So, you’re ready to amplify your business efforts. Perhaps you’re operating from a home office, but your clients are none the wiser. You’ve been managing email communications with a growing list of contacts, maybe ranging from 50 to 200, cultivated over recent months. However, standard email clients like Outlook are starting to fall short. Emails occasionally vanish into spam folders, and there was that unfortunate incident of accidentally using CC instead of BCC, resulting in unwanted unsubscribes that had to be manually removed.
Surely, there’s a more efficient solution?
It might be the perfect moment to explore professional Mailing List Services and refine your email marketing strategy. But hold on, before you assume ‘professional’ equates to ‘expensive,’ know that there are numerous free mailing list services available that are surprisingly effective. Say goodbye to spam delivery anxieties and embarrassing data privacy mishaps.
Quick Guide: Finding Your Best Free Mailing List Service
Watch our video review of the leading free mailing list services:
Video review of top free email marketing services
Alternatively, use our Smart Quiz to pinpoint the ideal free mailing list service tailored to your specific requirements:
Smart quiz for finding the best email service provider
17 Best Free Mailing List Services: An Overview
| Free Mailing List Service | Features Included | Key Points |
|---|---|---|
Kit  Best Free Email Marketing tool badge |
– Up to 1,000 subscribers – Unlimited emails – Landing pages – Sell digital products & subscriptions | Optimized for newsletter creators and bloggers, Kit’s free plan provides unlimited emails, landing pages, forms, and the capability to sell digital products. It includes 1 visual automation, 1 email sequence, and participation in its Creator Network. (Read full Kit review) |
| MailerLite | – 1,000 subscribers – 12,000 emails monthly – Automations, landing pages, and reports | MailerLite offers a robust free plan with autoresponders, advanced web forms, basic reporting, and email support. It includes basic structural templates. (Read full MailerLite review) |
| Sender | – 2,500 subscribers – 15,000 emails monthly – Unlimited automation – Free form and email templates | User-friendly and straightforward, Sender offers a generous free allowance, unlimited automation, and pre-designed email and form templates. |
| Brevo | – 100,000 subscribers – 9,000 emails monthly (300 daily limit) – Marketing automation – CRM – Basic reporting | Brevo allows up to 9,000 emails per month with a 300 daily cap. Free access to marketing automation and CRM features, with Brevo branding in emails. (Read full Brevo review) |
| Beehiiv | – 2,500 subscribers – Unlimited emails – 3 newsletters / publications – Website builder | An integrated platform for content creators, Beehiiv offers email marketing, website building, and content monetization tools. The free plan includes custom-domain websites and audience growth tools. (Read full Beehiiv review) |
| Zoho Campaigns | – 6,000 emails monthly – 2,000 contacts – Up to 5 users – Reports | Zoho provides ample email and contact limits. CRM features and modern email templates are available, though automation and scheduling are for paid plans only. (Read full Zoho review) |
| Omnisend | – 500 emails monthly to 250 contacts – Unlimited subscribers – Landing pages – 60 international SMS – Segmentation & automation – Website tracking | Despite a smaller sending limit, Omnisend’s free plan includes advanced features like landing pages, website tracking, and marketing automation. (Read full Omnisend review) |
| SendPulse | – 500 subscribers – 15,000 emails monthly – Web push notifications – Transactional emails – Basic autoresponders | SendPulse’s free plan is ideal for multichannel marketing, offering a high sending allowance and unique messaging features like web push notifications. |
| GetResponse | – 500 subscribers – 2,500 emails – Website/landing page builder, extensive email templates | GetResponse’s free plan includes a website and landing page builder, and a wide array of email templates, with a 2,500 email limit for 500 subscribers. (Read full GetResponse review) |
| EmailOctopus | – 2,500 subscribers – 10,000 emails – 30-day stats retention | EmailOctopus is a simple, cost-effective newsletter service with Zapier integration. It offers basic features effectively. |
