6 Best Email Marketing Services for Small Business
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Our methodology
All six platforms have been tested by multiple, independent users in 7 specific areas of investigation, from ease of use to value for money.
Written and researched by:
Comments: 6
Email marketing isn’t going anywhere in our increasingly tech-first world. And for good reason: for every dollar your business spends on email marketing, you can expect to make an average return of $42.
The question isn’t if you should use email marketing, but how to use email marketing. The best software for your business will depend on the size of your campaigns and the amount of resources at your disposal. We’ve meticulously researched the best platforms for every situation, and have narrowed it down to the six platforms in this article.
The Top 6 Email Marketing Services for Small Business
- Sendinblue – Overall best email marketing for small business.
- Mailchimp – Best for growing businesses.
- GetResponse – Best for ease of use.
- MailerLite – Best for social integration.
- ActiveCampaign – Best for an email marketing team.
- Constant Contact – Best for basic campaigns.
Our research team created a methodology for rating email marketing platforms specifically according to small business needs, with emphasis on 7 categories:
- Content and Functionality Tools
- Marketing Tools
- Design
- Value for Money
- Help and Support
- Customer Score
- Ease of Use
We then spent 160 hours investigating each email marketing platform’s performance in these key areas. Alongside our research, we spoke to real business owners about their priorities, and asked five users to independently test each platform to better assess their performance against each other.
To create scores specific to small businesses, we’ve placed a higher emphasis on price, design, and ease of use. In short, these ratings reflect the platforms with the best value for money, the most professional-looking templates, and the simplest interfaces available.
Best Email Marketing Providers for Small Business
Compare all 6 email marketing platforms and their key features below:
Our overall ratings are based on the average score of all ratings combined.
Our scores give you an at-a-glance overview of which service offers you the best features, value, and more.
#1. Sendinblue
Overall Best Email Marketing for Small Business
Sendinblue
Overall Best Email Marketing for Small Business
- Easy to use
- Best value for money
- Automation is a priority
Free plan available
Paid Plans: $25 - $599 / month
Pros
-
Intuitive email editor and setup process - Support team responds quickly
- The free plan still has good features
Cons
-
Template designs are a little basic - Automation tools take time to learn
- Servers can be slow
Sendinblue came out on top in our research as the best email marketing software for small businesses. This platform scored the highest in our value for money category, and offers powerful features that are still easy to use. In other words, Sendinblue pretty much checks all of the boxes when it comes to small business needs.
Read our guide on how to cancel Constant Contact, and switch to one of the other providers on our list.
In a User’s Words:
“Given their strong focus on automation, I would say that for someone looking to add some form of email marketing to their ecommerce business, SendinBlue would be a worthwhile investment.”
Ease of Use
Sendinblue scored an impressive 4.3/5 for ease of use in our research. While designing emails, we found that the Sendinblue editor was very good at following our train of thought – in other words, all of the tools you’ll need to add images, buttons, and creative flair are presented in a really logical order. “Next step” suggestions also help guide you along the way.
Sendinblue does a great job of helping you input and manage your contacts. When we tested out its software, uploading new email addresses took us no time at all. You don’t have to add them manually, either – you can always import multiple contacts at once from your computer, or even copy and paste them from an .xls file.
Once you’ve uploaded your contacts, you’ll want to create a few lists that you can organize your contacts into. This is also a simple process, and didn’t take us more than a few minutes. Just note that Sendinblue lets you further organize your lists into different folders – for example, you could put a “Newsletter Signups” list and a “Welcome Email” list together into a “New Customers” folder. This is great if you’re juggling a few different campaigns, but it does add an extra (optional) step to the process!
Design
Sendinblue’s 60+ email templates are just as easy to use as its management system. Once you’ve entered a subject line and some preview text for your first campaign, you’ll get to the “Design” stage. In the “Design Tools” section, you’ll see some advanced options for users who are slightly familiar with code – you don’t have to worry about this if you don’t want to! Just select “Template Gallery” instead, and you’ll see a library of ready-made email templates to choose from. You can filter them by categories, from newsletter templates to special offer templates.
