AWS Setup Guide

Connect your own AWS SES account to SESPilot in under 5 minutes. This one-time setup grants you wholesale email pricing forever.

Prerequisite: SES Production Access
Your AWS SES account starts in "Sandbox Mode". You must request production access from your AWS dashboard before you can send emails to unverified addresses (your customers).

Step 1: Create an IAM User

You will create a specific user identity that allows SESPilot to talk to your AWS account securely.

  1. Log in to your AWS Management Console.
  2. In the top search bar, type "IAM" and select the first result.
  3. In the left sidebar, click Users, then click the orange "Create user" button.
  4. Enter a name like sespilot-service-user and click Next.
AWS IAM user creation screen

Step 2: Set Permissions

We need to give this user permission to send emails.

  1. On the "Set permissions" page, select "Attach policies directly".
  2. In the search box, type and select: AmazonSESFullAccess.
  3. Click Next, then click Create user.

Step 3: Create Access Keys

Now we generate the "password" for this user.

  1. Click on the user name you just created (e.g., sespilot-service-user).
  2. Open the "Security credentials" tab.
  3. Scroll down to "Access keys" and click "Create access key".
  4. Select "Application running outside AWS" and proceed.
  5. Important: Copy the Access Key ID and Secret Access Key immediately. You won't be able to see them again.
AWS access key creation success screen

Step 4: Find Your Region & Account ID

  1. Account ID: Click your account name in the top-right corner. Copy the 12-digit number (remove hyphens if any).
  2. SES Region: Search for "SES" in AWS. Note the region in the top right (e.g., N. Virginia is us-east-1).
Finding AWS Account ID and Region

Step 5: Connect SESPilot

Go back to your SESPilot dashboard settings and paste the credentials.

SESPilot AWS Credentials settings page
That's it!
Once you click "Save Credentials", SESPilot will automatically configure your bounce handling and verify the connection. You are ready to send!

Video Walkthrough

Prefer watching? Here is a complete 3-minute setup guide.