mailboxlayer vs ZeroBounce (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, ZeroBounce grades higher than mailboxlayer: 2.4 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
mailboxlayer grades higher on value for money. ZeroBounce grades higher on features, ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on the free plan.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
mailboxlayer
Email validation API that returns a JSON quality score
ZeroBounce
Email list verification with warm-up and DMARC monitoring in one plan
Which one is for you
Pick mailboxlayer if
- Fits if you are a developer who wants to check addresses at sign-up
- Works for side projects that stay under 100 requests a month
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you want to upload a list, because there is only an API
- Tight if you stay free, with 100 non-commercial requests
- Pricey if you want bulk: it starts at $74.99 a month
- Watch out: the homepage text mentions 1,000 free requests and $9.99 plans that the pricing page does not show
- Watch out: every address counts as one request
Pick ZeroBounce if
- Fits if you want list cleaning, warm-up and DMARC for one domain on one bill
- Works for developers who want an API with SDKs in 16 languages, or checks from an iPhone or iPad
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you only need a list cleaned, at about $129 for 10,000 checks
- Tight if you send from several domains, as ONE watches DMARC for just one
- Watch out: unused tests, monitors and warm-up seeds on ONE don't roll over, only verification credits do
- Watch out: the free 100 checks a month need a business email domain at sign-up
- Not for you if you're on Android or a desktop, as the only app is for iPhone and iPad
How we grade them
| 1.8GPAmailboxlayerWeak | 2.4GPAZeroBounceFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CBasic is $14.99 a month for 5,000 requests, between the $10 cheaper quarter and the $17.99 middle. Professional Plus is $74.99 and Enterprise Plus $249.99, all billed monthly with yearly at a discount. | DAbout $129 for a one-off pack of 10,000 checks, or $79 a month billed yearly on ONE for 10,000 credits a month with warm-up and DMARC included. Its listed rivals charge $39 to $70 for 10,000, so even ONE is the dearest way to check a list. |
| Free plan and trial | CFree is 100 API requests, non-commercial, with no support and no catch-all detection. Commercial use needs Basic. | CA free plan: 100 checks a month that refill, plus one inbox test, one server test and one blacklist monitor. You need a business email to get it, and 100 checks won't clean a list. |
| Features | CSyntax, SMTP, disposable and role checks with a score. No list upload exists, and catch-all detection and bulk need paid plans. | BIt covers all three jobs: validation with spam-trap and abuse flags, AI scoring and an email finder, then on ONE, warm-up seeds, 100 inbox tests, blacklist monitors and DMARC reports. DMARC covers just one domain, though. |
| Ease of use | DNo store rating on record. It is an API only, so you need code to use it. | BNo App Store rating on record. The core job needs nothing set up: upload a list and download it cleaned. There's an iPhone and iPad app for checking lists away from your desk, too. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb API only. No apps and no integrations are listed. | BWeb and an iOS app, an API with SDKs in 16 languages and an MCP server, plus Mailchimp and Zapier. No Android or desktop app. |
| Best for | an email check API for developers | list cleaning with warm-up and DMARC on one bill |
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: mailboxlayer and ZeroBounce. How we grade
Where they differ
- ZeroBounce also covers inbox warm-up and dMARC.
At a glance
| mailboxlayer | ZeroBounce | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $14.99 per month for 5,000 requests | $39 one-time for 2,000 verification credits |
| Free plan | 100 API requests, for non-commercial use only. | Freemium: 100 verification credits a month for sign-ups with a business email domain, plus 1 inbox test, 1 server test, 1 blacklist monitor and 10 Email Finder searches. No warm-up or DMARC. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Made by | APILayer | ZeroBounce |
| Price read from | mailboxlayer.com | zerobounce.net |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Worth knowing
mailboxlayer
- An API only: there is no list upload or bulk cleaning page, and the bulk endpoint starts at Professional Plus.
- The free plan is 100 requests and non-commercial; the homepage text mentions 1,000 free monthly requests and subscriptions from $9.99, which the pricing page does not show.
- Each address checked counts as one API request; overage is listed as a per-request charge on the pricing page.
