Cheapest email marketing software (2026 prices)
Prices read from each vendor's own page on 2026-08-24, sorted by what you would actually pay at three real list sizes.
Short answer: At 500 subscribers the cheapest paid option is Brevo at $9/mo. At 2,500 it is Brevo at $9/mo, and at 10,000 it is Brevo at $9/mo. The winner changes with list size, which is why the table below shows all three.
| Tool | Entry price | Free plan |
|---|---|---|
| beehiiv | $59 at 500 subs | Yes |
| Kit (formerly ConvertKit) | $39 at 500 subs | Yes |
| MailerLite | $19 at 500 subs | Yes |
| Mailchimp | $13 at 500 subs | Yes |
| Brevo | $9 at 500 subs | Yes |
| Constant Contact | $12 at 500 subs | No |
| AWeber | $15 at 500 subs | No |
| Klaviyo | $20 at 500 subs | Yes |
| Flodesk | $25 at 500 subs | Yes |
Prices checked 2026-10-23.
Some links below are affiliate links. If you buy through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. How this works. How we check prices.
Which one should you pick?
- Pick Brevo if this describes you: Businesses that think in sends, not contacts - unlimited contacts on every plan, transactional email included. Visit Brevo
- Pick Constant Contact if this describes you: Shops, nonprofits and local orgs that want email, events and social in one place with real phone support. Visit Constant Contact
- Pick Mailchimp if this describes you: Small lists that want the brand-name tool, on a plan ladder that grows with contacts. Visit Mailchimp
- Pick AWeber if this describes you: Freelancers and small lists that want phone support and a US-based team. Visit AWeber
- Pick MailerLite if this describes you: Small lists that want a real free plan and cheap paid tiers. Visit MailerLite
- Pick Klaviyo if this describes you: Online stores that want email, SMS and storefront data in one place and are happy to pay by active profiles. Visit Klaviyo
- Pick Flodesk if this describes you: Senders who want designer templates and a simple subscriber-priced bill - Flodesk Lite is 1 seat with unlimited email sends and no send limit to watch. Visit Flodesk
- Pick Kit (formerly ConvertKit) if this describes you: Creators who want the most generous free tier in email. Visit Kit (formerly ConvertKit)
- Pick beehiiv if this describes you: Newsletter operators who want an ad network and paid subscriptions built in. Visit beehiiv
- Pick ActiveCampaign if this describes you: Businesses that want serious automation and a CRM in one place. Visit ActiveCampaign
Some buttons are affiliate links — how this works.
What each platform costs at your list size
| Platform | 500 subs | 2,500 subs | 10,000 subs | Free plan | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| beehiiv | $59 | $59 | $59 | Yes | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
| Kit (formerly ConvertKit) | $39 | $59 | $139 | Yes | first-party prices and tier ladder |
| MailerLite | $19 | $33 | $89 | Yes | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
| ActiveCampaign | not published at this size | not published at this size | not published at this size | No | first-party prices |
| Mailchimp | $13 | $13 | $13 | Yes | first-party prices |
| Brevo | $9 | $9 | $9 | Yes | first-party prices |
| Constant Contact | $12 | $12 | $12 | No | first-party prices |
| AWeber | $15 | $15 | $15 | No | first-party prices |
| Klaviyo | $20 | $20 | $20 | Yes | first-party prices and tier ladder |
| Flodesk | $25 | $25 | $25 | Yes | first-party prices and tier ladder |
Prices read from each vendor's own pricing page on 2026-08-24. Where a vendor prices by list size and renders that ladder with JavaScript, the figure comes from the named third-party tracker in the Source column, and we say so rather than pretending we read it ourselves.
Cheapest email marketing at 500 subscribers
| # | Tool | Cost at 500 subs | Best for | Where the number came from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brevo | $9 | Businesses that think in sends, not contacts - unlimited contacts on every plan, transactional email included. | first-party prices |
| 2 | Constant Contact | $12 | Shops, nonprofits and local orgs that want email, events and social in one place with real phone support. | first-party prices |
| 3 | Mailchimp | $13 | Small lists that want the brand-name tool, on a plan ladder that grows with contacts. | first-party prices |
| 4 | AWeber | $15 | Freelancers and small lists that want phone support and a US-based team. | first-party prices |
| 5 | MailerLite | $19 | Small lists that want a real free plan and cheap paid tiers. | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
| 6 | Klaviyo | $20 | Online stores that want email, SMS and storefront data in one place and are happy to pay by active profiles. | first-party prices and tier ladder |
| 7 | Flodesk | $25 | Senders who want designer templates and a simple subscriber-priced bill - Flodesk Lite is 1 seat with unlimited email sends and no send limit to watch. | first-party prices and tier ladder |
| 8 | Kit (formerly ConvertKit) | $39 | Creators who want the most generous free tier in email. | first-party prices and tier ladder |
| 9 | beehiiv | $59 | Newsletter operators who want an ad network and paid subscriptions built in. | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
| 10 | ActiveCampaign | not published at this size | Businesses that want serious automation and a CRM in one place. | first-party prices |
Prices checked 2026-10-23.
