Quick comparison: best email marketing software
| Tool | Free plan / trial | Paid price on page | Gaps |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mailchimp | Free: 250 contacts, 500 sends/month or 250/day, 1 seat, 1 audience, no automation flows | Essentials $13, Standard $20, Premium $350 per month for 12 months | Contact tier for those prices not stated; “then starts at” rate blank |
| Klaviyo | Free: up to 250 active profiles, 500 email sends/month, $5 of mobile messages | Not shown (plan builder showed “Total: $1”) | Email and Email+SMS prices not visible |
| Kit | 14-day free trial, no card, free migrations | Plan names only: Newsletter, Creator, Pro | No dollar amounts on the page |
Mailchimp: limits are clear, scaling prices are not
Mailchimp’s Free plan is $0 for 250 contacts, with sends capped at 500 a month or 250 a day, 1 seat and 1 audience, limited pre-built templates and email support for the first 30 days. It has no email scheduling, no way to remove Mailchimp branding and no marketing automation flows, and sending pauses if limits are exceeded.
Paid plans are shown at $13 (Essentials), $20 (Standard) and $350 (Premium) a month for 12 months, with monthly email sends scaling to 10X, 12X and 15X the contact count. The page offers contact tiers from 0-500 to 1,000,000+ but no per-tier prices, and the post-promotion rate is blank, so your price at your list size must be checked in the selector.
- Clearly stated free limits
- Sends scale with contacts on paid plans
- Wide range of contact tiers
- Per-tier prices not shown in the text we read
- Post-promotion price blank
- Free plan excludes automation and scheduling
Klaviyo: built for ecommerce, prices need the plan builder
Klaviyo’s free plan allows up to 250 active profiles, 500 email sends a month, $5 of mobile messages a month (region and carrier dependent) and $5 of Composer usage, with email support for 60 days and then the Help Center, Academy and Community.
The page did not list prices for Email or Email+SMS at any profile count; its plan builder showed only “Total: $1” and other tiers point to sales. Exceeding profile or send limits may restrict sending.
- Free plan includes some mobile messaging
- 60 days of email support on Free
- Plan builder to estimate your own price
- Paid prices not visible in the page text
- Free limited to 250 profiles
- Higher tiers go through sales
Kit: creator-focused, pricing not shown in the page text
Kit (formerly ConvertKit) lists three plans, Newsletter, Creator and Pro, each building on the one before, with a 14-day free trial, no card required and free migrations from other platforms.
The page text we read contained no dollar amounts, no subscriber-based tiers and no description of a free plan, and its FAQ section was empty. Check the live pricing selector for your subscriber count.
- 14-day trial with no card
- Free migrations
- Simple three-plan structure
- No prices in the page text we read
- Free plan not described
- FAQ section empty on the page
Verdict: best email marketing software in 2026
Our short verdict on the best email marketing software: decide using the price, limits and data gaps shown above, not the headline discount.
If you are still comparing the best email marketing software, use the free plans, trials or refund windows as your real test.
If you are starting with a small list, the free plans of Mailchimp and Klaviyo both cap at 250 contacts or profiles, so pick the one whose paid tiers fit later. Mailchimp’s free plan lacks automation, which matters if you want welcome sequences.
Because none of the three shows a price at your list size in the page text, plug your real subscriber count into each vendor’s selector and compare the 12-month and post-promotion totals before committing.
Related guides for the best email marketing software: CRM software for small business · project management software.
Sources (vendor pages read October 2026): Mailchimp pricing · Kit pricing · Klaviyo pricing
Email marketing software FAQs
What is the best email marketing software for a small business?
It depends on list size and goals. Mailchimp has clearly stated free limits, Klaviyo targets ecommerce, and Kit targets creators; verify prices at your list size.
Is there a free email marketing plan?
Mailchimp Free covers 250 contacts and Klaviyo Free covers up to 250 active profiles; Kit offers a 14-day trial.
How much does Mailchimp cost?
Essentials $13, Standard $20 and Premium $350 a month for 12 months are shown, but the page does not say which contact tier applies.
What are Mailchimp Free limits?
250 contacts, up to 500 sends a month or 250 a day, 1 seat, 1 audience and no automation flows or scheduling.
How much does Klaviyo cost?
Paid prices were not shown in the page text we read; use its plan builder.
How much does Kit cost?
The page text showed no prices; it lists a 14-day free trial.
Do email platforms pause sending at limits?
Mailchimp and Klaviyo both say sending may pause or be restricted when limits are exceeded.
Which tool has automation on the free plan?
Mailchimp Free excludes marketing automation flows; the Klaviyo and Kit pages we read did not list free-plan automation.
[…] Related: see our full breakdown in Best Email Marketing Software for Small Business (2026). […]