| SmartrMail | – Up to 250 subscribers – 1,250 emails monthly – Segmentation – Popups – Marketing automation – Abandoned cart emails | SmartrMail is tailored for e-commerce, offering marketing automation and abandoned cart emails on its free plan. Requires an online store. |
| HubSpot | – 1 million subscribers – 2,000 emails monthly – CRM – Web forms | HubSpot’s free plan provides generous subscriber limits and CRM features, but emails are limited to 2,000 monthly with HubSpot branding. (Read full HubSpot review) |
| AWeber | – Up to 500 subscribers – 3,000 emails monthly – Landing pages – One list – Simple automation | AWeber’s free plan includes a good feature set and email allowance, with email and landing page templates, and phone support. (Read full AWeber review) |
| Mailchimp | – 500 subscribers – 1,000 emails monthly (500 daily limit) – Reporting – Mobile features & surveys | Mailchimp’s free plan has restricted features like no automation or advanced segmentation, and limited email and subscriber allowances. (Read full Mailchimp review) |
| Mailjet | – Unlimited subscribers – 6,000 emails monthly – Reporting | Mailjet offers unlimited subscribers but limits emails to 6,000 monthly with a 200 daily cap. (Read full Mailjet review) |
| Benchmark | – Unlimited subscribers – 250 emails monthly – Web forms – List management – Basic A/B testing | Benchmark’s free plan includes unlimited subscribers but a very restrictive 250 emails per month. (Read full Benchmark review) |
| CleverReach | – 250 subscribers – 1,000 emails monthly – Reporting – Web forms | CleverReach’s free plan is quite limited compared to others, with a small ad included in emails. (Read full CleverReach review) |
For deeper comparisons, explore our roundup of the best email marketing services.
Tip: Beginners should check out our essential email marketing checklist to avoid common pitfalls in email marketing.
Given that email marketing ROI is around 3600% (that’s $36 return for every $1 spent on your email campaign!), leveraging a free mailing list service is a smart way to start generating significant returns.
You might be surprised by the extensive features available at no cost. Some services even offer unlimited subscriber capacity or monthly email sends.
Furthermore, features like landing pages, transactional emails, and automation are often included in free mass emailing services. Keep an eye out for these valuable extras.
The features that are most important to you will depend on your specific business needs. However, when choosing a mailing list service, consider these key aspects:
- Are email templates provided for free? Are they visually appealing?
- Does the free plan include landing pages, and what is their design quality? (Essential if you don’t yet have a website)
- Is email automation part of the free plan? Can you segment your contacts into different lists?
- Do the reports offer the necessary data insights?
- Is there a restriction on the number of forms you can create?
- Are transactional emails supported (if needed – also review our study on the best free SMTP servers)
- Most providers include their branding in free emails. Assess how prominent this branding is.
- What integrations are available with other tools? (Especially important for e-commerce businesses)
- What level of support is offered? For instance, Mailchimp’s free plan support is known to be limited.
This table shows that utilizing a free newsletter platform for your business is entirely feasible, especially in the initial stages, depending on your growth aspirations and contact list size.
Detailed Look at Free Mailing List Services
Now that you have a general understanding of what each free mailing service provides, let’s delve deeper into their features and limitations.
1. Kit – Ideal for Newsletter Creators and Bloggers
Kit homepage interface
Kit, previously known as ConvertKit, is a specialized email marketing platform for bloggers and creators. It boasts features like landing pages, sophisticated sequence setups, subscriber segmentation, and uniquely, the ability to directly sell digital products and subscriptions through the platform.
It tops our list of free mailing list services due to its exceptionally generous free plan, supporting up to 1,000 subscribers and offering unlimited emails, forms, and landing pages.
Upgrading to a paid plan unlocks unlimited automations and sequences (compared to the free plan’s single automation and email sequence), plus enhanced features like paid recommendations and integrations with third-party applications. Paid plans start at $15 per month for creators with fewer than 300 subscribers.