The templates themselves are pretty run-of-the-mill – if you’re looking to simply keep in touch with customers or promote a few new discounts, then Sendinblue will help you do it quickly, and the final outcome will be professional and clean.
These templates aren’t breaking any web design boundaries, but they’re a great starting point – you’ll even get sizing suggestions to guide you when adding images to an email. If you find yourself outgrowing Sendinblue’s template designs, you can also start using your own code instead.
Sendinblue offers four pricing plans:
- Free ($0/month): Up to 300 emails per day
- Lite ($25/month): Up to 100,000 emails, no daily sending limit
- Premium ($65/month): Up to one million emails, no daily sending limit
- Enterprise (custom): Build on the premium plan according to your needs
Sendinblue has the best value for money of any platform on this list, because of its all-in-one package of low prices and great features.
Sendinblue’s free plan is great, but its $25/month Lite plan really impressed us for having no daily email sending limit. There’s also a Lite+ add-on for an additional $12/month that offers:
- A/B testing to help optimize engagement
- No more Sendinblue logos at the bottom of your business’ emails
- In-depth campaign reporting covering geography, device, and open and click rates
If you want to plan for growth in the long term, then Sendinblue’s $65/month Premium plan is your best bet. It comes with a powerful amount of features already built in, including:
- Send time optimization to help increase open rate
- Retargeting ads for customers who have already visited your site
Basically, $65/month is a small price to pay for a powerful marketing toolbox.
When you’re growing a small business, the last thing you need to do is waste hours on the phone with software support – especially for problems that often end up having an easy fix. Sendinblue’s support team won’t leave you hanging (or worse, on hold). You can reach the support team over the phone and via email tickets, or you can explore an extensive knowledge base on your own time. We submitted an email ticket ourselves, and got a helpful response in just 26 minutes!
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- Check out our top digital marketing tips to help grow your audience.
- Read our full Sendinblue Review to discover whether it’s right for your needs
#2. Mailchimp
Best for Growing Businesses
Mailchimp
Best for Growing Businesses
- Great for organization
- Flexible pricing tiers
- Overwhelming at first
Free plan available
Paid Plans: $11 - $299 / month
Pros
- Segmentation is a top priority
- Prepopulated, professional templates
- Multi-step journeys on all paid plans
Cons
- Crowded dashboard has lots of functions
- Confusing pricing structure
- Lackluster free plan
Mailchimp is a close second to Sendinblue – in fact, Mailchimp actually scored higher in the “features” category of our research. It’s best suited for businesses with larger email subscriber lists, because it offers a lot of organization tools and its pricing tiers are more scalable than Sendinblue’s.
In a User’s Words:
“In comparison to other platforms, Mailchimp would give you a much nicer-looking and more organized email. This is partly because you have a little more control over things, and the pre-populated template provides great inspiration.”
Ease of Use
Mailchimp only scored a 3.9/5 for ease of use, because while it offers a ton of great options for both organizing contacts and designing email campaigns, these advanced functions can be a little overwhelming.
For example, you can manage your contacts using groups, segments, and/or tags – which might all seem like the same thing at first. But once you get the hang of it, you’ll appreciate the various organization tools. Segments let you target subscribers by location and activity, while tags let you identify subscribers based on information you know about them, like “in-store purchaser” or “lives overseas”.
To offset any initial confusion, the Mailchimp editor offers helpful notes as you go, which pop up on the page and explain certain functions.
Design
Mailchimp’s 100+ email templates can be found in the “Campaigns > Email templates” subsection of your dashboard. To get started, you’ll have to click “Create a template” in the upper right-hand corner – but don’t panic! You’ll then find plenty of ready-made layouts and themes to get started with.
We found that Mailchimp’s drag-and-drop editor got the job done, but it wasn’t as simple or seamless as Sendinblue’s. However, the payoff of this more intricate editor is that Mailchimp’s email designs are super professional and more original than Sendinblue’s. For a small business, the extra effort pays off by boosting your credibility.
