Email Marketing Software Reviews: What Actually Works

There are dozens of email marketing platforms out there, and they all claim to be the best. Having tested most of them, I can tell you: they're not all created equal. Some are overpriced for what you get. Others nickel-and-dime you with hidden fees. A few are genuinely excellent.

This guide breaks down the top email marketing tools with real pricing, actual feature limitations, and honest opinions about who should use what. No fluff, no sponsored rankings-just practical advice to help you pick the right tool.

Quick Comparison: Email Marketing Software at a Glance

PlatformStarting PriceFree PlanBest For
Mailchimp$13/monthYes (500 contacts)Beginners, small lists
Brevo$9/monthYes (300 emails/day)Budget-conscious, high-volume
ActiveCampaign$15/monthNo (14-day trial)Advanced automation
AWeber$15/monthYes (500 subscribers)Simple email needs
MailerLite$10/monthYes (500 subs, 12k emails)Solopreneurs, tight budgets
Moosend$9/monthNo (30-day trial)All features at one price
GetResponse$19/monthYes (500 contacts)All-in-one marketing
ConvertKit$15/monthYes (1,000 subscribers)Creators, bloggers
Constant Contact$12/monthYes (60-day trial)Small business basics

Mailchimp Review: The Big Name That's Getting Expensive

Mailchimp is the 800-pound gorilla of email marketing. Everyone knows the name, but that brand recognition comes with a price-literally.

Mailchimp Pricing Breakdown

Mailchimp offers four plans: Free, Essentials, Standard, and Premium. The paid plans start at $13/month for 500 contacts on Essentials. Standard begins at $20/month for the same contact count, with Premium jumping to $350/month for 10,000 contacts.

Here's the thing that gets people: Mailchimp charges based on contacts, not emails sent. And they count unsubscribed contacts toward your total unless you manually archive them. As of April, all contacts in your account count toward your limit, including unsubscribed and non-subscribed contacts.

For 2,500 contacts, expect to pay around $45/month on Essentials or $60/month on Standard. At 10,000 contacts, you're looking at $135/month for Essentials, $165/month for Standard, or $350/month for Premium.

Recent changes have made Mailchimp significantly more expensive. In December, the free plan was drastically cut from 500 contacts to just 250 contacts, with monthly sending reduced to 500 emails (down from 1,000). The daily limit is now 250 emails. Even more concerning, automation features were removed from the free plan entirely in late 2025.

What's Good About Mailchimp

What Sucks About Mailchimp

Mailchimp Send Limits and Restrictions

Mailchimp's send limits vary by plan. The Free plan allows just 500 emails per month with a daily cap of 250. Essentials gives you 10x your contact limit per month. Standard provides 12x your contact limit. Premium offers 15x your contact limit. If you exceed these limits, you're automatically bumped to the next tier or charged overage fees.

Verdict

Mailchimp works well if you're just starting out and have under 250 subscribers on the free plan. Once your list grows, the costs escalate quickly and there are better options for the money. The free plan used to be generous; now it's basically a demo. For serious email marketing, you'll need at least the Standard plan, which makes Mailchimp one of the more expensive options.

Brevo Review: Best Value for High-Volume Senders

Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) takes a different approach: they charge based on emails sent, not contacts stored. This makes them dramatically cheaper for businesses with large lists who don't email constantly.

Brevo Pricing Breakdown

Brevo's free plan allows 300 emails per day with unlimited contacts. The Starter plan begins at $9/month for 5,000 emails per month. Standard starts at $18/month for 5,000 emails with added features like landing pages and A/B testing. Professional pricing starts around $65/month for 20,000 emails and includes advanced features like marketing automation reports, phone support, and Facebook ads integration.

The email-based pricing tiers work like this: 5,000 emails ($9-$18/month depending on features), 10,000 emails ($15-$27), 20,000 emails ($25-$65), up to 1,000,000 emails per month. Once you exceed 1 million emails monthly, you need to contact sales for custom Enterprise pricing.