Strengths of Kit
Kit excels in areas like customer support, which is known for being prompt, helpful, and efficient. Its tagging system allows for adaptable subscriber management, enabling highly targeted communication.
The landing page editor is particularly useful for growing your list, even without a website, making it a strong tool for social media campaigns. The monetization feature, allowing direct sales of digital products and subscriptions, is a standout feature not commonly found in other mailing list services, and it’s included in the free Newsletter plan.
Areas for Improvement
The free plan has some restrictions—Kit branding cannot be removed, and you are required to feature other recommended newsletters upon subscriber sign-up. While the free plan is feature-rich, its full potential is realized with paid options. The cost can increase quickly, potentially becoming expensive for some users as their needs grow.
It may not be the best choice if you need highly visual, image-heavy emails, as most templates are text-based.
Important Note: Upon signing up, you’ll initially be placed in Kit’s 14-day free trial. To access the free Newsletter plan, you must specifically request it from their customer service. Until this is done, automation setup will be restricted.
Who is the Free Plan For?
Kit’s free plan is ideal for bloggers and content creators starting out or with a smaller subscriber base. It provides essential features to begin. As their subscriber list expands, upgrading to a paid plan to access advanced functionalities and fully utilize the platform’s capabilities becomes advisable.
Kit Video Review
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Try Kit for free!
> Read our full Kit review
2. MailerLite – A Well-Rounded Free Option
MailerLite free mailing list service interface
As the name suggests, MailerLite focuses on delivering a streamlined, efficient mailing list service. This results in a user-friendly newsletter tool with surprisingly robust features, including landing pages, forms, and marketing automation. Their ‘Free Forever’ plan provides access to most, but not all, of these features.
Strengths of MailerLite
This free email service is highly intuitive, making it easy for even beginners to set up and manage email campaigns. With up to 1,000 subscribers, you can send 12,000 emails monthly, and even create single-trigger automation workflows and landing pages for free.
Areas for Improvement
Unfortunately, pre-designed templates are not available on the free plan, requiring you to build your own. Spam and design testing are also absent. While the workflow-based automation editor is appreciated, it is limited to basic automation functions like sending trigger-based emails and updating contact fields.
Another drawback is their stringent approval process, which requires website verification or an explanation if you don’t have one. Some users have reported account lockouts post-approval without warning, and restoring access is reportedly difficult.
Who is the Free Plan For?
MailerLite is considered one of the top free mailing list services, particularly suitable for budget-conscious businesses seeking a simple, all-encompassing solution for inbound marketing.
MailerLite Video Review
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Free trial: www.mailerlite.com
> Read our full MailerLite review
3. Sender – Simplicity and Ease of Use
Sender homepage interface
Sender’s straightforward interface and smooth user experience make it one of the easiest mailing list services to operate. Its free plan offers a substantial allowance of 2,500 subscribers and up to 15,000 emails per month, making it a highly attractive free option. It includes a good range of features – unlimited automations and a solid selection of email and form templates.
Strengths of Sender
The automations included in the free plan are surprisingly advanced, allowing for features like abandoned cart campaigns and automatic subscriber list adjustments. A/B testing for subject lines, CTAs, and design elements within automations is now also available. The overall simplicity of this service is refreshing compared to more complex tools with similar capabilities.
Areas for Improvement
While the email editor is user-friendly, it’s somewhat basic compared to other providers, lacking some advanced design flexibility.
Who is the Free Plan For?
If you are looking for a simple, no-fuss mailing list service with useful added features, Sender’s ease of use and practicality will appeal to you.
Free Trial: sender.net
4. Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) – Free Automation Capabilities
Previously known as Sendinblue until May 2023, Brevo has evolved significantly from a transactional email provider to a comprehensive mailing list service. It offers advanced features like SMS marketing, email automation, and customer relationship management.