We’ll be honest – you won’t get much out of Mailchimp’s free plan. But then again, if you have (or are growing) the large subscriber base that Mailchimp is best for, then you’ll get great value for your money with a paid plan. Mailchimp’s paid plans are all super powerful:
- Essentials (starting at $9.99/month): 500 – 50,000 contacts
- Standard (starting at $14.99/month): 500 – 100,000 contacts
- Premium (starting at $299/month): 10,000 – 200,000+ contacts
These prices look very low, but note that Mailchimp’s pricing structure isn’t totally fixed. The starting prices listed here apply when:
- You stay within the plan’s maximum contacts
- You stay within the plan’s maximum email sends
So, what does this mean? For example, the Essentials plan will cost $9.99/month if you don’t exceed 500 contacts and 5,000 email sends per month. If you need to go over that limit, the price will increase on a sliding scale. The upper limit of the Essentials plan is 50,000 contacts and 500,000 email sends for $270/month.
Mailchimp’s Essentials plan offers great automation tools, from send time optimization to custom triggers. You’ll also get:
- A/B testing for subject lines, content, and send times
- Multi-step journeys
- Custom branding
- Behavioral targeting
Plus, the Essentials plan offers a marketing calendar to give you an organized view of all your campaigns. This will help you plan for holiday-based sales events and weekly newsletters.
Mailchimp only offers phone support on its highest pricing plan, but its live chat function definitely compensates for that – Mailchimp is still the highest scorer in the customer support category of our research.
The Mailchimp dashboard offers plenty of helpful tips to guide you as you go, and you can also reach the support team via email or browse the knowledge base – it’s full of helpful, staff-written tutorials.
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- Learn how to promote your website in 10 steps.
- Find out more information in our detailed Mailchimp Review.
- Become a Mailchimp master with our guide on How to Use Mailchimp.
#3. GetResponse
Best for Ease of Use
GetResponse
Best for Ease of Use
- Intuitive dashboard
- Great template designs
- Pricier than competitors
Free trial available
Paid Plans: $15 - $119 / month
Pros
- 220 templates, more than any competitor
- Highest ease of use score on this list
- Convenient personalization options
Cons
- Pricing plans are expensive
- Limited social integration options
- No community support forum
It’s not as feature-rich as Mailchimp or as cost-conscious as Sendinblue, but GetResponse offers an excellent balance between ease of use and stylish design. And that’s not just a win for you – your customers will also love the end results in their inboxes.
In a User’s Words:
“The design and layout of the pre populated email templates are the best I’ve come across.”
Ease of Use
We found GetResponse’s dashboard very intuitive – every tool is where you’d expect it to be, and it earned a 4.4/5 for ease of use. The drag-and-drop template editor makes it simple to position text, images, and other elements throughout an email.
GetResponse even makes it easy to personalize your email subject lines with information like a recipient’s name, birthday, postal code, and more. You can simply select this as you’re writing a subject line, and it’ll apply to all of the contacts you’re sending to.
You can add contacts one by one by entering their name and email address, and you can also add contacts to lists at this stage – you don’t have to organize all of your contacts at once after uploading. Creating lists with GetResponse is just as straightforward. Just note that customers can see your list names when they subscribe and unsubscribe, so it’s best to keep these simple.
Design
GetResponse’s impressive ease of use also applies to its 220 email templates (the most of any platform on this list!). They come prepopulated with relevant features like CTA buttons and header logos. GetResponse’s templates are also some of the most stylish we’ve come across, and it earned the highest design score in our research with a 4.7/5.
If you’re feeling extra creative, you can choose the “blank template” option instead, which comes prepopulated with more barebones content sections to give you more design freedom without leaving you completely on your own.
GetResponse doesn’t offer a free plan, but its free trial lasts for 30 days. GetResponse offers four paid plans, and you can pay monthly, annually, or every two years. We’ll show you the annual price here, because it’s not a huge commitment, and you’ll save 18% over the monthly price.
