GoHighLevel SMTP Settings and Configuration (2026)
Two sending paths: LC Email (default, Mailgun-powered) or BYO SMTP
GoHighLevel bundles email as part of its agency CRM platform, not as a standalone SMTP provider. Every account gets LC Email-a built-in service powered by Mailgun on shared infrastructure, billed at $0.675 per 1,000 emails for all inbound and outbound traffic. Alternatively, connect a custom SMTP provider (Mailgun, SendGrid, AWS SES, Postmark, self-hosted) for dedicated reputation and better deliverability, but GHL loses visibility into delivery, bounce, and deferral events at the SMTP layer.
GoHighLevel (GHL) is an all-in-one agency and small-business CRM platform (funnels, CRM, automations, appointments, SMS, email) launched in 2018 and targeted at marketing agencies rebilling services to clients. Email is one of several communication channels bundled in the platform, not a standalone transactional relay you would recommend to a developer for an app integration. Two sending paths are supported: the native LC Email service (default, works out of the box) and custom SMTP integration for teams needing dedicated infrastructure.
Quick reference
| LC Email pricing | $0.675 per 1,000 emails (all plans) |
|---|---|
| LC Email billing scope | All inbound + outbound (To, CC, BCC all counted) |
| LC Email backend | Mailgun on shared infrastructure |
| LC Email management | Agency View › Billing › Credits |
| Custom SMTP support | Any provider with standard SMTP (Mailgun, SendGrid, SES, Postmark, self-hosted) |
| Custom SMTP setup location | Sub-Account settings › Email Services |
| SMTP tracking limitation | GHL tracks opens/clicks via pixel/links; delivery/bounce/deferral invisible on BYO SMTP |
| GHL Standard plan | $97/mo (Starter tier); Pro tiers add SaaS features |
| Rebill capability | Unlimited plan: at cost; SaaS Pro: with markup |
Path A: LC Email (default, native)
LC Email. GoHighLevel’s built-in service
For agencies that want zero setup and integrated billing through GHL
Setup steps (LC Email default)
- LC Email is enabled by default on every new GHL sub-account, nothing to install or activate.
- Verify your sending domain: Sub-Account Settings › Email Services › Dedicated Domain and IP. Add the domain, GHL displays SPF, DKIM, and DMARC DNS records to add.
- Add the DNS records to your domain’s DNS zone (typically Cloudflare, Google Domains, Namecheap, etc.). Wait 15-60 minutes for propagation.
- Return to GHL and click Verify. Successful verification means your domain is authenticated and ready to send with proper SPF/DKIM alignment.
- Configure billing: LC Email credits are managed at Agency View › Billing › Credits. Top up or set auto-recharge.
- Send a test email from any GHL workflow, campaign, or one-off send. Charges are deducted from your credit balance in real time.
Path B: BYO custom SMTP
Bring your own SMTP provider
For agencies needing dedicated IP, better deliverability, or lower per-email cost at scale
Setup steps (BYO SMTP)
- Sign up with an external SMTP provider. Common choices: Mailgun Foundation ($35/mo, well-tested GHL integration), Amazon SES ($0.10/1K, cheapest at scale), SendGrid ($20/mo Essentials), or Postmark ($1.25/1K, transactional-focused).
- Verify your sending domain in the external provider (SPF, DKIM, DMARC DNS records). Skipping domain authentication produces poor deliverability regardless of provider.
- Generate SMTP credentials in the external provider’s dashboard. Save the host, port, username, and password.
- In GHL, navigate to Sub-Account Settings › Email Services. Toggle to custom SMTP mode and enter your provider’s credentials.
- Send a test message from GHL. Verify delivery in your external provider’s logs.
- Warm up the sending IP if it is new (dedicated IPs from any provider need 4-6 weeks of gradual volume ramp before hitting full capacity).
- Repeat for each client sub-account. Mailgun’s multi-credential-per-domain feature is particularly useful for agencies managing many clients.
Cost comparison at volume
At agency scale, the LC Email vs BYO SMTP decision becomes primarily an economic one. Approximate monthly costs for typical volumes :
- 10K emails/month: LC Email $6.75, Mailgun Foundation $35 (LC wins). Below 25K, LC is usually simpler and cheaper.
- 50K emails/month: LC Email $33.75, Mailgun Foundation $35 (roughly tied). BYO wins on deliverability.
- 100K emails/month: LC Email $67.50, Mailgun Foundation $35 + overage, AWS SES $10 (BYO clearly wins).
- 200K emails/month: LC Email $135, Mailgun ~$50-70, AWS SES $20, self-hosted ~$5-10 (BYO strongly wins).
Note that Mailgun’s Flex plan doubled from $1/1K to $2/1K in December 2025-the Foundation fixed plan at $35/mo is now the sweet spot for most GHL agencies. If your prior GHL setup used Mailgun Flex, review your bill.
Deliverability tradeoffs
LC Email uses shared Mailgun infrastructure-your IP reputation is affected by other GHL customers’ sending practices. This is a known limitation of any shared IP pool. For low-volume, mixed marketing/transactional traffic where deliverability is secondary to convenience, LC Email is acceptable.
Custom SMTP with a dedicated IP (available on Mailgun Growth/Scale, SendGrid Pro, AWS SES production, or Postmark starter) isolates your reputation. Volumes above 50K/month typically justify moving to dedicated infrastructure for the deliverability gain alone, before the cost calculation.
