ActiveCampaign
Deep marketing automation with a CRM and EU data centres
Best for: Businesses whose email is triggered by customer behaviour and whose automation has outgrown what simpler tools can express.
Email marketing and newsletter platforms
15 platforms compared on the things that actually differ: free plan limits, entry price, automation, paid subscriptions and where your data lives.
Newsletter platforms are built around publishing and monetising an audience; email marketing platforms are built around automation and campaigns. This directory compares 15 of them side by side, with pricing verified on each provider's own pricing page rather than copied from their marketing site.
Prices last verified: 10 August 2026
Not sure which one fits you? Take the 2-question test → Or read the in-depth guide →
The numbers, side by side
| Platform | Type | Free plan | Starts at | Automation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ActiveCampaign | Email marketing | No | $15/mo | Advanced |
 Beehiiv | Newsletters | 2,500 subscribers | $43/mo | Advanced |
 Brevo | Email marketing | Unlimited contacts, 300 emails/day | $9/mo | Advanced |
 Buttondown | Newsletters | 100 subscribers | $9/mo | Basic |
 Constant Contact | Email marketing | No | $12/mo | Basic |
 EmailOctopus | Both | 2,500 subscribers, 10,000 emails/month | $9/mo | Basic |
 Flodesk | Both | No | $25/mo | Basic |
 GetResponse | Email marketing | 500 contacts | $19/mo | Advanced |
 Ghost | Newsletters | No | $15/mo | Basic |
 Kit | Both | 10,000 subscribers | $33/mo | Advanced |
 Klaviyo | Email marketing | 250 profiles, 500 emails/month | $20/mo | Advanced |
 Mailchimp | Email marketing | 250 contacts, 500 emails/month | $13/mo | Advanced |
 MailerLite | Email marketing | 250 subscribers, 2,500 emails/month | $12/mo | Advanced |
 Omnisend | Email marketing | 250 contacts, 500 emails/month | $11.20/mo | Advanced |
 Substack | Newsletters | Unlimited subscribers | No paid plan | Basic |
What each one is for
Beehiiv
Creator-first newsletter platform with monetisation built in
Best for: Creators monetising a newsletter who want payments, referrals and sponsorships in one place instead of three.
Brevo
EU-hosted email marketing priced by sends, not contacts
Best for: Businesses with big contact lists and modest send volume that want EU hosting and a bill based on what they actually send.
Buttondown
Minimalist markdown newsletter tool with an API and no bloat
Best for: Developers and writers who want a plain, fast email engine driven by markdown or an API, with a blog that lives elsewhere.
Constant Contact
Old-school email marketing with phone support, no free plan
Best for: US small businesses and nonprofits that value phone support and simplicity over feature depth.
EmailOctopus
The cheapest serious option, with a large free tier
Best for: Newsletters and small businesses that want reliable sending at the lowest possible price, with no suite attached.
Flodesk
Design-led email; the flat unlimited plan is gone for new users
Best for: Visual brands, designers and boutique businesses whose email has to look as considered as the rest of their identity.
GetResponse
EU-based all-in-one: email, webinars, courses and funnels
Best for: Businesses that would otherwise pay for an email tool, a webinar tool and a course platform separately.
Ghost
Open-source CMS, newsletter and memberships on your own domain
Best for: Publications that want a real website and newsletter on infrastructure they own, with no platform taking a cut.
Kit
Automation-heavy email platform for creators who sell things
Best for: Creators with something to sell who need tags, sequences and launch funnels rather than just a send button.
Klaviyo
Ecommerce email and SMS driven by your store's own data
Best for: Online shops whose email should react to browsing and purchase behaviour, with revenue attributed per flow.
Mailchimp
The default email marketing suite, with the pricing to match
Best for: Teams that want one widely supported tool that every other product in their stack already integrates with.
MailerLite
Simple EU-hosted email marketing for small businesses
Best for: European small businesses that want real automation, EU data hosting and a bill that stays under control.
Omnisend
Ecommerce email, SMS and push for small online shops
Best for: Small and mid-sized online shops that want Klaviyo-style ecommerce flows without Klaviyo's bill.
Substack
Free to publish, 10% of revenue when you charge readers
Best for: Writers who want to publish today with zero setup and grow through Substack's own recommendation and social network.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best newsletter platform?
There is no single best one. Beehiiv and Substack suit creators monetising an audience, Ghost suits publications that want to own their site, and Brevo or MailerLite suit businesses that need automation. The comparison table above sorts them by what actually differs: free plan, entry price and automation depth.
What is the difference between a newsletter platform and an email marketing platform?
A newsletter platform is built around publishing to an audience: posts, an archive, paid subscriptions and growth tools. An email marketing platform is built around lifecycle messaging: segments, automations and campaigns tied to a product or shop. Some tools do both, and they are tagged as such here.
Which newsletter platforms have a free plan?
Most have one with a subscriber cap. The free plan column in the table shows exactly where each cap sits, because the limit is what matters, not whether a free tier exists at all.
Which platforms host data in the EU?
Only some. Each platform page states EU hosting and whether the provider offers a signable DPA. If you are in the EU and handle customer data, check both before migrating a list.
How often is this directory updated?
Pricing is re-checked on the platform's own pricing page and each entry carries the date it was verified. The most recent check across the directory was 10 August 2026.