Email delivers $36 for every $1 spent — the highest ROI of any marketing channel. But only if you choose the right platform. Here's an honest comparison of the top email tools based on pricing, automation power, deliverability, and ease of use.
| Tool | Free plan | Paid from | Best for | Automation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mailchimp | 500 contacts | $13/mo | Beginners | Good |
| ConvertKit (Kit) | 10,000 subs | $25/mo | Creators | Good |
| ActiveCampaign | No | $15/mo | Growth teams | Excellent |
| Klaviyo | 250 contacts | $20/mo | E-commerce | Excellent |
| MailerLite | 1,000 subs | $9/mo | Best value | Very good |
| Brevo (Sendinblue) | 300 emails/day | $9/mo | Transactional | Good |
Free up to 500 contacts · Paid from $13/month
Mailchimp remains the most recognisable name in email marketing and with good reason — it's genuinely easy to use. The drag-and-drop builder is excellent, integrations are everywhere, and the free plan is generous enough to validate an idea before spending anything.
The main criticism: as you grow, Mailchimp gets expensive fast, and its automation builder feels clunky compared to ActiveCampaign. Many businesses start on Mailchimp and migrate later.
Free up to 10,000 subscribers · Paid from $25/month (Creator plan)
ConvertKit (rebranded as "Kit") built its reputation with bloggers, podcasters, and newsletter writers. The subscriber-first model — rather than list-first — makes it much easier to manage contacts who signed up in multiple places. The free plan includes 10,000 subscribers, which is unusually generous.
It's not the most powerful automation tool, but for a solo founder who wants to send newsletters and set up a simple welcome sequence without a learning curve, it's excellent.
No free plan · From $15/month (1,000 contacts)
ActiveCampaign is the professional's choice for email automation. Its visual automation builder is the most powerful in this category — you can build complex, behaviour-triggered sequences that would take hours to replicate elsewhere. It also includes a CRM, making it a genuine email + sales tool.
The trade-off is complexity. New users can feel overwhelmed. But if email automation is a primary growth lever for your business, the investment in learning it pays off quickly.
Free up to 250 contacts · From $20/month
If you run a Shopify or WooCommerce store, Klaviyo is the gold standard. Its deep e-commerce integrations pull in purchase history, browsing behaviour, and cart data to power revenue-focused automations like abandoned cart flows, win-back campaigns, and post-purchase sequences. The analytics show revenue directly attributed to each email — not just opens and clicks.
Free up to 1,000 subscribers · From $9/month
MailerLite is consistently underrated. The free plan is generous (1,000 subscribers, 12,000 emails/month), the interface is clean and modern, deliverability is excellent, and it includes landing pages, pop-up forms, and basic automation — all at a price that beats every competitor at the same contact count. For small businesses and early-stage founders, it's the easiest recommendation.