- Basic (starting at $12.30/month): Unlimited automation templates
- Plus (starting at $40.18/month): 5 custom automation workflows
- Professional (starting at $81.18/month): Unlimited custom automation workflows
- Max (custom pricing): Dedicated IP address and personal support
GetResponse’s pricing plans differ in terms of features, but the amount of contacts you’ll be able to add to your lists is actually the same. The starting prices listed above are for a list size of 1,000 contacts.
GetResponse is a worthwhile investment for businesses who are willing to pay a bit more for high quality design and ease of use.
The Basic plan (starting at $12.30/month) is GetResponse’s most popular plan. It comes with:
- Unlimited automation templates
- Autoresponders
- One sales funnel
- Facebook Ads
You can contact the GetResponse support team over email (in eight languages!) and 24/7 live chat if you have any issues. You can also search the Help Center for useful articles and videos at any time.
GetResponse does offer phone support, but it’s only available on the custom-priced Max plan.
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- We’ve rounded up the best online business tools that small businesses need to know about.
- Are you a B2B business? Find how how to market your B2B emails
- Learn more about GetResponse’s pros and cons in our full GetResponse Review.
#4. MailerLite
Best for Social Integration
MailerLite
Best for Social Integration
- Takes time to learn
- Professional templates
- Simple pricing structure
Free plan available
Paid Plans: $9 - $1915 / month
Pros
- Free plan and affordable prices
- Easy subject line personalization
- 100+ sleek templates
Cons
- Clunky dashboard and template editor
- No free images available for use
- No live chat support on free plan
MailerLite scored highly for features and design, but beginners might be put off by its mediocre performance in ease of use and customer support. It comes in fourth because, while it’s an excellent platform, we recommend it for those who already have a bit of experience with email marketing platforms.
In a User’s Words:
“I feel I could walk away comfortably with a really well-created, professional-looking campaign.”
Ease of Use
With a 3.8/5, MailerLite tied with Constant Contact for the lowest ease of use score in our research. When we tested its dashboard, we found that the layout wasn’t very logical. For example, you have to exit the template editor in order to preview an email (rather than simply viewing it in the editor).
Organizing campaigns is similarly frustrating. There are no premade automation templates to follow, so you have to create that process from scratch. In short, MailerLite can do everything you need it to, but there’s a small learning curve involved with this software.
Design
MailerLite’s 100+ templates are very well-designed, and you can edit them with an intuitive drag-and-drop builder, or get more advanced by using custom HTML.
One main complaint about MailerLite’s stylish designs: there aren’t any free image galleries built into the software, so you’ll have to upload your own. This could be frustrating for smaller businesses that don’t yet have a ton of visual assets.
MailerLite offers a free plan that allows you up to 1,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails per month. You can also pay $10/month for up to 1,000 subscribers and unlimited emails.
All paid plans include unlimited emails each month, which means sending a weekly newsletter or post-purchase messages won’t be a problem. Pricing depends on the amount of subscribers you’ll need. Here’s what to expect:
- Up to 2,500 subscribers: $15/month
- Up to 5,000 subscribers: $30/month
- Up to 10,000 subscribers: $50/month
MailerLite’s lowest cost is $10/month, which includes:
- Newsletter templates
- Custom HTML editor
- Deliver by time zone
- Opens by location
- A/B testing
- Click heatmap
There are also additional premium features that you can choose for an extra cost, like a dedicated IP for $50/month or dedicated support for $100/month.
MailerLite offers 24/7 email support on all of its plans, plus a knowledge base and video tutorials. You’ll have to upgrade to one of its paid plans for access to 24/7 live chat, which is part of the reason why MailerLite only scored a 3.7/5 for help and support.
For an additional $100/month, you’ll be able to skip the queue for email and live chat, and partner with a dedicated MailerLite manager for help with your campaigns.
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- Discover how to market a product successfully online.
- Is MailerLite right for you? Find out in our detailed MailerLite Review.
