How we make this list: we compare pricing pages, product documentation and public user reviews. Rankite is independent; if a vendor ever pays for a featured spot, that listing is clearly labeled Partner.
Key takeaways
- The pricing model matters more than the price: Brevo ($9/month, billed by emails sent) is dramatically cheaper than Mailchimp ($13/month and up, billed by contacts) for large lists with modest sending.
- Creators selling digital products fit Kit (Creator from $39/month), while everyone else watching costs should compare MailerLite (Comfort from $12/month) first.
- If you want automation depth, ActiveCampaign (from $15/month) remains the benchmark, but confirm the contact tier your list actually lands in.
- Nonprofits and event-driven businesses get phone support on every plan with Constant Contact (Lite from $12/month), which no free plan matches.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Best for | Starting price | Free plan |
|---|
 Mailchimp | Small businesses wanting the biggest template and integration ecosystem | $13/month (Essentials, 500 contacts) | Yes (250 contacts, 500 emails per month) |
 Brevo | Businesses with large lists and moderate sending volume | $9/month (Starter, 5,000 emails per month) | Yes (300 emails per day, unlimited contacts) |
 Kit | Creators selling digital products and paid newsletters | $39/month (Creator, 1,000 subscribers) | Yes (up to 10,000 subscribers, limited features) |
 MailerLite | Small businesses and creators who want value without fuss | $12/month (Comfort plan) | Yes (1,000 subscribers, 12,000 emails per month) |
 GetResponse | Businesses wanting email plus webinars and funnels in one | $19/month (Email Marketing, 1,000 contacts) | Yes (500 contacts) |
 ActiveCampaign | Businesses that live on marketing automation | $15/month (Starter plan) | Free trial (14 days) |
 Constant Contact | Nonprofits, associations and event-driven businesses | $12/month (Lite plan) | Free trial (no free plan) |
 AWeber | Bloggers and small publishers with steady lists | $15/month (Lite plan) | Yes (500 subscribers) |
 Campaign Monitor | Teams that care how their emails look | $11/month (Lite, 500 contacts) | Free trial (no free plan) |
Is your product missing or out of date?
We review this list regularly. Vendors can request a listing, send updated pricing or ask about featured placement.
What should email marketing software cost you? The honest answer is that two businesses with identical lists can pay $9 or $385 a month for the same job, depending on which pricing model they wandered into. Contact-based platforms charge for the size of your list. Send-based platforms charge for how much you email. Pick the wrong model and you fund the vendor's yacht. These nine platforms cover both models, with the real prices and the plan math that decides your bill.
#1
Mailchimp
Best for: Small businesses wanting the biggest template and integration ecosystem
Visit mailchimp.com
Starting price$13/month (Essentials, 500 contacts)
Free planYes (250 contacts, 500 emails per month)
Mailchimp is the default recommendation for a reason: it is the easiest to start, the templates look good out of the box, and it connects to everything. The free plan covers 250 contacts and 500 emails a month, which suits a brand-new list. Essentials from $13 a month (500 contacts) adds A/B testing and more templates; Standard from $20 adds multi-step automation; Premium starts at $350.
The billing trap is the contact counting. Subscribed, unsubscribed and non-subscribed contacts all count until you archive them, so a list with years of dead addresses costs real money. Send limits are 10x your contact count on Essentials. For small, engaged lists that email often, the math is fine. For big, quiet lists, Brevo will embarrass it on price.
What we like- The largest template library and app marketplace in the category
- Genuinely easy for beginners
- Strong brand recognition that clients trust
Watch out for- Contact-based pricing climbs fast (5,000 contacts costs $75/month on Essentials)
- Unsubscribed and archived contacts count toward limits until manually archived
#2
Brevo
Best for: Businesses with large lists and moderate sending volume
Visit brevo.com
Starting price$9/month (Starter, 5,000 emails per month)
Free planYes (300 emails per day, unlimited contacts)
Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) wins on the pricing model. Because you pay for emails sent rather than contacts stored, a store with 25,000 contacts sending 40,000 emails a month pays roughly $59, where Mailchimp charges $270-plus. Starter at $9 a month covers 5,000 emails; Business at $18 adds marketing automation, A/B testing and landing pages. The free plan allows 300 emails a day with unlimited contacts.
