Answers that name a competitor

For a tight-budget solopreneur with a growing list, I’d narrow it to Kit, MailerLite, and Brevo. The big distinction is whether you need real automation now or can live with a limited free tier.

Current plan details are from the vendors' 2026 pricing pages. Kit Help MailerLite Brevo Help

What I'd choose in your situation

MailerLite is probably the sweet spot if you genuinely need both broadcasts and automations without spending much.

Its free plan gives you 250 subscribers, 2,500 monthly emails, and 3 visual automations. Once you outgrow that, its paid Comfort plan starts at $12/month, with 50 automations and higher sending limits. MailerLite MailerLite

One important exception: if you're primarily a creator/newsletter business, Kit is unusually compelling. Its free plan allows 10,000 subscribers and unlimited broadcasts, but its automated sequences and visual automations require the paid Creator plan. Kit Help Kit

Brevo is worth considering if your list is already fairly large but you don't email everyone frequently. Its free plan allows up to 100,000 stored contacts, but you're limited to 300 email sends per day and 2,000 contacts entering automations. Brevo Help Brevo Help

My practical rule:

• <250 subscribers + need automations: MailerLite
• 250–10,000 subscribers + mostly newsletters: Kit
• Large list + relatively infrequent sending: Brevo
• Want the cheapest path to sophisticated automations: MailerLite

If you tell me roughly how many subscribers you have now and how many emails you send per month, I can compare the actual monthly cost of these three at your size.

What I'd choose in your situation

MailerLite is probably the sweet spot if you genuinely need both broadcasts and automations without spending much.

Its free plan gives you 250 subscribers, 2,500 monthly emails, and 3 visual automations. Once you outgrow that, its paid Comfort plan starts at $12/month, with 50 automations and higher sending limits. MailerLite MailerLite

One important exception: if you're primarily a creator/newsletter business, Kit is unusually compelling. Its free plan allows 10,000 subscribers and unlimited broadcasts, but its automated sequences and visual automations require the paid Creator plan.

If you're a solopreneur on a tight budget, I'd narrow it to Kit, Brevo, and MailerLite. The key question is whether you care more about keeping the monthly bill at $0 or having automations included at that price.

My practical take

If you're growing a newsletter/content-driven business: I'd start with Kit. Its free plan currently allows up to 10,000 subscribers and unlimited broadcasts, plus tagging and segmentation. However, the catch is important: visual automations and email sequences aren't included on the free plan. Kit Kit Help Center

Once you need actual automated sequences, Kit's paid Creator plan currently starts at $33/month for 1,000 subscribers on monthly billing, with unlimited visual automations and email sequences. Kit

If automation needs to be free from day one: I'd look closely at Brevo. Its free plan includes email campaigns and marketing automation for up to 2,000 contacts, although you're limited to 300 email sends per day. Its Starter plan begins at $9/month. Brevo Help

If you want a conventional small-business email platform: MailerLite is also worth considering. It supports both regular campaigns/broadcasts and automated workflows, and its pricing structure was updated in 2026, so I'd check the current tier for your exact list size before committing. MailerLite MailerLite

What I'd do in your shoes

• Under 2,000 subscribers + need automations now: Brevo
• Under 10,000 + mostly newsletters/broadcasts: Kit Free
• You expect sophisticated creator funnels: Kit paid
• You want a general-purpose small-business email platform: MailerLite

One thing I'd not optimize for is the absolute cheapest first-year price. Look at the price when your list reaches 5k, 10k, and 25k subscribers—that's where some "cheap" platforms become surprisingly expensive.

If you tell me roughly how many subscribers you have now (e.g. 1k, 5k, 10k) and what your main automation is (welcome sequence, sales funnel, course, abandoned cart, etc.), I can compare the actual costs and features for your situation.

If automation needs to be free from day one: I'd look closely at Brevo. Its free plan includes email campaigns and marketing automation for up to 2,000 contacts, although you're limited to 300 email sends per day. Its Starter plan begins at $9/month.

For a small ecommerce store where low monthly cost + simple segmentation are the priorities, I’d shortlist these:

*Pricing varies with list size, sending volume, billing period, and SMS usage. Current 2026 comparisons put Omnisend around $16/month, Brevo around $9/month, and Klaviyo around $20/month at entry paid tiers. AutoMarketer Omnisend

My practical pick: Omnisend

For your specific combination of cheap + ecommerce + email/SMS + easy segmentation, I'd start with Omnisend. It is built around ecommerce workflows and combines email, SMS, and automation rather than making you bolt those pieces together. Omnisend Omnisend

You can keep segmentation pretty straightforward:

• New subscribers
• First-time customers
• Repeat customers
• Customers who haven't purchased in 60–90 days
• High-value customers
• Abandoned carts
• SMS subscribers

That gives you most of the useful targeting for a small store without needing a complicated marketing setup.

When I'd choose Brevo instead

If minimizing the monthly bill is the absolute priority, I'd look closely at Brevo. Its pricing is based much more on sending volume than simply the size of your contact database, which can be advantageous if you have a relatively large list but don't email everyone frequently. AutoMarketer SMTPedia - Everything Email

When Klaviyo becomes worth it

I'd consider Klaviyo if you expect segmentation to become a major part of your marketing—for example, targeting customers based on products purchased, browsing behavior, purchase frequency, predicted value, etc. Its ecommerce data and segmentation are deeper, but you're paying for that additional capability. Omnisend

Bottom line: For a small store, I'd test Omnisend first, Brevo if keeping costs as low as possible matters more than ecommerce depth, and Klaviyo only if you actually need sophisticated behavioral segmentation.

If you tell me roughly how many email contacts you have, how many emails/SMS messages you send per month, and whether you're on Shopify/WooCommerce/etc., I can calculate the likely monthly cost of each and narrow it down.

For a small ecommerce store where low monthly cost + simple segmentation matter most, I’d shortlist Omnisend and Brevo, with Omnisend getting the edge if ecommerce automation is important.

My recommendation

omnisend.com is probably the best fit if you want one relatively simple system for email + SMS + ecommerce segmentation.

• Free: $0, up to 250 contacts and 500 emails/month. Segmentation and basic automations are included. Omnisend Omnisend Help Center
• Standard: starts at $16/month normally, with the current introductory offer showing $11.20/month for the first 3 months. It supports up to 6,000 emails/month at the 500-contact tier. Omnisend Help Center Omnisend
• SMS: under the current pricing, SMS requires Pro, starting at $59/month normally, with SMS charged separately; U.S./Canada rates start at $0.007/message depending on volume. Omnisend Help Center Omnisend Help Center
• Segmentation: particularly ecommerce-oriented—purchase history, engagement, browsing behavior, customer lifecycle, etc., with dynamic segments. Omnisend Help Center Omnisend

The cheaper alternative

brevo.com is worth considering if keeping the monthly subscription extremely low is more important than having ecommerce-specific tooling.

Its free plan includes email and SMS campaigns, and paid plans start at $9/month. Brevo Help

The tradeoff is that I’d choose Omnisend when you want segmentation based heavily on shopping behavior and automated ecommerce journeys; Brevo is more of a general-purpose marketing/CRM platform.