#5. ActiveCampaign
Best for an Email Marketing Team
ActiveCampaign
Best for an Email Marketing Team
- Lots of design freedom
- Powerful marketing tools
- Big learning curve
Free trial available
Paid Plans: $15 - $599 / month
Pros
- Useful community support forum
- Can customize small template details
- Conversion reporting on Pro plan
Cons
- Only about 25 templates
- Very basic designs to get started with
- Dashboard isn’t very intuitive
ActiveCampaign offers great marketing tools and a straightforward dashboard. It’s template editor is so-so, and not built for beginners – but if your business has the resources (namely, an email marketing specialist or two) then you’ll be able to make something amazing.
In a User’s Words:
“The features on display would likely appeal to an email marketing professional with enough time to learn the platform.”
Ease of Use
ActiveCampaign’s dashboard and email editor aren’t always the most logical. For example, you have to create a subject line when you choose an email template – a step that would make more sense earlier on, when titling a new email campaign.
That said, we did like ActiveCampaign’s template editor. The drag-and-drop function was easy to navigate, and while some labels were a little unclear, there are plenty of tips that highlight what certain tools actually do when you hover over them.
If you’re willing to spend some time on this software, you’ll get the hang of it without any major headaches.
Design
ActiveCampaign offers design freedom in cool ways. For example, you can even change small details like the shape and style of your CTA buttons (no more repetitive rectangles!).
There are only about 25 templates, and they’re pretty basic. This is great for an individual or a team that can focus solely on email marketing, because you’ll be able to create original campaigns from scratch. But if your business doesn’t have the time or capacity for that, then this template builder will be frustrating.
ActiveCampaign doesn’t offer a free plan. There are four paid plans to choose from, which differ by the features they offer. Each plan’s lower pricing limit starts with 500 contacts and unlimited email sends:
- Lite: $9/month
- Plus: $49/month
- Professional: $129/month
- Enterprise: $229/month
ActiveCampaign also offers a 14-day free trial.
We recommend ActiveCampaign for growing businesses with a lot of resources. If that’s you, you’ll probably need the Professional plan, which starts at $129/month. You’d get all of the necessities, like segmentation and advanced performance reporting, plus:
- Conversion reporting
- Predictive sending
- Predictive content
- Split automations
Like we said, ActiveCampaign has powerful marketing tools if you’re willing to invest some time.
ActiveCampaign offers live chat and email support, as well as a searchable knowledge center. Phone support is only available on the Enterprise plan.
One support feature ActiveCampaign offers that most competitors don’t is a community forum. This is a great place to raise issues and hear from other customers with similar experiences.
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- Read our guide to the best enterprise ecommerce website builders to see if you’re using a top-rated platform for your site.
- Read our helpful ActiveCampaign Review for a full look into its strengths, weaknesses, pricing, features, and more.
#6. Constant Contact
Best for Basic Campaigns
Constant Contact
Best for Basic Campaigns
- Plenty of support
- Basic designs
- Outdated dashboard
Free trial available
Paid Plans: $9.99 - $410 / month
Pros
- Editor is full of tips and guidance
- Many options for uploading contacts
- Setting up A/B tests is easy
Cons
- Templates all look very similar
- Not a very scalable platform
- No email translation tools
Constant Contact offers quality customer support and easy ways to add contacts. That said, its template designs and automation functions are basic, and best suited to a part-time email marketing job or a business running a small number of campaigns.
In a User’s Words:
“I’d say this is best suited to someone who is looking to send emails a little ad hoc. For example, for updating customers on potential change of service hours, instead of a larger promotional style of contact.”
Ease of Use
Adding contacts with Constant Contact is easy – in fact, there are a few different ways you can do it, so you’re bound to find one that works best for you. Aside from manually uploading, copy and pasting, and uploading from a file, you can also upload contacts from several different apps, including Zapier and Shopify.
Constant Contact’s template editor looks a little outdated, but this is offset by the helpful tips and guidance that appears throughout the editing process.
