SendiventvsKnock

Workflows vs events

Knock positions itself as developer-first notification infrastructure with a powerful workflow engine and in-app components. It's built around workflows — visual pipelines that define how notifications flow, batch, delay, and branch. Powerful for complex notification logic.

Sendivent is built around events. You emit an event, we route it to channels with notification templates your team manages. Less powerful, but simpler.

The price difference

Knock offers a free trial, then paid plans that (as of 2025) start around $250/month according to public listings. Sendivent has an always-on free tier and lower paid tiers.

For early-stage products, that difference matters. You might not need workflow complexity yet — and an always-free tier helps if you're still finding product-market fit.

When workflows matter

Complex notification logic benefits from Knock's approach:

• Built-in recurring digests and batching logic
• Conditional branching based on user preferences
• Sophisticated delay and scheduling

When simplicity wins

For straightforward notification needs:

• User signs up → send welcome email
• Order ships → send SMS + email
• Team invite → send Slack + email

A simpler model is faster to implement and maintain. With Sendivent, digests are "your cron job fires a summary event" instead of configuring a workflow engine.

Bottom line

Knock is for teams who need sophisticated notification workflows. Sendivent is for teams who want to ship notifications quickly without the workflow overhead.

Code Comparison

Knock (workflow-centric)

import Knock from '@knocklabs/node';
const knock = new Knock(process.env.KNOCK_API_KEY);

// Trigger a workflow (defined in Knock dashboard)
await knock.workflows.trigger('new-order', {
  recipients: [{ id: user.id }],
  data: { orderId, items }
});

// Workflows can:
// - Batch multiple events into digests
// - Branch based on conditions
// - Delay and schedule
// - Feed into in-app notification center

Powerful, but more concepts to learn and configure.

Sendivent (event-centric)

await sendivent
  .event('order.confirmed')
  .to({ email: user.email, phone: user.phone })
  .payload({ orderId, items })
  .send();

// Event → templates → channels
// No workflows to design
// Less powerful, but simpler mental model

The question: do you need Knock's workflow power, or is event → notification sufficient?

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Don't need workflow orchestration? Create a free account and try the simpler model: emit events, we deliver notifications. No workflow designer required.