Best Email Marketing Software

CRM	Entry / list	Free plan	Free trial	Est. for 10 users
Klaviyo	$20.00/mo	Yes	No trial listed	$240.00/yr
ActiveCampaign	$15.00/mo	No	14-day trial	$180.00/yr
Omnisend	$16.00/mo	Yes	No trial listed	$192.00/yr
Brevo	$9.00/mo	Yes	No trial listed	$108.00/yr
GetResponse	$19.00/mo	Yes	14-day trial	$228.00/yr
Kit	$33.00/mo	Yes	14-day trial	$396.00/yr

Estimates use verified list prices and the shared cost engine. Flat plans stay flat (not multiplied by team size); seat plans scale with the slider. Custom-quote and incomplete pricing stay explicit.

The trade-offs that matter

Every CRM choice involves trade-offs. These strengths and limitations come from product assessments — not marketing copy.

• Klaviyo
  • Ecommerce-native flows and segmentation with strong Shopify fit
  • Revenue attribution oriented to online retail
  • Email and SMS in one owned-channel stack

  • Active-profile billing becomes expensive as engaged customers grow
  • Live pricing slider required for exact paid-band confirmation
  • Overkill for newsletter-only senders without catalog data
• ActiveCampaign
  • Category-leading multi-step email automation
  • CRM pipelines available on Plus+ tiers
  • Clear contact-tier ladder with broad integrations

  • No forever-free plan
  • Contact-based pricing scales as lists grow
  • CRM is secondary — weak as a sales-only CRM purchase
• Omnisend
  • Ecommerce email, SMS, and push in one owned-channel stack
  • Forever-free rung for small contact bases
  • Shopify-centric automation presets competitive vs Klaviyo value

  • Standard plan send caps push high-volume senders upward
  • Intro discounts complicate exact monthly floor quotes
  • SMS usage can change total cost of ownership
• Brevo
  • Send-based pricing with a low Starter floor
  • Generous free plan for high contact storage
  • Automation, A/B, and landing pages on Standard+ with a multi-channel path

  • Free daily send cap limits high-frequency campaigns
  • Automation depth gated behind Standard+
  • Professional pricing jump is steep for mid features
• GetResponse
  • Forever-free path plus competitive paid contact-tier floors
  • Automation, landing pages, and funnels bundled with email
  • Unlimited monthly sends on paid plans

  • Starter automation and AI caps push serious workflows up-tier
  • Ecommerce depth and SMS attribution trail retail specialists
  • Enterprise extras (SMS, dedicated IP) move to sales packaging
• Kit
  • Creator-first newsletter and audience monetization tooling
  • Free Newsletter plan plus clear Creator/Pro ladder
  • Unlimited landing pages/forms with visual automations on Creator+

  • Free automation limits push serious journeys to Creator
  • Ecommerce catalog and SMS depth trail retail specialists
  • Subscriber scaling raises total cost as audiences grow

How to choose Email Marketing

1. 1

   Name the email job

   Ecommerce lifecycle, deep automation, creator newsletters, or send-based value — different jobs favor different ESPs on this shortlist.

   → Compare Email Marketing software→ Find My Email Marketing
2. 2

   Map list size and send volume

   Contact-tier, send-based, and free-plan caps change total cost. Compare the plan you will actually sit on, not the marketing floor.

   → How to choose Email Marketing
3. 3

   Check the blocking workflow

   Build one real flow — abandoned cart, welcome series, or newsletter cadence — on the edition you will buy.

   → How to choose Email Marketing
4. 4

   Compare with shared criteria

   Use the ranked shortlist and side-by-side comparisons, then confirm current pricing on vendor sites before you commit.

   → Compare Email Marketing software→ Find My Email Marketing

How we evaluate Email Marketing

We evaluate email marketing software across campaign creation, automation, segmentation, analytics, deliverability tooling, integrations, scalability, value, and AI assistance. Commercial relationships do not determine recommendations.

• Ease of use

  12%

  Learning curve and daily usability for marketers and small teams. Scoring guidance: 9–10: fast to ship campaigns; 5–6: usable with training; 1–2: steep or confusing.

• Email creation

  12%

  Editor quality, templates, and campaign composition workflow.

• Automation

  15%

  Multi-step workflows, triggers, and marketing automation depth. Scoring guidance: 9–10: advanced multi-step workflows; 5–6: basic workflows; 1–2: very limited automation.

• Segmentation

  12%

  List and behavioral segmentation capability.

• Analytics

  10%

  Campaign reporting depth and actionable insights.

• Deliverability tooling

  10%

  Authentication guidance and deliverability support features.

• Integrations

  8%

  Ecosystem quality for CRM, ecommerce, and form tools.

• Scalability

  8%

  Ability to grow with contact volume and send volume.

• Value for money

  8%

  Pricing fairness relative to capabilities and limits.

• AI capabilities

  5%

  Useful AI assistance for content or optimization — not marketing fluff.

Research-backed recommendations using category-specific criteria. Read methodology