Sendy
Sendy is a self-hosted, PHP/MySQL email newsletter platform sold via a one-time $69 license, using Amazon SES for delivery at ~$1 per 10,000 emails. It serves thousands of newsletter publishers, agencies, and SMBs globally seeking a low-cost alternative to SaaS email tools.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded-
- HeadquartersNairobi, Kenya
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Sendy does
Sendy is a self-hosted email newsletter and marketing platform founded before 2012 and headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya. The product is a PHP/MySQL application that customers install on their own web servers and connect to Amazon SES (or alternative SMTP providers such as SendGrid, Mailjet, or Elastic Email) for email delivery. The platform supports drag-and-drop and WYSIWYG email composition, list segmentation, autoresponders/drip campaigns, custom fields, rules and webhooks, white-labeled multi-brand client accounts, and (as of v7.x) an optional AI Assistant add-on powered by OpenAI that generates newsletter copy, subject lines, content improvements, and report summaries.
Sendy monetizes through a one-time perpetual software license of $69, with optional add-ons including an AI Assistant bundle priced at $39–$49 and a paid installation service for $79. Email-sending costs are passed through directly to Amazon SES at approximately $1 per 10,000 emails, which is the basis of Sendy's value proposition of being ~100x cheaper than SaaS alternatives. The product is sold exclusively via direct website purchase (sendy.co) with a $12-per-sale affiliate program and organic word-of-mouth as the primary growth channels; no external funding, parent company, or acquisitions are disclosed.
The company is privately held and bootstrapped, employing 11–50 people, and is used by "thousands worldwide" including notable newsletter operators such as John Gruber's Daring Fireball and Panic. Distribution is global with no geographic restrictions, and customer support is delivered through an active community forum and direct channels. Management information, revenue figures, corporate registration details, and headcount specifics beyond a 11–50 range are not publicly disclosed.
Sendy firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Sendy
- Legal name
- Sendy
- Website
- https://sendy.co
- Company type
- Private
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Sendy is a self-hosted, PHP/MySQL email newsletter platform sold via a one-time $69 license, using Amazon SES for delivery at ~$1 per 10,000 emails. It serves thousands of newsletter publishers, agencies, and SMBs globally seeking a low-cost alternative to SaaS email tools.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Sendy industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Email Marketing Software
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (5132)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Email Marketing Services (Campaigns, Deliverability, Lifecycle) (BPAFAKAB)
Keywords
Where Sendy is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Nairobi
- HQ country
- Kenya
- HQ region
- Africa
Markets served
Sendy business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Software License: One-time payment for Sendy software license ($69). Customer owns the software indefinitely with free updates to the next major version.
- AI Assistant Add-on: Optional bundle with AI Assistant add-on for enhanced features including AI-generated emails and subject lines. Sold as optional add-on.
- Installation Service: Optional paid installation service ($79) for customers who prefer not to set up the software themselves.
- Email Sending Costs: While not revenue to Sendy directly, customers pay Amazon SES approximately $1 per 10,000 emails sent. Sendy's cost advantage comes from not charging platform fees.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Base Sendy License - One-time payment for self-hosted email marketing platform |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | AI Assistant Bundle - Optional add-on for AI-powered email features |
| Unit Pricing | One time/ perpetual license | Installation Service - Optional professional setup |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels4 records
Sendy product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Sendy is a self-hosted email newsletter and marketing platform sold as a one-time $69 perpetual license, designed to send bulk emails via Amazon SES at approximately $1 per 10,000 emails. It provides drag-and-drop email editing, campaign analytics, list segmentation, autoresponders, multi-brand management with white-labeled client accounts, and an optional AI Assistant add-on powered by OpenAI. Customers install the software on their own servers, eliminating monthly SaaS fees and subscriber-based pricing.
Product overview
Sendy is a self-hosted email newsletter platform consisting of a core software product sold as a one-time payment ($69), augmented by optional add-ons. The core Sendy platform (currently v7.x) enables users to send bulk email newsletters via Amazon SES at $1 per 10,000 emails. Optional add-ons include the AI Assistant bundle ($39-$49) which adds AI-powered newsletter generation, subject line creation, and campaign analysis using OpenAI; an Installation Service ($79) for guided setup; and v7.x license upgrades for existing users. Sendy also works natively with SendGrid, Mailjet, and Elastic Email as alternative SMTP providers.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Sendy (Core Platform) Self-hosted email newsletter and marketing platform sold as a one-time $69 perpetual license. Customers install the software on their own web servers and send bulk emails via Amazon SES at approximately $1 per 10,000 emails, with no monthly fees, no subscriber limits, and no SaaS lock-in. Includes drag-and-drop editor, campaign analytics, list segmentation, autoresponders, custom fields, multi-brand management with white-labeled client accounts, rules and webhooks, and real-time bounce and complaint handling. Designed for newsletter publishers, agencies, and growing businesses seeking low-cost bulk email delivery.
