Gravity SMTP is the Gravity Forms team’s plugin for sending your WordPress email through a real email service, such as Mailgun, Amazon SES, SendGrid, Postmark, Brevo, Gmail or Microsoft 365. It logs every email, lets you resend from the log, and has a test mode that stops all email on staging sites. It isn’t sold on its own: it comes with Gravity Forms Elite, Nonprofit and Developer licenses.
Updated October 2026 for Gravity SMTP 2.3. I installed the current version (2.3.4) on my test site for this update, and every screenshot below comes from that.
Why Gravity Forms Notifications Don’t Arrive
“My Gravity Forms notifications aren’t arriving” is one of the most common problems I help people with. Almost every time, the form is fine. The problem is how WordPress sends email.
If you’ve ever turned on Gravity Forms logging, you may have seen something like this:
ERROR --> GFCommon::send_email(): WordPress was unable to send the notification email (#64833fe769979 - Admin Notification) for entry #2 to the sending server.
DEBUG --> GFCommon::send_email(): PHPMailer class returned an error message: Could not instantiate mail function.By default, WordPress sends mail with your web server’s PHP mail function. Many hosts limit or block it, and email from a web server usually lacks the authentication that inboxes expect, so it lands in spam or disappears. The fix is to send through a real email service, and that’s what Gravity SMTP does.
What Gravity SMTP Does
Gravity SMTP sends all of your site’s email through the service you connect: Gravity Forms notifications, password resets, WooCommerce receipts and anything else that uses wp_mail. It doesn’t need Gravity Forms to run, so you can use it on any site where you have the license.
Setup Wizard and Email Services
The first time you open it, a setup wizard walks you through connecting a service. If you already use WP Mail SMTP, it spots it and offers to bring your settings over.
Gravity SMTP connects to 19 services through their APIs, plus Custom SMTP for anything else: Amazon SES, Brevo, Cloudflare Email Service, Elastic Email, Emailit, Google / Gmail, Mailchimp Transactional, MailerSend, Mailgun, Mailjet, Mailtrap, Microsoft 365 / Outlook, Postmark, Resend, SendGrid, SMTP2GO, SMTP.com, SparkPost and Zoho Mail. Using the API is usually faster and more reliable than plain SMTP.
Email Log and Resend
The email log is the feature I use most. It lists every email with its status, recipient, source (such as Gravity Forms) and the service that sent it. You can open any email to see the full message, then resend it. Since version 2.2 you can also change the recipient and add CC or BCC addresses before resending, which is handy when a client says “Can you send that to my assistant too?”
Test Mode
Turn on Test Mode and Gravity SMTP stops every outgoing email but still logs it, marked “Sandboxed”. That’s how I tested it without sending a single real email. It’s perfect for staging and development sites, where you never want a test entry emailing a real customer.
Everything Else
- Backup connection: pick a second service to use if the main one fails.
- Email routing (new in 2.3): send different emails through different services based on conditions. You need at least two services connected to use it.
- Email management: turn off WordPress’s built-in emails you don’t want, such as automatic update notices or new user emails.
- Suppressions: stop sending to addresses that bounce or complain.
- Dashboard and activity digest: processed, sent and failed counts, top sources and recipients, plus a summary email of your site’s email activity.
- Alerts: get a webhook message or a text (through Twilio) when email fails. This is still marked as experimental.
- Send a test, debug log and system report under SMTP → Tools.
- Reply-To settings: set a default Reply-To address or force one on every email.
One change from my original review: Gravity SMTP no longer tracks email opens. Open tracking was an experimental feature, and it was removed in version 2.1.6.
Pricing: Who Gets Gravity SMTP?
Gravity SMTP isn’t sold on its own. It’s included at no extra cost with these Gravity Forms licenses, and you download it from your Gravity Forms account:
| License | Includes Gravity SMTP? |
|---|---|
| Basic ($59/year) | No |
| Pro ($159/year) | No |
| Elite ($259/year) | Yes |
| Nonprofit | Yes |
| Developer | Yes |
Your email service may charge separately once you pass its free tier. For the full breakdown of what each license includes, see Gravity Forms Pricing: Basic vs Pro vs Elite or the Gravity Forms pricing page.