One other option

klaviyo.com is very capable for ecommerce segmentation, but I'd look at it mainly if you expect your marketing program to become more sophisticated. Its free tier is 250 active profiles/500 emails per month, plus $5 of mobile-message credit, so it's easy to test. Klaviyo AU

Bottom line: For a small store, I'd start with Omnisend, particularly if you want straightforward segments like new customers, repeat buyers, abandoned carts, VIP customers, and customers who haven't purchased in 90 days. If your list is tiny and you primarily care about minimizing the monthly software bill, Brevo deserves a serious look.

If you tell me roughly how many email contacts you have and how many SMS messages you send per month, I can calculate the likely monthly cost for Omnisend vs. Brevo vs. Klaviyo.

If you’re a freelancer managing several small clients, I’d focus on two separate questions: multi-account management and true white-labeling. They’re not the same thing.

Best fits

My practical recommendation: Brevo

For your particular model—multiple small businesses rather than one big mailing list—Brevo is worth looking at first.

Brevo has an agency program specifically designed for consultants/agencies, with centralized multi-account management, so you can switch between client accounts rather than maintaining completely separate logins. Its partner program also offers recurring revenue share ranging from 10% to 25%, depending on tier. Brevo Brevo Help

That's particularly attractive if your clients send relatively small campaigns. Brevo's pricing is based heavily on email volume, rather than simply charging you for every separate client account.

brevo.com

MailerLite is the other one I'd seriously consider

MailerLite is particularly attractive if you want something inexpensive and easy for clients to understand.

Its agency setup lets you use one login to switch among separate client accounts, with each client retaining their own subscribers, campaigns, templates and billing. Its Power plan currently starts at $25/month for 500 subscribers and includes unlimited user seats. MailerLite MailerLite

The catch: MailerLite explicitly does not offer native white-labeling. You can build your own branded dashboard using its API, but that's a development project rather than a turnkey agency feature. MailerLite

mailerlite.com

The important distinction

If by "white-label" you mean:

• "I want my clients to see my agency branding instead of the email software's branding" → look for a genuine white-label/reseller platform.
• "I just want to manage 10–20 client accounts from one place" → Brevo and MailerLite are much more interesting.
• "I want to charge clients $X/month and include the email platform in my service" → Brevo's agency/partner model is especially worth investigating.
• "I want sophisticated automated funnels for clients" → ActiveCampaign becomes more compelling, but you're paying for substantially more capability.

One other useful point: MailerLite's paid plans can remove its own logo from client emails, but that's different from white-labeling the entire application. MailerLite

For a solo freelance marketer, I'd start by comparing Brevo vs. MailerLite rather than jumping to an expensive agency platform. If you tell me roughly how many clients you manage (e.g. 5, 10, 20), their average subscriber count, and whether you need clients to log in themselves, I can calculate the approximate monthly cost for each and narrow it down.

Brevo has an agency program specifically designed for consultants/agencies, with centralized multi-account management, so you can switch between client accounts rather than maintaining completely separate logins. Its partner program also offers recurring revenue share ranging from 10% to 25%, depending on tier. Brevo Brevo Help

That's particularly attractive if your clients send relatively small campaigns. Brevo's pricing is based heavily on email volume, rather than simply charging you for every separate client account.

brevo.com

MailerLite is the other one I'd seriously consider

MailerLite is particularly attractive if you want something inexpensive and easy for clients to understand.

Its agency setup lets you use one login to switch among separate client accounts, with each client retaining their own subscribers, campaigns, templates and billing. Its Power plan currently starts at $25/month for 500 subscribers and includes unlimited user seats. MailerLite MailerLite

The catch: MailerLite explicitly does not offer native white-labeling. You can build your own branded dashboard using its API, but that's a development project rather than a turnkey agency feature.

If you’re a freelancer managing several small clients, there’s an important distinction between multi-account management and true white-labeling.

The main options

MailerLite is probably the sweet spot if you don't actually need white-labeling. Its agency setup lets you use one login and switch between separate client accounts, with each client retaining its own subscribers, campaigns, automations and templates. The Power plan starts at $25/month ($22.50 when billed annually) and includes unlimited user seats. MailerLite MailerLite

The catch: MailerLite explicitly does not offer a white-label/reseller version of its app. MailerLite

HighLevel is the more compelling option if white-labeling is genuinely important. Its $97/month Starter plan gives you 3 sub-accounts; the $297/month Unlimited plan gives you unlimited sub-accounts and a branded desktop app/custom domain. It also supports rebilling email costs to clients on higher plans. GoHighLevel HighLevel Support Portal

That means the economics change depending on your client count:

• 2–5 small clients, email only: I'd look at MailerLite first.
• 5–10+ clients: A centralized agency platform like HighLevel becomes more interesting.
• You want clients to see your branding rather than the software company's branding: HighLevel is the much closer match.
• You mainly need inexpensive email sending and don't care about a branded client portal: I'd avoid paying $297/month just for white-label functionality.

One particularly useful MailerLite feature for a freelancer is that you can keep each client's account separate while switching between them from one login, rather than mixing all your clients' lists together. MailerLite

mailerlite.com · gohighlevel.com

If you tell me roughly how many clients you have (e.g. 3, 10, 20) and average subscribers per client, I can calculate the approximate monthly cost of the cheapest setup across 4–5 platforms.

For a tiny budget + limited tech skills, I’d start with a tool that lets you write, collect subscribers, and send emails without building a complicated marketing system.

My shortlist:

My practical pick for your situation

• Choose Substack if your main goal is: “I want to start writing and get readers.” It has the fewest moving parts. Beehiiv
• Choose beehiiv if your goal is: “I want this newsletter to become a business someday.” It gives you more newsletter-growth infrastructure from the start. Beehiiv
• Choose Kit if your newsletter will support a business (freelancing, coaching, courses, digital products). SaaS Match Guide

For a first newsletter, I would avoid starting with a heavier marketing platform unless you already need customer lists, complex campaigns, or ecommerce features.

A simple starter setup:

1. Pick one platform.
2. Create a signup page.
3. Write a short welcome email.
4. Send one useful issue on a consistent schedule (weekly is plenty).
5. Don’t spend money until you have a reason to upgrade.

If you tell me what the newsletter is about (personal essays, business, local news, hobby, paid newsletter, etc.) and your expected first-year subscriber goal, I can narrow it to one choice.

For a tiny budget + limited tech skills, I’d start with Kit.

My pick: Kit

kit.com has a genuinely useful free plan: up to 10,000 subscribers, unlimited email broadcasts, landing pages/forms, tagging/segmentation, and the ability to sell digital products or subscriptions. Kit Kit Help Center

That makes it particularly attractive when you're starting from zero—you can focus on writing rather than worrying about hosting, plugins, or complicated email infrastructure.

