailchimp is not ideal for AI startups. Per-contact pricing punishes large free tiers since you pay for every user in your database regardless of whether they receive emails. Automation is basic with no support for usage-based triggers or event-driven workflows. There is no integration with your product's usage data or billing events. It works for a simple newsletter to your AI community or investor updates, but falls short for the usage-based triggers and developer onboarding that AI products require.

Best for
AI startups that only need a basic community newsletter
Pricing
Free up to 500 contacts, then $13/month

Pros

  • Easy to use
  • Good template editor
  • Strong deliverability

Cons

  • Per-contact pricing
  • Basic automation
  • Not built for developer products
See Full Comparison
#11
ConvertKit

Email marketing for creators, rebranded as Kit.

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Kit is designed for creators, not AI product companies. Some AI founders use it for their personal newsletter or community updates about AI industry trends, but it lacks the event-driven automation and API capabilities that AI startups need for product communication. The generous free tier (10,000 subscribers) makes it viable for thought leadership content. Use it for building your personal brand as an AI founder, not for product emails.

Best for
AI founders building a personal thought leadership brand
Pricing
Free up to 10,000 subscribers, then $25/month

Pros

  • Good for personal brand newsletters
  • Free tier for large lists
  • Clean interface

Cons

  • No product event tracking
  • No usage-based triggers
  • Not built for SaaS
See Full Comparison
#12
HubSpot

Enterprise CRM and marketing platform.

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HubSpot is for AI startups that have raised significant funding and are selling enterprise contracts with sales teams. The CRM tracks the journey from API signup to enterprise deal through multiple touchpoints and conversations. Marketing automation is powerful for nurturing enterprise leads with case studies, ROI calculators, and demo requests. For most AI startups, especially those in the API-first or PLG model, HubSpot is overkill, overpriced, and adds unnecessary complexity.

Best for
Enterprise AI companies with sales teams
Pricing
Free CRM, marketing hub from $50/month

Pros

  • Complete CRM + marketing
  • Enterprise sales tracking
  • Powerful reporting

Cons

  • Massive overkill for PLG AI products
  • Expensive
  • Not developer-friendly
See Full Comparison
#13
Knock

Notification infrastructure for product teams.

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Knock is notification infrastructure, not email marketing. For AI products with complex notification needs across email, Slack, and in-app channels, Knock provides a unified API that engineering teams appreciate. The workflow-as-code approach fits well with how AI teams already think. Use it alongside an email marketing tool for lifecycle sequences, not instead of one. The free tier covers 10,000 messages, and the engineering-focused documentation makes integration straightforward.

Best for
AI products needing multi-channel notification infrastructure
Pricing
Free up to 10,000 messages, then $250/month

Pros

  • Multi-channel notifications
  • API-first approach
  • Workflow-as-code

Cons

  • Not an email marketing tool
  • No campaigns or segmentation
  • Expensive
See Full Comparison

Feature Comparison

FeatureSequenzyCustomer.ioLoopsResend
Usage-based triggers
Yes
Advanced
Yes
API only
Native payment integration
Stripe, Paddle
No
No
No
Credit alert automation
Via events
Via events
Via events
Via API
Visual sequence builder
AI-powered
Advanced
Yes
No
Transactional emails
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
API quality
Excellent
Excellent
Good
Excellent
Free tier available
Yes
Per profile
Per contact
Per email
Starting price
$29/mo
$100/mo
$49/mo
$20/mo

Common Mistakes to Avoid

We see these mistakes over and over. Skip the learning curve and avoid these from day one.

Using time-based drip campaigns for usage-based products

Sending a 'Day 7' upgrade email to a user who exhausted free credits on Day 1 misses the moment. Use event-driven triggers based on credit consumption and API activity instead of fixed calendar schedules.

Choosing per-contact pricing with a large free tier

If you have 50,000 free-tier users but only email a fraction of them, per-contact pricing charges you for all 50,000. Per-email pricing tools like Sequenzy and Brevo charge only for actual sends, saving significantly at scale.

Sending non-technical marketing emails to developers

Developer users ignore generic promotional content. Every email should provide technical value - code examples, optimization tips, benchmark data, or API documentation links. Marketing disguised as marketing gets deleted.