The free plan supports up to 100,000 subscribers and 9,000 emails monthly, with a daily limit of 300 emails. Some features are restricted—email heat maps, detailed opener and clicker data, and ad-free emails are not included.
Strengths of Brevo
Marketing automation is more sophisticated than in other free ESPs listed here, with options to build and test various campaign workflows based on factors like page visits, email engagement, and product purchases. Reporting is robust, although the lack of detailed data on openers and clickers in the free plan is a minor drawback. Paid plans are competitively priced, starting at just $9 for 5,000 emails.
> See a comparison between Brevo and Mailchimp
Areas for Improvement
While templates are mobile-responsive, a broader variety would be beneficial (though custom templates can be used). Features like A/B testing, standard in many tools, are missing.
Who is the Free Plan For?
Brevo is well-suited if your email marketing focuses more on trigger-based campaigns (welcome emails, abandoned cart reminders, emails based on web activity/email interaction) rather than newsletters. It’s also effective for sending mass emails for free.
Brevo Video Review
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Free Trial: www.brevo.com
> Read our full Brevo review
5. Beehiiv – A Newsletter Platform Competing with Kit
Beehiiv homepage interface
Beehiiv is a comprehensive newsletter platform designed for content creators, bloggers, and writers. It integrates publishing tools, a website builder, and email marketing services, making it ideal for creators aiming to monetize their content.
It ranks highly for newsletter creators on EmailTooltester, outperforming competitors like Kit and Substack, although its free plan is more restricted than Kit’s.
Beehiiv’s free Launch plan allows unlimited emails to up to 2,500 subscribers and includes a website builder, tagging and segmentation, and management for up to three newsletters.
Strengths of Beehiiv
Beehiiv’s free plan offers unlimited emails, a website builder with custom domain support (rare in free plans), and multi-newsletter management. Its recommendation network enables audience exchange with other newsletters. Intuitive tagging and segmentation tools facilitate subscriber organization and targeted communications.
Areas for Improvement
While feature-rich, Beehiiv’s free plan lacks some functionalities found in competitors’ free offerings. Monetization tools like selling subscriptions or sponsorships require upgrading, which puts it behind more generous platforms like Kit. The absence of email automations, such as welcome sequences, is another limitation for workflow streamlining.
The jump from the free plan to the $39/month Scale plan might be significant for smaller creators, without an intermediate pricing tier. Free plan users must also display Beehiiv branding in newsletters, removable only in higher-tier plans like Max or Enterprise.
Who is the Free Plan For?
Beehiiv’s free Launch plan is best for new creators or those managing smaller subscriber lists. As audience size and monetization goals grow, upgrading to a paid plan is necessary to access features like automations and monetization tools.
Beehiiv Video Review
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Free Trial: www.beehiiv.com
> Read our full Beehiiv review
6. Zoho Campaigns – The Versatile Option
Zoho Campaigns free email service interface
Zoho is a significant player in sales and marketing, offering an impressive suite of services that caters to most business needs under one platform.
Zoho Campaigns is their email marketing component, featuring well-designed templates and a user-friendly editor, making it a strong contender for those on a budget.
Strengths of Zoho Campaigns
Zoho Campaigns features a well-designed, easy-to-navigate interface. The editor is efficient and includes essential elements like columns, video, and polls. A notable feature is direct image uploads from Unsplash within the editor. Segmentation capabilities are also available. The range of email and form templates is particularly commendable.
Areas for Improvement
The absence of automations in the free plan is a drawback, although this feature is available in paid plans starting from $5/month. The form builder could be more intuitive with drag-and-drop functionality.
Zoho has recently removed A/B testing and campaign scheduling from the free plan and halved the email allowance, making it less competitive compared to other services on this list.
Who is the Free Plan For?
Zoho Campaign’s free plan is ideal for users seeking an easy-to-use mailing list service with excellent design templates. For basic email marketing automation without cost, MailerLite would be a better choice.