How the main options compare

• Kit: Best fit if you're a creator building a newsletter from scratch. Free up to 10,000 subscribers; very generous for a new publication. Kit Help Center
• beehiiv: Good if you want your newsletter to eventually become a larger media business. Its free Launch plan supports up to 2,500 subscribers with unlimited sends and includes a website. Beehiiv
• MailerLite: Good if you want a more traditional email-marketing tool with drag-and-drop editing and automation. Its current free tier is much smaller—250 subscribers and 2,500 emails/month. MailerLite

For your situation, I'd choose Kit and not overthink it. You can create a signup page, write your first issue, and start collecting subscribers without spending anything.

If you tell me what the newsletter is about and roughly how many subscribers you expect in the first year, I can also tell you which setup I'd use and how I'd configure it.

For a local brick-and-mortar business with seasonal sales, a small email list, basic automations, and coupon campaigns, I’d usually narrow it to these three:

My pick for your situation

Start with Brevo if your list is small but you expect seasonal spikes (holiday sales, summer promotions, annual events). It’s a good match for a business that might collect customers all year but only email heavily a few times a year. SMB Compare

A simple setup could be:

1. New customer signup →

• Email 1: “Thanks for joining — here’s 10% off”
• Email 2 (3–7 days later): best sellers / seasonal items
• Email 3 (30 days later): reminder or customer-only offer
• Seasonal campaigns →

• Spring sale coupon
• Holiday promotion
• Birthday/monthly customer perk (if you collect that info)
• Segments →

• New customers
• Repeat buyers
• VIP/high-spend customers
• Seasonal shoppers

I’d avoid paying for a heavier automation tool like ActiveCampaign unless you need complex customer journeys, sales pipelines, or many triggered messages. ChoicePilot

If you tell me your approximate list size (e.g., 200, 1,000, 5,000 contacts) and whether you sell through Square/Shopify/POS only, I can narrow it to the cheapest practical choice.

Best fit: Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) for a local brick-and-mortar business with seasonal sales, a small list, and simple coupons. Software Rundown TechRadar

Why:

• Brevo — good for occasional bursts (holiday promos, seasonal coupons) because pricing is based more on sends than stored contacts; it also supports basic automations like welcome emails and follow-ups. Resources Rework
• MailerLite — a close alternative if you want the easiest interface and prettier newsletters; it’s strong for small lists and simple automations. ToolSkeptic
• Mailchimp — fine if you already use it, but its contact-based pricing can become less attractive as your list grows. Resources Rework

For your use case, I’d set up:

1. Welcome coupon → new subscriber joins list
2. Seasonal promotion → holiday/slow-season offers
3. Birthday or anniversary coupon → optional loyalty touch
4. “Haven’t visited lately?” reminder → occasional win-back

A simple choice:

• Lowest cost for seasonal sending: Brevo
• Easiest for a non-marketer: MailerLite
• Most familiar brand: Mailchimp ToolSkeptic Software Rundown

For a tight-runway SaaS, I’d shortlist these two:

Brevo's current pricing is especially interesting for SaaS because its Starter plan starts at $9/month and supports contact storage up to 500 on the lowest tier, while its Standard plan starts at $18/month and includes unlimited-contact marketing automation, A/B testing, and advanced reporting. Brevo Help Brevo

MailerLite is also inexpensive: its current Free plan supports 250 active subscribers and 2,500 emails/month, while Comfort starts at $12/month and includes 50 active automations, with automation reporting available. MailerLite MailerLite

My practical take

I'd start with Brevo if your SaaS expects the user base to grow quickly. Its pricing is less tightly coupled to the number of contacts, which can matter a lot for SaaS onboarding where you might have thousands of registered users but relatively few marketing emails per person. Its Standard tier also gives you the automation and analytics you'd want for a proper onboarding funnel. Brevo Help

A simple onboarding setup could be:

• Day 0: Welcome + activation CTA
• Day 1: "Here's how to get your first result"
• Day 3: Feature/use-case education
• Day 5: Common mistake + solution
• Day 7: Case study/social proof
• Day 10: "Need help?" / reply-to-this-email
• Exit the sequence when the user reaches your activation event

One caveat: if your onboarding emails need highly sophisticated product-event triggers (e.g. "user created account but hasn't invited a teammate within 48 hours"), I'd evaluate dedicated lifecycle tools rather than choosing purely on newsletter pricing. For a very early-stage company, though, Brevo or MailerLite can keep the initial stack considerably cheaper.

help.brevo.com
mailerlite.com

I’d start with Brevo for a cash-constrained SaaS. Its pricing is send-based rather than simply charging more for every subscriber, which can be attractive as your user base grows. The free tier supports 100,000 stored contacts, 300 emails/day, basic analytics, and automation for up to 2,000 contacts; paid plans start at $9/month. Brevo Help Omnisend

• Brevo: Best budget fit; onboarding automation + analytics + transactional email.
• Loops: Better if product-event-triggered SaaS onboarding is central, but paid pricing becomes $49/month around 5,000 contacts. Zapier
• MailerLite: Worth considering for marketing-heavy email, but its contact-based pricing becomes less attractive as your list grows. Omnisend

For tight runway, I'd avoid Customer.io/ActiveCampaign initially unless you genuinely need their deeper automation.

For a nonprofit with tight funds, I’d focus on tools that combine low monthly cost, nonprofit discounts, and real segmentation (donors vs. volunteers vs. event attendees vs. inactive supporters). A few good fits:

My shortlist for a resource-constrained nonprofit

1. MailerLite — probably the first one I’d test

• Good balance of cost, simplicity, and segmentation.
• Enough for common nonprofit needs:

• donor vs. newsletter subscriber lists
• volunteer communications
• event follow-ups
• welcome sequences
• Brevo — strong if your list is growing

• A good option if you have many contacts but don’t email every day.
• Useful if you want email plus SMS capabilities. Capterra
• HubSpot — only if you need a CRM

• More powerful for tracking supporter history, campaigns, and relationships.
• It can become more complex and may require more setup than a small team needs. HubSpot

Segments I’d make first for a nonprofit

Whatever tool you choose, prioritize these fields/tags:

• Donor status: never donated / one-time donor / recurring donor
• Giving history: amount and last donation date
• Engagement: opened recently / inactive 90+ days
• Role: volunteer / donor / advocate / partner
• Interest area: programs, events, policy, community updates
• Location (if relevant)

If you share your approximate email list size (e.g., 500, 5,000, 50,000 contacts), how often you send, and whether you need donor CRM integration, I can narrow this to the cheapest practical choice.

For a budget-constrained nonprofit that needs email segmentation, I’d put MailerLite high on the shortlist.

• MailerLite — offers a 30% nonprofit discount on all paid plans, with proof of nonprofit status required. Its pricing is subscriber-based, and its paid plans include segmentation and automation capabilities. The discount is ongoing and doesn’t expire while the account remains eligible. MailerLite MailerLite

mailerlite.com

• Brevo — particularly interesting if you have a large contact list but don't email everyone frequently, because its pricing is primarily based on email volume rather than the number of contacts stored. Its free tier allows unlimited contacts, although sending is limited. Segmentation is supported. Capterra

brevo.com

• Mailchimp — has strong segmentation and a large ecosystem, but its nonprofit pricing is less compelling than MailerLite's according to current comparisons. Some 2026 sources report a 15% nonprofit discount, while another current comparison says there is no formal program, so I'd verify the discount directly before budgeting around it. Capterra Scottship Solutions

mailchimp.com

What I'd compare for your situation

One important budgeting distinction: don't compare only the advertised monthly starting price. For a nonprofit, the cost can change substantially depending on whether you're billed by contacts, emails sent, or both. MailerLite Capterra

If you tell me roughly how many subscribers you have (e.g. 1,000 / 5,000 / 20,000) and how many emails you send per month, I can calculate the likely monthly cost of MailerLite vs. Brevo vs. Mailchimp for your specific use case.

