WordPress doesn’t send emails well on its own. You probably know this if you’ve ever wondered why your contact forms go to spam or your password reset emails never arrive. Most WordPress sites need some kind of email service to handle delivery properly.
The question is whether you go with a free option or pay for something more reliable. Free services exist, and they work fine for basic sites. But they come with limits—usually around 300-500 emails per day. For a personal blog or small business site, that might be plenty. For anything busier, it’s not.
Paid services give you higher limits, better delivery rates, and actual support when things break. But they cost money, obviously. So when does it make sense to pay, and when can you stick with free?
- Can I start free and switch to paid without downtime?
- Why WordPress Email Delivery Fails (And How SMTP Fixes It)
- Three Types of "Free" WordPress Email Services
- Why "Free" Email Services Can Actually Cost You More
- Benefits of Paid WordPress Email Services
- When to Use Free vs When to Upgrade
- How WP Mail SMTP Works with Any Email Service
Why WordPress Email Delivery Fails (And How SMTP Fixes It)
By default, WordPress sends emails using a basic function built into PHP called wp_mail(). This might sound technical, but what it means in basic terms is your emails often don’t get delivered.
WordPress tries to send emails directly from your website’s server. Most web hosting companies aren’t designed to send emails reliably. Email providers like Gmail and Outlook are suspicious of emails coming from random web servers, so they often block them or send them straight to spam.
SMTP services fix this by sending your emails through servers that are specifically built for email delivery. These services have good reputations with email providers and proper authentication.
If you want your WordPress emails to actually reach people, you need to use an email service instead of relying on your web host.
Ready to fix your WordPress email delivery? Install WP Mail SMTP for free and connect to a reliable email service in minutes.
Three Types of “Free” WordPress Email Services
Not all free email services are the same. Here are the three main options you’ll find:
Hosting-Provided SMTP
Your web host might offer free SMTP as part of your hosting plan. This costs nothing extra, but you’re still sharing server reputation with other websites on the same host. If another site on your server sends spam, it can hurt your email delivery too. You also get zero analytics or tracking.
Big-Tech Free Tiers
Gmail, Outlook, and other major providers offer free SMTP with daily limits. Gmail gives you 500 emails per day for free, or 2,000 if you have Google Workspace. Services like Brevo, SendGrid, and Mailgun also have free tiers, usually capping you around 300 emails daily.
These work well for small sites, but the limits are firm. Hit your daily cap and your emails stop until the next day.
Limited-Time Free Trials
Some services like SendLayer offer generous free trials. These can be perfect for launching a new site or testing a service before committing to paid plans. Just remember to plan for what happens when the trial ends.
You can see all the email services WP Mail SMTP supports out of the box in the table below:
Why “Free” Email Services Can Actually Cost You More
Free email services might not cost money upfront, but they can cost you in other ways.
Deliverability Problems
Free services often use shared IP addresses. If other users on the same IP send spam or have poor sending practices, it can hurt your email delivery rates. Your perfectly legitimate emails might end up in spam folders because of someone else’s bad behavior.
Branding and Compliance Issues
Many free services add their own footers to your emails or require you to include their branding. Some don’t help with technical setup like DMARC records, which are becoming more important for email authentication.
Scaling Headaches
Free services work fine until they don’t. If you suddenly need to send more emails (maybe you’re running a sale or your business is simply growing) you’ll hit those daily limits at the worst possible time so customers don’t get their order confirmations during your busiest day.
Benefits of Paid WordPress Email Services
Paid email services solve the problems you may experience with free email services:
Better Email Delivery
Paid services often use dedicated IP addresses or premium shared IP pools. This means your email reputation isn’t tied to other users’ behavior. Your emails are more likely to reach the inbox instead of spam folders.
Professional Support and Analytics
When something goes wrong with a free service, you’re usually on your own. Paid services offer actual customer support, detailed analytics, webhooks for tracking email events, and features to maintain good sender reputation.