There's a catch though: removing the Brevo logo on the Starter plan costs an extra $12/month. So your $9 plan quickly becomes $21 if you want professional-looking emails. This is often glossed over in their marketing materials.

What's Good About Brevo

What Sucks About Brevo

Brevo's Unique Pricing Model Explained

Unlike most competitors, Brevo doesn't care how many contacts you have-only how many emails you send. This is perfect if you have 50,000 contacts but only email them twice a month. You'd pay based on 100,000 sends (50k x 2), not for storing 50,000 contacts. Most other platforms would charge you $200-400/month for that list size alone.

However, if you email frequently, this can backfire. Sending to 5,000 contacts weekly means 20,000 emails per month, pushing you to the $25/month tier even on Starter, or $65/month on Standard for full features.

Verdict

Brevo is excellent if you have a large contact list but don't need to email them constantly. The email-based pricing model saves serious money. Just budget for the logo removal fee if you're on Starter. Check out our full Brevo pricing breakdown and Brevo review for more details.

ActiveCampaign Review: Automation Powerhouse

If you need serious marketing automation, ActiveCampaign is the gold standard. It's not the cheapest, but the automation builder is legitimately best-in-class.

ActiveCampaign Pricing Breakdown

ActiveCampaign doesn't offer a free plan-only a 14-day trial. The Starter plan begins at $15/month for 1,000 contacts when billed annually ($19/month when billed monthly). Plus starts at $49/month annually ($59/month monthly), and Pro jumps to $79/month annually ($99/month monthly) for 1,000 contacts.

At 5,000 contacts, pricing jumps significantly: Starter costs $99/month, Plus costs $145/month, and Pro costs $205/month. At 10,000 contacts, you're looking at $179/month for Starter, $284/month for Plus, and $379/month for Pro.

The Enterprise plan starts at $145/month for 1,000 contacts and can exceed $1,000/month for larger lists with custom features.

ActiveCampaign's Recent Pricing Changes

ActiveCampaign rolled out major pricing changes in mid-2024. They eliminated their legacy Lite, Plus, Professional, and Enterprise tiers, replacing them with Starter, Plus, Pro, and Enterprise. Features were rearranged and bundles discontinued in favor of add-ons like Sales Engagement and Pipelines.

Many users saw bills increase 30-40% with their migration. The old Lite plan started at $29/month; the new Starter plan starts lower at $15/month but includes fewer features for the price. To get equivalent functionality, many users needed to upgrade to Plus or add paid extras.

What's Good About ActiveCampaign

What Sucks About ActiveCampaign

When ActiveCampaign Makes Sense

ActiveCampaign justifies its premium pricing when you actually use the automation features. If you're running multi-step nurture sequences, complex conditional logic, lead scoring, or behavioral triggers, the automation builder is unmatched at this price point.

For ecommerce, abandoned cart sequences, product recommendation engines, and purchase-based segmentation work beautifully. For B2B SaaS, the CRM integration with email automation creates seamless handoffs from marketing to sales.

Verdict

ActiveCampaign is worth it if you'll actually use the automation features. If you just need to send newsletters, you're overpaying. It's ideal for ecommerce, SaaS, and B2B companies running complex email sequences. The recent price increases and feature restructuring make it less attractive for small businesses with simple needs.

AWeber Review: Simple But Showing Its Age

AWeber has been around since 1998-one of the OGs of email marketing. It's reliable and straightforward, but it's starting to feel dated compared to newer competitors.

AWeber Pricing Breakdown

AWeber offers a free plan and two paid tiers. The free plan covers up to 500 subscribers with 3,000 emails per month. Lite starts at $15/month for 500 subscribers and includes basic features. Plus starts at $30/month for 500 subscribers with enhanced features like split testing and advanced analytics.

However, in December, AWeber increased prices by 50-150% and eliminated grandfathered pricing, frustrating many long-time users. For 2,500 subscribers, Plus now costs around $75/month. At 10,000 subscribers, you're looking at $200+/month.

