Did you know you can send 1,000 emails for just $0.10 using Amazon SES?

Big companies such as HBO or Siemens trust Amazon Simple Email Service (SES) for their email operations. Amazon SES uses cloud infrastructure to send and receive emails quickly and easily, whether for business communication, email campaigns, or transactional emails.

This simple guide will help you set up the Amazon SES account properly. At the end of this guide, you will be able to do everything from verifying your domain and then moving on to set the MX records-these crucial configurations ensure the successful delivery of your emails. New accounts begin in a sandbox environment, which limits them to 200 emails sent per day; however, we will show you how to get beyond the original restrictions.

Ready! How to Setup Amazon SES Account? Let’s explore the simple steps!

Setting Up Your AWS Account

You can start Setup Amazon SES Account by creating your AWS account. The process begins at signup.

Set up and log into your AWS account

The AWS account setup needs your email address, contact details, and billing information. You’ll get a phone call with a verification code to complete the signup. This process creates an AWS account root user that can access all AWS services.

Verify an identity for sending email

Identity verification becomes a vital step after you log into your AWS account. Amazon SES needs verification of any email address or domain you plan to use to send emails.

You have two verification options:

Email Address Verification:

• • Sign in to AWS Management Console
  • Go to Configuration > Verified identities
  • Choose “Create identity” and select “Email address”
  • Enter your email address
  • Click verification link received within 5 minutes

A verified domain allows you to send emails from any subdomain or email address without individual verification. Each AWS Region maintains its own verification status. You need separate verification for different regions.

Note that each Region allows verification of up to 10,000 identities. New accounts must verify all senders and recipients in the same AWS Region where they plan to send emails.

How to create SMTP credentials

SMTP credentials give you access to the Amazon SES SMTP interface. These are different from your AWS access keys and Amazon SES console login details.

Here’s how to create your SMTP credentials:

1. Sign in to AWS Management Console and open Amazon SES
2. Select SMTP Settings from the left navigation pane
3. Click Create SMTP Credentials
4. Enter a username or accept the default value
5. Choose Create User
6. Select Show under SMTP password
7. Download credentials using Download .csv file

Your SMTP credentials work only in specific regions region-specific. You need separate credentials when sending emails from multiple AWS Regions.

The IAM user’s account needs specific permissions to create SMTP credentials. These include iam:ListUsers, iam:CreateUser, iam:CreateAccessKey, and iam:PutUserPolicy. You’ll see an error about “not authorized to perform i am: ListUsers” if these permissions are missing.

Security protocols let you view or save credentials only once after creation. Store them in a safe place since you can’t access them later. It’s better to create a dedicated IAM user for SMTP credentials instead of using existing ones.

SMTP users get permissions to send raw messages through the ses:SendRawEmail action. You can adjust these permissions in the IAM console.

Related: AWS SES Pricing – What You Need to Know 2025

Send your first email

Setup Amazon SES Account makes sending your first email a breeze. You can send emails in three ways: through the Amazon SES console, SMTP interface, or API.

The Amazon SES console is perfect to start with test emails. Here’s how you can send your first email:

1. Open the Amazon SES console
2. Go to Configuration > Identities
3. Select your verified email identity
4. Click Send test email
5. Pick either Formatted or Raw email options

The Formatted option needs just text input, and Amazon SES takes care of the formatting. The Raw option gives you more room to work with complex messages, like HTML or attachments.

Your email goes through these steps in SES:

• SES checks if your email request is valid
• It scans everything to catch suspicious content and viruses
• Your message moves across the Internet to reach the recipient’s server

The first delivery attempt happens within milliseconds after SES accepts your email. Amazon SES comes with a mailbox simulator that lets you test different scenarios without hurting your sending reputation or using up your quotas.

The mailbox simulator helps you test:

• Delivery success
• Bounces
• Complaints
• Automated responses
• Suppression list scenarios

The SMTP interface or API methods are great ways to send bulk emails or connect with your existing mail servers. These options give you more control and let you automate your email sending process.

Conclusion

Amazon SES setup might look complicated at first, but our step-by-step guide simplifies each vital element. You’ll start with AWS account creation, move through identity verification and finish by sending test emails. These steps are the foundations of your email infrastructure.

The platform gives you great flexibility with multiple sending methods – console, SMTP interface, and API. The mailbox simulator helps you perfect your email setup without any risk to your sending reputation.

Want to make your email operations smoother? Check out our AWS SES Connect feature to integrate and manage your Amazon SES setup easily.

Note that proper configuration and regular monitoring ensure successful email delivery. You should begin with the sandbox environment, test using the mailbox simulator and scale your operations when ready. Your path to budget-friendly and efficient email sending begins here.

FAQ

Here are answers to common questions about Amazon SES setup and configuration.

How to Configure AWS SES?

The AWS SES configuration process starts with identity verification through the SES console. You need to log into your AWS account, go to the SES dashboard and select “Create Identity.” Email sending requires verification of an email address or domain. New accounts have restricted features in a sandbox environment until production access is approved.

Can I use Amazon SES for free?

Yes, Amazon SES offers a generous free tier with these benefits:

• Send up to 3,000 messages per month free for the first year
• Data transfer in is completely free
• First GB of data transfer out is free
• Pay just $0.10 per thousand emails after exceeding free limits

How to create an Amazon email account?

The Amazon email account creation process is straightforward with your existing email address.

Visit the Amazon website and select “Create Account.” Amazon doesn’t provide @amazon.com addresses for customers, so use your current email address. You’ll get a verification email after submitting your details. The verification link must be clicked within 5 minutes to confirm ownership.

Recovering your existing account is possible through the “Forgot Password” option if you see the error “Email address already in use.” The verification email might have landed in the spam folder, so check there if it is not showing up in your inbox.