A client's domain is registered at Porkbun, the registrar sells hosted email a few clicks away, and the client asks why they should pay you for mailboxes instead. For a hosting reseller or MSP billing 20 to 200 client domains, the useful answer is not about which inbox looks nicer. It is about who holds the billing relationship, what your billing system can automate, and what a full book of mailboxes costs you each month. This comparison puts Porkbun Email next to Atriomail, a white-label email hosting platform for resellers who sell mailboxes at their own price, on exactly those points.

Every Porkbun figure below was checked on Porkbun's own pages in September 2026 and names its source. Where Porkbun is the better fit for a client, this post says so.

Table of Contents

Key Takeaways

AreaWhat to know
Porkbun Email price$3 a month per address, billed yearly ($36 a year), with 10 GB per address (Porkbun's knowledge base, checked September 2026)
Reseller pricingPorkbun lists no reseller or wholesale price for hosted email; a reseller buys at the listed rate and rebills
WHMCSThe Porkbun module on the WHMCS Marketplace is an independent registrar module for domains and DNS; it does not create mailboxes
DNSPorkbun's one-button DKIM and DMARC setup needs Porkbun nameservers; Atriomail writes mail records on connected Cloudflare and Namecheap accounts, and every other DNS host gets records to copy
What Atriomail does for this problem$1.39 per mailbox per month with 15 GB included, billed monthly; a WHMCS 9 module that creates the client's account and domain, plus the first mailbox if the domain clears the security check; a REST API that manages mailboxes
200 mailboxes resold at $5$400 a month above cost on Porkbun Email, $722 a month on Atriomail, before card fees, support time and any white-label fee

Know your cost per mailbox before you quote the next client. Atriomail charges you $1.39 per mailbox per month with 15 GB included, and you decide what the client pays. Extra storage is $0.60 per 5 GB block.

Work out your margin   Read the DNS setup guide

What Porkbun Email Includes in September 2026

Porkbun's email product page (checked September 2026) lists three options, and it matters which one a client is really asking about.

Email Forwarding costs nothing and gives each domain 20 forwarding addresses. It relays incoming mail to an inbox the client already has, and Porkbun's own article on hosted email versus forwarding (updated July 2026) notes that replies appear to come from the destination address, not the custom domain. That is a routing tool, not a mailbox, and it works much like the forwarding-only services covered in our comparison of Cloudflare Email Routing and hosted mailboxes.

Porkbun Email is the hosted mailbox: $3 a month per address, billed yearly, with 10 GB of storage per address. Users read mail in webmail at webmail.porkbun.com, signing in with the full address and the password set for that mailbox (Porkbun's webmail article, updated July 2026). Mail apps connect over IMAP on imap.porkbun.com port 993 or POP3 on port 995, and send through smtp.porkbun.com on port 587 or 465 (Porkbun's email client settings article, checked September 2026). Porkbun's setup guide (updated August 2026) adds that newly registered Porkbun domains can use the service free for 15 days.

Proton Mail through Porkbun starts at $5.99 a month with 15 GB per user, a Proton subscription sold through the registrar for clients who want encrypted mail.

Porkbun's support page (checked September 2026) lists phone and live chat every day from 9 AM to 5 PM Pacific, weekends and holidays included, plus email support at any hour of the year. That is a longer support schedule than Atriomail's, which runs during business hours, and it belongs in the decision rather than being skipped.

Billing Client Mailboxes Through Porkbun

Porkbun's setup guide states that each hosted address is billed separately at $36 per year, and that mailboxes are managed from the Email Hosting and Forwarding page of each domain in Domain Management. The email product page lists no reseller tier. So a reseller has two ways to put Porkbun Email in front of a client.

The first is to let the client hold the Porkbun account and pay Porkbun. You do the setup, and the recurring mailbox revenue goes to the registrar. The second is to keep the client's domain and email in your own Porkbun account and rebill at a markup. That works: at a $5 resale price, each Porkbun mailbox leaves $2 a month above cost. Two things come with it. The cost is paid a year ahead for every address, so a client who leaves after three months has already been paid for until the renewal date, unless Porkbun's billing terms credit unused time, which is worth checking before you promise anything. And the work is organised per domain, so 30 client domains means 30 separate email pages to visit when you audit who has which mailbox. Our guide to usage-based email pricing for resellers covers how per-mailbox cost scales against what you charge.

Atriomail turns that structure around for a reseller. You pay $1.39 per mailbox per month with 15 GB included, on one monthly subscription with no contract and no minimum, and you set the client's price. Adding or removing a mailbox shows up on the next monthly invoice, so the cost follows the book instead of being locked in a year ahead; just remember a mailbox is billed until it is deleted, not merely deactivated. The full breakdown is on Atriomail's published pricing page.