The trade is refinement. The template gallery and editor feel a step behind Mailchimp, and the brand carries less weight with clients. But the bundle is strong: CRM, SMS marketing and transactional email ride along. If your list is big and your sending is modest, this is the cheapest credible option by a wide margin.
What we like- Send-based pricing means 50,000 contacts can cost $35/month
- CRM, SMS and transactional email included
- Generous free plan with unlimited contact storage
Watch out for- Templates and polish trail Mailchimp
- Logo removal on Starter costs extra
- Automation depth sits on the $18 Business tier
#3
Kit
Best for: Creators selling digital products and paid newsletters
Visit kit.com
Starting price$39/month (Creator, 1,000 subscribers)
Free planYes (up to 10,000 subscribers, limited features)
Kit (formerly ConvertKit) is email for people whose list is the business. Tagging, segments and visual automations are built around selling: a subscriber clicks a link, gets tagged, and enters a pitch sequence without plugins. Creator from $39 a month (1,000 subscribers) scales to $89 at 5,000 and $139 at 10,000; Creator Pro from $79 adds subscriber scoring and advanced reporting.
The 2025 price rises (about 35 percent) made the value question sharper. MailerLite does the core work for roughly half at every tier. Kit earns its premium only if you sell digital products, run paid newsletters, or use the Creator Network for growth. The free plan's 10,000-subscriber headline is real but automation-free, so treat it as a collection tool, not a marketing tool.
What we like- Built-in digital product sales and paid newsletters
- Powerful tagging and visual automation for creators
- The Creator Network helps audiences grow organically
Watch out for- The priciest creator option after 2025 price rises (1,000 subs costs $39)
- Free plan excludes automations, so you upgrade the moment you need a sequence
#4
MailerLite
Best for: Small businesses and creators who want value without fuss
Visit mailerlite.com
Starting price$12/month (Comfort plan)
Free planYes (1,000 subscribers, 12,000 emails per month)
MailerLite is the value pick that keeps winning comparisons. The free plan covers 1,000 subscribers and 12,000 monthly emails with automation included. Paid tiers were renamed in 2026: Comfort from $12 a month covers most small businesses, while Power adds unlimited sends and heavier automation for bigger lists. At 5,000 subscribers you pay roughly $39 against Kit's $89.
Deliverability and ease of use both test well, and the editor is friendlier than Kit's for design-led emails. What you give up is depth: advanced segmentation, e-commerce triggers and enterprise features live elsewhere. For newsletters, launches and standard automations at sane prices, it is the first tool to shortlist.
What we like- Roughly half the price of Kit at every tier with similar core features
- Clean drag-and-drop editor
- Free plan includes automation, which Kit's does not
Watch out for- Template variety and advanced automation trail the premium tools
- Plan names changed in 2026, so older guides show outdated tiers
Starting price$19/month (Email Marketing, 1,000 contacts)
Free planYes (500 contacts)
GetResponse bundles what others sell separately. The Email Marketing plan from $19 a month (1,000 contacts) covers newsletters and autoresponders; Marketing Automation from $59 adds webinars, advanced segmentation and e-commerce workflows. Running a webinar inside your email platform removes a $50-a-month webinar subscription from the stack, which changes the value math.
The breadth is also the complaint: the interface tries to be everything and the learning curve shows it. For course creators and businesses that run webinars monthly, the bundle is genuinely economical. For pure newsletters, MailerLite or Brevo do the job cheaper.
What we like- Webinars, landing pages and conversion funnels bundled into mid tiers
- Solid automation at lower prices than ActiveCampaign
- Good e-commerce integrations
Watch out for- Contact-based pricing like Mailchimp, so big lists cost real money
- The interface packs a lot in and can overwhelm beginners
Starting price$15/month (Starter plan)
Free planFree trial (14 days)
ActiveCampaign is what you graduate to when basic autoresponders stop being enough. The automation builder handles multi-step conditional workflows, lead scoring, site tracking and CRM pipeline stages in one flow. Starter from $15 a month covers the essentials for small lists; costs rise with contacts, so a 10,000-contact list runs into the hundreds monthly.
