SendGrid Setup Guide

Connect SendGrid to FormBlade for reliable, high-volume email delivery.

Trial and pricing

Step 1: Create a SendGrid account

1. Go to signup.sendgrid.com
2. Sign up with your email address and a password
3. Complete the account setup (company name, website, etc.)
4. Confirm your email address via the verification link SendGrid sends you

Step 2: Verify your sender identity

SendGrid requires sender verification before you can send any email. You have two options:

Option A: Single Sender Verification (quick start)

1. In the SendGrid dashboard, go to Settings → Sender Authentication
2. Under Single Sender Verification, click Verify a Single Sender
3. Fill in the form with your sender name, email address, and physical address
4. Click Create
5. Check your inbox and click the verification link in the email from SendGrid

Option B: Domain Authentication (recommended for production)

1. Go to Settings → Sender Authentication
2. Under Domain Authentication, click Authenticate Your Domain
3. Select your DNS provider and enter your domain
4. Add the CNAME records SendGrid provides to your DNS settings
5. Click Verify once the records propagate

Step 3: Create an API key

1. In the SendGrid dashboard, go to Settings → API Keys
2. Click Create API Key
3. Name it something like "FormBlade"
4. Select Restricted Access (more secure than Full Access)
5. Under Mail Send, toggle it to Full Access
6. Leave all other permissions at No Access
7. Click Create & View
8. Copy the API key immediately — it starts with SG. and is only shown once

Step 4: Configure FormBlade

1. Log in to your FormBlade dashboard
2. Open the form you want to configure
3. Go to the Settings tab
4. Under Email Provider, select SendGrid
5. Paste your API key (starting with SG.) into the API Key field
6. Set your From Email to the sender address you verified in Step 2
7. Optionally set a From Name
8. Click Save

Step 5: Send a test email

1. Click Send Test Email in the Email Provider section
2. Check your inbox for the test notification
3. If it fails, verify your API key has Mail Send permission and your sender is verified

Troubleshooting

"Forbidden" or "403" error

• Your API key may not have Mail Send permission. Go to Settings → API Keys, delete the key, and create a new one with the correct permissions
• Your 60-day trial may have expired. Check your SendGrid dashboard for account status

"Sender identity not verified" error

• The "From Email" in FormBlade must match a verified sender in SendGrid
• If using domain authentication, the email must be on that verified domain
• If using single sender verification, the email must exactly match the verified address

Emails bouncing or rejected

• If you are using a free email address (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.) as the sender, switch to a custom domain. Free email domains use DMARC policies that reject third-party sending
• Check your SendGrid Activity Feed for specific bounce reasons

Rate limiting

• SendGrid enforces a rate limit of 600 API requests per minute
• If you are seeing "429 Too Many Requests" errors, your form may be receiving an unusually high volume of submissions. Consider enabling captcha protection to reduce spam submissions

Trial expiration

• After 60 days, your trial ends and emails will stop sending
• FormBlade will automatically fall back to the default mail server if SendGrid rejects requests
• To continue using SendGrid, upgrade to the Essentials plan ($19.95/month) at Settings → Billing
• Alternatively, switch to a provider with a permanent free tier like Brevo

Common gotchas

• No permanent free tier — As of July 2025, SendGrid no longer offers a permanent free plan. The 60-day trial provides 100 emails/day, but after it expires you must pay or switch providers.
• Use Restricted Access API keys — When creating an API key, always choose "Restricted Access" and only enable the Mail Send permission. A Full Access key can modify your account settings, templates, and contacts if compromised.
• Free email addresses as senders will fail — Do not use Gmail (@gmail.com), Yahoo (@yahoo.com), or other free email addresses as your "From" address. These domains have strict DMARC policies that reject third-party sends. Always use a custom domain.
• Sender verification is mandatory — You cannot send any email through SendGrid until you verify either a single sender address or your entire domain. Domain authentication (with DNS records) is strongly recommended for production use.
• Account provisioning can take time — New SendGrid accounts sometimes go through a manual review process that can take up to 24 hours. During this time, sending may be restricted even with a valid API key.
• API key shown only once — The full API key (starting with SG.) is only displayed at creation time. If you lose it, you must delete it and create a new one.

Quick reference: where to find things in SendGrid