Common setup gotchas
BYO SMTP loses visibility into delivery, bounce, and deferral events
When you connect a custom SMTP provider, GoHighLevel hands the message to your SMTP server and loses SMTP-level visibility. GHL tracks opens and clicks via its own pixel and link rewriting, but delivery confirmations, bounces, and deferrals happen at the SMTP layer where GHL has no webhook integration. To see full delivery telemetry, you must log into your external provider’s dashboard (Mailgun logs, SendGrid Activity, SES SNS notifications). Teams switching from LC Email to BYO SMTP often discover this visibility gap only after their first bounce investigation.
LC Email charges apply to every recipient (To, CC, BCC)
Every recipient counts as a separate charge in LC Email billing. Sending one email to a distribution list of 50 people costs 50 × $0.675/1,000. This is standard practice but often surprises agencies migrating from providers with per-message billing. Review your typical CC/BCC patterns before estimating monthly cost.
LC Email is not accessible as an external SMTP endpoint
LC Email exists inside GoHighLevel, there is no public SMTP host you can point WP Mail SMTP or an external app at. If your use case is “send email from my app through GHL’s infrastructure”, it is not supported. Use one of the standalone SMTP providers on smtpedia.com instead.
Mailgun Flex plan price doubled in December 2025
If your GHL BYO SMTP setup uses Mailgun Flex (pay-as-you-go), your per-email cost went from $1/1K to $2/1K in December 2025. The Mailgun Foundation plan at $35/mo (50K emails included) is now the cost-effective baseline for most GHL agencies above 17,500 emails/month. Review your Mailgun bill and consider migrating if you were on Flex.
Sub-account SMTP settings are not inherited from Agency defaults
Each GHL sub-account has its own Email Services configuration. Setting up custom SMTP on the Agency does not automatically propagate to sub-accounts. Repeat the setup process (or automate via GHL API) for every client sub-account. Agencies managing 20+ clients should build a provisioning script rather than clicking through the UI.
Rebill markup capability depends on plan tier
Unlimited plan users can rebill LC Email costs to clients only at cost (no markup allowed). SaaS Pro plan users can rebill with markup, which is the typical agency revenue model. If your agency plans to rebill email costs profitably, confirm you are on the SaaS Pro tier before onboarding clients.
If you need SMTP without GHL
If your use case is standalone SMTP relay (not tied to GHL’s CRM/automation ecosystem), skip LC Email entirely and use a dedicated provider :
- Postmark-transactional-only, boutique volume ($1.25/1K).
- Amazon SES-cheapest at scale ($0.10/1K), AWS-native.
- Mailgun-standalone (same infrastructure as LC Email backend, direct account, better logging and per-domain credential control).
- SendGrid-unified marketing + transactional, Twilio-owned.
Frequently asked questions
What is the SMTP hostname for GoHighLevel LC Email?
There is none. LC Email is an internal GoHighLevel service, you cannot use it from external applications. If you need to send from an external app through Mailgun (LC Email’s backend), sign up for Mailgun directly and use their SMTP endpoint. If you need custom SMTP inside GHL, configure BYO SMTP with any external provider under Sub-Account Settings › Email Services.
Should I use LC Email or BYO SMTP?
Below 25K emails/month: LC Email is simpler and roughly cost-competitive. Above 50K emails/month: BYO SMTP with a dedicated IP wins on deliverability and cost. Deliverability-critical workloads: BYO SMTP with Postmark or Mailgun Growth/Scale (dedicated IP). Multi-client agency setup: BYO SMTP with per-sub-account provisioning, ideally scripted via GHL API.
How much does GoHighLevel email actually cost?
LC Email costs $0.675 per 1,000 emails on all GHL plans. This is billed on top of your GHL subscription (Standard $97/mo, higher tiers priced by feature scope). Every recipient (To, CC, BCC) counts as a separate charge, and both inbound and outbound emails are billed. At 10K emails/month you pay $6.75, at 100K you pay $67.50, at 200K you pay $135. BYO SMTP replaces LC Email cost with your external provider’s rate plus $0 to GHL.
Why do delivery and bounce events not show up in GHL when I use custom SMTP?
GoHighLevel does not integrate SMTP-level webhooks from external providers. When you configure BYO SMTP, GHL hands your message to the external SMTP server and stops tracking at that handoff. Opens and clicks work (via GHL’s pixel and link rewriting), but delivery confirmations, bounces, and deferrals happen at the SMTP provider’s layer where GHL has no visibility. To see full telemetry, log into your external provider’s dashboard (Mailgun logs, SendGrid Activity, SES SNS notifications).
Can I use LC Email and BYO SMTP simultaneously?
Not for the same sub-account, each sub-account uses one or the other. However, different sub-accounts under the same Agency can use different configurations. A common pattern for large agencies: LC Email for low-volume clients (simpler, no external accounts to manage), BYO SMTP with a dedicated provider for high-volume or deliverability-sensitive clients.
Does LC Email include a dedicated IP?
No. LC Email runs on Mailgun’s shared IP infrastructure, your reputation is affected by other GHL customers’ sending practices. For a dedicated IP, either move to BYO SMTP with a provider that includes dedicated IP (Mailgun Growth, SendGrid Pro, Postmark starter, AWS SES production) or use LC Email’s Dedicated Domain and IP feature if available on your GHL plan (subject to additional fees and eligibility requirements).
What happened to Mailgun’s Flex plan in December 2025?
Mailgun doubled the Flex (pay-as-you-go) plan rate from $1/1K to $2/1K in December 2025. For GHL agencies using Mailgun as their BYO SMTP provider on Flex, the effective cost per email doubled. The Mailgun Foundation plan at $35/month (50K emails included) is now the recommended baseline for any GHL agency sending more than 17,500 emails per month.
This review follows our email infrastructure testing methodology. We disclose affiliate relationships in our editorial independence policy.
