Cheapest email marketing software (2026 prices)
Prices read from each vendor's own page on 2026-09-25, sorted by what you would actually pay at three real list sizes.
Short answer: At 500 subscribers the cheapest paid option is ActiveCampaign at $15/mo. At 2,500 it is ActiveCampaign at $29/mo, and at 10,000 it is Kit (formerly ConvertKit) at $33/mo. The winner changes with list size, which is why the table below shows all three.
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What each platform costs at your list size
| Platform | 500 subs | 2,500 subs | 10,000 subs | Free plan | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| beehiiv | $49 | $49 | $99 | Yes | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
| Kit (formerly ConvertKit) | $33 | $33 | $33 | Yes | first-party |
| MailerLite | $19 | $33 | $89 | Yes | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
| ActiveCampaign | $15 | $29 | $79 | No | third-party (vendor hides prices) |
Prices read from each vendor's own pricing page on 2026-09-25. 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 | ActiveCampaign | $15 | Businesses that want serious automation and a CRM in one place. | third-party (vendor hides prices) |
| 2 | MailerLite | $19 | Small lists that want a real free plan and cheap paid tiers. | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
| 3 | Kit (formerly ConvertKit) | $33 | Creators who want the most generous free tier in email. | first-party |
| 4 | beehiiv | $49 | Newsletter operators who want an ad network and paid subscriptions built in. | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
Cheapest email marketing at 2,500 subscribers
| # | Tool | Cost at 2,500 subs | Best for | Where the number came from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ActiveCampaign | $29 | Businesses that want serious automation and a CRM in one place. | third-party (vendor hides prices) |
| 2 | Kit (formerly ConvertKit) | $33 | Creators who want the most generous free tier in email. | first-party |
| 3 | MailerLite | $33 | Small lists that want a real free plan and cheap paid tiers. | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
| 4 | beehiiv | $49 | Newsletter operators who want an ad network and paid subscriptions built in. | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
Cheapest email marketing at 10,000 subscribers
| # | Tool | Cost at 10,000 subs | Best for | Where the number came from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kit (formerly ConvertKit) | $33 | Creators who want the most generous free tier in email. | first-party |
| 2 | ActiveCampaign | $79 | Businesses that want serious automation and a CRM in one place. | third-party (vendor hides prices) |
| 3 | MailerLite | $89 | Small lists that want a real free plan and cheap paid tiers. | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
| 4 | beehiiv | $99 | Newsletter operators who want an ad network and paid subscriptions built in. | first-party prices, second-party tier ladder |
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.
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, ActiveCampaign is the cheapest paid option at 500 subscribers in our 2026-09-25 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 2026-09-25 and is re-checked weekly. Changes are logged on the price changes page.