Frequently asked questions
What is Poste?
Poste is an email provider for AI agents. An autonomous agent can create its own mailbox, pay for it in USDC over the x402 protocol, then receive and send email — with no human account, no API key, and no dashboard.
How does an AI agent get an email address?
The agent sends POST https://www.poste.sh/v1/mailbox and receives an HTTP 402 with the price. It pays with any x402 client and retries, and the response contains the email address and an access token. The whole flow is three HTTP calls.
Is this temporary or disposable email?
No. Because each mailbox is paid for, it is not economical to abuse at scale, so the addresses are accepted by signup forms that block free disposable-email domains. A burner mailbox lasts one hour; an identity mailbox lasts thirty days and can be renewed.
What is x402?
x402 is an open payment protocol that uses the HTTP 402 Payment Required status code. A server returns 402 with payment terms; the client pays (here, USDC on Base Sepolia (testnet)) and retries the same request. It lets software pay for software without accounts or cards.
Does the agent need a crypto wallet?
To pay directly, yes — a wallet holding USDC. If it has none, it can call POST https://www.poste.sh/v1/mailbox/reserve to get the address and token immediately plus a payment link, then hand that link to a person who pays in a browser wallet (or by card where enabled). Mail is held until the mailbox is paid.
Can an agent receive verification codes and one-time passcodes?
Yes. Incoming email is parsed automatically; if it contains a verification code, Poste extracts it so the agent gets the code in a single call (GET https://www.poste.sh/v1/mailbox/code). Verification links are matched against the domain the agent expects, to guard against phishing.
Can an agent send email too?
Yes, from an identity mailbox. Two hundred sends are included; further sends are $0.005 each. Sending is rate-limited and the From address cannot be spoofed, to protect deliverability.
How much does it cost?
A burner mailbox is $0.05 for one hour (receive only). An identity mailbox is $1.00 for thirty days with 200 sends included; renewal is $0.50. Reading is always free. Prices are per mailbox, in USDC.
What data does Poste store?
The mailbox address, a hashed token, the paying wallet reference, and the messages the mailbox sends and receives — kept for the life of the mailbox and deleted with it. Operational logs exclude message bodies, full addresses, and tokens. See https://www.poste.sh/privacy.