Cheapest email marketing at 2,500 subscribers
| # | Tool | Cost at 2,500 subs | Best for | Where the number came from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brevo | $9 | Businesses that think in sends, not contacts - unlimited contacts on every plan, transactional email included. | first-party prices |
| 2 | Constant Contact | $12 | Shops, nonprofits and local orgs that want email, events and social in one place with real phone support. | first-party prices |
| 3 | Mailchimp | $13 | Small lists that want the brand-name tool, on a plan ladder that grows with contacts. | first-party prices |
| 4 | AWeber | $15 | Freelancers and small lists that want phone support and a US-based team. | first-party prices |
| 5 | Klaviyo | $20 | Online stores that want email, SMS and storefront data in one place and are happy to pay by active profiles. | first-party prices and tier ladder |
| 6 | Flodesk | $25 | Senders who want designer templates and a simple subscriber-priced bill - Flodesk Lite is 1 seat with unlimited email sends and no send limit to watch. | first-party prices and tier ladder |
| 7 | MailerLite | $33 | Small lists that want a real free plan and cheap paid tiers. | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
| 8 | beehiiv | $59 | Newsletter operators who want an ad network and paid subscriptions built in. | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
| 9 | Kit (formerly ConvertKit) | $59 | Creators who want the most generous free tier in email. | first-party prices and tier ladder |
| 10 | ActiveCampaign | not published at this size | Businesses that want serious automation and a CRM in one place. | first-party prices |
Prices checked 2026-10-23.
Cheapest email marketing at 10,000 subscribers
| # | Tool | Cost at 10,000 subs | Best for | Where the number came from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brevo | $9 | Businesses that think in sends, not contacts - unlimited contacts on every plan, transactional email included. | first-party prices |
| 2 | Constant Contact | $12 | Shops, nonprofits and local orgs that want email, events and social in one place with real phone support. | first-party prices |
| 3 | Mailchimp | $13 | Small lists that want the brand-name tool, on a plan ladder that grows with contacts. | first-party prices |
| 4 | AWeber | $15 | Freelancers and small lists that want phone support and a US-based team. | first-party prices |
| 5 | Klaviyo | $20 | Online stores that want email, SMS and storefront data in one place and are happy to pay by active profiles. | first-party prices and tier ladder |
| 6 | Flodesk | $25 | Senders who want designer templates and a simple subscriber-priced bill - Flodesk Lite is 1 seat with unlimited email sends and no send limit to watch. | first-party prices and tier ladder |
| 7 | beehiiv | $59 | Newsletter operators who want an ad network and paid subscriptions built in. | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
| 8 | MailerLite | $89 | Small lists that want a real free plan and cheap paid tiers. | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
| 9 | Kit (formerly ConvertKit) | $139 | Creators who want the most generous free tier in email. | first-party prices and tier ladder |
| 10 | ActiveCampaign | not published at this size | Businesses that want serious automation and a CRM in one place. | first-party prices |
Prices checked 2026-10-23.
How we picked
We took every email platform we track, read its published price for the list size in question, and sorted by that number. Free plans count as $0. Vendors that only quote custom pricing are listed but cannot win a price ranking. We did not score deliverability, because we have not measured it and we will not pretend to.
Mailchimp, Brevo and Constant Contact: what they cost
Every email-marketing comparison starts with these three names, so here is what each one actually charges. Every price below was read on the vendor's own pricing page and is re-checked weekly - the link goes to the full plan tables and the fine print:
- Mailchimp is free under 250 contacts. The free-plan column prints a max of 500 emails a month or 250 a day. Paid plans start at $13/mo for Essentials, $20/mo for Standard and $350/mo for Premium at the 0-500 contacts tier, and every price climbs as the contact count grows.
- Brevo is free at 300 emails a day, then Starter is $9/mo, Standard $18/mo and Professional $499/mo billed monthly, with yearly billing taking 10% off. Brevo prices by monthly email volume, not by contact count.
- Constant Contact starts at $12/mo on Lite, $35/mo on Standard and $80/mo on Premium billed monthly, or $10.20 / $29.75 / $68 per month billed annually. There is no permanent free plan. Constant Contact's own landing page says the trial is 30 days and no credit card is required. A paid plan has a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Cheaper first paid month: Brevo Starter at $9/mo is below the cheapest paid step among the picks above (MailerLite Comfort at $12/mo). Those entry prices are for the smallest list or send volume each vendor sells, so price them at your own size before you switch.
Compare these numbers against the picks above at your own list size: the cheapest tool for a 500-contact shop is rarely the cheapest at 10,000 subscribers, and the free tiers stop at very different places.
Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest email marketing software?
At small list sizes the free tiers win outright: beehiiv and Kit both publish a free plan that covers a few thousand subscribers. Once you are past the free caps, Brevo is the cheapest paid option at 500 subscribers in our 2026-08-24 check.
Is a free email plan good enough?
For a first list, often yes. The catch is the ceiling: free tiers cap subscribers and monthly sends, and the jump to the first paid tier is where the real cost starts. The table above shows that jump at three sizes.
Do these prices include the annual discount?
No. The table is monthly billing, which is what you pay if you cancel any time. Most vendors knock roughly two months off if you pay for a year up front; the annual rate is on each tool's page.
How current are these numbers?
Every figure was read from the vendor's own pricing page on 2026-08-24 and is re-checked weekly. Changes are logged on the price changes page.