Aerosend Alternative: Official Provider IPs vs Aged SMTP

Aerosend builds private SMTP infrastructure with aged, pre-warmed IPs at $3.10-4.00 per inbox. MailDeck provides three infrastructure types: Microsoft 365 Outlook at $0.30/inbox, Google Workspace at $2.99/inbox, and Private SMTP at $0.50/inbox. These represent two fundamentally different approaches to cold email infrastructure: custom SMTP servers with aged IP reputation versus official provider IP pools with built-in trust.

MailDeck manages 833K+ inboxes across Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, and SMTP for 1,631+ clients, with 7.5M+ emails sent per day and a 98% inbox placement rate. Based on Q2 2026 MailDeck platform data.

Aerosend pricing verified on aerosend.io and cross-referenced with G2, Prospeo, and Primeforge reviews as of May 2026.

Quick Comparison

Pricing Comparison

Aerosend Pricing

Aerosend sells infrastructure in batches of 10 domains with 3 mailboxes per domain. Each batch runs on its own dedicated server with aged IPs.

All tiers include premium warmup via WarmupInbox.com, domain burn alerts, bi-weekly inbox placement tests, and 24/7 monitoring. Growth adds campaign creation support and access to 60+ database collections. Scale adds a dedicated Slack channel.

MailDeck Pricing

MailDeck covers three infrastructure types, each with its own pricing structure.

Microsoft 365 Outlook (100 inboxes per tenant):

Google Workspace:

Private SMTP (dedicated IP per client):

Diversified Stack (Outlook Premium + SMTP + Google combined):

Minimum orders: Outlook 2 tenants ($60/mo, 200 inboxes), SMTP 100 inboxes ($50/mo), Google 10 inboxes ($39/mo).

Cost at 100 Inboxes

At 100 inboxes, Aerosend costs $480/month. MailDeck Outlook Normal costs $30/month. That is a 16x difference for the same inbox count.

Comparing SMTP to SMTP directly: MailDeck Private SMTP costs $50/month for 100 inboxes. Aerosend costs $480/month for 120 mailboxes. The SMTP-to-SMTP gap is still 9.6x.

Cost at 500 Inboxes

At 500 inboxes, Aerosend costs $2,040/month. MailDeck Outlook Normal costs $150/month. MailDeck Private SMTP costs $250/month.

The SMTP-to-SMTP comparison: MailDeck at $250/month versus Aerosend at $2,040/month. That is an 8.2x price difference on equivalent infrastructure type. The annual savings on SMTP alone reach $21,480.

Cost at 1,000+ Inboxes

At 1,000 inboxes, Aerosend costs $4,080/month. MailDeck's Growth Diversified Stack costs $399/month for 1,130 inboxes across all three infrastructure types. That is a 10.2x cost difference while adding Microsoft and Google IP diversity.

For teams sending 200,000+ cold emails per month, the Diversified Stack spreads volume across Outlook, Google, and SMTP simultaneously. This approach reduces single-provider exposure. For a deeper analysis of infrastructure costs at scale, see our cold email infrastructure cost breakdown.

Infrastructure Comparison

SMTP vs SMTP: Like-with-Like

Both Aerosend and MailDeck offer private SMTP infrastructure. This is where a direct, apples-to-apples comparison is most useful.

Aerosend's SMTP advantage is throughput. With aged IPs that carry existing reputation, Aerosend supports 20-25 cold emails per mailbox per day. MailDeck SMTP supports 11-14. Aged IPs reduce the warmup window compared to fresh IPs that build reputation from zero.

MailDeck's SMTP advantage is cost. At $0.40-0.50/inbox versus $3.10-4.00/inbox, MailDeck SMTP costs 6-10x less per mailbox. To match Aerosend's daily volume from 30 mailboxes (600-750 emails/day), MailDeck SMTP would need approximately 50-55 inboxes. At MailDeck's pricing, those 55 inboxes cost $27.50/month versus Aerosend's $120/month for the same daily output.

The Additional Layer: Official Provider IPs

Beyond SMTP, MailDeck offers two infrastructure types that Aerosend does not provide at all.

Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace inboxes send through official provider IP pools. These IPs carry built-in trust because billions of legitimate emails flow through them daily. Corporate spam filters built for Exchange environments inherently trust emails arriving from Microsoft's own infrastructure. Google's sending infrastructure carries the highest trust score of any provider globally.