What's Good About AWeber

What Sucks About AWeber

Verdict

AWeber is fine for basic email marketing-newsletters, simple autoresponders, that kind of thing. But the recent price hikes make it harder to recommend when alternatives like MailerLite offer more for less. The 50-150% price increase combined with removing grandfathered pricing alienated many loyal customers. Read our AWeber pricing guide for the full breakdown.

Try AWeber free for up to 500 subscribers →

MailerLite Review: Best Free Plan Available

MailerLite has one of the most generous free plans in email marketing. It's become the go-to recommendation for solopreneurs and small businesses on tight budgets.

MailerLite Pricing Breakdown

The Forever Free plan includes 500 subscribers and 12,000 emails per month. That's actually usable, unlike Mailchimp's gutted free tier. The Growing Business plan starts at $10/month for 500 subscribers with unlimited emails and additional features. The Advanced plan starts at $20/month for 500 subscribers and adds multi-user access, custom HTML editor, and priority support.

At 1,000 subscribers, Growing Business costs $15/month and Advanced costs $30/month. For 5,000 subscribers, Growing Business is $45/month and Advanced is $80/month. At 10,000 subscribers, Growing Business costs $65/month and Advanced costs $125/month.

Important note: MailerLite reduced their free plan limit from 1,000 to 500 subscribers in September. They also increased paid plan pricing-the Growing Business plan previously started at $10/month for 1,000 subscribers, but now costs $15/month for that same amount.

What's Good About MailerLite

What Sucks About MailerLite

MailerLite's Subscriber Counting Method

MailerLite counts "unique subscribers used" rather than total contacts. This means only email addresses you've actively contacted in the last 30 days count toward billing. If you have 2,000 contacts but only emailed 400 of them this month, you're only charged for 400.

This is more generous than most competitors who charge for total contacts whether you email them or not. However, unsubscribed and bounced emails don't count, which is standard across the industry.

Verdict

MailerLite is perfect for bootstrapped businesses that need solid email marketing without the price tag. The free plan punches well above its weight, though the recent reduction to 500 subscribers and price increases make it less generous than before. Still one of the best value options for small businesses.

Moosend Review: All Features, One Price

Moosend takes a refreshing approach: all features are available on a single paid plan. You pay more as your list grows, but you never hit feature walls.

Moosend Pricing Breakdown

Moosend's Pro plan starts at $9/month for 500 contacts with unlimited emails. There's no free plan, but they offer a 30-day free trial. What sets Moosend apart is that all Pro features-automation, landing pages, transactional emails, reporting-are available at every tier.

At 1,000 subscribers, Pro costs $9/month. For 2,500 subscribers, it's $16/month. At 5,000 subscribers, you pay $24/month. For 10,000 subscribers, it's $40/month. Enterprise pricing is available for larger lists with custom needs.

What's Good About Moosend

What Sucks About Moosend

Verdict

Moosend is an excellent choice if you want powerful features without playing the pricing tier game. It's particularly good for affiliate marketers who get rejected by other platforms. The all-inclusive pricing model means you won't be surprised by feature limitations as you grow. At $9/month for 500 contacts with all features included, it competes directly with Brevo's Starter plan but includes features that Brevo locks behind higher tiers.

GetResponse Review: All-in-One Marketing Platform

GetResponse has evolved from a simple email tool into a comprehensive marketing platform with webinars, landing pages, and automation workflows.

GetResponse Pricing Breakdown

GetResponse offers a free plan for up to 500 contacts with 2,500 monthly email sends. The Starter plan begins at $19/month for 1,000 contacts when billed monthly ($15.60/month annually). The Marketer plan starts at $59/month ($48.60/month annually) and includes advanced automation. The Creator plan costs $79/month ($65/month annually) and is designed for course creators. The Enterprise MAX plan starts at $1,099/month with custom pricing for larger needs.

At 2,500 contacts, Starter costs $29/month, Marketer costs $94/month, and Creator costs $124/month. For 5,000 contacts, Starter is $44/month, Marketer is $143/month, and Creator is $178/month. At 10,000 contacts, you're looking at $69/month for Starter, $225/month for Marketer, or custom Enterprise pricing.