Neglecting API version migration communication

When you deprecate API versions, poor migration communication causes churn. Send targeted migration sequences only to users on the old version with specific timelines, code diffs, and automated migration tools.

Not personalizing by usage tier

A user making 100,000 API calls per day and a user making 10 calls per week need completely different communication. Segment all emails by usage volume and customize messaging for each tier.

Email Sequences Every AI & ML Startup Needs

These are the essential automated email sequences that will help you grow your business and keep clients coming back.

AI Product Onboarding Sequence

New user signs up

Guide users from signup to their first successful API call with your AI product.

Immediate
Your API key + quickstart guide

Welcome email with API key, quickstart code snippet, and link to model documentation. Include a simple example showing the most common use case.

Day 1
Choosing the right model for your use case

Guide comparing available models by speed, accuracy, and cost. Help users avoid wasting credits on the wrong model.

Day 3
Your first [X] API calls - here is what you built

Usage summary showing their API calls, models used, and tokens consumed. Celebrate their progress and suggest optimization tips.

Day 7
3 things power users do differently

Tips from power users: batch processing, caching strategies, prompt optimization. Practical content that saves them credits and improves results.

Credit Usage Alert Sequence

User reaches 75% of credit limit

Alert users about credit consumption and encourage plan upgrades.

At 75% threshold
You have used 75% of your credits this month

Usage breakdown showing credits consumed, remaining balance, and projected usage. Link to upgrade options.

At 90% threshold
Running low - here is how to optimize your usage

Optimization tips to get more value from remaining credits. Also present upgrade options clearly.

On credit reset
Your credits have been replenished

Monthly reset notification with usage summary from last month and tips for the new billing period.

Free-to-Paid Conversion Sequence

Free credits exhausted

Convert users who have consumed their free credits and seen value from the product.

When free credits exhausted
Your free credits are used up - here is what you built

Summary of what they accomplished with free credits. Show the value they got. Present paid plan options.

Day 2
Plans starting at $[X]/month - what is included

Clear pricing comparison showing what each plan includes. Highlight the plan that matches their usage pattern.

Day 5
Need help choosing a plan?

Personal email offering to help them select the right plan. Include a link to schedule a call or reply directly.

New Model Launch Sequence

New model released

Announce new AI models and drive re-engagement with improved capabilities.

On release
[Model name] is live - [X]% faster, [Y]% more accurate

Model announcement with benchmarks, comparison to previous models, and migration guide. Include code snippet showing how to switch.

Create These Sequences with AI

The AI Startup Email Challenge

AI startups have a pricing model that most email tools were not built for. Your users consume credits, tokens, or compute time - not seats or subscriptions. This means your email triggers need to be usage-based, not time-based. A user who burns through 10,000 API credits in their first day needs a different email experience than one who makes 5 calls per week.

The best email platforms for AI startups understand event-driven automation. They can trigger emails when a user hits a usage threshold, tries a new model, or exhausts their free credits. Generic drip campaigns based on "day 1, day 3, day 7" timing miss the point entirely.

Choosing Between Per-Email and Per-Contact Pricing

This decision has outsized impact for AI startups. If you offer free credits to attract users, you might have 50,000 accounts but only actively email 5,000 of them in any given month. Per-contact pricing charges you for all 50,000 regardless of email activity. Per-email pricing charges you only for what you send.

Run the math with your specific numbers. At 50,000 users, per-contact pricing on platforms like Customer.io or Loops can cost $500-1,000 per month. Per-email pricing on Sequenzy at the same actual send volume might cost $29-58 per month. The difference adds up to thousands of dollars per year that could go toward product development.

Credit Alerts That Actually Help

The most important emails your AI product sends are credit and usage alerts. A user approaching their limit needs to know before they get a surprise bill or a sudden API cutoff. These emails need to be instant, clear, and actionable.

Great credit alert emails include: current usage vs. limit, projected depletion date, a breakdown by model or endpoint, optimization tips to reduce consumption, and a clear path to upgrade. Bad credit alert emails just say "you are running low" without context or options.

Structure your credit alerts as a sequence: 75% warning with optimization tips, 90% warning with upgrade options, and a credit exhaustion email with a summary of what they accomplished and paid plan options.

