shouldiuse.io

VERDICT

Should I use SendPortal?

Modern open source email marketing and newsletter software. Free to use. - sendportal.io

Depends. Buy it if you can run and maintain your own server and want unlimited sends without per-subscriber fees. Skip it if you want a hosted, hands-off Mailchimp replacement or lack technical staff.

Confidence

Medium. Based on 14 public sources; mostly launch coverage and directory listings, no independent user reviews.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support qualityNo support evidence found
  • Security posture

Pricing

Free

Self-hosted open source

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed
Free tierYes

Best for

  • Cost-conscious newsletter senders
  • Teams with Laravel or PHP skills
  • High-volume senders using SES or Mailgun
  • Privacy-minded self-hosters

Not for

  • Non-technical teams wanting zero maintenance
  • Anyone needing vendor-managed deliverability help
  • Companies without anyone to run a server
  • Buyers requiring published security and compliance docs

Gotchas - check before you buy

high

Self-hosting makes deliverability, updates, backups, and compliance your problem

medium

Free software, paid delivery: your SMTP provider bills per send

medium

No security page published; vet the code yourself before trusting it

low

Unlimited sends still capped by your sending provider's limits

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Free, open source, self-hosted — no subscriber limits
  • Unlimited everything: subscribers, campaigns, emails
  • Integrates with SES, Postmark, SendGrid, Mailgun, Mailjet
  • Pitched as huge savings versus Mailchimp and Campaign Monitor
  • Built on Laravel by the agency Mettle

Cons

  • You host, update, and troubleshoot everything yourself
  • Young product; first covered June 2020 with no review base
  • No published security page
  • Depends on external SMTP providers you pay separately

Sources & method

Analyzed 9/21/2026 - 5 sources - No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

official x1review x1security x1news x2

Key stats

  • Value for money: 5/5

    Rating

  • Free

    Starting price

  • 5

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 5/5. Free and unlimited; you only pay SMTP costs
  • Ease of use: 4/5. Vendor claims fast, beautiful; independently unverified
  • Feature depth: 3/5. Core newsletters and campaigns; no advanced automation evidence
  • Support quality. No support evidence found
  • Security posture: 2/5. No security page; self-hosting shifts risk to you
  • Free Starting price Open source, self-hosted
  • Yes Free tier Unlimited everything claimed
  • 5 Delivery integrations SES, Postmark, SendGrid, Mailgun, Mailjet
  • June 2020 First covered Laravel News launch coverage

Pricing

Self-hosted open source

Free

  • Unlimited subscribers and campaigns claimed
  • Bring your own SMTP: SES, Mailgun, SendGrid, Postmark, Mailjet

Security

No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

What users say

No independent user reviews found; coverage is limited to launch news and directory listings.

Alternatives

Compare SendPortal with each alternative.

  • Plain spreadsheet

    Tiny lists need no email platform at all

Full analysis

Based on 14 public sources; mostly launch coverage and directory listings, no independent user reviews.

Free self-hosted Mailchimp alternative. Great if you run servers; wrong pick if you want plug-and-play.

Methodology

Based on 14 public sources; mostly launch coverage and directory listings, no independent user reviews.

Sources

  1. SendPortal official sitesendportal.io
    official
  2. SendPortal security pagesendportal.io
    security
  3. Laravel News: SendPortal launch coveragelaravel-news.com
    news
  4. Medevel: 11 free open-source newsletter toolsmedevel.com
    review
  5. Laravel News Podcast mentionfeeds.transistor.fm
    news

Rate this review

Anonymous. You can change your vote.

Loading votes…

Comments

One queue. No nested comments. Give a display name first. Limit: 200 words per comment and 7 comments per day. You can edit or delete yours.

Save a name to write a comment.

0 / 200 words

No comments yet.