- Yearly billing is discounted by 10% to 15% depending on the plan.
ZeroBounce
- Warm-up and DMARC monitoring come only with ZeroBounce ONE, and it covers a single DMARC domain.
- Unused tests, monitors, searches and warm-up seeds on ONE do not roll over; only verification credits do.
- The FAQ says credits never expire with an active ONE subscription; otherwise expiry rules may apply depending on when they were bought.
- The free credits need a business or premium email domain at sign-up.
Key features
mailboxlayer
- Syntax and typo check
- Validates format and returns a did-you-mean suggestion for common typos.
- Real-time SMTP check
- Pings the address's mail server and tests it for catch-all configuration; catch-all detection is not in the free plan.
- Free and disposable filters
- A daily-updated provider database flags addresses at free providers such as Gmail and at disposable ones such as Mailinator.
- Role detection
- Flags role addresses that map to a function instead of a person.
- Quality score
- Each response includes a numeric score for the address's quality and deliverability.
- Usage statistics
- Daily and monthly request counts, with notifications when a plan's allowance runs low.
ZeroBounce
- Email validation
- Checks lists by file upload or real-time API and flags invalid, catch-all, disposable, role-based, abuse and spam-trap addresses. Unknown results and duplicates are free.
- AI scoring
- An AI model scores each address for quality at one extra credit, which helps decide whether to send to catch-all and other uncertain addresses.
- Email Finder
- Finds a person's work address from a name and company domain, at 20 credits per successful search; unknown results cost nothing.
- Warm-up and placement tests
- ZeroBounce ONE includes warm-up through a seed network, inbox placement tests against 20+ providers and email server tests.
- Blacklist and DMARC monitoring
- Monitors IPs and domains on blacklists and gathers daily DMARC reports for one domain on the ONE plan.
- API, SDKs and iOS app
- A validation and scoring API with SDKs in 16 languages, an MCP server, and an iOS app for checking lists from an iPhone or iPad.
Plans
mailboxlayer
Free$0
100 API requests, non-commercial use, no support, no catch-all detection.
Basic$14.99
per month for 5,000 requests, billed monthly
Commercial use, standard support and catch-all detection. Yearly billing is $161.99.
Professional Plus$74.99
per month for 50,000 requests, billed monthly
Adds a bulk endpoint that takes 25 emails at a time. Yearly billing is $787.99.
Enterprise Plus$249.99
per month for 250,000 requests, billed monthly
Bulk endpoint of 100 emails per call. Yearly billing is $2,549.99.
CustomCustom
Unlimited requests and dedicated support, quoted by the vendor.
ZeroBounce
Freemium$0
100 verification credits that refill each month, one inbox placement test, one server test and one blacklist monitor.
Pay-As-You-Go$39
one-time for 2,000 credits
The minimum purchase. Per-credit rates fall with volume: about $129 for 10,000 ($0.0129 each) and $0.0032 each at 1 million.
ZeroBounce ONE$79
per month for 10,000 credits, billed annually ($99 monthly)
Credits roll over, plus 250 warm-up seeds, 100 inbox tests, 100 server tests, 10 blacklist monitors, 1 DMARC domain and 15% off extra credits.
EnterpriseCustom
Purchases or subscriptions of more than 1 million credits, with onboarding and training.
Ways to pay less
mailboxlayer
- Annual discount
Save 10% to 15% with yearly billing
The pricing page shows yearly totals with discounts of 10% (Basic), 12.5% (Professional Plus) and 15% (Enterprise Plus).
ZeroBounce
- Annual discount
20% off ZeroBounce ONE billed annually
ZeroBounce ONE costs $79 a month when paid annually in one charge, against $99 billed monthly.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, mailboxlayer or ZeroBounce?
As of Nov 12, 2026, mailboxlayer starts at $14.99 per month for 5,000 requests, and ZeroBounce starts at $39 one-time for 2,000 verification credits.
Which has a free plan, mailboxlayer or ZeroBounce?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both mailboxlayer and ZeroBounce have a free plan.
Which platforms do mailboxlayer and ZeroBounce run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only ZeroBounce lists an iOS app. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
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.