{"id":428,"date":"2024-01-10T16:32:32","date_gmt":"2024-01-10T16:32:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/greatmail.com\/blog\/?p=428"},"modified":"2025-11-07T21:44:33","modified_gmt":"2025-11-07T21:44:33","slug":"whats-the-difference-between-email-hosting-and-smtp-hosting-services","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greatmail.com\/blog\/email-hosting\/whats-the-difference-between-email-hosting-and-smtp-hosting-services\/","title":{"rendered":"What’s the difference between email hosting and SMTP hosting services?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Email hosting<\/a> and SMTP hosting are two different services that are sometimes confused with each other. Email hosting is a service that allows you to host your email accounts on a server. It provides you with an email server that you can use to send and receive emails and includes features like shared calendars, contacts, and collaboration tools<\/a>. SMTP hosting, on the other hand, is a service that provides you with an SMTP server that you can use to send emails including marketing and transactional messages that are generally considered bulk in nature. Messages sent using an SMTP service would most likely trigger volume limits on a regular email hosting server and result in the sender or sending domain being banned or blocked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The main difference between email hosting and SMTP hosting is that email hosting provides you with an email server that you can use to send and receive emails, while SMTP hosting<\/a> provides you with an SMTP server that you can use to send emails only. That said, some SMTP hosting services will include a component for receiving email related to the messages you are sending like bounces or unsubscribe requests, but the focus for an SMTP host remains outbound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n
Feature<\/th>\n Email Hosting<\/th>\n SMTP Hosting<\/th>\n <\/tr>\n <\/thead>\n
Primary Purpose<\/strong><\/td>\n Send & receive email<\/td>\n Send bulk email<\/td>\n <\/tr>\n
Typical Use<\/strong><\/td>\n Daily business communication<\/td>\n Transactional\/marketing emails<\/td>\n <\/tr>\n
Storage<\/strong><\/td>\n Full mailbox storage<\/td>\n Minimal (logs only)<\/td>\n <\/tr>\n
Volume Limits<\/strong><\/td>\n Moderate sending limits<\/td>\n High-volume optimized<\/td>\n <\/tr>\n
Collaboration<\/strong><\/td>\n Calendars, contacts, sharing<\/td>\n Not included<\/td>\n <\/tr>\n <\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n

Why would you need an SMTP hosting service?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

SMTP hosting is typically used by businesses that need to send large volumes of emails usually transactional or marketing<\/a> in nature\u2014often requiring dedicated email infrastructure<\/a> optimized for deliverability. It is also used to send emails to a large number of recipients. Email hosting, on the other hand, is used by businesses, individuals and organizations that send normal, back and forth communications from one client to another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is important to note that SMTP hosting is not a replacement for email hosting. SMTP hosting is a service that is used in conjunction with email hosting.  All email providers limit the volume of messages that can be sent using their email hosting service<\/a> and will require you to use an SMTP service for any bulk emails. Additionally, when sending any volume of email, proper authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC)<\/a> is essential for deliverability. If you want to send and receive emails and do not have a requirement for bulk sending, you will be just fine using an email hosting service\u2014just make sure to choose the right features for your needs<\/a>. Alternatively, if you are just looking to send outbound emails, you can simply use an SMTP hosting service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u26a0\ufe0f Important:<\/strong> When searching for email hosting, search results often include both email hosting and SMTP hosting providers. Be careful\u2014SMTP hosting providers are not equipped to handle incoming and outgoing mail<\/strong> like regular email hosting services. They focus exclusively on sending bulk email, not day-to-day business communication.\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Which Service Do You Need?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Choose email hosting<\/strong> if you:<\/p>\n\n\n\n