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Buttondown vs Sendy

Buttondown logo

Buttondown

News

The easiest way to start and grow your newsletter

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Sendy logo

Sendy

Email Marketing

Self-hosted newsletter app bought once for $69 that sends through your own Amazon SES account

From
$69/one-time
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Buttondown has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Buttondown limited built-in monetization compared to Substack, which offers native payment processing; Sendy free updates run only to the next major version, so the one-time purchase is really one purchase per major release and the long-term cost is not zero.
  • They diverge on capability: Buttondown covers Newsletter creation, Sendy covers One-time licence.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Buttondown and Sendy actually diverge.

Attributes where Buttondown and Sendy differ
AttributeButtondownSendy
Starting priceFree$69/one-time
Pricing modelUnknownOne-time purchase
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebWeb, Linux
CategoryNewsEmail Marketing
Founded2017Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Buttondown

  • Newsletter creation
  • Markdown support
  • Subscriber management
  • Analytics
  • Paid subscriptions
  • Zapier
  • Stripe
  • Twitter

Only in Sendy

  • One-time licence
  • Amazon SES delivery
  • Multiple brands
  • Autoresponders
  • Segmentation
  • Bounce and complaint handling
  • Reporting
  • Client access

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Buttondown

  • Newsletter publishingnot Sendy
  • Email marketingnot Sendy
  • Audience buildingnot Sendy

Sendy

  • A publisher with a large list sending frequently, where a hosted platform bills by subscriber count month after monthnot Buttondown
  • An agency managing newsletters for several clients who each get their own brand and login under one licencenot Buttondown
  • A business that must keep subscriber data on its own infrastructure for privacy or contractual reasonsnot Buttondown
  • A developer wiring signups from a custom application into a mailing list without paying platform API feesnot Buttondown

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Buttondown

  • Limited built-in monetization compared to Substack, which offers native payment processing
  • Fewer growth and discovery features compared to Beehiiv or Ghost
  • Smaller community and ecosystem than larger newsletter platforms
  • Basic automation compared to full-featured email marketing platforms
  • No native mobile app for managing newsletters on the go

Sendy

  • Free updates run only to the next major version, so the one-time purchase is really one purchase per major release and the long-term cost is not zero.
  • Deliverability becomes entirely your problem: SES gives you a raw sending pipe and no warm-up guidance, reputation dashboards or deliverability consultants when a campaign starts landing in spam.
  • Amazon SES requires production access approval and will suspend accounts on high bounce or complaint rates, which can take a list offline mid-campaign with little warning.
  • The template editor and design tooling are basic next to Mailchimp or Klaviyo, so anything visually ambitious means hand-written HTML email.
  • You own the server: PHP upgrades, database backups and patching are yours, and an unmaintained Sendy install holding a subscriber list is a data breach waiting to happen.

Pricing, plan by plan

Buttondown

Free
  • Free$undefined/mo
    • Up to 100 subscribers
    • Core newsletter features
    • Hosted archives
  • Paid$undefined/mo
    • Pricing scales by subscriber count above 100
    • Add-on features from $9/month

Sendy

$69/one-time
  • Sendy licence$69/one-time
    • One-time purchase, no subscription
    • Free updates only up to the next major version
    • Unlimited lists, subscribers and campaigns
  • AI Assistant bundle$39/one-time
    • Optional add-on, listed at a discount from $49
    • AI writing assistance inside the campaign editor
  • Installation service$79/one-time
    • Optional one-off setup by the vendor
    • For buyers who do not want to configure hosting and SES themselves

Which should you pick?

Choose Buttondown if

  • You need newsletter creation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want markdown support.
Buttondown review

Choose Sendy if

  • You need one-time licence.
  • You work on Web, Linux.
  • You also want amazon ses delivery.
Sendy review

Questions people ask

Is Buttondown or Sendy better?
Neither clearly leads. Buttondown starts at Free and Sendy at $69/one-time, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Buttondown or Sendy?
Buttondown has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Buttondown and $69/one-time for Sendy.
Does Buttondown or Sendy run on more platforms?
Buttondown runs on Web. Sendy runs on Web, Linux.
Can I use Buttondown for free?
Yes. Buttondown has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Sendy starts at $69/one-time.
What is Buttondown best used for?
Buttondown is most often used for newsletter publishing, email marketing, audience building. Of those, newsletter publishing and email marketing are not what Sendy is typically brought in for.
What can Buttondown do that Sendy cannot?
Buttondown covers Newsletter creation, Markdown support, Subscriber management, Analytics. Sendy covers One-time licence, Amazon SES delivery, Multiple brands, Autoresponders.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Buttondown: How much does Buttondown cost?

Buttondown is free for your first 100 subscribers and includes core newsletter features. After that, pricing scales based on subscriber count. Add-on features start at $9/month each.

Source
Sendy: What does it actually cost to send?

The licence is $69 once. Delivery is Amazon SES at roughly $1 per 10,000 emails, plus your own hosting, so a 50,000-contact weekly newsletter costs a few dollars a month to send.

Buttondown: What editor options does Buttondown offer?

Buttondown supports Markdown, HTML, and WYSIWYG editors so you can compose newsletters in your preferred format.

Source
Sendy: Are updates free forever?

No. Updates are free up to the next major version, for example within 7.x. Moving from 7.x to 8.x is a paid upgrade.

Buttondown: Does Buttondown track analytics?

Analytics are disabled by default in Buttondown, prioritizing privacy. You can enable tracking if desired, and the platform is GDPR-compliant.

Source
Sendy: Do I need to know how to set up a server?

Standard PHP and MySQL hosting is enough and the vendor compares it to installing WordPress, but the SES side needs AWS configuration. An $79 installation service is offered if you would rather not.

Buttondown: What is Buttondown's company structure?

Buttondown is an independent, self-funded, and profitable SaaS platform founded by Justin Duke with no plans to take external investment or change that model.

Sendy: What happens if Amazon suspends my SES account?

Your sending stops until you resolve it with AWS. There is no alternative delivery route built in, and this is the single biggest operational risk of the model.

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