Migrate from SendGrid

Add your sending domain under Settings → Domains in Plunk. Plunk shows three CNAME records named <token>._domainkey, pointing to <token>.dkim.amazonses.com. Add them at your DNS provider and Plunk marks the domain verified once they resolve.

You do not need to remove anything first. SendGrid’s domain authentication uses CNAMEs on em#### and the s1._domainkey and s2._domainkey selectors. Plunk’s DKIM selectors are different, so both sets of records can live side by side and SendGrid keeps working while you move.

Plunk also offers an optional custom MAIL FROM domain: an MX and an SPF TXT record on a plunk. subdomain. It aligns bounces with your domain and is worth adding, but sending works without it.

In SendGrid, open Marketing → Contacts, use the action menu on a list and choose Export. SendGrid emails you when it is ready, and the download link lasts 12 hours. The API equivalent is POST /v3/marketing/contacts/exports. Rename the address column to email if it is called something else.

SendGrid keeps opt-outs and failures out of the contact list, in six suppression lists. Bring all of them, each as rows with subscribed set to false:

Fetch each dynamic template’s active version with GET /v3/templates/{template_id}/versions/{version_id}; the html_content field is what you paste into a Plunk template in HTML mode. Plunk renders with Liquid, which reads like Handlebars for plain variables but differs for logic:

SendGrid nests recipients and their data in personalizations. Plunk keeps it flat: one request can list several recipients, and each gets its own email with the same data.

await fetch('https://api.sendgrid.com/v3/mail/send', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {
    'Content-Type': 'application/json',
    Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.SENDGRID_API_KEY}`,
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    personalizations: [
      {to: [{email: 'ana@acme.com'}], dynamic_template_data: {first_name: 'Ana'}},
    ],
    from: {email: 'hello@acme.com', name: 'Acme'},
    template_id: 'd-1234567890abcdef',
  }),
});

const response = await fetch('https://send-api.akmarketingseo.com/v1/send', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {
    'Content-Type': 'application/json',
    Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.PLUNK_SECRET_KEY}`,
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    to: 'ana@acme.com',
    from: {email: 'hello@acme.com', name: 'Acme'},
    template: 'YOUR_PLUNK_TEMPLATE_ID',
    data: {first_name: 'Ana'},
  }),
});

if (!response.ok) {
  throw new Error(`Plunk returned ${response.status}`);
}

If your app sends through SendGrid’s SMTP server instead of the API, only the settings change:

# Before (SendGrid)
host:     smtp.sendgrid.net
username: apikey
password: your SendGrid API key

# After (Plunk)
host:     smtp.useplunk.com
port:     587 (STARTTLS) or 465 (TLS)
username: plunk
password: your Plunk secret key (sk_...)

SendGrid has no way to export an automation, so list each one’s trigger, emails and delays from the dashboard and rebuild it as a Plunk workflow. A workflow starts from a tracked event, a segment entry, a schedule or a manual run, and can send, wait, branch on conditions, call a webhook and update the contact.

SendGrid automations start when a contact joins a list. The closest Plunk trigger is a segment entry: build a segment on the field that put the contact on the list and start the workflow when they enter it.

Plunk has no global webhook setting. Instead, you create a workflow that starts on an event and add a Webhook step that posts to your URL. One workflow per event you care about, each with its own URL and headers if you want them.

Plunk’s email.open and email.click fire on the first open and first click of each email, not on every one. The payloads differ, so the code that reads them needs updating. Plunk’s payload for each event is listed in the webhooks guide.

1. 1

   Send to yourself first

   Send a few real templates from Plunk to your own inboxes and check rendering, links and variables. Gmail’s “Show original” should report DKIM pass for your domain.
2. 2

   Move one kind of email at a time

   Switch one flow, such as password resets, and watch delivery in Plunk for a day before moving the rest. SendGrid stays available as a fallback the whole time.
3. 3

   Remove the old records last

   Once nothing sends through SendGrid any more, wait a few days for any retries to settle, then remove its DNS records and cancel the plan.