This is a different infrastructure philosophy from aged SMTP. Aerosend builds reputation through aged IPs with sending history. MailDeck's Outlook and Google inboxes inherit trust from the provider infrastructure itself.

For authentication setup across all three types, see our SPF, DKIM, DMARC configuration guide.

Infrastructure Diversification

Aerosend provides one infrastructure type: private SMTP. Every inbox, every domain, every email routes through the same server architecture.

MailDeck enables multi-provider diversification. The recommended approach splits volume across all three infrastructure types: Outlook for bulk SMB outreach, Google Workspace for enterprise C-suite targeting, and SMTP for volume buffer and testing.

The Diversified Stack plans formalize this. The Growth plan includes 1,000 Outlook Premium inboxes + 100 SMTP inboxes + 30 Google inboxes for $399/month. That is three distinct IP ecosystems under one provider.

Diversification protects against single-provider risk. If Microsoft tightens sending policies, Google and SMTP inboxes continue operating. If an SMTP IP encounters reputation issues, Outlook and Google inboxes maintain deliverability through their official pools. For more on this approach, see our infrastructure diversification guide.

Where MailDeck Falls Short

Aerosend holds two legitimate advantages as an inbox provider.

Higher SMTP sending limits per mailbox. Aerosend recommends 20-25 cold emails per mailbox per day on their SMTP infrastructure. MailDeck Private SMTP supports 11-14 cold emails per inbox per day. Aerosend's aged IP reputation enables higher per-mailbox throughput. To match Aerosend's daily volume from 30 mailboxes (600-750 emails/day), MailDeck SMTP requires approximately 50-55 inboxes. Those 55 inboxes cost $27.50/month at MailDeck's pricing versus Aerosend's $120/month for the equivalent daily output.

Aged IPs reduce initial SMTP warmup time. Aerosend's pre-warmed, aged IPs can start sending sooner than fresh SMTP IPs. MailDeck's Private SMTP requires 3-4 weeks of warmup to build reputation from zero. This warmup gap applies only to MailDeck's SMTP product. MailDeck's Outlook inboxes warm up in 3-7 days, Pre-Warmed Outlook inboxes are ready immediately, and Google Workspace requires 2-3 weeks.

Where MailDeck Wins

Lower cost per inbox across every infrastructure type. MailDeck Outlook Normal costs $0.30/inbox. Private SMTP costs $0.40-0.50/inbox. Google Workspace starts at $2.99/inbox. Aerosend costs $3.10-4.00/mailbox. At 500 inboxes, the annual savings with MailDeck Outlook Normal versus Aerosend total over $22,000. At 1,000 inboxes, that gap reaches $44,000+ per year.

Three infrastructure types under one provider. Aerosend provides private SMTP exclusively. MailDeck covers Microsoft 365 Outlook, Google Workspace, and Private SMTP. Teams can match their infrastructure to their target audience: Google for enterprise C-suite, Outlook for bulk SMB outreach, SMTP for volume buffer. The Diversified Stack plans combine all three into a single subscription.

Official provider IP pools. MailDeck's Outlook and Google Workspace inboxes route through official Microsoft and Google IP pools. These IPs carry built-in trust from every major receiving server. Aerosend's aged SMTP IPs carry imported reputation from their sending history, which is a genuine asset. The difference: official provider IPs carry institutional trust that does not degrade under load.

Lower minimum purchase. MailDeck's lowest entry point is 10 Google Workspace inboxes at $39/month. Outlook starts at 2 tenants (200 inboxes) for $60/month. SMTP starts at 100 inboxes for $50/month. Aerosend requires a minimum of 30 mailboxes at $120/month. MailDeck offers more flexibility for teams testing or scaling gradually.

More inboxes per domain. MailDeck Outlook tenants include 100 inboxes per domain. Aerosend provides 3 mailboxes per domain. At 300 inboxes, Aerosend needs 100 domains across 10 servers. MailDeck Outlook needs 3 domains across 3 tenants. Fewer domains means less DNS management overhead and fewer domains to monitor for burn signals.