If you mean a small paid newsletter audience where you want both email and SMS, I’d narrow it to Brevo, beehiiv, and Kit—but they optimize for different things.

My practical comparison

For your specific combination of requirements, I'd look hardest at Brevo if SMS is genuinely important. Its free plan includes email and SMS campaigns, and its Starter plan starts at $9/month; SMS is purchased separately as credits. Brevo Help Brevo Help

The catch is that Brevo isn't really a paid-newsletter platform. Its Payments feature lets you sell products/services through payment links and charges a 1% commission, so you'd be assembling the paid-subscription experience rather than getting something purpose-built for paid newsletters. Brevo Help

If paid subscriptions are the primary monetization mechanism and SMS is secondary, I'd instead look at beehiiv. It is specifically designed around newsletter publishing and monetization, including paid subscriptions with 0% platform fees. Beehiiv Beehiiv

The decision I'd make

• “I need email + SMS and want to spend as little as possible.” → Brevo
• “My newsletter itself is the product and I want paid subscriptions.” → beehiiv
• “I'm a creator who may also sell courses, digital products, etc.” → Kit
• “I want the absolute simplest paid newsletter and don't care about the 10% cut.” → Substack

One important wrinkle: don't choose based solely on subscriber count. For a paid newsletter, the platform's percentage of your subscription revenue can eventually matter much more than the monthly software fee. For example, a $10,000/year paid-newsletter business giving up 10% to a platform costs $1,000/year before payment-processing considerations.

If you tell me roughly how many subscribers you have (e.g. 100 / 500 / 1,000 / 5,000), your monthly paid revenue, and how often you'd SMS them, I can calculate the approximate monthly/annual cost of Brevo vs beehiiv vs Kit vs Substack for your situation.

For a small paid newsletter list where you want both email and SMS, I’d narrow it to Kit, MailerLite, and Brevo. The right choice depends heavily on whether “paid subscribers” means you charge for the newsletter itself or simply you have a small list of customers.

My practical recommendation: Kit

If you're a content creator selling subscriptions, Kit is probably the cleanest all-in-one fit. Its free tier supports up to 10,000 subscribers, and its paid Creator plan is $33/month when billed annually for 1,000 subscribers. Creator includes SMS marketing, automations, email sequences, and paid newsletters/subscriptions. Kit

Kit also explicitly supports recurring paid newsletters, digital products, and subscriptions. Its platform fee on paid subscriptions is currently 0.6%, in addition to payment processing. Kit

kit.com

When I'd choose MailerLite instead

If keeping monthly software costs extremely low is your priority, MailerLite is compelling. Its Comfort plan starts at $12/month for up to 500 subscribers, and it supports paid newsletter subscriptions through Stripe. MailerLite MailerLite

The catch is that its SMS capability is less central to the creator/newsletter experience, so I'd choose it primarily if email is your main channel.

mailerlite.com

When Brevo makes more sense

If SMS is nearly as important as email, I'd seriously consider Brevo. Its Starter plan begins at $9/month, supports email and SMS, and SMS credits are purchased separately. The free plan also includes email and SMS campaigns, although email is limited to 300 sends/day. Brevo Help Brevo

The tradeoff is that Brevo is more of a general marketing/CRM platform than a creator-native paid-newsletter platform.

brevo.com

One important exception: beehiiv

If your primary objective is growing and monetizing a publication, rather than SMS, I'd put beehiiv very high on the list. Its free Launch plan supports 2,500 subscribers, while Scale is $43/month when billed annually and includes paid subscriptions with 0% platform take. Beehiiv

So I'd think about it this way:

• Paid newsletter + creator business + SMS → Kit
• Cheapest/simple email + some SMS → MailerLite
• Email + SMS/marketing automation first → Brevo
• Newsletter growth, sponsorships, paid subscriptions → beehiiv

If you tell me roughly how many subscribers you have (e.g. 250, 1,000, 5,000) and how many SMS messages you'd send per month, I can calculate the approximate monthly cost of each and show which is cheapest for your particular list.

If you're a content creator selling subscriptions, Kit is probably the cleanest all-in-one fit. Its free tier supports up to 10,000 subscribers, and its paid Creator plan is $33/month when billed annually for 1,000 subscribers. Creator includes SMS marketing, automations, email sequences, and paid newsletters/subscriptions. Kit

Kit also explicitly supports recurring paid newsletters, digital products, and subscriptions. Its platform fee on paid subscriptions is currently 0.6%, in addition to payment processing. Kit

kit.com

When I'd choose MailerLite instead

If keeping monthly software costs extremely low is your priority, MailerLite is compelling. Its Comfort plan starts at $12/month for up to 500 subscribers, and it supports paid newsletter subscriptions through Stripe. MailerLite MailerLite

The catch is that its SMS capability is less central to the creator/newsletter experience, so I'd choose it primarily if email is your main channel.

mailerlite.com

When Brevo makes more sense

If SMS is nearly as important as email, I'd seriously consider Brevo. Its Starter plan begins at $9/month, supports email and SMS, and SMS credits are purchased separately. The free plan also includes email and SMS campaigns, although email is limited to 300 sends/day. help.brevo.com brevo.com

The tradeoff is that Brevo is more of a general marketing/CRM platform than a creator-native paid-newsletter platform.

brevo.com

One important exception: beehiiv

If your main goal is low starting cost + reasonable scaling as your subscriber list grows, I’d focus less on the cheapest free plan and more on the pricing model. Some tools become expensive when your list hits 10k–50k subscribers, while others stay affordable because they charge by emails sent rather than contacts. etropo Small Mail Hub

Here are the strongest value options:

My shortlist by situation

1. Cheapest long-term for a growing but not heavily mailed list

Brevo

• Good if you might have 20k–100k subscribers but only send a few campaigns per month.
• The bill is tied more closely to sends rather than simply storing contacts. Small Mail Hub
• Also useful if you need transactional email (password resets, receipts, etc.). TechRadar

2. Best balance of price + ease of use

MailerLite

• Clean interface, landing pages, automations, and newsletter features.
• Good choice if you’ll email regularly and want predictable pricing. EmailTooltester.com Stackmerit
• The downside: subscriber-based pricing means large lists can become costly. EmailTooltester.com

3. Cheapest simple newsletter option

EmailOctopus

• Attractive if you mainly need broadcasts and basic automation.
• Has a generous entry tier and relatively low paid pricing. G2

A practical rule of thumb

• Under 5,000 subscribers: MailerLite or EmailOctopus are usually the easiest value picks.
• 5,000–50,000 subscribers: Brevo often becomes more attractive if you don’t send daily.
• Daily newsletters / creator business: MailerLite or Kit may justify the higher subscriber-based cost.
• Complex sales funnels/CRM automation: Consider ActiveCampaign, but expect higher costs. etropo

If I had to pick a default for a cost-conscious business starting today:

• Newsletter/content business: MailerLite
• Large list with occasional sends: Brevo
• Bare-bones affordable email list: EmailOctopus

The best choice changes a lot depending on whether you expect 1,000, 10,000, or 100,000 subscribers and how often you’ll email them.