Try out Zoho for free!
7. Omnisend – Powerful E-commerce Solution for Free
Omnisend free email marketing service interface
Omnisend is specifically tailored for e-commerce, offering exceptional features like automation workflows, direct product integration into newsletters, and interactive email add-ons such as scratch cards and gift boxes. All these features are available on the free plan, along with website tracking, 24/7 support, detailed reporting, and landing pages.
However, a recent pricing adjustment has significantly reduced the monthly email sending limit to just 500 emails and a contact limit of 250 subscribers, down from 15,000 emails per month previously. This might suit users needing advanced features with a small subscriber base, but growth will quickly necessitate a plan upgrade.
Omnisend Video Review
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Free Trial: www.omnisend.com
> Read our full Omnisend review
8. SendPulse – Multichannel Messaging Platform
SendPulse free email marketing interface
SendPulse provides a multichannel platform for marketers needing more than just email marketing. Its features include web push notifications, SMS, Viber, and transactional emails via SMTP.
SendPulse’s free plan is generous with sending limits, offering 15,000 emails monthly, but it is capped at 500 subscribers.
Strengths of SendPulse
The free plan includes valuable features like autoresponders, A/B testing, a website builder, CRM features, and advanced reporting with click heat maps and location-based opens. Web push notifications are included, and a free monthly plan of 12,000 SMTP emails is also available.
Areas for Improvement
The email editor can be buggy and slow at times. Managing basic autoresponders can be cumbersome due to the lack of a workflow-based editor.
Who is the Free Plan For?
A multichannel platform may not be for everyone, but if your business uses web push or transactional emails, SendPulse’s free plan can save significant time and money. The inclusion of a CRM and website builder is an added benefit.
Free Trial: sendpulse.com
9. GetResponse – Website Builder Included
GetResponse sales funnel software interface
GetResponse recently introduced a free plan, adding to its suite of features. Known for niche features like webinars, sales funnels, and advanced marketing automation, the free plan has slightly limited features.
Strengths of GetResponse
The free plan includes a website builder with 5 GB bandwidth, signup forms, and popups. You can connect a custom domain and utilize SEO optimization tools.
Over 500 email templates are available, and the editor is user-friendly and flexible.
Areas for Improvement
The free plan limits subscribers to 500, relatively low compared to competitors. The email send limit was recently reduced from unlimited to 2,500 monthly. Only one landing page is allowed.
Autoresponders and automations are reserved for paid plans, and GetResponse branding is present in emails.
Who is the Free Plan For?
Businesses with a small subscriber base looking for a free mailing list service that also provides a simple website solution will find GetResponse suitable.
Free trial: www.getresponse.com
> Read our full GetResponse review
10. EmailOctopus – Generous Email Sending
EmailOctopus interface
EmailOctopus differentiates itself by being built on top of Amazon SES, utilizing its email infrastructure. While AWS is now optional, it functions like a standard mailing list service.
It offers a generous free tier with 2,500 subscribers and a 10,000 monthly email limit. Using Amazon’s servers could also grant you their free quota of up to 3,000 emails/month for the first 12 months.
Strengths of EmailOctopus
Paid plans are competitively priced (e.g., 10,000 subscribers for $36 monthly). EmailOctopus is user-friendly and effective for newsletters. API and Zapier integration are available.
Areas for Improvement
Feature range is somewhat limited, though sufficient for basic newsletters and autoresponders. Customer support is only available for the first 30 days.
Who is the Free Plan For?
EmailOctopus is recommended for cost-conscious marketers, especially those already using Amazon SES. They are also more accommodating towards senders in cryptocurrency and affiliate marketing industries, which are often restricted by other providers.
Free plan: emailoctopus.com
11. SmartrMail – E-commerce Focused Free Emails
SmartrMail targets small to medium e-commerce businesses. It’s a popular email marketing tool for Shopify users, known for its ease of use, generous allowances, and feature set.
