Cold email infrastructure costs real money. Mailforge is Microsoft-hosted sending infrastructure with native warmup, but it costs 50% more per mailbox than Mailscale, takes longer to configure, and is too much tool for teams under 30 inboxes. The strongest Mailforge alternatives in 2026 are Mailscale for cost and speed, Instantly for bundled sending and CRM, and Infraforge for Google-hosted infrastructure at scale.

By Rishabh Ambasta, Founder, Modern Inbound.

TL;DR

Cheapest at volume: Mailscale
Best for agencies: Mailforge
Easiest setup: Mailscale
Best deliverability control: Mailforge

Side-by-Side Comparison

Mailforge targets agencies that need Microsoft 365 mailboxes with built-in warmup. Mailscale targets founder-led teams that want faster provisioning at a lower per-mailbox cost. Here's how they compare across price, setup, and deliverability.

Tool	Starting Price	Best For	Standout Feature
Mailforge	~$3/mailbox/mo	Cold email agencies	Microsoft 365 hosting with native warmup per mailbox
Mailscale	~$2/mailbox/mo	Founder-led GTM teams	Same-day provisioning at 33% less than Mailforge
Instantly	$37/mo flat	Teams wanting sending and CRM bundled	Unlimited mailboxes on paid plans
Infraforge	~$2/mailbox/mo	High-volume senders	Google Workspace infrastructure for B2B outbound
Smartlead	$39/mo	Advanced sequencing teams	Unlimited mailboxes with AI warmup

What Is Mailforge?

Mailforge provisions Microsoft 365 and Outlook mailboxes for cold email, with warmup handled natively inside the platform. It's a strong fit for agencies managing multiple client domains where Microsoft hosting matters more than cost-per-mailbox. Pricing is around $3 per mailbox per month, per Mailforge's pricing page.

Setup is more involved than Mailscale. You'll configure DNS and link Microsoft accounts, which takes longer than most competitors. The payoff is deeper infrastructure control, a real agency-facing multi-client dashboard, and warmup without a third-party tool.

What Is Mailscale?

Mailscale is cold email infrastructure built for speed. It provisions mailboxes faster and charges less per inbox, making it the practical choice for teams that need working infrastructure this week without a dedicated ops person. Pricing is approximately $2 per mailbox per month, per Mailscale's documentation.

The trade-off is depth. Mailscale doesn't offer the same Microsoft 365 controls as Mailforge, and its warmup features are less developed. For a 20-mailbox founder team on a budget, that's a fine trade. For an agency managing 200 mailboxes across enterprise clients, it's not.

Pricing

Mailforge charges roughly $3 per mailbox per month. Mailscale charges roughly $2. At 100 mailboxes, that's $1,200 per year in extra infrastructure spend, per both tools' public pricing pages. Agencies billing client retainers feel that margin difference every month.

Mailboxes	Mailforge (est.)	Mailscale (est.)	Annual Difference
20	$60/mo	$40/mo	$240/yr
50	$150/mo	$100/mo	$600/yr
100	$300/mo	$200/mo	$1,200/yr

Mailforge's price is defensible when Microsoft hosting is a client requirement. For self-serve founder teams, it's hard to justify paying 50% more per mailbox for agency features you won't use.

Pros and Cons

Mailforge Pros and Cons

Pros: Microsoft 365 infrastructure is the strongest foundation for B2B deliverability. Native warmup removes a tool from your stack. Agency dashboard handles multi-client management. Thorough DNS configuration guidance.

Cons: Higher per-mailbox cost than almost every competitor. Longer setup process that requires technical confidence. Support response times don't match the price point. Too much overhead for teams under 20 mailboxes.

Mailscale Pros and Cons

Pros: Lower per-mailbox cost. Same-day provisioning in most cases. Minimal setup friction for non-technical founders. Solid choice for fast-scaling teams without ops support.

Cons: Warmup features aren't as developed as Mailforge's native engine. Agency-facing tools are immature. Thinner documentation. Less control over Microsoft-specific hosting details.

Who Should Choose Which?

Mailforge is the right call for cold email agencies with 50+ mailboxes across multiple client domains who need Microsoft hosting and native warmup in one place. Mailscale is right for founders and small GTM teams that need working infrastructure fast without a complex setup or high per-mailbox cost.

If you want to skip infrastructure management entirely, Modern Inbound handles domain setup, inbox provisioning, warmup, and sending as part of a full cold email outreach engagement.

Want Research-Led Outreach Run For You?

Modern Inbound mines buyer language, builds account lists, writes outreach, manages client-owned inboxes, and routes qualified replies. Your team gets sales conversations, not another tool to operate.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Mailforge better than Mailscale for deliverability?

Mailforge has an edge for enterprise deliverability because it runs on Microsoft 365 infrastructure, which performs better in B2B inboxes. Mailscale is competitive for most use cases but offers less hosting control. For teams targeting Fortune 500 buyers, Mailforge is worth the extra cost per mailbox.

How much does Mailforge cost vs Mailscale?

Mailforge costs approximately $3 per mailbox per month. Mailscale costs approximately $2. At 100 mailboxes, that gap adds up to $1,200 per year.

Which is easier to set up: Mailforge or Mailscale?

Mailscale is significantly faster to configure. Mailforge requires DNS setup and Microsoft account linking. If you need inboxes this week without a dedicated ops person, Mailscale is the lower-friction option.

Does Mailforge or Mailscale include email warmup?

Mailforge includes native warmup built into the platform. Mailscale has warmup features, but they're less developed. For fresh domains, Mailforge's warmup engine is more thorough.

Mailforge vs Mailscale: which should you choose in 2026