For a cheap email marketing platform that won’t punish you as your list grows, the key question is whether you’re paying for contacts or emails sent. A low entry price can become expensive if every new subscriber moves you into a higher tier. StackScored SaaS Scored

Here are the strongest value options:

My shortlist by growth scenario

• You expect your list to grow from 1,000 → 25,000+ subscribers:

Brevo is worth a serious look because your bill is tied more to sending volume than the size of your database. EveryAny.One AutoMarketer

• You want the best balance of simplicity + price:

MailerLite is often the sweet spot. It has a low-cost entry point and a feature set that covers newsletters, forms, landing pages, and basic automations. G2

• You’re building a creator newsletter/business:

Kit can make sense, especially if its free tier covers your current needs, but check future subscriber pricing before committing. EveryAny.One

• You send infrequently but want to keep a large archive of subscribers:

Favor Brevo-style pricing; contact-based tools can charge you for inactive subscribers sitting on your list. AutoMarketer

Practical recommendation

For most small businesses starting from scratch, I’d compare:

1. MailerLite — best all-around low-cost starting point
2. Brevo — best if you expect a large list and don’t email constantly
3. Kit — best if your business is primarily a newsletter/creator audience

Before choosing, estimate:

• current subscribers
• subscribers in 12–24 months
• emails sent per month (e.g., weekly newsletter = ~4 sends/month per subscriber)
• need for advanced automation

If you tell me your current list size, expected size (e.g., 5k/25k/100k), and how often you’ll email, I can estimate the likely monthly cost difference between the top options.

For a tiny ecommerce brand testing both email + SMS, I’d look closely at Brevo and Klaviyo, with an important distinction:

• Brevo — currently starts at $9/month, and its free plan supports email + SMS campaigns. The free tier allows 300 emails/day; SMS is purchased separately as credits. Its pricing is primarily based on email volume rather than contact count, which can be attractive for a small list. Brevo Help Omnisend
• Klaviyo — the free tier supports up to 250 active profiles, 500 emails/month, and includes a small amount of mobile messaging ($5/month). It's much more ecommerce-focused, with strong store/customer-event automation, but paid Email + SMS starts around $35/month at 500 contacts. Klaviyo Omnisend
• Omnisend — worth considering if you want an ecommerce-first interface, but current 2026 pricing/channel rules have changed, so I wouldn't choose it solely on older comparisons that say SMS is bundled on the cheap plan. RealCostLabs

My practical shortlist

If your priority is spending as little as possible while validating whether email/SMS works → Brevo.

If your priority is testing serious ecommerce automations (welcome, abandoned cart, post-purchase, segmentation) → Klaviyo's free tier is worth testing first.

If you tell me roughly how many email subscribers you have and how many SMS messages/month you expect, I can calculate the likely monthly cost for each.

For a tiny ecommerce brand just testing email + SMS, I’d look at these first:

My practical shortlist:

1. Cheapest experiment: Brevo

• Good if you mainly want newsletters, promos, and occasional texts.
• SMS is an add-on/usage cost rather than a big subscription commitment. Brevo Help
• Small Shopify brand that expects to grow: Klaviyo

• More expensive as you scale, but its ecommerce data model (products viewed, carts, purchases) is designed around lifecycle marketing. Klaviyo
• Middle ground: Omnisend

• Often a strong fit for small stores because it focuses on ecommerce workflows like abandoned cart and product-based messaging. Omnisend

For a very early test, I’d avoid paying $50+/month until you’ve proven:

• welcome series converts,
• abandoned cart recovery works,
• SMS opt-ins are growing,
• repeat purchase campaigns generate revenue.

If you tell me your ecommerce platform (Shopify, WooCommerce, Etsy, custom, etc.) and approximate list size (<500 / 500–5k / 5k+), I can narrow it down.

For a one-person marketing operation, I’d narrow it to MailerLite vs. Brevo.

MailerLite's current free plan includes 3 visual automations, and its $12/month Comfort plan includes 50 automations. Its interface is specifically designed around straightforward campaign creation and visual workflows. MailerLite MailerLite

Brevo is cheaper once you need a paid plan—starting at $9/month—and its free plan includes marketing automation, but its broader CRM/SMS/multichannel feature set makes the interface somewhat busier. Brevo Help Brevo

My practical take

• If you have ≤250 subscribers: start with MailerLite free. It's probably the lowest-friction option for a solo marketer, and you can build welcome sequences, lead-magnet delivery, follow-ups, etc. without paying anything. MailerLite
• If you're going to exceed 250 subscribers quickly: Brevo deserves a serious look because it charges based on email volume rather than simply the size of your contact database. Its $9 Starter tier begins at 5,000 emails/month. Brevo Help
• If “easiest UI” is your #1 criterion: I'd lean MailerLite. Recent comparisons consistently describe its editor and automation interface as particularly intuitive. EmailTooltester.com SaaSTracker
• If “lowest ongoing cost” is #1: it depends heavily on list size × emails/month. Brevo can become substantially cheaper as your list grows but your sending volume stays modest.

For a typical solo marketer doing a newsletter + lead magnet + 2–3 basic nurture sequences, I'd start with MailerLite. You can stay at $0 while the list is tiny and move to $12/month when you need more automation capacity. MailerLite

If you tell me roughly how many subscribers you have now and how many emails you expect to send per month, I can calculate the likely monthly cost of MailerLite, Brevo, Kit, and 2–3 other inexpensive options.

For a one-person marketing operation doing basic email automations, I’d narrow it to MailerLite vs. Brevo vs. Kit.

My practical pick: MailerLite. Its Comfort plan starts at $12/month and is specifically positioned for regular newsletters and automations. The free plan also gives you 3 automations, so you can test the workflow before paying. MailerLite

If absolute monthly cost is the priority, Brevo wins: its Starter plan starts at $9/month, while the free plan includes marketing automation for up to 2,000 contacts. Brevo Help

Kit is interesting if you're primarily a newsletter/creator business: its free plan supports up to 10,000 subscribers, but visual automations and email sequences require a paid plan. Kit Help Center

Bottom line

• Easiest UI + inexpensive: MailerLite
• Cheapest paid option: Brevo
• Best if you're building around a newsletter: Kit
• If you have ≤250 subscribers and very basic needs: start with MailerLite Free at $0.

If you tell me roughly how many subscribers you have (or expect in the first year) and what automations you need (e.g. welcome sequence, lead magnet, abandoned cart, nurture), I can compare the actual monthly cost at your scale.

If absolute monthly cost is the priority, Brevo wins: its Starter plan starts at $9/month, while the free plan includes marketing automation for up to 2,000 contacts.