SmartrMail counts only active subscribers towards your monthly limit, unlike services like Mailchimp that include inactive subscribers. However, the free plan contact limit has been reduced to 250 from a previous 1,000.
An online store is required to sign up. SmartrMail integrates with Shopify, BigCommerce, Maropost, and WooCommerce, or via a custom API.
Strengths of SmartrMail
Free migration services are offered, which is beneficial when switching from another service. They assist with setting up automated workflows.
Marketing automation, particularly abandoned cart emails, is included in the free plan, a feature often reserved for paid plans.
Access to smart segments, which automatically group subscribers based on criteria like recent purchasers or unengaged subscribers, is a significant advantage.
Areas for Improvement
A dedicated analytics section is currently missing, though SmartrMail plans to release this feature soon.
No landing page builder is available, even in paid plans.
Who is the Free Plan For?
E-commerce brands seeking a generous free plan with marketing automation and segmentation capabilities will find SmartrMail valuable.
Try SmartrMail for free
12. HubSpot – Email Marketing Integrated with CRM
HubSpot allows you to collect contacts via HubSpot’s forms, manage them in their CRM, and send up to 2,000 emails monthly for free. Unlimited users can be added, with contact assignment features.
The drag-and-drop editor is user-friendly, with helpful prompts. However, email templates are limited to a basic newsletter or promotion template, with no option to upload custom HTML templates.
A small allowance for automations, landing pages, and even webpages is provided. Upgrades to their Sales or Marketing Hub are needed for more features.
Strengths of HubSpot
Access to a robust CRM, form builder, ads management, and other features is included. The software is user-friendly and not overwhelming. Primarily a CRM, it offers generous contact storage, up to 1 million for free.
Areas for Improvement
The 2,000 monthly email limit may be insufficient, despite the high contact limit. HubSpot branding is included in all emails. The free plan lacks diverse templates and custom template uploads.
Domain authentication via SPF and DKIM is limited in the free plan, though deliverability is reasonably good.
Who should use the Free Plan
Small to medium businesses needing a robust free CRM will benefit most, as HubSpot excels as a CRM. The low monthly email limit and lack of A/B testing and automations should be considered.
Try HubSpot out for free!
13. AWeber – Free Plan with Phone Support
AWeber interface
AWeber, with over 20 years in the mailing list service industry, is known for inventing the autoresponder. Their free plan’s features and comparisons are detailed below.
Strengths of AWeber
AWeber’s free plan includes many paid features: simple marketing automation, landing pages, unlimited users, phone support, and thousands of stock photos.
Access to the full template library for newsletters and landing pages, featuring mobile-responsive designs, is provided.
Areas for Improvement
Analytics are basic in the free plan. Webpage and email sales tracking require a paid upgrade. AWeber branding is included in emails, and only one list can be managed.
The subscriber limit is relatively low compared to services like MailerLite and Sender.
Who is the Free Plan For?
AWeber’s free plan suits those prioritizing 24/7 phone support. The absence of a daily sending limit is also an advantage.
AWeber Video Review
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Try AWeber for free
> Read our full AWeber review
14. Mailchimp – Email Marketing with a Fun Approach
Mailchimp brings a refreshing, user-friendly approach to email marketing with its quirky branding and solid features, becoming the world’s most popular mailing list service.
Its previously generous free account offered 10,000 emails monthly for up to 2,000 contacts. Post-Intuit acquisition, this has reduced to 1,000 emails monthly for 500 contacts, with a 500 daily limit. Landing pages, forms, and reporting are included. Features like automations, A/B testing, chat/email support, inbox previews, campaign scheduling, and time zone delivery require a paid plan.