Gravity SMTP vs WP Mail SMTP, FluentSMTP and Post SMTP
If you don’t have an Elite license, you have good alternatives. Prices below are from Gravity Forms’ own SMTP plugin roundup (May 2026), so check each plugin’s site for current pricing.
| Plugin | Free version | Paid | Email log |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gravity SMTP | No | Included with Gravity Forms Elite, Nonprofit and Developer | Yes |
| WP Mail SMTP | Yes (limited) | Pro from $99/year ($49 the first year) | Pro only |
| FluentSMTP | Yes, fully free | None | Yes |
| Post SMTP | Yes | From $59.99/year | Yes |
My take: if you already have Elite, use Gravity SMTP. If you don’t, FluentSMTP is the best free option. It has an email log, a backup connection and failure alerts, all for free. WP Mail SMTP is the most popular, but its free version doesn’t include the email log, which is the feature I’d miss most.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Built by the Gravity Forms team, and included with licenses many Gravity Forms users already have.
- A clear email log with resend. When a client says “I never got it,” you can check in seconds and resend it, even to a different address.
- Test mode means staging and development sites never email real customers.
- Lots of API integrations, plus backup connections and routing.
- Actively developed: new services, routing and resend options have all arrived in the last year.
Cons
- Not available on its own. Basic and Pro users need to upgrade or use another plugin.
- You still need an email service, and some charge once you pass their free tier.
- It can’t fix DNS for you. You still need SPF, DKIM and DMARC set up for your sending domain. Gravity SMTP just makes the connection.
- No open tracking anymore, and alerts are still experimental.
Who Should Use It
- ✅ Elite, Nonprofit and Developer license holders. You already own it, so use it.
- ✅ Agencies that need email logs to answer “did it send?” questions
- ✅ Anyone with a staging site that shouldn’t email real people
- ❌ Basic and Pro license holders who don’t want to upgrade. A free plugin like FluentSMTP does the core job.
The Verdict
If you have an Elite license, install Gravity SMTP on every site. It fixes the most common “notifications aren’t sending” problem, and the email log and resend tools alone save a lot of support time. It’s also improved a lot since launch, with more services, routing and a better resend. If you don’t have Elite, it’s a nice bonus when you’re deciding whether to upgrade, but not a reason to upgrade on its own.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Gravity SMTP?
Gravity SMTP is a WordPress plugin from the Gravity Forms team that sends all of your site’s email through an email service such as Mailgun, Amazon SES, SendGrid, Postmark, Brevo, Gmail or Microsoft 365. It also logs every email, lets you resend from the log and has a test mode.
Is Gravity SMTP free?
Gravity SMTP is included at no extra cost with Gravity Forms Elite ($259 a year), Nonprofit and Developer licenses. It isn’t sold on its own, and Basic and Pro licenses don’t include it.
Does Gravity SMTP require Gravity Forms?
No. Gravity SMTP works on any WordPress site and handles all email sent with wp_mail. You only need a qualifying Gravity Forms license to download it.
Which email services does Gravity SMTP support?
Amazon SES, Brevo, Cloudflare Email Service, Elastic Email, Emailit, Google / Gmail, Mailchimp Transactional, MailerSend, Mailgun, Mailjet, Mailtrap, Microsoft 365 / Outlook, Postmark, Resend, SendGrid, SMTP2GO, SMTP.com, SparkPost and Zoho Mail, plus Custom SMTP for any other server.
Can Gravity SMTP replace WP Mail SMTP?
Yes. The setup wizard detects WP Mail SMTP and can migrate its settings. Deactivate WP Mail SMTP afterwards so only one plugin handles your email.
Does Gravity SMTP track email opens?
Not anymore. Open tracking was an experimental feature and was removed in Gravity SMTP 2.1.6. The log still shows whether each email was sent or failed.
Need More Help?
If you still need help, use the chat or leave a comment below and we’ll get back to you.
Comments