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This is the developer documentation for Mailtarget. It covers the API, SMTP relay, deliverability operations, and Mailtarget CDP.

The fastest way through these docs is to answer three questions in order.

1. What is Mailtarget​

Mailtarget is enterprise email infrastructure. You send transactional and marketing email through an HTTP API or an SMTP relay, manage sending domains and authentication, monitor deliverability, and reach contacts via Mailtarget CDP when you need behavioral targeting.

Read What is Mailtarget for the full picture, including who runs the platform and what compliance posture it ships with.

2. API or SMTP​

Pick one path. They both reach the same engine. They differ in what your application has to do.

  • The API path gives you JSON requests, server-side templates, substitution data, attachments, metadata for tracking, and a single response object with a transmissionId you can reconcile against webhooks.
  • The SMTP path drops a relay in front of your existing mail stack with one host, one port, and one credential.

Read API vs SMTP before you decide. Once you pick, the path branches into two quickstarts.

3. First Email​

Pick the quickstart that matches your decision above.

  • API Quickstart sends the first transactional email with cURL and language examples.
  • SMTP Quickstart configures the relay and sends one test message.

Both quickstarts assume you already have an API key. If you do not, create one inside the Mailtarget dashboard with the permission scope that matches your path (Send via API or Send via SMTP).

Where to go next​

After your first send works, the order most teams follow is:

  1. Authentication for API keys, allowlisting, and rotation.
  2. Sending Domains for SPF, DKIM, DMARC, and tracking domain setup.
  3. Errors and Rate Limits before you write retry logic.
  4. Webhooks when you need delivery, open, click, or bounce events.
  5. The Transmission API reference once you start tuning the request body.

If you operate Mailtarget at production scale, the Operations section covers deliverability monitoring, webhook reliability, and domain verification troubleshooting.