Scale economics that widen at volume. At 100 inboxes, MailDeck Outlook Normal saves $450/month over Aerosend. At 1,000 inboxes, the savings reach $3,780/month. Aerosend's per-batch pricing means costs scale linearly. MailDeck's SMTP pricing drops from $0.50 to $0.40/inbox at 5,001+ inboxes, and the Diversified Stack provides further volume discounts.

Faster setup on two of three infrastructure types. MailDeck Google Workspace provisions instantly. MailDeck SMTP is ready in 24 hours. MailDeck Outlook takes 2-3 days. All include automated DNS configuration with full SPF, DKIM, and DMARC verification before the first email sends.

FAQ

How much does Aerosend cost per inbox?

Aerosend pricing ranges from $3.10 to $4.00 per mailbox depending on the tier. The Starter tier costs $4.00/mailbox ($120/month for 10 domains and 30 mailboxes). Growth drops to $3.73/mailbox at $112/month per batch. Scale costs $3.50/mailbox at $105/month per batch. All tiers include warmup, domain burn alerts, and bi-weekly placement tests. Minimum purchase is 30 mailboxes at $120/month.

Does Aerosend offer Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace inboxes?

No. Aerosend runs exclusively on private SMTP infrastructure with dedicated servers and aged IPs. MailDeck offers three infrastructure types: Microsoft 365 Outlook at $0.30-0.40/inbox (100 inboxes per tenant), Google Workspace at $2.99-3.90/inbox (5 inboxes per domain), and Private SMTP at $0.40-0.50/inbox with dedicated IPs per client.

What is Aerosend's sending limit per mailbox?

Aerosend recommends 20-25 cold emails per mailbox per day across all tiers. At 30 mailboxes (one batch), that equals 600-750 emails per day. MailDeck's sending limits vary by infrastructure: Outlook Normal allows 3-5 sends/day/inbox, Outlook Premium allows 8-10, Google Workspace allows 18-22, and Private SMTP allows 11-14.

Can I use Aerosend with Instantly or Smartlead?

Yes. Both providers are infrastructure-only and integrate with external sequencers via SMTP credentials. Aerosend supports Instantly, Smartlead, Lemlist, Saleshandy, and Woodpecker. MailDeck supports Instantly, Smartlead, Saleshandy, Apollo, Lemlist, Woodpecker, Reply.io, Snov.io, QuickMail, GMass, and any SMTP-compatible tool.

How do Aerosend's aged IPs compare to MailDeck's official provider IPs?

Aerosend uses aged, pre-warmed dedicated IPs that carry existing reputation from day one. This reduces warmup time and provides consistent sending performance. MailDeck uses three IP models: official Microsoft pools for Outlook (whitelisted by default), official Google pools for Google Workspace (highest global trust), and dedicated IPs per client for Private SMTP. Official provider IPs carry built-in trust from billions of daily legitimate emails. These are two different infrastructure philosophies, each with distinct advantages.

What is the cheapest way to get 500 cold email inboxes?

At 500 inboxes, MailDeck Outlook Normal costs $150/month ($0.30/inbox). MailDeck Private SMTP costs $250/month ($0.50/inbox). Aerosend costs approximately $2,040/month ($4.00/mailbox for 17 batches of 30). The annual cost difference between MailDeck Outlook Normal and Aerosend at 500 inboxes exceeds $22,000.

Which provider is better for enterprise B2B cold email?

For enterprise B2B recipients on Microsoft Exchange or Google Workspace, MailDeck's native provider infrastructure delivers higher trust from corporate spam filters. Emails route through official Microsoft or Google IP pools, which are whitelisted by default on corporate mail servers globally. MailDeck manages 833K+ inboxes across 1,631+ clients with a 98% inbox placement rate on properly configured domains. Aerosend's aged SMTP infrastructure performs well for general outreach but lacks native provider trust signals for enterprise-specific targeting.

Methodology

Aerosend pricing verified on aerosend.io and cross-referenced with G2, Prospeo, Salesforge directory, and Primeforge review as of May 2026. MailDeck pricing from published rates at maildeck.co. MailDeck platform data based on Q2 2026 metrics: 833K+ managed inboxes, 1,631+ clients, 7.5M+ daily emails, 270M+ cold emails sent lifetime, 3,000+ domains under management, 98% inbox placement rate. Check aerosend.io for current Aerosend rates.

Last updated: May 2026

Written by MailDeck Team

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