WHMCS and Automation: A Registrar Module Is Not an Email Module

Search the WHMCS Marketplace for Porkbun and you find the Porkbun Registrar Module for WHMCS (listing checked September 2026). Its developer states that it is an independent integration, not an official Porkbun or WHMCS product. It handles domain availability checks, registration, inbound transfers, renewals, DNS records, nameservers and domain status sync. Nothing in the listing creates, suspends or deletes Porkbun Email mailboxes. It sells domains from WHMCS; it does not touch the email line on the invoice.

Porkbun's API documentation (checked September 2026) covers domains, DNS and DNSSEC, nameservers, URL forwarding and email forwarding, but lists no endpoints for hosted mailboxes. In practice every new mailbox and every cancellation is set up in Porkbun's dashboard, and your WHMCS invoice has to be kept in step with it by hand. That is exactly the manual loop that automating client email setup is meant to remove, and it gets heavier the more domains you run, as our guide to managing email for many client domains describes.

This is the gap the Atriomail WHMCS module was built for. Version 3.1.1 runs on WHMCS 9 and handles Create, Suspend, Unsuspend, Terminate and Change Package. When a client orders, it creates their Atriomail account and email domain, and creates the first mailbox if the domain clears the security check during the order. Clients add mailboxes and 5 GB storage blocks in the WHMCS client area, and those become recurring WHMCS charges at your prices. Two conditions to plan around: changes made in the Atriomail panel or through the API do not sync into WHMCS billing, and the charges the module creates are titled "AtrioMail mailboxes". If you run your own portal instead, the Atriomail REST API covers domains, mailboxes, forwarders, catch-alls, mailbox storage and single-use sign-in links.

DNS and Cutover: What Each Side Sets Up for You

Porkbun makes DNS easy inside its own walls. When a domain uses Porkbun's nameservers and has hosted email, a Configure DMARC button on the domain's email page queues the DMARC and DKIM records (Porkbun's DKIM and DMARC article, updated April 2026). On third-party nameservers the button is replaced by a notice, and Porkbun's guide to DNS hosted elsewhere has you add two MX records, SPF, DKIM and DMARC by hand, after deleting any existing MX records on the root domain.

Atriomail has its own boundary, and it is only fair to state it the same way. On a Cloudflare or Namecheap account you connect, Atriomail writes MX, SPF, DMARC, autodiscover, autoconfig and the DKIM key for domains already in that account. On any other DNS host, including a domain still on Porkbun's nameservers, you copy the records from the DNS Setup dialog, following the manual DNS setup instructions. The Amazon SES verification records are added by hand on every host. Neither platform sets up DNS everywhere, so count the records by where each client's DNS actually lives; our email domain management guide helps with that audit.

Porkbun mailboxes accept IMAP sign-in with the mailbox's own password, which is what Atriomail's built-in migration needs: it copies mail and folders with their original dates, not calendars or contacts. On a connected Cloudflare or Namecheap account the MX is written as soon as the domain clears the security check, so add the domain only when you are ready for mail to switch.

Two Porkbun details shape the order of work. Each address is paid a year ahead, so a switch close to its renewal date wastes the least prepaid time. And every mailbox has its own password, so collect or reset them all before cutover day. The step-by-step migration playbook for agencies walks through sequencing a client book.

Moving 50 or more mailboxes off Porkbun? Every account in a bulk migration needs its own password, and large books are planned with us before the first job runs. Tell us the mailbox count and your cutover window before you quote the client.

Create your account   Talk to the team

Porkbun Email vs Atriomail for Resellers

DimensionPorkbun EmailAtriomail
Price per mailbox$3 a month per address, billed yearly ($36 a year)$1.39 a month per mailbox, billed monthly
Included storage10 GB per address15 GB per mailbox; extra storage $0.60 per 5 GB block a month
Reseller priceNone listed on the email product page$1.39 is what you pay; you set the client's price
Contract and minimumEach address billed a year at a timeMonthly, no contract, no minimum
WHMCSIndependent registrar module for domains and DNS; no mailbox provisioningModule v3.1.1 for WHMCS 9: Create, Suspend, Unsuspend, Terminate, Change Package; client-area adds billed in WHMCS, panel and API changes not synced
Mailbox APIAPI covers domains, DNS and email forwarding; no hosted mailbox endpoints listedREST API covers domains, mailboxes, forwarders, catch-alls, storage and migration jobs
DNS setupConfigure DMARC button (DKIM included) on Porkbun nameservers; records by hand elsewhereAutomatic on connected Cloudflare and Namecheap accounts; records to copy from the DNS Setup dialog elsewhere
Mail accessWebmail, IMAP, POP3 and SMTPWebmail, IMAP, POP3 and SMTP over encrypted connections
Forwarding20 forwarding addresses per domain at no cost, no mailbox neededForwarders are not billed but need a mailbox on the same domain
White-labelNo reseller branding option listed; webmail at webmail.porkbun.comPaid add-on: your product name and favicon on the control panel at your hostname; webmail interior, raw headers, payment pages and system emails stay neutral or show the platform
Trial15 days free on newly registered Porkbun domainsNo trial; creating an account is free, mailboxes are billed from the first one
Support hoursPhone and chat daily, 9 AM to 5 PM Pacific; email at any hourBusiness hours, by phone, email and live chat in the panel

Porkbun cells come from its email product page, knowledge base, API documentation, support page and WHMCS Marketplace listing, all checked September 2026. The white-label row matters most when your brand is the product: the add-on has a one-time setup fee and a monthly fee on top of the per-mailbox price, and our guide to white-label email for agencies explains when that is worth adding.

