Amazon SES SMTP and IMAP settings
SMTP relay settings for Amazon SES, including the critical detail that SMTP credentials are not your AWS keys.
Outgoing mail (SMTP)
| SMTP server | email-smtp.us-east-1.amazonaws.com (swap us-east-1 for your region) |
|---|---|
| Port | 587 (STARTTLS) or 465 (SSL/TLS) |
| Username | SES SMTP credentials (generated in the SES console) |
| Password | See authentication note below |
Authentication
Your SES SMTP username and password are NOT your AWS access key and secret. Generate dedicated SMTP credentials in the SES console (Account dashboard, Create SMTP credentials). Ports 2587 and 2465 are also available if 587/465 are blocked.
Sending limits
New accounts start in the SES sandbox (200 emails/day, verified recipients only). Request production access to lift it.
How to set up Amazon SES in your email tool
- Open your email client or sending tool and add a new account.
- For outgoing mail, enter the SMTP server email-smtp.us-east-1.amazonaws.com (swap us-east-1 for your region) on port 587 (STARTTLS) or 465 (SSL/TLS).
- Set the username to ses smtp credentials (generated in the ses console), and use the password described in the authentication note above.
- Save the account and send a test email to confirm it works.
Connecting is the easy part. Landing in the inbox is not.
Once Amazon SES is connected you can send, but whether your cold email reaches the inbox depends on SPF, DKIM, and DMARC authentication, your sender reputation, and proper domain warmup. Scheduler Zero handles warmup and deliverability so your emails actually land.