If your priority is low cost + reliable inbox placement, I would avoid choosing purely by the cheapest advertised plan. Deliverability is driven more by the provider’s sending infrastructure, authentication support (SPF/DKIM/DMARC), list hygiene controls, and how aggressively they share IP reputation than by whether you pay for a premium tier. A cheap plan does not automatically mean worse deliverability, but some providers reserve advanced controls (dedicated IPs, reputation tools, priority support) for higher tiers. Capterra Email Bump

These are the budget-friendly platforms I’d shortlist:

My practical picks by situation:

• Under ~10,000 subscribers, newsletters + basic automation: mailerlite.com is a strong starting point.
• Large list, low sending frequency: brevo.com can be economical because you are not paying simply for storing contacts. ChoicePilot
• Ecommerce/customer journeys: consider activecampaign.com if automation revenue justifies the cost. Resources Rework
• Bare-bones affordable newsletters: emailoctopus.com or zoho.com. Outmano

To avoid deliverability problems on any platform:

• Set up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC before sending.
• Do not import old/unengaged lists without cleaning them.
• Use double opt-in where appropriate.
• Remove hard bounces quickly.
• Avoid suddenly jumping from 0 sends to very large campaigns.
• Monitor complaint rates and inbox placement.

One important question changes the recommendation: how many subscribers do you have now, and roughly how many emails do you send per month? A 5,000-person list emailed weekly has a very different cheapest option than a 50,000-person list emailed occasionally.

If your priorities are low cost + reliable deliverability + avoiding artificial throttling on entry plans, I’d put these on the shortlist:

What I'd look at first

MailerLite is particularly interesting if you're going to send frequently. Its current Comfort plan starts at $12/month and allows 10× the subscriber count in monthly emails, while Power starts at $25/month and advertises unlimited monthly emails. MailerLite

Brevo becomes attractive if your list is relatively large but you don't email every subscriber constantly, because its economics are more send-volume-oriented. Its shared-IP approach also isn't inherently a deliverability problem: Brevo says it monitors shared-IP performance and can move problematic senders to dedicated infrastructure. Brevo Help

Kit is worth considering if you're primarily running a newsletter rather than complex ecommerce-style campaigns. Its documentation explicitly recommends consistent sending rather than huge bursts, which is important because no legitimate platform can guarantee inbox placement simply by not throttling you. Kit Help Center Kit Help Center

One important distinction: "doesn't throttle" and "has good deliverability" aren't the same thing. A platform may technically let you send a large campaign while mailbox providers subsequently throttle or filter the mail because of your domain/IP reputation. Authentication (SPF/DKIM/DMARC), list quality, complaint rates, engagement, and consistent volume matter enormously.

If you tell me roughly (1) number of subscribers, (2) emails per month, and (3) whether this is newsletter, ecommerce, or transactional-ish, I can narrow this to the 2–3 cheapest options and calculate the approximate monthly cost.

For a small ecommerce store, Omnisend is probably the closest fit to what you’re describing.

Omnisend's key advantage is that its ecommerce features—including discount codes, cart recovery, behavioral segmentation, and store data—are built into the platform, rather than requiring you to bolt together several services. Its Standard plan starts at $16/month. Omnisend Help Center Omnisend

What I'd consider

• Omnisend: Best fit if your priority is “connect my store and have ecommerce automation work without a bunch of integrations.” It has prebuilt ecommerce workflows and segmentation based on customer behavior and purchase history. Omnisend
• MailerLite: Cheaper and excellent for straightforward newsletters and basic automation, but its ecommerce segmentation is less sophisticated. Omnisend
• Klaviyo: Extremely capable for sophisticated segmentation and ecommerce data, but you're more likely to pay for capabilities a small store doesn't yet need. Current paid pricing starts around $20/month and scales with contacts. Omnisend

Bottom line: If you're selling physical products through Shopify, WooCommerce, or a similar platform and specifically want discount codes + abandoned cart + segmentation with minimal integration hassle, I'd start with Omnisend. Its free tier lets you test the workflow before paying. Omnisend Help Center

omnisend.com

If you're a small online store and want discount codes, abandoned-cart emails, and customer segmentation without paying for lots of add-ons, I'd narrow it to three options:

*Pricing/features can change by plan and store platform. Shopify's current comparison lists Shopify Messaging at 10,000 free emails/month, Omnisend from $16/month, and Klaviyo from $15/month. Shopify Liquid Lemon

My practical take

• If you're on Shopify and are very small: Shopify Messaging is the cheapest/simple route. It already has native store data, abandoned-cart functionality, and no separate integration to maintain. Shopify says its native system includes 10,000 free emails/month. Shopify
• If you want more sophisticated segmentation without jumping to Klaviyo pricing: Omnisend is probably the sweet spot. It is ecommerce-focused and has native abandoned-cart workflows, segmentation, and email/SMS in the same system. Shopify First Reviewers
• If segmentation and behavioral targeting are going to become a major part of your marketing: Klaviyo gives you considerably deeper customer/order/cart segmentation and sophisticated automated flows, but its pricing becomes more noticeable as your contact list grows. Shopify stackfyi.com

For your specific requirements, I'd start with Omnisend if you're willing to spend ~$16/month. It hits the middle ground: ecommerce-native automation, abandoned carts, segmentation, and discount-driven campaigns without having to stitch together several services.

If you're already on Shopify and have a very small list, I'd first try Shopify Messaging because you may not need to pay anything yet.

If you tell me Shopify, WooCommerce, Etsy, or another platform + roughly how many subscribers you have, I can compare the actual monthly cost of the 2–3 cheapest choices for your store.

For an agency serving small local businesses, I’d lean toward MailerLite as the default tool to bundle into client packages.

Why MailerLite fits an agency model

• Low entry cost: its free plan supports up to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails/month; paid Comfort starts at $12/month and includes 5,000 monthly emails. MailerLite MailerLite
• Good enough for most local businesses: newsletters, forms, automations, landing pages, segmentation, reporting, and templates are all there. MailerLite
• Agency-friendly: you can manage separate client accounts from one login and switch between them. MailerLite
• Predictable packaging: the $12-ish starting point makes it relatively easy to absorb the software cost into a recurring marketing package rather than making the client buy another SaaS subscription.
• No need to overbuild: a typical plumber, dentist, landscaper, med spa, restaurant, contractor, etc. probably doesn't need an enterprise email platform.

One caveat: MailerLite isn't white-label/reseller software. It explicitly says it doesn't offer a white-label or reseller version, although agencies can use its API to build their own branded dashboard. MailerLite

The other one I'd consider: Brevo

Brevo is particularly interesting if your clients have larger contact lists but relatively modest sending volume. Its Starter plan begins at $9/month for 5,000 emails/month, while its free tier allows 300 emails/day and up to 100,000 stored contacts. Brevo Help Brevo

The pricing model is different enough that I'd choose based on the client's use case:

How I'd actually package it

Rather than selling "MailerLite" to the client, I'd sell the outcome:

Local Business Email — $199–$399/mo

• Email platform included
• Monthly newsletter
• 1–2 promotional campaigns
• Automated welcome/follow-up sequence
• List management
• Signup form integration
• Monthly performance report
• Basic copy/design

Your software cost might only be ~$12–$25/month initially, leaving the overwhelming majority of the package as service margin. MailerLite's Power plan starts at $25/month and adds unlimited monthly sending, unlimited users, and unlimited automations, which could become useful once you're managing a more active client account. MailerLite

My practical recommendation: standardize your agency around MailerLite, use Brevo when a client's contact/sending economics make it more attractive, and keep the underlying software mostly invisible in the sales pitch. The client is buying ongoing customer retention and repeat-business marketing, not an email SaaS subscription.

