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Compare · Xem vs Bento

Xem vs Bento.
Both send without a cap. Only one prices by the email.

Bento is a polished email platform for ecommerce and SaaS with unlimited sends and a strong API. It charges by active user. Xem charges by email sent, so a weekly newsletter to 50,000 people is $59 a month instead of $479.

Start free Move from Bento

A weekly newsletter, priced.

Four sends a month to the whole list, on monthly billing in US dollars. Bento on Marketing Platform; Xem on its cheapest plan for that volume. Bento prices checked November 5, 2026.

SubscribersEmails a monthBentoXem
10,00040,000$79$19 · Starter
50,000200,000$479$59 · Growth
100,000400,000$929$99 · Scale

Bento publishes one Marketing Platform plan: $29 a month for up to 5,000 active users, plus $0.01 per user from 5,001 to 50,000 and $0.009 from 50,001 to 250,000. Its own sample bills ($229 at 25,000 users, $929 at 100,000) match that formula, so the 10,000 and 50,000 figures are calculated from the same rates, counting every subscriber as an active user. The Chat add-on is $30 a month extra and not included.

How they charge

Bento
Per active user, with unlimited marketing sends on paid plans, subject to fair use. One plan from $29 a month covers up to 5,000 active users; above that it adds $0.01 per user up to 50,000, then $0.009 up to 250,000. An active user is a subscribed person or anyone with an event in the last 30 days.
Xem
Per email sent. Free for 3,000 a month, then from $9. Contacts are free to keep, campaigns, automations and forms are on every plan, and you can self-host the open-source version and pay only your email provider.

When Bento fits better

  • You send many emails a day to a small list, where unlimited sends and per-user pricing work in your favour.
  • You want Bento’s Chat add-on for a shared inbox with SMS, WhatsApp and push in one place.
  • You want a hosted product with official SDKs for ten languages.

Running it from an AI agent

Bento
Bento runs an official hosted MCP server, authenticated with API headers, covering subscribers, tags, events, broadcasts, sequences, workflows, templates and stats. Broadcasts are saved as unapproved drafts by default.
Xem
Xem runs a hosted MCP server at mcp.xem.email with 43 tools for campaigns, newsletters, contacts, CSV imports, forms, CRM notes, automations, sending domains and analytics, or you can run @xem.email/mcp locally. It works with Claude, Cursor, Codex and any MCP client. Campaigns start as drafts, imports preview first, and sending is a separate tool. Set up the MCP server.

Questions.

Is Xem cheaper than Bento?

At 10,000 subscribers sending weekly, Bento is $79 a month on monthly billing and Xem is $19. At 50,000 it is $479 against $59. Bento’s unlimited sends only pay off if you send far more than weekly.

Can I move my Bento list to Xem?

Probably. Bento documents imports but not a CSV export, so check People in your account or ask support. Xem imports any CSV with an email column and keeps unsubscribed people unsubscribed.

When is Bento the better choice?

You send many emails a day to a small list, where unlimited sends and per-user pricing work in your favour. You want Bento’s Chat add-on for a shared inbox with SMS, WhatsApp and push in one place. You want a hosted product with official SDKs for ten languages.

Can an AI agent like Claude run Bento or Xem?

Bento runs an official hosted MCP server, authenticated with API headers, covering subscribers, tags, events, broadcasts, sequences, workflows, templates and stats. Broadcasts are saved as unapproved drafts by default. Xem runs a hosted MCP server at mcp.xem.email with 43 tools for campaigns, newsletters, contacts, CSV imports, forms, CRM notes, automations, sending domains and analytics, or you can run @xem.email/mcp locally. It works with Claude, Cursor, Codex and any MCP client. Campaigns start as drafts, imports preview first, and sending is a separate tool.

Sources

Prices change. We check these pages by hand; tell us at team@xem.email if something is out of date.