Expert Guide

Best Email Marketing Software in 2026

An honest ranking for marketers and growth teams who care about automation, deliverability, and what the tool actually costs as your list grows.

Louis CorneloupFounder, Dupple · 34,000+ MarketingShot subscribers · Updated Sep 2026

Product links may be affiliate links. How we rate 6 tools compared

TL;DR

For most marketing and growth teams, ActiveCampaign is the best all-round pick in 2026 because its visual automation and built-in CRM go deeper than anything else here, as long as you can handle the learning curve and rising cost. If you want the same reach for less money, Brevo is the value winner: a real free tier, email plus SMS, and pay-by-send pricing that stays cheap on big lists. GetResponse is the strong all-in-one alternative if you also need landing pages, webinars, or ecommerce flows in one place.

Key facts6 tools compared: ActiveCampaign, Brevo, GetResponse, Moosend, Campaign Monitor, AWeber…

Updated: September 25, 2026
Top pick: ActiveCampaign (best for: Teams that run automated emails based on subscriber behavior)
Top pick price as of September 25, 2026: ActiveCampaign: From $15/mo (Starter, 1,000 contacts, billed annually); 14-day trial, no free plan

6 tools compared: ActiveCampaign, Brevo, GetResponse, Moosend, Campaign Monitor, AWeber Communications
Brevo (best for: Budget all-in-one with large lists): From $9/mo (Starter, 5,000 emails, up to 500 contacts); free plan with 300 emails/day
GetResponse (best for: Creators and ecommerce wanting one tool): From about $16/mo (Starter, 1,000 contacts); 14-day free trial, no free plan
Moosend (best for: Small teams wanting cheap automation): From roughly $9/mo (Pro, 500 contacts); 30-day trial, no free plan

Every one of these tools can send a newsletter. The real decision is what happens after the send: how well automations branch on behavior, whether messages land in the inbox, and how fast the bill climbs as your list grows past 10,000, then 50,000 contacts.

Marketers overpay for automation they never build, or underbuy and hit a wall six months in. This guide ranks six established platforms by who they genuinely fit, with concrete pricing and the real weaknesses of each, so you buy once instead of migrating in a year.

Top Picks

Based on features, real-world fit, and value for money.

#1 Top pick

ActiveCampaign

The deepest automation and CRM combo here, built for teams that run real behavioral flows and will grow into the price.

Pricing

From $15/mo (Starter, 1,000 contacts, billed annually); 14-day trial, no free plan

Best for

Teams that run automated emails based on subscriber behavior

Visit ActiveCampaign Details

Brevo

The value pick: a genuinely usable free tier plus pay-by-send pricing that stays cheap when your list gets big.

Pricing

From $9/mo (Starter, 5,000 emails, up to 500 contacts); free plan with 300 emails/day

Best for

Budget all-in-one with large lists

Visit Brevo Details

GetResponse

A capable all-in-one that folds automation, landing pages, webinars, and ecommerce flows into a single subscription.

Pricing

From about $16/mo (Starter, 1,000 contacts); 14-day free trial, no free plan

Best for

Creators and ecommerce wanting one tool

Visit GetResponse Details

Best Email Marketing Software in 2026: 6 tools compared, updated Sep 2026
Tool	Pricing	Best for
ActiveCampaign	From $15/mo (Starter, 1,000 contacts, billed annually); 14-day trial, no free plan	Teams that run automated emails based on subscriber behavior
Brevo	From $9/mo (Starter, 5,000 emails, up to 500 contacts); free plan with 300 emails/day	Budget all-in-one with large lists
GetResponse	From about $16/mo (Starter, 1,000 contacts); 14-day free trial, no free plan	Creators and ecommerce wanting one tool
Moosend	From roughly $9/mo (Pro, 500 contacts); 30-day trial, no free plan	Small teams wanting cheap automation
Campaign Monitor	From about $11/mo (Lite, smallest list); free trial, no free plan	Teams that want polished emails more than deep automation
AWeber Communications	From $12.49/mo (Lite, billed annually); 14-day free trial	Solo creators and small businesses

Pricing read from each vendor's own pricing page, checked Sep 2026. Every vendor here publishes a price.

Lowest monthly figure each vendor publishes, checked Sep 2026. A tilde marks a figure the vendor states approximately. Per-seat and usage charges can sit on top of it. Every tool here publishes a monthly price.

Top Pick

ActiveCampaign

The deepest automation and CRM combo here, built for teams that run real behavioral flows and will grow into the price.

Pricing: From $15/mo (Starter, 1,000 contacts, billed annually); 14-day trial, no free plan

Best for: Teams that run automated emails based on subscriber behavior

Pros

Deepest visual automation builder of any tool in this group
Built-in CRM and sales automation keep marketing and sales on one record
Strong deliverability and 900-plus native integrations

Cons

Pricing climbs steeply as contacts grow, and key features are gated behind Plus and Pro
Steeper learning curve than the simpler tools; the builder takes real time to master

Brevo

The value pick: a genuinely usable free tier plus pay-by-send pricing that stays cheap when your list gets big.