- AI Assistant Add-on Optional AI-powered add-on bundle for Sendy ($39-$49) that generates complete HTML email newsletters, creates AI-powered subject lines to improve open rates, reviews and improves email content, and analyzes campaign reports. Powered by OpenAI via a user-provided API key at wholesale rates without Sendy markup. Sold separately from the core Sendy license.
- Installation Service Optional paid professional installation service ($79) where Sendy's team installs the software on the customer's server. Option 1 installs on existing Apache/Linux web hosting with 3,000 free emails per month via Amazon SES for one year. Option 2 installs on an Amazon EC2 server with free EC2 hosting and 3,000 free emails per month for one year. Designed for non-technical users who cannot self-install.
Companies that use Sendy
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Sendy technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration4 records
AI capability3 records
Feature7 records
Sendy partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Amazon Web Services (SES)coreAmazon SES is the primary email sending infrastructure for Sendy. Sendy is specifically designed to work with Amazon SES to deliver emails at approximately $1 per 10,000 emails. This partnership is fundamental to Sendy's value proposition of being 100x cheaper than SaaS alternatives.
- ZapiercoreSendy integrates with Zapier, enabling connection to thousands of applications in Zapier's app directory for automation workflows.
- OpenAIcoreSendy's AI Assistant feature uses OpenAI API. Unlike competitors that markup AI usage costs, Sendy passes through OpenAI pricing at wholesale rates, requiring users to bring their own API key.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Sendy competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- GetResponse: Long-standing email marketing platform with autoresponders, landing pages, and webinar/automation tools. Directly competes for SMB and mid-market senders Sendy targets.
- MailerLite: Low-cost email marketing SaaS targeting SMBs and bloggers. Closest subscription-based competitor to Sendy on price-conscious newsletter senders, particularly operators without technical capacity for self-hosting.
- Brevo (formerly Sendinblue): Full-stack email marketing and automation platform with transactional and marketing capabilities. Competes for SMB marketing teams with usage-based pricing positioned as a cost-flexible alternative to traditional ESPs.
- Mailchimp: Market-leading email marketing and newsletter SaaS platform, and Sendy's most-cited competitor in customer testimonials. Competes head-to-head for SMB and creator newsletter senders, but with a recurring subscription model vs. Sendy's one-time license.
- Moosend: SMB-focused email marketing platform with automation and landing page builder, marketed on affordability — analogous positioning to Sendy but delivered as SaaS rather than self-hosted software.
- AWeber: Established email marketing service for SMBs and creators, focused on newsletter automation, landing pages, and sign-up tools. Operates in the same competitive set as Sendy from the SaaS side of the market.
- Kit (ConvertKit): Email marketing platform purpose-built for creators and newsletter publishers — the same primary use case Sendy serves. Competes on deliverability, automation, and creator workflows, though as a SaaS subscription product.
Emerging players
- Substack: Newsletter-first publishing platform with native email delivery and paid subscriptions. Adjacent to Sendy as both serve independent newsletter operators, though Substack owns publishing/subscription rather than supplying sending infrastructure.
- Beehiiv: Newsletter publishing platform with built-in email sending, monetization, and audience growth tooling. Targets the same newsletter-operator end user as Sendy but with an end-to-end publishing-vs-tooling orientation.
Broad incumbents
- SendGrid (Twilio): Email infrastructure platform and ESP within the Twilio ecosystem; Sendy integrates with SendGrid as a SMTP alternative. Overlaps in delivery and basic marketing features, but SendGrid's broader orientation is developer/transactional email at scale.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Sendy social profiles
Digital presenceSendy financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Sendy leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Sendy funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Sendy M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Sendy
What does Sendy do?
Sendy is a self-hosted email newsletter and marketing platform sold as a one-time $69 perpetual license, designed to send bulk emails via Amazon SES at approximately $1 per 10,000 emails. It provides drag-and-drop email editing, campaign analytics, list segmentation, autoresponders, multi-brand management with white-labeled client accounts, and an optional AI Assistant add-on powered by OpenAI. Customers install the software on their own servers, eliminating monthly SaaS fees and subscriber-based pricing.
Is Sendy a public or private company?
Sendy is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Sendy founded?
Sendy was founded in -1. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Sendy based?
Sendy is headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, in the Africa region.
How does Sendy make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Software License is the primary driver. The others are AI Assistant Add-on, installation Service and email Sending Costs.
Who are Sendy's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are GetResponse, MailerLite, Brevo (formerly Sendinblue), Mailchimp, Moosend, AWeber and Kit (ConvertKit). Emerging players are Substack and Beehiiv. SendGrid (Twilio) is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does Sendy have an API?
Yes. Sendy provides a public API enabling programmatic subscription management, campaign sending, and integration with external applications. The API supports subscriber import/export, list management, and campaign automation. Users can subscribe users programmatically via API and integrate with Zapier for connectivity to thousands of third-party applications.
What industry is Sendy in?
Sendy's product category is Email Marketing Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAFAKAB, Email Marketing Services (Campaigns, Deliverability, Lifecycle). Its NAICS code is 5132 and its SIC code is 7372.