MailerQ vs Bird Email (2026): which should you pick?

Pick MailerQ if

• Fits if you send millions of emails and run your own sending servers
• Makes sense if you want a console to manage IP warm-up and per-provider limits

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you want a hosted service, as it's software you install and run
• Pricey if you're small: €10,000 up front and €2,000 a year after
• Tight if you send a lot on Regular, which stops at 100K emails an hour and 10 domains
• Watch out: the trial length isn't stated, and the pages don't name supported operating systems

Pick Bird Email if

• Fits if your app sends texts or WhatsApp messages alongside email
• Works for apps that give AI agents mailboxes of their own

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you want a fixed monthly allowance, since every email draws on a balance shared with other Bird products
• Pricey if you need a dedicated IP, which starts with the $250 Growth plan
• Tight if you're staying free, at 50 emails a day and 1 sending domain, and sending stops at the limit
• Watch out: Bird Email has its own API, so SparkPost integrations need reviewing before you move traffic

MailerQ

• It is software you install and run on your own servers; the vendor describes it as on-premise, and it uses RabbitMQ and a MySQL or PostgreSQL database.
• Prices are in euros, per instance. Updates and support are an extra yearly charge of 20% of the license fee.
• The Regular license caps sending at 100K emails per hour and 10 domains.
• The pages do not name supported operating systems.

Bird Email

• Bird Email has its own API: Bird says SparkPost integrations should be reviewed with an account team before moving traffic.
• Paid plans are deposits, not allowances: every email is charged at the plan's rate, and other Bird products draw on the same balance.
• Dedicated IPs and IP pools start with the $250 Growth plan.
• The free plan is limited to 50 emails a day and 1 sending domain.

MailerQ

Management console

A web console shows delivery attempts, queues, error logs and statistics per IP, target domain or tag, and lets you change deliverability settings.

Throttling and flood patterns

Sets delivery rates for each source IP and target domain, and slows or pauses sending when a receiving server answers with rate-limit messages.

IP warm-up schedules

Throttle schedules define the sending rate to use on each day for a new IP address.

Bounce and feedback processing

Response patterns classify bounces, process feedback loops and trigger follow-up actions such as retrying or failing a delivery.

Email authentication

Supports DKIM, SPF, DMARC, TLS and ARC, according to the vendor.

REST API and injection methods

Messages can be injected in five ways, including AMQP, and a REST API can pause or cancel selected deliveries.

Bird Email

Email API, SMTP, SDKs and MCP

Send through the API or SMTP relay, with typed SDKs for TypeScript, Python, Go and PHP, a CLI and a hosted MCP server for AI assistants.

Mailboxes for agents

Mailboxes that send, receive and store email for your app or AI agents: 5 on Free, 10 on Startup, 25 on Growth and 100 on Scale.

Deliverability controls

DKIM signing, SPF alignment, DMARC setup, suppression lists and managed dedicated IPs warmed over about 30 days, from the Growth plan.

Analytics and signed webhooks

Delivery, bounce, complaint, open and click data by domain, inbox provider and IP, plus signed, replay-protected webhooks for every event.

Templates and campaigns

Send raw HTML or React Email templates, and run broadcasts to opted-in audiences from the same platform.

One API for other channels

The same send call and webhook format cover Bird's SMS, WhatsApp and voice products, so a code can fall back from email to text.

MailerQ

• Regular€10,000

  one-time fee per instance

  Perpetual license: 100K emails per hour, 10 domains, management console. Updates and support cost €2,000 a year.

• Enterprise€25,000

  one-time fee per instance

  Perpetual license: unlimited emails per hour and domains, management console. Updates and support cost €5,000 a year.

Bird Email

• Free$0

  1,000 emails a month and 50 a day, 1 sending domain, 5 mailboxes, inbound email and templates.

• Startup$15

  per month, deposited to your balance; email at $0.40 per 1,000

  About 37,500 transactional emails if the whole deposit goes on email. 10 sending domains, 10 mailboxes, no daily limit; unused balance carries forward.

• Growth$250

  per month, deposited to your balance; email at $0.45 per 1,000

  About 555,555 emails from the deposit. 500 sending domains, up to 5 dedicated IPs and IP pools, 25 mailboxes, 10 webhook endpoints.

• Scale$1,000

  per month and up, deposited to your balance; $0.35 per 1,000 at $1,000

  Deposits of $1,000, $2,500, $5,000 or $10,000 a month; the page gives a rate only for the $1,000 step. 1,000 domains, up to 10 dedicated IPs, 100 mailboxes.