Mail-Tester vs MxToolbox (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Mail-Tester grades higher than MxToolbox: 2.8 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Mail-Tester grades higher on value for money, the free plan, ease of use and platforms. MxToolbox grades higher on features.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Mail-Tester
Send an email to a test address and get a spam score out of 10
MxToolbox
Email and DNS lookups plus blacklist and DMARC monitoring
Which one is for you
Pick Mail-Tester if
- Fits if you want to check one newsletter or template before sending
- Works for developers who want the score inside their own tool
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you test more than 3 times a day on free, with results kept for 7 days
- Skip it if you want ongoing monitoring, since it tests one message at a time
- Watch out: the score comes from SpamAssassin and other spam filters differ
- Watch out: prices exclude VAT
Pick MxToolbox if
- Fits if you want to be told when your sending domain lands on a blacklist
- Works for teams that want DMARC, inbox placement and blacklists in one tool
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you are one person: the first paid plan is $129 a month
- Tight if you stay free, as it is weekly blacklist checks for 1 domain
- Tight if you want more domains, since both paid plans cover 5
- Watch out: managed services are not priced, and the page gives no billing basis
How we grade them
| 2.8GPAMail-TesterGood | 2.0GPAMxToolboxFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BSubscriptions start at $10 a month for 50 tests, level with the $10 cheaper quarter of deliverability tools. A 10-test pack is $5, and prices exclude VAT. | DDelivery Center is $129 a month for 5 domains and Plus is $399, above the $99 where the dearest tenth of deliverability tools starts. The page does not say if it is billed monthly or yearly. |
| Free plan and trial | B3 tests in any 24 hours with no account, results kept for 7 days. One person checking now and then can live on that. | CFree is weekly blacklist monitoring for 1 domain. Inbox placement, DMARC reports and anything beyond that are paid. |
| Features | CA spam score, a configuration report and a JSON API. It uses a stock SpamAssassin setup, so a perfect score does not guarantee inbox placement, and it does one message at a time. It does that job fully, and it is a smaller job. | BInbox placement, blacklist monitoring, DMARC, SPF and DKIM management, complaints and mailflow in one place. It covers a wide job, and managed services are not priced. |
| Ease of use | BNo store rating on record. You send a mail to a displayed address and read the result, so there is nothing to set up. | CNo store rating on record. You add domains and records and read the monitors, so there is setup. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, with a JSON API, an iframe and white-labeling. No desktop or phone app. | CWeb only. Google Postmaster Tools is the one integration listed. |
| Best for | checking one email's spam score | blacklist and DMARC monitoring for a domain |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Mail-Tester and MxToolbox. How we grade
Price against what you get
Mail-Tester starts at $10 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. MxToolbox starts at $129 a month and scores 2.3.
Mail-Tester scores higher and starts $119 a month lower. Of the other email verification and deliverability tools on the chart, none scores higher than Mail-Tester for less, and 8 score higher than MxToolbox for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- MxToolbox also covers dMARC.
At a glance
| Mail-Tester | MxToolbox | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $10 per month for 50 tests; or $5 once for 10 tests | $129 per month |
| Free plan | Free web interface: 3 tests per 24 hours, results kept for 7 days. | Weekly blacklist monitoring for 1 domain. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Mail Tester LLC | MXToolBox, Inc |
| Price read from | mail-tester.com | mxtoolbox.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Mail-Tester
- Scores come from a stock SpamAssassin setup; the FAQ says other spam filters differ, so a perfect score does not guarantee inbox placement.
- The free version allows 3 tests in 24 hours and keeps results for 7 days; an account with your own prefix keeps them 30 days.
- Prices exclude VAT.
- It tests one message at a time and does not monitor sending over time.
MxToolbox
- The free plan monitors one domain, weekly; inbox placement and DMARC reports are paid.
- Both paid plans cover 5 domains; Plus raises the message volume, not the domain count.
- The page shows a monthly price and does not say whether it is billed monthly or annually.
- Managed services pricing is not listed.
Key features
Mail-Tester
- Spam score
- Scores a sent message out of 10 using a default SpamAssassin install, with the sign reversed so that a higher score is better.
- Configuration report
- Reviews the message, the mail server and the sending IP, and lists what is set up correctly and what is not.
- JSON API and iframe
- Paid plans let you embed mail-tester results in your own software.
- White-labeling and custom CSS
- Accounts can restyle the result page and fully white-label it, after contacting the company to authorize their domain.
- Usage statistics and history
- Daily, weekly and monthly usage statistics and a list of the last 30 days of tests, with no ads on results.
MxToolbox
- Inbox placement analysis
- Checks a campaign for placement at inbox providers such as Google and Outlook.com and reviews it against Google, Microsoft and Yahoo bulk sender requirements.
- Adaptive blacklist monitoring
- Monitors sending IP addresses, including third-party senders, against more than 100 blacklists.
- DMARC, SPF and DKIM management
- Analysis and management tools for moving to a reject policy, adopting BIMI and watching compliance. SPF flattening is on the Plus plan.
- Recipient complaints
- Pulls feedback from Google Postmaster Tools, feedback loops and other complaint mechanisms.
- Mailflow monitoring
- Round-trip monitoring of sending and receiving latency with alerts based on thresholds.
- Managed services
- A done-for-you service covers inbox placement, blacklist monitoring, SPF/DKIM setup and DMARC enforcement.
Plans
Mail-Tester
Free web interface$0
3 tests in any 24 hours, no account needed, results available for 7 days.
10 Tests$5
one-time
A pack of 10 extra tests at $0.50 each. Larger one-time packs run up to 15,000 tests for $700.
50 Tests / Month$10
per month for 50 tests
Subscription with an account; $0.20 per test.
500 Tests / Month$25
per month for 500 tests
$0.05 per test.
2,000 Tests / Month$80
per month for 2,000 tests
Marked most popular on the page; $0.04 per test.
7,500 Tests / Month$250
per month for 7,500 tests
$0.0333 per test. A 25,000-plus tier is quoted on request.
MxToolbox
Free$0
Blacklist monitoring, run weekly, for 1 domain.
Delivery Center$129
per month for 5 domains and 500,000 messages (billing basis not shown)
30 inbox placement analyses a month, complaint reporting, DMARC reports, SPF/DKIM analysis, BIMI management, impersonation protection, mailflow monitoring.
Delivery Center Plus$399
per month for 5 domains and 5M messages (billing basis not shown)
100 inbox placement analyses a month, plus advanced delivery threat tools and SPF flattening on top of Delivery Center.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Mail-Tester or MxToolbox?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Mail-Tester is cheaper to start with: $10 a month, against $129 a month for MxToolbox. Mail-Tester starts at $10 per month for 50 tests; or $5 once for 10 tests, and MxToolbox starts at $129 per month.
Which has a free plan, Mail-Tester or MxToolbox?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Mail-Tester and MxToolbox have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.