Email Steps & SMTP

Pulsabase Edge Functions include a native Email step for sending transactional emails without an external library. You can use Pulsabase’s built-in SMTP or bring your own provider.

SMTP Configuration

Configure your SMTP settings in Dashboard → Settings → Email.

Option A — Pulsabase SMTP (Managed)

Pulsabase provides a shared SMTP service for development and low-volume production use. No configuration required — it’s enabled by default.

Setting	Value
Provider	Pulsabase Managed SMTP
From address	noreply@mail.pulsabase.io
Rate limit	200 emails/day (free tier)

Option B — Bring Your Own SMTP (Recommended for Production)

Connect any SMTP-compatible provider (SendGrid, Resend, Postmark, AWS SES, IONOS, etc.):

Field	Example
SMTP Host	smtp.sendgrid.net
SMTP Port	587 (TLS) or 465 (SSL)
Username	apikey
Password	SG.xxxxx (your API key)
From Name	Acme Inc.
From Email	hello@acme.com

Email Templates

Email templates are managed in Dashboard → Settings → Email Templates. Each template has:

• Slug — unique identifier for use in edge steps (e.g., welcome, password-reset)
• Subject — static or dynamic (supports {{variables}})
• Body — HTML or plain text (supports {{variables}})

Template Variables

Templates support the same {{}} interpolation as edge steps:

<!-- Template: welcome -->
<h1>Welcome, {{name}}!</h1>
<p>Your account at <strong>{{project_name}}</strong> is ready.</p>
<p><a href="{{app_url}}">Get started →</a></p>

Variables are filled at send-time from the email step’s variables object.

Adding an Email Step

In any edge function, add a step of type Email:

Step Configuration

Field	Description
to	Recipient email address (string or {{variable}})
template	Template slug (e.g., welcome)
variables	Key-value pairs injected into the template
reply_to	Optional: reply-to address
cc	Optional: CC list
bcc	Optional: BCC list

Example: Welcome Email Flow

Function: send-welcome-email
Trigger: after INSERT on users (via after hook)

Step 1: fetch_user    → [Database]
  SELECT name, email FROM users WHERE id = {{input.id}}

Step 2: send_welcome  → [Email]
  to:        {{steps.fetch_user.body.email}}
  template:  welcome
  variables: {
    name:         {{steps.fetch_user.body.name}},
    project_name: "Acme",
    app_url:      "https://app.acme.com"
  }

Example: Password Reset Email

Function: password-reset

Step 1: generate_token  → [Database]
  INSERT INTO reset_tokens (user_id, token, expires_at)
  VALUES ({{input.user_id}}, gen_random_uuid(), NOW() + INTERVAL '1 hour')
  RETURNING token

Step 2: send_reset      → [Email]
  to:        {{input.email}}
  template:  password-reset
  variables: {
    reset_url: "https://app.acme.com/reset?token={{steps.generate_token.body.token}}"
  }

Dry Run with Email

When testing functions in Dry Run mode, email steps are simulated — no email is actually sent. The __logs output shows exactly what would have been sent:

{
  "__logs": [
    {
      "step": "send_welcome",
      "type": "email",
      "dry_run": true,
      "simulated_payload": {
        "to": "user@example.com",
        "subject": "Welcome to Acme!",
        "template": "welcome",
        "variables": { "name": "Jane", "project_name": "Acme" }
      }
    }
  ]
}

Best Practices

• Use after hooks for transactional emails (welcome, notifications) — they run async and don’t slow down the API response
• Test with dry run before enabling a function on a hook
• Configure reply-to if you want users to be able to reply to transactional emails
• Monitor deliverability — check your SMTP provider’s bounce/complaint rates in their dashboard, not in Pulsabase