How I'd actually package it

Rather than selling "MailerLite" to the client, I'd sell the outcome:

Local Business Email — $199–$399/mo

• Email platform included
• Monthly newsletter
• 1–2 promotional campaigns
• Automated welcome/follow-up sequence
• List management
• Signup form integration
• Monthly performance report
• Basic copy/design

Your software cost might only be ~$12–$25/month initially, leaving the overwhelming majority of the package as service margin. MailerLite's Power plan starts at $25/month and adds unlimited monthly sending, unlimited users, and unlimited automations, which could become useful once you're managing a more active client account.

For an agency packaging email marketing for small local businesses, I’d look first at mailerlite.com and brevo.com.

My practical pick: MailerLite

For a typical client package—newsletter, promotions, basic automations, signup forms, and reporting—MailerLite is probably the easiest platform to standardize across your agency.

• Free: up to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails/month.
• Comfort: starts at $12/month ($10.80 with annual billing) and includes 5,000 monthly emails, 3 seats, automations, landing pages, forms, etc.
• Power: starts at $25/month and includes unlimited monthly emails and unlimited seats. MailerLite MailerLite
• More importantly for an agency, MailerLite lets you manage separate client accounts from one login, switching between them without mixing subscribers or campaigns. MailerLite

That makes it fairly easy to build something like:

Email Marketing — $149/mo
Monthly newsletter + promotional campaigns + list management + basic automation + reporting
Email platform included.

You can charge the client for the service, rather than making your margin depend on marking up $12–$25 of software.

When I'd choose Brevo instead

brevo.com becomes particularly interesting if your clients have larger contact databases but don't email everyone frequently.

Its Starter plan starts at $9/month, with pricing primarily tied to monthly email volume rather than simply the size of the contact database. The free plan allows 300 emails/day and up to 100,000 stored contacts. Brevo Help

It also has a legitimate agency partner program, including client-account management and recurring commissions on referred paid accounts. Brevo

So I'd think about it this way:

One important agency caveat: MailerLite explicitly says it doesn't offer a white-label/reseller version. You can manage client accounts centrally, but the platform itself remains MailerLite-branded. MailerLite

If you're planning to sell this as a $99–$299/month recurring service to dozens of local businesses, I can also break down the economics of MailerLite vs Brevo vs HighLevel vs Mailchimp—including what your actual software cost would look like at 10, 25, 50, and 100 clients.

If list hygiene + reliable suppression are the priorities and funds are tight, I’d shortlist these three:

• Sender — particularly compelling on price. Its free plan supports up to 2,500 subscribers / 15,000 emails per month, and it automatically excludes unsubscribed, bounced, spam-reported, and non-subscribed contacts from campaigns. It also exposes separate hard/soft-bounce and unsubscribe statuses. Sender Sender
• MailerLite — strong if you want more hands-on list cleanup. It has built-in inactive-subscriber cleanup, configurable inactivity windows, segmentation, and automatic removal of unsubscribed contacts from the active mailing list. MailerLite MailerLite
• Brevo — useful when you're consolidating lists from multiple systems. It supports importing an existing suppression/blocklist, maintains blocklists for unsubscribes, complaints and hard bounces, and lets you segment unengaged contacts before sending. Brevo Help Brevo Help Brevo Help

For your specific situation

I'd pay particular attention to suppression-list portability during the consolidation. You don't want an address that unsubscribed from List A to accidentally become marketable again when you import it into the combined database.

A sensible migration process is:

1. Export active contacts and unsubscribed/bounced/complaint records from each existing system.
2. Deduplicate the active lists.
3. Union all suppression lists.
4. Import the suppression list into the new platform before sending anything.
5. Run a small test campaign and verify that suppressed addresses are excluded.
6. Separately review long-term inactive contacts rather than treating them as automatically marketable.

For that workflow, Brevo and Sender have especially explicit suppression-management functionality; MailerLite is attractive if inactive-list cleanup is a bigger concern. Sender Brevo Help

If you tell me roughly how many contacts you have (e.g. 5k, 25k, 100k) and how many emails/month you send, I can compare the likely monthly cost and the hygiene/suppression features side-by-side.

If the main priorities are low cost + dependable list hygiene/suppression, I’d focus on platforms that automatically suppress unsubscribes, hard bounces, and complaints rather than paying for a separate cleanup workflow.

For a consolidation project

Brevo is worth looking at first if your merged list is large. Its send-based pricing can be advantageous when you're retaining many contacts but don't email all of them frequently. Current comparisons put its entry pricing around $9/month, although the actual cost depends on sending volume. StackScored EveryAny.One

MailerLite is a straightforward choice for a smaller active list. Its billing specifically excludes unsubscribed and bounced subscribers from the active-subscriber count, which is useful when you're cleaning up multiple legacy lists. MailerLite

Kit is interesting if you can fit within its free offering, but its economics change as the list grows. Its hard-bounce handling is explicit and automatic. Kit Help Center

One important distinction: suppression ≠ email verification. These platforms can suppress addresses after unsubscribes, bounces, or complaints, but that doesn't necessarily mean they'll identify every invalid but not-yet-bounced address in your old lists. For a major consolidation, I'd clean/dedupe the source lists first, then import, and let the ESP maintain ongoing suppression.

If you tell me roughly how many total contacts you're consolidating (e.g. 5k, 25k, 100k) and how often you'll email them, I can compare the likely monthly costs and hygiene features more precisely.

Choose MailerLite if your priority is the cheapest option with subject-line A/B testing. Its free plan includes A/B testing, including subject lines, while keeping the setup simple. www.mailerlite.com

Quick comparison:

• Best budget pick: MailerLite — Free plan includes A/B testing; good for newsletters, small businesses, and creators. www.mailerlite.com
• Best if you want a more established ecosystem: Mailchimp — Subject-line A/B testing is available on paid Essentials plans and above. mailchimp.com
• Best if you send lots of emails but have fewer contacts: Brevo — Pricing is based more around email volume, but A/B testing availability depends on plan. decisionwire.com

My pick for a cheap start: MailerLite free → upgrade only when you need more automation or volume. www.mailerlite.com

If you tell me your list size (e.g., 500, 5k, 50k subscribers) and whether this is a newsletter, ecommerce, or cold outreach, the recommendation may change.

