Quick answer
Resend - Resend wins for most builders who want a broadly useful free email tier with developer extras, while Emitlo wins only if you need a much higher free email allowance and can live with tighter domain and log limits.
How the free tiers compare
Emitlo’s free tier is built around higher sending volume: 12,000 emails per month for early signups, plus 400 per day and 50 per hour. It also includes the essentials that matter for transactional delivery, like REST API, SMTP relay, DKIM/SPF/DMARC, analytics, events, and webhooks. Resend’s free tier is smaller on volume at 3,000 emails per month and 100 per day, but it bundles more developer workflow features up front: official SDKs, scheduled emails, batch sending, tracking, React Email, one webhook endpoint, ticket support, automation runs, and AI credits. The other big difference is support and limits progression after free. Emitlo’s paid plan is simple usage-based email pricing. Resend’s paid path is tiered, starts at $20/mo, and adds higher quotas, more domains, no daily limit, and extra emails at a published overage rate.
Emitlo vs Resend free tier, side by side
| EmitloFTV 51 | ResendFTV 30 | |
|---|---|---|
| Emails per monthEmitlo says 12,000 emails per month for early signups; Resend free includes 3,000 emails per month. | 12,000 | 3,000 |
| Emails per dayEmitlo has the higher daily cap. | 400 | 100 |
| Sending domainsResend free allows 1 custom domain. | 3 | 1 |
| API/SMTP credentialsEmitlo lists 3 API/SMTP credentials. Resend does not give a free-tier credential count in the input. | 3 | Not stated |
| Log or data retentionResend keeps data longer on free. | 14 days of log history | 30 days of data retention |
| Attachment sizeOnly Emitlo specifies attachment size. | 10 MB maximum | Not stated |
| Webhook accessEmitlo includes webhooks, but the endpoint count is not stated. | Webhooks | 1 webhook endpoint; all webhook events |
| Developer extrasResend includes more workflow features on free. | REST API and SMTP relay | REST API, SMTP relay, official SDKs, scheduled emails, batch sending, open tracking, link tracking, React Email |
After you outgrow the free tier
Emitlo prices email on a simple usage-based model at $0.15 per 1,000 emails, with no tiers or commitments. Resend starts with a $20/mo Pro plan on a usage-based structure that includes 50,000 emails/month, then charges $0.90 per 1,000 extra emails; Scale is $90/mo for 100,000 emails/month. For small teams, Emitlo is cheaper once you are paying purely for volume, while Resend costs more but adds higher fixed quotas, more domains, and no daily limit. Resend becomes more expensive as you move above the included email band; Emitlo scales more linearly from the start.
Cost at real usage
| Usage | Emitlo | Resend |
|---|---|---|
| 12,000 emails/moEmitlo’s free tier is already sized around this level for early signups, but pricing-wise its paid rate would be about $1.80. | ~$1.80/mo | Free (within tier) |
| 50,000 emails/moResend Pro includes 50,000 emails/month. | ~$7.50/mo | $20/mo |
| 100,000 emails/moResend Scale includes 100,000 emails/month. Extra emails beyond plan quotas are $0.90/1,000 on Resend; Emitlo stays at $0.15/1,000. | ~$15.00/mo | $90/mo |
| 200,000 emails/moResend does not provide enough detail here to confirm exact overage math beyond the stated $0.90/1,000 extra emails on Pro and Scale, so this is an estimate based on the published overage rate. | ~$30.00/mo | ~$180/mo |
Estimates, not quotes. Usage-based rates change - verify with the vendor's pricing page before committing.
When to pick each one
Pick Emitlo when…
- You need the larger free sending cap for a small app, newsletter, or transactional stream.
- You want REST or SMTP plus deliverability basics without paying yet.
- You mainly care about email volume and can work within 3 domains and 14 days of logs.
- You do not need SDKs, React Email, or built-in scheduling in the free tier.
Pick Resend when…
- You want the broader developer toolkit on the free plan, including SDKs and React Email.
- You need scheduled emails, batch sending, or automation runs before paying.
- You want ticket support included in free.
- You are comfortable with a smaller free quota of 3,000 emails per month and 1 custom domain.
Bottom line
For the most common builder case, Resend is the better free-tier pick if you care about the surrounding developer workflow, not just raw send volume. Its free plan is smaller, but it gives you SDKs, React Email, scheduling, tracking, automation runs, and ticket support. Emitlo is the better choice when the free-tier job is straightforward email delivery and your main constraint is sending more messages before paying. If you expect to stay under 3,000 emails a month, Resend is broader; if you need more free volume, Emitlo is the safer fit.
Read the full listings: Emitlo and Resend. Scores use the FTV methodology at /ftv. Browse more head-to-heads on /compare, or see the top-ranked free tiers on /top.