MailSentinel vs Mailgun: DMARC Monitoring Comparison
Compare MailSentinel and Mailgun for DMARC monitoring. Learn why you need dedicated DMARC monitoring alongside your email delivery service.
MailSentinel
Starting at $14/month
- Modern, intuitive dashboard
- Real-time alerts
- Transparent pricing
- Self-service signup
Mailgun
$0-$100+/month (email delivery)
- Powerful email API
- Good developer experience
- Basic authentication setup
- Not a DMARC monitoring tool
- Basic authentication insights
- No aggregate report parsing
Feature Comparison
| Feature | MailSentinel | Mailgun |
|---|---|---|
| Email Delivery API | ||
| DMARC Report Parsing | ||
| Cross-Source Monitoring | ||
| Real-time DMARC Alerts | ||
| Forensic Reports | ||
| DNS Monitoring | ||
| SMTP Relay | ||
| Email Validation |
Why Mailgun Users Need MailSentinel
Mailgun is a fantastic email delivery platform for developers. But like other ESPs, Mailgun is built to send email—not to monitor DMARC across your entire email ecosystem.
Understanding the Gap
Mailgun provides:
- Email delivery API
- DKIM signing
- Basic deliverability analytics
Mailgun does NOT provide:
- DMARC report parsing
- Cross-source authentication monitoring
- Spoofing detection
- Real-time DMARC alerts
Why Dedicated DMARC Monitoring Matters
You Send Email from Multiple Sources
Most organizations use more than just Mailgun:
- Google Workspace for team email
- Salesforce for CRM notifications
- Zendesk for support tickets
- Marketing tools like HubSpot
Mailgun only sees Mailgun traffic. MailSentinel sees EVERYTHING.
DMARC Reports Come from Receivers
When someone receives email "from" your domain:
- Their mail server checks authentication
- They send DMARC reports to YOUR address
- These reports cover ALL senders
Mailgun can't receive these reports. MailSentinel can.
Spoofing Happens Outside Mailgun
If an attacker spoofs your domain, Mailgun won't know. But DMARC reports will show:
- Failed authentication attempts
- Unknown sending sources
- Suspicious patterns
MailSentinel catches this. Mailgun can't.
The Complete Picture
| Need | Mailgun | MailSentinel |
|---|---|---|
| Send transactional email | ✅ | ❌ |
| Send bulk email | ✅ | ❌ |
| Parse DMARC aggregate reports | ❌ | ✅ |
| Monitor ALL sending sources | ❌ | ✅ |
| Alert on authentication failures | ❌ | ✅ |
| Detect spoofing attempts | ❌ | ✅ |
| Track DMARC compliance | ❌ | ✅ |
Setting Up Mailgun + MailSentinel
In Mailgun
- Add and verify your sending domain
- Configure DKIM signing
- Update SPF to include Mailgun
In MailSentinel
- Create your account
- Add your DMARC record:
v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:your-id@reports.mailsentinel.io- Start receiving reports from ALL sources
What You'll See
MailSentinel will show:
- ✅ Mailgun emails passing DMARC
- ✅ Google Workspace emails passing DMARC
- ⚠️ Misconfigured services failing DMARC
- 🚨 Potential spoofing attempts
Developer-Friendly Integration
Like Mailgun, MailSentinel is developer-friendly:
- REST API for programmatic access
- Webhooks for real-time notifications
- Slack integration for team alerts
- JSON exports for data analysis
Cost Analysis
Complete Email + DMARC Solution:
- Mailgun: $0-100+/month (based on volume)
- MailSentinel: $14-49/month
- Total: $14-150/month
This gives you:
- Reliable email delivery (Mailgun)
- Complete DMARC visibility (MailSentinel)
The Bottom Line
Mailgun and MailSentinel solve different problems:
- Mailgun = Send email reliably
- MailSentinel = Monitor DMARC authentication
Use both for complete email infrastructure.