What's Good About GetResponse

What Sucks About GetResponse

When GetResponse Makes Sense

GetResponse shines when you need more than just email. If you're running webinars for lead generation or product demos, having it built into your email platform eliminates tool switching. The sales funnel templates work well for info product creators and coaches.

The Creator plan is specifically designed for course creators and includes tools to create courses, host paid newsletters, and run webinars-all integrated with email automation. This makes it a viable alternative to combining multiple tools.

Verdict

GetResponse is solid if you need an all-in-one platform and will actually use the webinar and funnel features. The Starter plan is affordable but limited-most users will need Marketer ($59/month) to access the features that make GetResponse worthwhile. For basic email marketing, you can find cheaper options. For integrated marketing with webinars and funnels, it's a good value.

ConvertKit Review: Built for Creators

ConvertKit (now rebranded as Kit) focuses specifically on creators-bloggers, podcasters, course creators, and YouTubers. The interface and features reflect this audience.

ConvertKit Pricing

ConvertKit offers a free plan for up to 1,000 subscribers with unlimited email sends. The Creator plan starts at $15/month for 1,000 subscribers. The Creator Pro plan starts at $29/month for 1,000 subscribers with advanced features like subscriber scoring and advanced reporting.

At 3,000 subscribers, Creator costs $29/month and Creator Pro costs $59/month. For 5,000 subscribers, Creator is $41/month and Creator Pro is $79/month. At 10,000 subscribers, Creator costs $66/month and Creator Pro costs $127/month.

What Makes ConvertKit Different

ConvertKit's tag-based system is built around how creators think about their audience. Instead of managing lists, you manage tags. A subscriber might be tagged as "downloaded lead magnet," "purchased course A," and "interested in topic B" simultaneously. Automation workflows trigger based on these tags.

The visual automation builder is intuitive for creators who aren't technical. The landing page templates are optimized for lead magnet delivery, webinar registration, and course sales-the things creators actually need.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

Cons:

Verdict

ConvertKit is purpose-built for creators and excels in that niche. If you're a blogger, podcaster, or course creator, the tag-based system and creator-focused automation make more sense than general business tools. The free plan with 1,000 subscribers is one of the most generous in the industry. For traditional businesses or ecommerce, other tools may be better suited.

Constant Contact Review: Small Business Basics

Constant Contact targets small businesses and nonprofits with simple needs. It's one of the oldest email platforms (founded 1995) and focuses on ease of use over advanced features.

Constant Contact Pricing

Constant Contact offers a 60-day free trial (one of the longest in the industry). The Lite plan starts at $12/month for 500 contacts. The Standard plan starts at $35/month for 500 contacts with automation and additional features. The Premium plan starts at $80/month for 500 contacts with advanced features.

At 2,500 contacts, Lite costs $45/month, Standard costs $70/month, and Premium costs $125/month. For 10,000 contacts, Lite is $120/month, Standard is $195/month, and Premium is $335/month.

What Works

What Doesn't

Verdict

Constant Contact is straightforward but expensive for what you get. The 60-day trial is generous, but once it ends, you're paying premium prices for basic features. It works for very small businesses that prioritize simplicity over cost-effectiveness, but most businesses will find better value elsewhere.

Omnisend Review: Ecommerce Specialist

Omnisend is built specifically for ecommerce businesses. If you run an online store, the features are tailored to your needs.

Omnisend Pricing and Features

Omnisend offers a free plan with 250 contacts and 500 emails per month. The Standard plan starts at $16/month for 500 contacts, and the Pro plan starts at $59/month for 500 contacts with advanced features.

What makes Omnisend valuable for ecommerce is the built-in product recommenders, scratch cards, gift boxes, and discount code generators. Automation templates include abandoned cart recovery, browse abandonment, welcome series, and post-purchase flows-all optimized for online stores.

The platform integrates deeply with Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, and other ecommerce platforms, pulling product data, purchase history, and browsing behavior automatically.

Verdict

If you run an ecommerce store, Omnisend's features justify the cost. The product recommendation engine, cart abandonment flows, and revenue attribution make it more valuable than general email tools. For non-ecommerce businesses, you're paying for features you won't use.