Converting Free Users When They Are Ready

The best time to convert a free AI user to paid is not after 14 days - it is when they have consumed their free credits and built something they depend on. This is a usage-based trigger, not a time-based one.

Tools with native payment integration (like Sequenzy with Stripe) can detect when free credits are exhausted and automatically trigger a conversion sequence that shows the user what they accomplished, what paid plans cost, and which plan matches their usage pattern.

Developer Onboarding Best Practices

Developer onboarding emails are different from typical SaaS onboarding. Your users do not need a product tour - they need a working code example they can run in 60 seconds.

Email 1 (immediate): API key, a curl command that works, and a link to your quickstart docs. Nothing else.

Email 2 (day 1): Model selection guide comparing speed, accuracy, and cost per model. Help them avoid wasting credits on the wrong model.

Email 3 (day 3): Usage summary showing what they have done so far. If they have not made an API call, offer troubleshooting help. If they have, suggest advanced features.

Email 4 (day 7): Power user tips from your most successful integrations. Batch processing, caching strategies, and prompt optimization that saves credits and improves results.

Product Update Emails for AI Companies

AI products ship frequently - new models, improved accuracy, latency improvements, new endpoints. Product update emails should be technical and specific.

Lead with quantifiable improvements: "GPT-4o-mini is 2.3x faster and 15% cheaper than the previous model." Include migration guides with code diffs showing how to switch. Segment by current model usage so users only receive updates relevant to their integration.

Avoid generic feature announcements with screenshots. Your developer audience wants benchmarks, API changes, and migration instructions.

Measuring What Matters

Traditional email metrics (open rates, click rates) tell you about email engagement but not business impact. For AI startups, track these metrics instead:

Activation rate: What percentage of users who receive onboarding emails complete their first API call? This is the metric that matters most.

Credit alert response rate: What percentage of users who receive 75% credit alerts upgrade before hitting their limit?

Free-to-paid conversion rate: What percentage of users who exhaust free credits convert to paid within 7 days?

Version migration rate: When you release a new API version, what percentage of users on the old version migrate within 30 days of your migration sequence?

Check your email deliverability setup with our SPF checker and DKIM generator to ensure your technical emails reach developer inboxes.

How We Evaluated These Tools

I evaluated these 13 platforms based on event-driven automation capabilities, API quality for developer integration, pricing alignment with usage-based AI business models, and support for technical email content like code snippets. Each tool was tested with real AI product onboarding and usage-alert workflows.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Sequenzy - Complete Pricing Guide

Pricing Model

Sequenzy uses email-volume-based pricing. You only pay for emails you send. Unlimited contacts on all plans — storing subscribers is always free.

All Pricing Tiers

  • 2.5k emails/month: Free (Free annually)
  • 15k emails/month: $19/month ($205/year annually)
  • 60k emails/month: $29/month ($313/year annually)
  • 120k emails/month: $49/month ($529/year annually)
  • 300k emails/month: $99/month ($1069/year annually)
  • 600k emails/month: $199/month ($2149/year annually)
  • 1.2M emails/month: $349/month ($3769/year annually)
  • Unlimited emails/month: Custom pricing (Custom annually)

Yearly billing: All plans offer a 10% discount when billed annually.

Free Plan Features (2,500 emails/month)

  • Visual automation builder
  • Transactional email API
  • Reply tracking & team inbox
  • Goal tracking & revenue attribution
  • Dynamic segments
  • Payment integrations
  • Full REST API access
  • Custom sending domain

Paid Plan Features (15k - 1.2M emails/month)

  • Visual automation builder
  • Transactional email API
  • Reply tracking & team inbox
  • Goal tracking & revenue attribution
  • Dynamic segments
  • Payment integrations (Stripe, Paddle, Lemon Squeezy)
  • Full REST API access
  • Custom sending domain

Enterprise Plan Features (Unlimited emails)

  • Visual automation builder
  • Transactional email API
  • Reply tracking & team inbox
  • Goal tracking & revenue attribution
  • Dynamic segments
  • Payment integrations
  • Full REST API access
  • Custom sending domain

Important Pricing Notes

  • You only pay for emails you send — unlimited contacts on all plans
  • No hidden fees - all features included in the price
  • No credit card required for free tier

Contact

  • Pricing Page: https://sequenzy.com/pricing
  • Sales: hello@sequenzy.com