Top email providers are introducing generous free plans to attract newsletter operators.
Competition in email marketing intensifies as providers vie for dominance. The newsletter space has become a battleground, fueled by rapid market expansion and lucrative opportunities. Companies now scramble to outmaneuver rivals, each aiming to emerge as the industry’s frontrunner. This fierce rivalry is resulting in generous free plans that provide significant benefits to customers.
So which providers offer the best free plans? Let’s review:
Top Free Email Platforms:
- Kit – the best free plan for content creators.
- MailerLite – the all-in-one marketing platform for small businesses.
- Beehiiv – the best newsletter platform.
There are some differences between our picks; so let’s review:
- Kit offers the best free tier for up to 10,000 subscribers and unlimited sending, landing pages, and signup forms. The free plan doesn’t include RSS-to-email or polls and is limited to one automation and one sequence. Kit is ideal for creators that want to sell digital products and newsletter operators who have a website on a publishing platform, such as WordPress.
- MailerLite offers a smaller free tier but offers many marketing features like automations, landing pages, and ecommerce integrations. Great for small businesses or someone just starting out with interest in using its marketing features beyond email.
- Beehiiv offers a free tier for up to 2500 subscribers, with unlimited sending. Each email is called a broadcast that is published as a web post, eliminating the need for a content publishing tool. After the free plan the pricing tier jumps are significant. Beehiiv doesn’t support RSS-to-email and recently announced it will not offer support to customers on free plans.
Beyond free plans
Once rare, high affiliate commissions now dominate. Beehiiv’s 50% offer, once exceptional, has become the new norm. Kit matched this rate to retain influencers. The landscape has shifted significantly from the 20-30% commissions of the past. In today’s market, every incentive is on the table as platforms vie for creators’ loyalty.
Less known BigMailer recently launched an influencer program for newsletter operators, which offers free service for up to 1 year. The monthly service credit of $60 adds up to $720 for a year. It’s equivalent to having over 20,000 subscribers on the platform. That’s double the free limit of the Kit’s free plan. The catch is that the influencer program requires potential customers to apply for approval.
How to decide on an email provider
To choose the right provide for your business it may be helpful to start with some questions:
- What do you think your list size will be in 6-12 months and what will the cost be then?
- Do you need to send newsletters only or automations and perhaps RSS-to-email updates?
- Do you need a drag-and-drop template editor or want a provider with a template library?
- Do you need marketing integrations, perhaps for running Facebook ads, or other lead generation activities?
- Do you need a content publishing platform?
Switching email providers isn’t an easy process, so it’s important to choose the right one for you from the start.
Final Thoughts
If you only need to send newsletters for your small business with some basic automations, Kit is the best value, and is an established market leader.
Use Beehiiv if you are starting a newsletter you plan to monetize as a product. It offers the most options for monetization and the best ad network.
Consider MailerLite for its marketing tools and built-in integrations with ecommerce platforms and social platforms like Facebook. It’s a great choice for any small business with a modest size customer list.
Consider BigMailer.io if you need to manage many projects or clients and send a variety of emails, including automations with RSS-to-email campaigns. It offers competitive pricing and workflows for makers, agencies, and franchises.
If you need to send announcements and legal notices a few times a year to a very large customer list, consider a platform that allows sending email via Amazon SES. These providers offer lower rates and the best long-term ROI.
Happy email marketing.