Klaviyo Review: Ecommerce Enterprise

Klaviyo has become the premium ecommerce email platform, used by major brands but accessible to smaller stores.

Klaviyo Pricing

Klaviyo offers a free plan up to 250 contacts and 500 monthly email sends. Paid plans start at $20/month for 251-500 contacts. At 1,000 contacts, expect to pay around $30/month. For 10,000 contacts, you're looking at $320/month or more depending on email volume.

Klaviyo's pricing is based on contact count, but they also factor in SMS sends separately. The pricing scales aggressively, making it one of the more expensive options for larger lists.

Why Ecommerce Stores Choose Klaviyo

The segmentation capabilities are unmatched. You can segment by predicted customer lifetime value, purchase frequency, product categories purchased, browsing behavior, and dozens of other ecommerce-specific attributes.

The automation workflows are deeply integrated with Shopify, Magento, WooCommerce, and BigCommerce. Product recommendations are automatically personalized based on browsing and purchase history. Revenue attribution shows exactly how much each email campaign and automation generates.

Verdict

Klaviyo is expensive but delivers serious ROI for ecommerce. The advanced segmentation and revenue tracking justify the cost when you're doing significant online sales volume. For stores doing under $100k/year in revenue, it's probably overkill. For stores doing $500k+, it often pays for itself.

HubSpot Email Marketing Review: CRM Integration

HubSpot's email marketing is part of their larger Marketing Hub, which connects to their free CRM.

HubSpot Pricing

HubSpot offers a free plan with basic email marketing for unlimited contacts but limited features. The Marketing Hub Starter plan begins at $20/month (with a $15/month CRM seat fee). The Marketing Hub Professional plan starts at $890/month, and Enterprise starts at $3,600/month.

The free plan includes basic email, forms, landing pages, and the free CRM. This is actually useful if you need CRM functionality along with email marketing. However, automation, A/B testing, and advanced features require paid plans.

When HubSpot Makes Sense

If you're already using HubSpot CRM or need tight integration between sales and marketing, HubSpot email marketing makes sense. The unified platform means sales can see every email interaction, and marketing can trigger based on CRM data.

For businesses that need a full marketing stack (email, social, ads, analytics, landing pages, CRM), HubSpot's all-in-one approach eliminates tool integration headaches. But you pay a premium for that integration.

Verdict

HubSpot's free email marketing paired with the free CRM is a solid starting point for B2B companies. But the jump to paid plans is steep. Unless you need the full Marketing Hub capabilities, standalone email tools offer better value.

Drip Review: Ecommerce Automation

Drip positions itself as an "ECRM" (ecommerce CRM) combining email marketing with customer data management specifically for online stores.

Drip Pricing and Positioning

Drip starts at $39/month for 2,500 contacts with unlimited email sends. At 5,000 contacts, it's $89/month. For 10,000 contacts, you're paying $154/month. There's no free plan, but a 14-day trial is available.

Drip excels at behavioral automation. It tracks every action customers take on your site-pages viewed, products browsed, cart adds, purchases-and lets you trigger emails based on any combination of behaviors.

The visual workflow builder is powerful but has a learning curve. You can create complex multi-branch automations with conditional logic, delays, and A/B testing built in.

Verdict

Drip is positioned between Omnisend and Klaviyo in both features and pricing. It's more powerful than Omnisend but less expensive than Klaviyo. For ecommerce stores doing $200k-$1M in annual revenue, it hits a sweet spot of capability and cost.

Benchmark Email Review: Budget-Friendly Basics

Benchmark Email has quietly operated for years offering basic email marketing at competitive prices.

Benchmark Pricing

Benchmark offers a free plan with 500 contacts and 3,500 emails per month. The Pro plan starts at $15/month for 500 contacts with unlimited emails and additional features.

At 2,500 contacts, Pro costs $30/month. For 10,000 contacts, it's $80/month. This makes it cheaper than most competitors at equivalent list sizes.