This is a power tool with power-tool complexity. A business sending a monthly newsletter will not use a tenth of it and should not pay for it. But for e-commerce, SaaS and services where the funnel is the business, the automation depth pays for itself in recovered carts and followed-up leads. Budget for the contact tier you will be in six months from now, not today.
What we like- The deepest automation builder in the category (multi-step, conditional, CRM-integrated)
- Excellent deliverability and segmentation
- Scales from startup to enterprise
Watch out for- No free plan, only a 14-day trial
- Pricing climbs with contacts and the feature depth overwhelms casual users
Starting price$12/month (Lite plan)
Free planFree trial (no free plan)
Constant Contact serves the organizations Mailchimp forgot: nonprofits, churches, clubs and event businesses. Lite from $12 a month covers email basics with a marketing CRM; Standard at $35 adds automation templates and segmentation; Premium at $80 adds custom automation, SMS and revenue reporting. Event management with registration and ticketing is built in rather than bolted on.
Support is the differentiator: real humans by phone on every tier, which matters enormously to non-technical users. The automation ceiling is lower than ActiveCampaign's and the pricing is contact-based, so growing lists should watch the tiers. For its audience, though, the combination of events, phone support and nonprofit pricing is unmatched.
What we like- Phone, chat and email support on every plan, a rarity
- Event registration and ticketing built in
- 30 percent nonprofit discount on annual plans
Watch out for- No free plan, trial only
- Real automation workflows require the $80 Premium tier
- Send caps tie to contact count with overage fees
#8
AWeber
Best for: Bloggers and small publishers with steady lists
Visit aweber.com
Starting price$15/month (Lite plan)
Free planYes (500 subscribers)
AWeber has been sending email since before most competitors existed, and it shows in deliverability and reliability rather than flash. The free plan covers 500 subscribers; Lite at $15 a month includes automation, landing pages and the AI writing assistant with unlimited subscribers; Plus at $30 adds split testing, behavioral triggers and e-commerce features.
It is the steady choice rather than the exciting one. Bloggers with affiliate content, coaches with weekly emails and small publishers who value "it just works" fit well. Design-led brands and automation-heavy businesses will find more modern options elsewhere. The unlimited-subscriber pricing on paid plans is a quiet advantage as lists grow.
What we like- Long track record with consistently good deliverability
- AI writing assistant and landing pages included
- Straightforward pricing with unlimited subscribers on paid plans
Watch out for- The interface and templates feel dated next to MailerLite
- Advanced features (split automation, behavioral triggers) need the $30 Plus tier
Starting price$11/month (Lite, 500 contacts)
Free planFree trial (no free plan)
Campaign Monitor is for brands where the email is the brand. The drag-and-drop builder produces genuinely beautiful emails, and the analytics go deeper than open rates into engagement segments and journeys. Lite from $11 a month (500 contacts, 2,500 sends) covers the basics; Essentials at $19 adds unlimited sends and automation; Premier at $149 adds SMS and advanced support.
It does less than the all-in-ones: no CRM, no webinars, no landing page builder worth mentioning. What it does, it does beautifully. Agencies sending client campaigns and design-conscious brands pick it for the output quality. Price-sensitive senders should compare Brevo first; automation-heavy senders should compare ActiveCampaign.
What we like- The best-looking email builder in the category
- Strong engagement analytics and segmentation
- Reliable deliverability with a long enterprise history
Watch out for- No free plan
- Pricing is contact-based and the feature set is narrower than all-in-one rivals
- Now part of Marigold, so the roadmap follows the suite
This is the single most important choice in email marketing software, and most buyers make it by accident. Contact-based pricing (Mailchimp, Constant Contact, Campaign Monitor, GetResponse, ActiveCampaign) charges for your list size. A 25,000-contact list costs $270-plus a month on Mailchimp before you send a single email. Send-based pricing (Brevo) charges for volume: the same list sending 40,000 emails costs about $59.
