Understanding the true cost of outbound email at scale

At FirstQuadrant, we’re not a traditional outbound email tool — we don’t manage deliverability or infrastructure. But many users still run outbound campaigns through the platform, and there’s a common misunderstanding we often see: the belief that outbound is basically free. It’s not. Once you scale beyond small batches, the costs begin to stack up quickly. Below is a breakdown of the main cost components to help you plan more effectively.

Need help with the numbers?
We’ve put together a Google Sheets calculator to help you estimate costs based on your own assumptions. To access it, reach out to our team:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ij6rc6sgVrjqXRXndgNULbyNaZT-bPVaEs-oMdG2HBU/edit?usp=sharing

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Mailboxes

Most people don’t realize that for inbox placement, you can’t send more than ~20 cold emails per day per mailbox. So if your goal is to send 20,000 emails per month, you’ll need around 40 individual mailboxes.

• These must be real Google or Microsoft Workspace accounts — aliases and SMTP services like SendGrid won’t work.
• Expect to pay roughly $7/month per mailbox.
• Tools like Zapmail can help automate and reduce the cost of setting up these mailboxes in bulk.

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Domains

You should avoid using more than 3–4 mailboxes per domain to maintain a good sending reputation.

• With 40 mailboxes, you’ll need at least 10+ domains, each costing around $1–2/month.
• Never use your primary business domain for outbound — if it gets flagged or blocked, your main email operations could be affected.

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Warming

New mailboxes need to behave like real inboxes before sending cold emails — this includes sending, receiving, and replying to emails over time.

• Some tools like Instantly offer unlimited warming for a flat rate (e.g. $100/month).
• Others like Mailreach or Warmup Inbox charge per mailbox (around $20/month per inbox).
• For 40 mailboxes + backups, warming can easily exceed $1,000/month.

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Mailbox rotation

Even warmed inboxes will occasionally get flagged. When this happens, you’ll need to pause and rotate in backups.

• We recommend having 20–30% extra mailboxes warmed and ready.
• This adds cost, but it’s necessary to ensure uninterrupted sending.

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Sequencing tool

You’ll need software to manage sequences, follow-ups, delays, and reply logic.

• Tools like Apollo or Reply start at around $150/month and scale based on usage.
• FirstQuadrant can also handle this part if you’re already using the platform — it’s not positioned as a sequencing tool, but it integrates well for teams looking to centralize operations.

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Prospecting and enrichment

• For broad outreach, tools like Apollo data (around $0.05/contact) might suffice.
• For more targeted efforts, enrichment tools like Clay can cost anywhere between $0.10–$0.80/contact.
• Don’t forget email verification if you’re sourcing raw data.

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Example breakdown

Let’s say you want to reach out to 5,000 new contacts per month with 3–4 follow-ups. That’s about 20,000 emails/month.

Here’s a rough cost estimate:

Component	Estimated Monthly Cost
Mailboxes (40)	$280
Domains (10+)	$10–20
Warming (40–50 boxes)	~$1,000
Sequencing tool	~$150
Prospecting/enrichment	~$500+
Total	~$2,000/month

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