What You Get

The features are solid but not innovative. You get a drag-and-drop editor, basic automation, A/B testing (on paid plans), landing pages, and signup forms. The interface is straightforward if not exciting.

Where Benchmark stands out is customer support. Even free plan users get email support, and paid plans include live chat. The support team is responsive and helpful, which matters when you're troubleshooting a campaign.

Verdict

Benchmark Email won't wow you with cutting-edge features, but it gets the job done at a fair price. If you need reliable basic email marketing without frills or high costs, it's worth considering. The free plan is generous compared to what Mailchimp now offers.

Which Email Marketing Software Should You Choose?

Here's my honest recommendation based on different situations:

For Absolute Beginners (Under 500 Subscribers)

Go with MailerLite. The free plan is genuinely useful with 500 subscribers and 12,000 monthly emails. Mailchimp's free plan is now too restrictive at 250 contacts and 500 emails with no automation.

For Growing Small Businesses (500-5,000 Subscribers)

Brevo is your best bet. The unlimited contacts model means your costs stay predictable as you grow. Pay $9-18/month based on how often you email, not how big your list gets. Just factor in logo removal if brand matters to you.

For Ecommerce and Complex Automation

ActiveCampaign is worth the premium for B2B and SaaS. For ecommerce specifically, consider Omnisend (mid-market stores) or Klaviyo (larger stores with $500k+ revenue). The automation builder and ecommerce integrations justify the cost if you're running abandoned cart sequences, complex nurture flows, or need deep customer segmentation.

For Simple Newsletter Needs

MailerLite or Moosend. Don't overpay for features you won't use. Both get the job done at a fraction of what Mailchimp charges. MailerLite has the better free plan, while Moosend includes all features from the start.

For Tight Budgets with Large Lists

Brevo's email-based pricing wins. Store 100,000 contacts and only pay when you actually send. No other mainstream platform offers this. At infrequent sending volumes, you could maintain a massive list on the free plan (300 emails per day).

For Creators and Bloggers

ConvertKit (Kit) is purpose-built for your needs. The tag-based system, creator-focused automation templates, and generous free plan (1,000 subscribers) make it the best choice for content creators monetizing through digital products or courses.

For Webinars and Funnels

GetResponse integrates webinars and funnels into your email platform. If you're running regular webinars for lead generation or product demos, having it built-in saves money compared to separate tools.

Hidden Costs to Watch For

Before you commit to any platform, watch out for these sneaky charges:

Email Deliverability: What Actually Matters

Deliverability-whether your emails reach the inbox or spam folder-matters more than any feature. A platform with perfect features and terrible deliverability is worthless.

Deliverability Leaders

Based on industry testing and user reports, these platforms consistently achieve high inbox placement:

Deliverability Problems

Some platforms have reported issues:

What Impacts Your Deliverability

The platform matters, but your practices matter more:

All major platforms provide authentication setup and deliverability guidance. Following best practices matters more than the tool itself for most users.

Automation Capabilities Compared

Email automation separates basic newsletter tools from real marketing platforms. Here's how the major players stack up:

Advanced Automation (Best for Complex Workflows)

ActiveCampaign leads with its visual automation builder. You can create multi-step workflows with conditional logic, goal tracking, A/B testing within automations, and complex segmentation triggers. The interface handles intricate branching logic without becoming impossible to follow.

Drip and Klaviyo offer similarly powerful automation specifically optimized for ecommerce. Both excel at behavioral triggers based on product views, cart behavior, and purchase history.

Mid-Tier Automation (Good for Most Businesses)

GetResponse provides solid automation on Marketer plan and above. The visual builder is intuitive, and pre-built workflows cover common scenarios. Not as flexible as ActiveCampaign but sufficient for most businesses.

Brevo includes automation even on the free plan (limited to 2,000 contacts). The workflow builder is straightforward with good ecommerce integrations. Marketing automation without monthly limits starts on Standard plan.

ConvertKit offers creator-focused automation with visual sequences. Tag-based triggers work well for content delivery and product launches. Less powerful than ActiveCampaign but more intuitive for non-technical users.