Pricing: From $9/mo (Starter, 5,000 emails, up to 500 contacts); free plan with 300 emails/day

Best for: Budget all-in-one with large lists

Pros

Real free plan (up to 100,000 stored contacts) and volume-based pricing that suits large, infrequently mailed lists
Email, SMS, and a free CRM bundled in one platform
Scales far cheaper than per-contact rivals as the list grows

Cons

Template editor and design options feel more basic than Campaign Monitor or GetResponse
Free and lower tiers carry daily send caps and Brevo branding

GetResponse

A capable all-in-one that folds automation, landing pages, webinars, and ecommerce flows into a single subscription.

Pricing: From about $16/mo (Starter, 1,000 contacts); 14-day free trial, no free plan

Best for: Creators and ecommerce wanting one tool

Pros

All-in-one: automation, landing pages, webinars, and ecommerce in one place
A 14-day free trial with no card and an affordable Starter tier to begin on
Good conversion tools (funnels, popups, abandoned-cart) for growth teams

Cons

Interface feels dated in places and gets cluttered with bolt-on modules
Deliverability is decent but trails ActiveCampaign and inbox-focused senders

Moosend

The budget automation option: a clean editor and capable workflows for a fraction of what the big names charge.

Pricing: From roughly $9/mo (Pro, 500 contacts); 30-day trial, no free plan

Best for: Small teams wanting cheap automation

Pros

Very low starting price for genuinely capable automation
Clean, easy editor that a new user can learn in an afternoon
Unlimited emails on paid plans with no per-send caps

Cons

Smaller integration ecosystem than ActiveCampaign or Brevo
Fewer native features: no full CRM and limited SMS

Campaign Monitor

A design-led sender with polished templates, best when great-looking broadcasts matter more than deep automation.

Pricing: From about $11/mo (Lite, smallest list); free trial, no free plan

Best for: Teams that want polished emails more than deep automation

Pros

Best-looking templates and the tightest email design controls here
Simple, approachable interface for non-technical marketers
Reliable deliverability and clean, readable analytics

Cons

Automation is basic next to ActiveCampaign or GetResponse
Expensive per contact for the feature set, especially on Premier

AWeber Communications

A dependable old-timer for creators and small businesses who want simple sending and hands-on support over automation depth.

Pricing: From $12.49/mo (Lite, billed annually); 14-day free trial

Best for: Solo creators and small businesses

Pros

14-day free trial and simple setup that solo creators can run alone
24/7 customer support that is genuinely responsive
Large template library and a long, reliable sending track record

Cons

Dated interface and weaker automation than modern rivals
Segmentation and reporting are limited compared with the leaders

What it is

Email marketing software lets you collect subscribers, design campaigns, and send them at scale without landing in spam. The modern versions do more than blast newsletters: they segment your list by behavior, trigger automated sequences (welcome, abandoned cart, re-engagement), test subject lines, and report on opens, clicks, and revenue.

Most bundle signup forms and landing pages for list growth, and the stronger ones add a CRM, SMS, and a visual automation builder so marketing and sales work from the same contact record.

Why it matters

Email is still the highest-ROI channel most teams own outright, and the platform you pick sets the ceiling on it.

Choose badly and you feel it three ways: deliverability drops and opens quietly fall, the automation builder can't express the flow you need so you hand-send instead, or per-contact pricing balloons as you grow and you're stuck migrating tens of thousands of contacts mid-quarter.

A good fit compounds the other way: better inbox placement, flows that run while you sleep, and costs that scale with revenue instead of ahead of it.

Key features to look for

Marketing automation and visual workflowsEssential

The builder that triggers emails on behavior (signup, click, purchase, inactivity) and branches on conditions. This is the biggest thing separating a newsletter tool from a growth engine, and the depth varies wildly between these six.

Deliverability and sending reputationEssential

Whether your emails reach the inbox instead of spam. Shared IP quality, authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), and list-hygiene tools all matter. A cheap tool that lands in Promotions or spam costs you more than a pricier one that gets seen.

Segmentation and personalizationEssential

Splitting your list by behavior, purchase history, tags, or custom fields, then tailoring content per segment. Broadcast-to-everyone is the fastest way to train subscribers to ignore you.

Pricing model and how it scales

Per-contact (you pay for everyone on the list) versus per-send (you pay for emails actually sent). Per-send suits big lists you email occasionally; per-contact can be cheaper for small lists you email daily. Model your real numbers at 25k and 50k contacts.

Email editor, templates and landing pages

A drag-and-drop editor, a template library that doesn't look dated, and built-in signup forms and landing pages so you can grow the list without a separate tool.

Integrations, CRM and API

Native connections to your store, ads, and CRM, plus a usable API. Built-in CRM keeps marketing and sales on one contact record; a weak integration list forces brittle Zapier chains.

Pricing

All six tools publish a starting price, and only GetResponse Enterprise is custom. The cheapest credible entries are Brevo and Moosend, both from roughly $9/mo. Brevo charges by monthly email volume, with a contact cap per tier, and includes a free plan.

