AWS's pay-as-you-go email sending service (SMTP and API)
Not connected to Webstudio directly: used as SMTP/API backend for Listmonk, Sendy, Keila and n8n (AWS SES node) workflows triggered by Webstudio forms. Bounces/complaints via SNS topics posting to Listmonk/Sendy webhooks.
Research summary · Use case: Sending backend for Listmonk, Sendy or app emails
Verdict: Amazon SES is the engine behind the cheapest newsletter stacks: Listmonk or Sendy plus SES costs a fraction of hosted tools. It is deliberately bare and AWS onboarding can be frustrating, with approval denials that are not always explained. Use it when cost matters and someone technical can handle setup; pick Postmark when deliverability and support matter more than price.
Cheapest sending at $0.10/1k; huge scale; supported by every newsletter tool; detailed event data via SNS.
Sandbox and production-access approval can be opaque; you build suppression and bounce handling; shared IP reputation; AWS console complexity.
Best for: Cost-sensitive senders with technical help, as backend for Listmonk/Sendy
- https://aws.amazon.com/ses/pricing/ - https://repost.aws/knowledge-center/ses-production-access-request-faq - https://www.g2.com/products/amazon-simple-email-service-amazon-ses/reviews - https://www.capterra.com/p/179662/Amazon-SES/reviews/ - https://repost.aws/questions/QUGgbtKyiCRESv78q35aqGFA/we-couldn-t-be-more-harmless-and-serious-but-ses-keeps-denying-production-access
Verify the domain in SES (DKIM, custom MAIL FROM), get production access, create SMTP credentials and add them in Listmonk Settings > SMTP (email-smtp.<region>.amazonaws.com:587, STARTTLS) with a sensible rate limit. For bounces: SNS topic for bounces/complaints with HTTPS subscription to /webhooks/service/ses and enable SES bounce processing in Listmonk.
Enter AWS IAM access keys in Sendy settings; Sendy verifies identities and sends via the SES API. Set up SNS bounce and complaint topics pointing to Sendy's endpoints (Sendy can create them automatically). v7 shows SES enforcement status in the sidebar.
AWS SES node sends templated or plain emails (notifications, lead confirmations) with IAM credentials scoped to ses:SendEmail.
Each SES tenant can now have its own suppression list, so bounces and complaints from one tenant no longer block delivery for others in the same account. Scope (tenant or account) and the suppression reasons are configurable, and the suppression APIs accept a tenant name.
Why it matters: Agencies sending for several clients from one AWS account can keep one client's bad list from hurting the others.
Amazon SES now estimates the share of mail landing in spam folders using sampled industry data, broken down by sending domain and campaign. It also offers pre-send placement tests for draft content and passive monitoring of public blocklists for sending domains and IPs. The features build on Virtual Deliverability Manager.
Why it matters: Low-cost SES senders, including Sendy and listmonk users, get deliverability insight that used to need separate paid tools.
Sendy 7 brings a redesigned interface, a drag-and-drop email editor with templates, a file manager, an Amazon SES status indicator in the sidebar, and sending that Sendy says is about twice as fast. It also adds optional AI review tools. A new licence costs $69 and an upgrade costs $34; licences bought before 8 November 2025 need the upgrade. The official notes at sendy.co/get-updated show no release date, so the date here comes from this blog post.
Why it matters: Sendy plus SES is still one of the cheapest newsletter setups, and v7 removes the main reason to avoid it, the dated editor.