Reliable Scaling
Need to send 10,000 emails tomorrow? Paid services can handle it. No daily caps that cut you off at the worst moment.
Advanced Features
Paid services typically include email logs so you can see exactly what happened to each message, automatic retry for failed emails, and integration with authentication protocols like DKIM and SPF. Many also offer multiple sending options (SMTP and API) and priority support queues.
Service Level Agreements
Free services don’t guarantee anything. Paid services often come with uptime guarantees and service level agreements. If the service goes down, you have recourse and often compensation.
When to Use Free vs When to Upgrade
Here’s how to decide which option makes sense for your site:
| Use Case | Best Email Strategy |
| Hobby blog < 300 emails/month | Free Gmail SMTP with WP Mail SMTP – covers contact forms and basic notifications |
| New SaaS / WooCommerce store | Start free but plan to upgrade by 1,000 orders/month for reliability |
| High-volume ecommerce, courses, memberships | Paid service from launch – you can’t afford email delivery failures |
The key is matching your email volume and business risk to the right service level. You can also take a look at our roundup of the best transactional email providers (many of which offer free plans) to choose a service that suits the needs of your site.
How WP Mail SMTP Works with Any Email Service
WP Mail SMTP is the bridge between WordPress and any email service you choose. Instead of wrestling with different configurations for different providers, you get one plugin that handles everything.
The free version connects WordPress to Gmail, Outlook, or any SMTP service in minutes. No coding required, just install the plugin, run the setup wizard, and you’re done.
The Pro version adds email logging so you can see exactly what emails were sent and whether they were delivered. It also includes smart fallback routing (if your primary service fails, it automatically tries a backup), email resending for failed messages, and alerts when something goes wrong.
Whether you start with free Gmail SMTP or upgrade to a paid service later, WP Mail SMTP makes switching between providers seamless. Change your email service without touching a single line of code.
Frequently Asked Questions About Free vs. Paid Email Services
Many of our users are confused about whether to choose a free WordPress email service or a paid option. Here are some of the most common questions our support team receives on this topic:
Is there a truly free unlimited WordPress email service?
No. Every free email service has limits – usually around 300-500 emails per day. Even your web host’s “free” SMTP sharing server resources and reputation with other sites.
What’s Gmail’s SMTP daily limit?
Gmail allows 500 emails per day through SMTP for free accounts. Google Workspace accounts get 2,000 emails per day. These limits reset every 24 hours.
Do I need a dedicated IP for under 100k emails per month?
Usually not. Most businesses sending under 100,000 emails monthly do fine with premium shared IP pools. Dedicated IPs are mainly useful for very high volume senders or those with specific reputation requirements.
Can I start free and switch to paid without downtime?
Yes, if you’re using WP Mail SMTP. You can change email providers in the plugin settings and your emails will immediately start routing through the new service. No code changes needed.
Free WordPress email services work fine for small sites with basic needs. But if your business depends on reliable email delivery, those daily limits and deliverability issues will catch up with you.
The smart approach is to start with what makes sense for your current situation, then upgrade before you hit problems. A personal blog can stick with Gmail’s free SMTP indefinitely. A growing online store should budget for paid email delivery as part of their operating costs.
Either way, use WP Mail SMTP to connect WordPress to your email service properly. It takes 10 minutes to set up and makes switching providers painless when your needs change.
Don’t wait until your emails stop working to fix your delivery setup. Install WP Mail SMTP today and connect to a reliable email service before you need it.
Next, Send WordPress Emails for Free With Google SMTP Server
Gmail is one of the most popular options for sending email from your WordPress site for free. Find out how to set up WP Mail SMTP to use the Google SMTP server with our step-by-step tutorial.
Ready to fix your emails? Get started today with the best WordPress SMTP plugin. If you don’t have the time to fix your emails, you can get full White Glove Setup assistance as an extra purchase, and there’s a 14-day money-back guarantee for all paid plans.
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