If your main requirement is cheap + subject-line A/B testing, I’d narrow it to these:

Humblytics AI EmailyMy shortlist:

1. Pick MailerLite if you want the lowest cost with real A/B testing.

It’s usually the best fit for a small list because campaign A/B testing is available on its free tier (with limits), and paid plans stay relatively inexpensive as you grow. Humblytics

2. Pick Brevo if your priority is volume pricing.

It can be cheaper when you send many emails because pricing is more send-volume oriented rather than purely subscriber-count oriented. AI Emaily

3. Pick Mailchimp if you value simplicity and integrations over price.

It has a polished workflow, but you may pay more as your list grows. AI Emaily

4. Pick Kit if you’re a creator/newsletter operator.

It’s built around creators and newsletters, but the cheaper tiers may not include all testing features. Humblytics

For a typical small business or newsletter, I’d start with MailerLite. If you tell me:

• your subscriber count (0–500, 500–5k, 5k+),
• whether this is a newsletter, ecommerce, or cold outreach,
• and your monthly email volume,

I can narrow it to the cheapest option that won’t force you to switch later.

For low-volume but important transactional email, while also wanting marketing/newsletter sends on the same platform, I’d focus on Brevo and Resend rather than traditional marketing-first platforms.

My practical recommendation

If the transactional emails are genuinely important—password resets, receipts, account alerts, confirmations, etc.—I'd lean toward Resend. Its current free tier includes 3,000 emails/month, automatic suppression handling, SPF/DKIM/DMARC support, webhooks, and no daily limit on the $20 Pro plan. It explicitly supports both transactional and marketing email. Resend Resend Resend

resend.com

If marketing functionality is equally important—visual campaigns, contact lists, newsletters, basic CRM-style functionality—Brevo is probably the more natural fit. Its free plan currently includes both marketing campaigns and transactional email, with 300 email sends/day. Brevo Help

brevo.com

MailerSend is another reasonable option if you want transactional/API capabilities plus bulk email. Its current free plan allows 500 emails/month, while its Hobby plan is $5.60/month for 5,000 emails; higher tiers add considerably more capacity. MailerSend MailerSend

mailersend.com

I'd be less inclined to choose Mailchimp for this particular requirement because transactional email is now a separate paid add-on to its marketing plans; its transactional pricing starts in 25,000-email blocks. Mailchimp Mailchimp

One important caveat

For an important transactional stream, I wouldn't simply throw marketing and transactional mail into the exact same sending identity. Even on a platform that supports both, use separate subdomains such as:

• marketing.example.com → newsletters/promotions
• notify.example.com → receipts, authentication, alerts

That gives you better isolation if marketing engagement or reputation ever becomes problematic.

Bottom line:

• Transactional reliability/API first → Resend
• Marketing campaigns/CRM first → Brevo
• Cheap hybrid with more traditional email tooling → MailerSend

If you tell me roughly how many transactional emails/month and marketing emails/month you expect (e.g. 500 + 2,000), I can calculate the current cost and compare the three.

If marketing functionality is equally important—visual campaigns, contact lists, newsletters, basic CRM-style functionality—Brevo is probably the more natural fit. Its free plan currently includes both marketing campaigns and transactional email, with 300 email sends/day. Brevo Help

brevo.com

MailerSend is another reasonable option if you want transactional/API capabilities plus bulk email. Its current free plan allows 500 emails/month, while its Hobby plan is $5.60/month for 5,000 emails; higher tiers add considerably more capacity. mailersend.com mailersend.com

mailersend.com

I'd be less inclined to choose Mailchimp for this particular requirement because transactional email is now a separate paid add-on to its marketing plans; its transactional pricing starts in 25,000-email blocks.

One important caveat

For an important transactional stream, I wouldn't simply throw marketing and transactional mail into the exact same sending identity. Even on a platform that supports both, use separate subdomains such as:

Brevo is probably the best fit for your requirement. Its free plan supports both marketing campaigns and transactional email, with 300 email sends/day; paid plans start at $9/month. Transactional email is available via API or SMTP. help.brevo.com

For important transactional mail (password resets, receipts, account alerts), I'd configure a separate transactional subdomain/sender identity even when using the same platform, so marketing reputation doesn't jeopardize critical messages.

If your priority is lowest cost + built-in consent/opt-in management for GDPR/CCPA-oriented email marketing, I’d look first at Brevo.

Why Brevo

• Low-cost pricing model: Brevo prices primarily by email volume rather than number of contacts, so you can keep a relatively large contact database without paying simply for storing contacts. Current comparisons put its entry paid tier around $9/month, with a free tier available. AutoMarketer SMB Compare
• GDPR consent tools: Brevo has dedicated GDPR fields and declarations in signup forms, plus guidance for collecting explicit consent and linking your privacy policy. Brevo Help Brevo Help
• Double opt-in: You can require subscribers to confirm their email before being added to your database. Brevo Help
• Preference/opt-out management: It supports unsubscribe forms and profile-update forms, so subscribers can manage communication preferences. Brevo Help
• Granular consent: Brevo's consent groups let people opt into particular communication categories rather than having one blanket subscription. Note that this feature is restricted to its Professional and Enterprise plans. Brevo Help

Brevo vs. MailerLite

MailerLite is also explicitly GDPR-compliant and supports double opt-in, non-prechecked consent checkboxes, and consent withdrawal. MailerLite MailerLite MailerLite

So, if you're mainly trying to minimize your bill, I'd choose Brevo—particularly if you have lots of contacts but don't email them constantly. If you have a small list and send frequently, the calculation can change because Brevo charges based on sending volume.

One important caveat: no email platform makes your marketing automatically GDPR/CCPA compliant. Your signup language, privacy notice, lawful basis, records of consent, data-processing arrangements, and unsubscribe practices still matter. Brevo itself notes that its guidance isn't legal advice. Brevo Help

If you tell me roughly how many subscribers you have and how many emails you send per month, I can calculate which of Brevo, MailerLite, Kit, Mailchimp, etc. is actually cheapest for your usage.

If lowest cost + solid GDPR/CCPA consent and opt-in controls is the priority, I’d narrow it to MailerLite vs. Brevo.

MailerLite explicitly says its platform complies with GDPR and various U.S. privacy laws, and its anti-spam policy requires explicit permission for marketing email; its free plan includes signup forms and basic automation. MailerLite MailerLite MailerLite

Brevo has particularly clear built-in consent mechanics: GDPR fields/declarations, double opt-in, and preference management. However, its more granular consent groups are limited to Professional and Enterprise plans. Its free plan allows 300 email sends/day. Brevo Help Brevo Help

My practical choice

For a small list: MailerLite Free is the cost-minimizing option I'd investigate first. You get up to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails/month at $0, while retaining GDPR/privacy controls. MailerLite

If you expect more than 250 subscribers or want stronger built-in consent/preference workflows, Brevo is worth considering. Its Starter plan currently starts at $9/month, while MailerLite's paid Comfort plan starts at $12/month (before applicable taxes). Brevo Help MailerLite

One important distinction: “GDPR/CCPA compliant” doesn't mean the software makes your marketing legally compliant automatically. Your form wording, lawful basis, privacy notice, consent records, unsubscribe process, data retention, and how you use the data still matter.

If you tell me roughly how many subscribers you have (e.g. 500, 2,000, 10,000) and whether you need double opt-in, I can compare the actual monthly cost of the cheapest 3–5 options.