Design
Constant Contact offers over 100 templates, but the designs available are pretty basic. Most follow a simple header-image-text format – it gets the job done, but it’s not very fresh.
Constant Contact’s template gallery is also less organized than competitors’. You can search by your own keywords, but there aren’t many premade categories to browse.
Constant Contact doesn’t have a free plan, just two paid plans (and an impressive 60-day free trial):
- Email: Starts at $20/month
- Email Plus: Starts at $45/month
The main difference between these two plans is that the Email Plus plan offers better automation features. However, we recommend the Email plan, because it’s more suited to the small campaigns that Constant Contact is best for.
On the Email plan (starting at $20/month), you’ll get:
- Automated resends to non-openers
- A/B testing for subject lines
- Tracking and reporting
You’ll have to upgrade to the Email Plus plan to build your own automated email series.
Constant Contact’s support team is available via phone, live chat, community forum, and knowledge center – and that phone support is available on every plan. There is no email support available.
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- Do you only need to send occasional campaigns? Check out our in-depth Constant Contact Review.
- Want to start a store? We’ve written a complete guide to selling online.
How to Choose the Right Email Marketing Service for You
We’ve just given you a lot of information about email marketing platforms – and you might still be wondering how to make your final decision. We’re here to streamline that process, so read on for some top tips.
Identify Your Top Priority
There are countless qualities that you’ll want to see in your email marketing provider – and a similarly endless amount of features being offered everywhere you look.
This can get overwhelming pretty quickly. It helps to do some thinking about your business’ goals and abilities, and from there, identify the number one feature that you need your email marketing provider to do really well. From there, the decision will become a lot easier. For example, if you need to keep your campaigns varied with different template styles, then GetResponse is the clear winner, since it offers more templates than any other platform.
Browse Your Own Inbox
Choosing an email marketing platform is all about the kind of content you want to create for your customers. To figure out what kind of emails you’d like to send, why not look through your own inbox for newsletters and promotions you’ve received in the past?
If you like a certain template style or personal touch in any of these emails, you can then think about which platforms will be best at helping you recreate those trends.
Make Use of Free Trials
Every provider in this article offers either a free plan or a free trial – which means that if you’re really stuck, you’ve got nothing to lose by diving straight in! Trial periods are a great opportunity to experience a platform’s template editor and dashboard before committing. You can start uploading contacts and planning user journeys before you’ve even made a final choice!
Summary
There we have it: the best email marketing solutions for small businesses. We’ve spent hours researching these platforms, and we know that whichever option you choose from this list, you can’t go wrong. To recap:
The 6 Best Email Marketing Providers for Small Businesses
- Sendinblue – Overall best email marketing for small business (starts at $25/month).
- Mailchimp – Best for growing businesses (starts at $9.99/month).
- GetResponse – Best for ease of use (starts at $12.30/month).
- MailerLite – Best for intermediates (starts at $15/month).
- ActiveCampaign – Best for an email marketing team (starts at $9/month).
- Constant Contact – Best for basic campaigns (starts at $20/month).
We recommend Mailchimp is an excellent choice if you’re looking to expand over time.
Have you made your decision? Leave us a comment – we’d love to know what you’ve chosen!
For ecommerce specific tips, read our guide to creating an ecommerce email marketing strategy.
FAQs
Sendinblue’s free plan is great, because you can still upload an unlimited number of contacts and enjoy great ease of use. That said, most businesses will outgrow any free plan fairly quickly.
Yes – there are tons of email marketing providers out there! We’ve chosen the six platforms in this article because they came out on top in our research process, which involved conversations with business owners, independent testing, and 160 hours of investigation.
A/B testing is a method used to figure out how you can increase customers’ engagement with your emails. An A/B test is essentially an experiment with two variables, in the form of two slightly different emails, that you can send out at the same time to compare performance.
It’s best to keep subject lines short and snappy – you’ll want to stay within a 50 character limit to give mobile readers the best experience. You’ll also want to include personalization, like a reader’s name, as often as possible – emails with personalized subject lines are 26% more likely to be opened!
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