Moosend charges per contact, has no free plan, and saves about 20% on annual billing. Costs jump above the starter tier and as the list grows: ActiveCampaign at 1,000 contacts, billed annually, runs from $15/mo to $145/mo, and GetResponse goes from about $16/mo to around $62/mo.

Campaign Monitor starts at about $11/mo on Lite, then Essentials and Premier scale by contacts, with Premier notably pricier, while AWeber Lite is $12.49/mo and Plus is $19.99/mo, both billed annually, after a 14-day trial.

Plan	Price	Best for
ActiveCampaign Starter	From $15/mo, billed annually	1,000 contacts, 14-day trial, 30-day money-back
ActiveCampaign Plus	$49/mo, billed annually	1,000 contacts, then the price scales up
ActiveCampaign Pro	$79/mo, billed annually	1,000 contacts, billed annually
ActiveCampaign Enterprise	From $145/mo, billed annually	1,000 contacts, then scales as the list grows
Brevo paid plans	From roughly $9/mo	Billed by emails sent, SMS and CRM included
GetResponse Starter	From about $16/mo	Unlimited monthly sends on paid plans
GetResponse Marketer	Around $54/mo	Unlimited monthly sends on paid plans
GetResponse Creator	Around $62/mo, annual	Annual billing, unlimited monthly sends
GetResponse Enterprise	Custom quote	No list price, unlimited sends on paid plans
Moosend Pro	From roughly $9/mo (about 20% off annual)	500 contacts, unlimited emails, scales by list size
Campaign Monitor Lite	From about $11/mo	Smallest list tier, free trial, no free plan
Campaign Monitor Essentials	Scales by contacts	Priced by list size above Lite
Campaign Monitor Premier	Scales by contacts	Notably pricier than Lite and Essentials
AWeber Lite	From about $12.49/mo	Scales by subscriber count above the free plan
AWeber Plus	From about $19.99/mo, annual	Annual billing, scales by subscriber count

Mistakes to avoid

×Choosing on the sticker price and getting blindsided when the list grows. Per-contact tools like ActiveCampaign and AWeber cost far more at 50k contacts than a pay-per-send option like Brevo, so model your real numbers first.

×Buying automation depth you will never build. Most teams run a welcome flow and broadcasts, so paying for ActiveCampaign Pro when Moosend or Brevo covers the job just burns budget every month.

×Ignoring deliverability until opens quietly collapse. A cheap tool that lands in spam costs more than a pricier one that reaches the inbox, so send a real campaign during the trial and check placement.

Expert tips

→Import one real segment and run a live send during the free trial. Inbox placement and how the editor actually feels matter more than any feature checklist.

→Match the pricing model to your habits: pay-per-send (Brevo) for big lists you email occasionally, per-contact for smaller lists you email often.

→Map the two or three automations you will genuinely build, then pick the cheapest tool that runs them well instead of the most powerful one on the list.

The bottom line

Pick ActiveCampaign if automation and a built-in CRM are the point and you can grow into the price; it is the strongest engine here for lifecycle and behavioral marketing. Choose Brevo if you want most of that reach for far less, especially on a large list, thanks to pay-by-send pricing and a real free tier.

GetResponse is the all-in-one for creators and ecommerce who also need landing pages and webinars. Moosend wins on price for simple automation, Campaign Monitor for teams who care most about polished design, and AWeber for solo creators who value support over depth.

Frequently asked questions

Which email marketing tool is best for automation?

ActiveCampaign, clearly. Its visual builder branches on behavior, tags, and CRM data more flexibly than anything else here, and it pairs automation with built-in sales tools. GetResponse is the next best for automation, and Moosend punches above its price. Campaign Monitor and AWeber are the weakest on this front.

What is the cheapest good option, and is there a free plan?

Brevo and Moosend are the cheapest capable tools, both starting around $9/mo. For a free plan, Brevo is the one here (300 emails a day); GetResponse, AWeber and Moosend offer free trials instead. Brevo's pay-by-send model is usually the cheapest as your list grows past 25k contacts.

Per-contact or pay-per-send pricing: which should I pick?

It depends on how often you email. Pay-per-send, like Brevo, is cheaper for large lists you mail occasionally, since you only pay for emails actually sent. Per-contact, like ActiveCampaign, AWeber, and Campaign Monitor, can be cheaper for smaller lists you email frequently. Model both at your real contact count.

How do these compare to Mailchimp or Klaviyo?

Mailchimp is more polished for beginners but gets expensive fast and its automation trails ActiveCampaign. Klaviyo is stronger for ecommerce specifically. Among this set, ActiveCampaign rivals Klaviyo on automation depth, while Brevo and Moosend undercut Mailchimp on price for similar core sending.

Sources

Prices and plan details come from each vendor's own pricing page, re-checked by the Toolradar pricing tracker.

ActiveCampaign pricingchecked Sep 2026
Brevo pricingchecked Sep 2026
GetResponse pricingchecked Sep 2026
Moosend pricingchecked Sep 2026
Campaign Monitor pricingchecked Sep 2026
AWeber Communications pricingchecked Sep 2026

Some offers on this page may be paid placements or contain affiliate links.

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