When Porkbun Email Makes Sense

  • A small client who wants to pay the registrar directly. A few addresses on a domain already at Porkbun, on Porkbun nameservers, get one account, one bill and a DKIM and DMARC setup that takes a button.
  • Forward-only addresses. Porkbun gives each domain 20 forwarding addresses without buying a mailbox. Atriomail forwarders need a paid mailbox on the same domain, so for a domain that only forwards, Porkbun is the cheaper tool.
  • Clients who want to try before paying, or phone support at weekends. The 15-day trial on new Porkbun domains and daily phone hours are real advantages for a self-managing client.
  • Clients who want encrypted mail. Proton Mail through Porkbun serves that need better than a standard IMAP mailbox.

Where Atriomail Fits

The decision changes once you are the one billing the mailboxes. Take a book of 200 mailboxes resold at $5.00 each, which brings in $1,000 a month from clients.

On Porkbun Email you pay $3 per address, $600 a month in effect, paid as $7,200 across the year ahead, leaving $400 a month above cost, or 40 percent. On Atriomail you pay $278 a month (200 times $1.39), leaving $722 a month, about 72 percent. The difference is $322 a month, or $3,864 a year, before card fees, support time and any white-label fee. Each Atriomail mailbox in that book also carries 15 GB instead of 10 GB. If you add the white-label add-on, subtract its one-time setup fee and monthly fee from the Atriomail side.

Porkbun Email ($3/address) $400/mo Atriomail ($1.39/mailbox) $722/mo $0 $200 $400 $600 $800
Monthly margin on 200 mailboxes resold at $5 each. Before card fees, support time and any white-label fee.

Choose Porkbun Email when the client pays the registrar directly, needs a handful of addresses, or only forwards mail. Choose Atriomail when email is a product on your own invoice: you bill through WHMCS 9 or your own portal, you want the monthly cost to follow the mailbox count instead of being prepaid per address, and you want mailboxes created from the order rather than from a second dashboard. Onboarding a large book is practical too, since you can add up to 500 domains in one step. Run your own resale price against the figures on the Atriomail pricing page, and see how other resellers structure tiers in our guide to scalable email pricing. Creating an Atriomail account is free and needs no card; mailboxes are billed from the first one.

Put the $722 side of that table to work. Create your account, check your resale price against the $1.39 cost, and add each client domain when you are ready to switch its mail. The account costs nothing to create and needs no card; mailboxes are billed from the first one.

Create a free account   See pricing

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I resell Porkbun Email at my own price?

You can buy addresses at $36 a year each and put your own price on your invoice, but Porkbun's email product page (checked September 2026) lists no reseller or wholesale rate. Your margin is whatever you charge above $3 a month, and the cost is paid a year ahead per address. If the basics of the model are new, start with what reseller email hosting is and why it matters.

Does the Porkbun module for WHMCS create email mailboxes?

No. The Porkbun Registrar Module for WHMCS is built by an independent developer and states that it is not an official Porkbun product. It covers domain registration, transfers, renewals, DNS records and nameservers. Porkbun Email mailboxes are created in Porkbun's own dashboard.

Can a client keep their domain at Porkbun and host email on Atriomail?

Yes. Domain registration and email hosting are separate services. If the domain stays on Porkbun's nameservers, add the records Atriomail lists in the DNS Setup dialog at Porkbun's DNS, because Atriomail's DNS automation covers connected Cloudflare and Namecheap accounts. Change the MX only when you are ready for mail to switch.

How do I move mailboxes from Porkbun Email to Atriomail?

Atriomail's built-in IMAP migration signs in to the old server with each mailbox's password, and Porkbun mailboxes accept IMAP sign-in. It copies mail and folders with their original dates, not calendars or contacts, and has no charge; you pay for the mailboxes you migrate into. Any migration can run as a dry run first. A bulk job needs every account's own password, and large books should be planned with us first.

Can I bill Atriomail mailboxes from WHMCS?

Yes, on WHMCS 9. Download the module from the Plugins page in the Atriomail control panel and attach it to a Hosting Account or Reseller Account product. Default product limits are 5 mailboxes and 15 GB, so raise them for bigger clients. Mailboxes and storage added in the WHMCS client area are billed at your prices, the charge lines are titled "AtrioMail mailboxes", and changes made in the panel or through the API do not sync into WHMCS.

Latest from the blog