Basic Automation (Autoresponders and Simple Sequences)

MailerLite provides basic automation on all plans including free. Good for welcome sequences and simple workflows but limited compared to dedicated automation tools.

Mailchimp offers automation on paid plans only (removed from free in December). Customer journeys handle basic scenarios but lack the sophistication of ActiveCampaign or Drip.

AWeber provides basic autoresponders and simple automation. Works fine for newsletters and follow-up sequences but not built for complex marketing automation.

Limited/No Automation

GetResponse Starter and Constant Contact Lite have extremely limited automation (one workflow or basic autoresponders). You need higher tiers for real automation capabilities.

Integration Ecosystems

Email marketing platforms need to connect with your other business tools. Integration capabilities vary dramatically:

Integration Champions

Ecommerce Integration Specialists

Limited Integration Options

For most users, Zapier connectivity solves integration gaps. Any platform that connects to Zapier can integrate with 5,000+ apps through automation.

Customer Support Comparison

When campaigns break, you need help fast. Support quality varies significantly:

Excellent Support

Good Support with Limitations

Limited Support

Template Libraries and Design Tools

Your emails need to look professional. Template quality and customization options vary:

Best Template Libraries

Minimalist Approach

Ecommerce-Optimized

Migration and Switching Costs

Worried about getting locked in? Here's what migration looks like:

Easy Migrations (Offered by Platform)

Self-Service Migration

Most platforms let you export contacts as CSV files and import to new platforms. The challenging parts:

Plan for 5-20 hours of work to fully migrate platforms depending on complexity. For simple newsletter sending, it's quick. For complex automation, it's significant.

Pricing Increase Trends

Email marketing platforms have increased prices significantly in recent years. Be aware of these trends:

Recent Major Increases

Platforms Maintaining Pricing

The trend is clear: established platforms are increasing prices as they add features and get acquired. Newer platforms stay competitive with stable pricing but may increase later. Always check for grandfathered pricing protection when signing long-term contracts.

Compliance and Privacy Features

GDPR, CAN-SPAM, and other regulations require specific email marketing features:

Essential Compliance Features (All Major Platforms Provide)

Advanced Compliance (Enterprise Features)

For most businesses, standard compliance features are sufficient. Healthcare, finance, and highly regulated industries need enterprise-level platforms with HIPAA, SOC 2, and industry-specific certifications.

Mobile App Functionality

Need to manage campaigns from your phone? Mobile app quality varies:

Strong Mobile Apps

Limited Mobile Apps

Most serious email work happens on desktop regardless of mobile app quality. Mobile apps are most useful for monitoring campaign performance and making quick edits.

A/B Testing Capabilities

Split testing improves campaign performance. Feature availability varies:

Comprehensive A/B Testing

Basic A/B Testing

Limited/No A/B Testing

A/B testing matters most when sending to large lists (5,000+ subscribers) where small percentage improvements generate significant results.

Reporting and Analytics

Understanding campaign performance requires good analytics:

Advanced Analytics

Standard Analytics (Available on Most Platforms)

Limited Analytics

For ecommerce, revenue tracking matters most. For B2B, lead attribution and CRM integration matter most. Choose platforms with analytics that match your business model.

Final Thoughts

Email marketing software is a competitive market, which is good news for buyers. Prices have come down while features have improved. The key is matching your actual needs to the right tool.

Don't pay for automation you'll never build. Don't pay per contact if you rarely email your list. And definitely don't assume the biggest name is the best value-it usually isn't.

Start with free trials, test the interfaces yourself, and pick the tool that fits how you actually work. For most small businesses in our experience, that's either MailerLite (best free plan) or Brevo (best value for growing lists). ActiveCampaign if you need serious automation power; Klaviyo or Omnisend if you're running a successful ecommerce store. ConvertKit if you're a creator monetizing content.

The "best" email marketing software is the one you'll actually use consistently. A simple tool you understand beats a powerful tool that sits unused because it's too complex. Start simple, grow into complexity as your needs evolve.

For more guidance on email marketing strategy, check out our guide on email marketing for small business and our roundup of the best email marketing software.