The rule is simple. Big list, modest sending: Brevo wins by hundreds a month. Small list, frequent sending: contact-based tools are competitive and often nicer to use. Growing list, uncertain sending: start free (MailerLite, Brevo, Kit all have real free tiers) and switch when the paid math is clear. And watch the contact counting: Mailchimp counts unsubscribed and archived contacts until you archive them manually, which inflates the bill silently.
What to look for before you buy
Start with the job. Newsletter publishers need a good editor and simple automation (MailerLite, Kit, Campaign Monitor). E-commerce needs cart recovery and product triggers (ActiveCampaign, GetResponse, Brevo). Creators selling products need commerce built in (Kit). Nonprofits need events and phone support (Constant Contact). Buying automation depth you will never configure is the classic waste in this category.
Then check deliverability basics: does the platform offer a dedicated IP or domain authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) on your tier, and does it monitor sender reputation? Check the automation limits: Mailchimp gates multi-step automation behind Standard, Brevo behind Business, Constant Contact behind Premium. Confirm list management: how unsubscribes, bounces and duplicates are handled, and whether cleaning tools cost extra. And test the free plan with a real campaign before paying, because editor feel and template quality only reveal themselves in use.
How we chose
We started with the categories buyers search: email marketing platforms, email marketing software, best email newsletter tool and marketing automation software. For each candidate we opened the vendor's own pricing page, checked plan names and prices against public reviews on G2 and Capterra and practitioner discussion on Reddit, and compared pricing models, automation depth, free plan limits and company-size fit. Where a price could not be verified on the vendor's page we wrote "See website" rather than guessing.
Frequently asked questions
How much does email marketing software cost?
From $0 to $350-plus per month. Free plans (MailerLite, Brevo, Kit, Mailchimp, AWeber) cover starting lists. Paid plans run $9 to $20 a month at small scale (Brevo Starter $9, MailerLite Comfort $12, Constant Contact Lite $12, Mailchimp Essentials $13, ActiveCampaign Starter $15). At 10,000 contacts expect $35 to $150 a month depending on the platform and pricing model. The model matters more than the sticker price.
Which email platform is best for beginners?
MailerLite and Mailchimp. MailerLite has the friendlier editor and the more generous free plan (1,000 subscribers with automation). Mailchimp has the biggest template library and the most integrations. Both can be running a first campaign within an hour. Constant Contact suits beginners who want phone support.
Is Mailchimp still worth it in 2026?
For small, engaged lists, yes: the ease of use, templates and integrations remain best in class. For large or growing lists, the contact-based pricing has become hard to defend against Brevo's send-based model, and the free plan shrank to 250 contacts in 2026. Price your list at 12 months of growth before deciding.
What is the difference between Kit and MailerLite?
Both serve creators, but Kit ($39/month from) is built around selling: digital products, paid newsletters and the Creator Network. MailerLite ($12/month from) does the core email job for roughly half the price with a better editor. Choose Kit if monetization features drive revenue; choose MailerLite if you mainly need newsletters and automations.
Do I need marketing automation or just newsletters?
Newsletters suffice if you send the same content to everyone on a schedule. Automation pays when behavior differs: welcome sequences for new subscribers, cart recovery for stores, re-engagement for cold contacts, lead nurturing for services. If any of those apply, shortlist ActiveCampaign, GetResponse or Brevo Business rather than a newsletter-first tool.
Sources we checked (11)
- https://mailchimp.com/pricing/
- https://www.brevo.com/pricing/
- https://kit.com/pricing
- https://www.mailerlite.com/pricing
- https://www.getresponse.com/pricing
- https://www.activecampaign.com/pricing
- https://www.constantcontact.com/pricing
- https://www.aweber.com/pricing.htm
- https://www.campaignmonitor.com/pricing/
- https://www.g2.com/categories/email-marketing
- https://www.capterra.com/email-marketing-software/
Is your product missing or out of date?
We review this list regularly. Vendors can request a listing, send updated pricing or ask about featured placement.
Shihab Mia · Founder, Rankite
Shihab has spent more than a decade helping SaaS and e-commerce brands grow through search. He writes Rankite's software buying guides from pricing pages, documentation and public user reviews. More about Shihab.