Strengths of Mailchimp
Comprehensive reporting includes stats on conversions, social activity, e-commerce tracking, and email domain performance. Forms easily integrate with websites, landing pages, and over 800 third-party integrations, including OpenTable for restaurants. Mailchimp is generally user-friendly.
Areas for Improvement
The free plan lacks automations and campaign scheduling, key reasons for using a mailing list service. Basic templates are outdated.
Emails may land in Gmail’s Promotions tab, according to deliverability tests, less ideal for informational or transactional content.
Reduced allowances and the daily sending limit are disadvantages. Explore Mailchimp alternatives.
Who is the Free Plan For?
With current restrictions, recommending Mailchimp over competitors is challenging. It may suit users needing detailed reports, but the inability to schedule emails is a significant drawback. Paid Mailchimp plans are also notably more expensive.
Mailchimp Video Review
Mailchimp video review banner
Free Trial: mailchimp.com
> Read our full Mailchimp review
15. Mailjet – High Potential, Basic Features
MailJet free email marketing service interface
Mailjet, traditionally for transactional emails, has evolved into a more comprehensive email service, though features remain relatively basic. Its free plan is generous in capacity: unlimited contacts and up to 6,000 emails monthly, with a 200 daily limit. Access is more limited—premium features like automations, segmentation, and A/B testing are only free for 30 days.
Strengths of Mailjet
The drag-and-drop editor is easy to use, and a decent range of email templates is available.
Areas for Improvement
The platform feels somewhat new and under-developed, with limited automation workflows and many features still in development.
Who is the Free Plan For?
If high volume is a priority and sophisticated features are not essential, Mailjet’s free plan is a viable option.
Free Trial: mailjet.com
> Read our full Mailjet review
16. Benchmark – Streamlined and User-Friendly
Benchmark free email marketing service interface
Benchmark features a clean, minimalist design, making it one of the most user-friendly newsletter tools tested. Their free Starter plan offers access to all areas—marketing automation, forms, surveys, and reporting—with some limitations. Automations and A/B tests are inactive, and signup forms are limited to 75 subscribers daily. The 250 emails/month limit is very restrictive.
Strengths of Benchmark
A wide variety of modern, mobile-friendly templates and a highly usable drag-and-drop editor are strengths. Support, even on the free plan, is fast and responsive. Integration with over 300 tools, including WordPress, Facebook, and Shopify, is offered.
Areas for Improvement
Deliverability rates have been disappointingly low, particularly to Outlook and Hotmail inboxes. The free plan is unlikely to be sustainable long-term due to the 250 emails/month limit and image storage upgrades costing $5/month from 10MB to unlimited.
Who is the Free Plan For?
Businesses sending primarily text-based emails may better manage the file storage limit and improve email delivery. Benchmark is a good choice for a well-designed, straightforward tool.
Benchmark Video Review
Benchmark video review banner
Free Trial: www.benchmarkemail.com
> Read our full Benchmark review
17. CleverReach – Professional but Feature-Limited
CleverReach free email marketing service interface
CleverReach offers a comprehensive, enterprise-grade mailing list service with marketing automation, forms, and reports. The Lite plan provides access to most features and allows up to 1,000 emails to a maximum of 250 subscribers monthly for free.
Strengths of CleverReach
The editor is user-friendly. The workflow-based automation editor, comprehensive reporting, and campaign calendar are well-regarded.
Areas for Improvement
The free plan is very limited in automations, templates, and registration forms. Not all templates are responsive.
Who should use the Free Plan
CleverReach is suitable if your list is small and EU compliance is a high priority. Double opt-ins are standard, and data is hosted in Europe.
Free Trial: www.cleverreach.com
> Read our full CleverReach review
Understanding ‘Free Plan’ Mailing List Services
Like many free tools, these mailing list services often operate on a ‘freemium’ model. This means certain limitations may apply based on subscriber count, email volume, or feature availability. However, for businesses with basic newsletter marketing strategies, these plans are often sufficient to start.
The ‘catch’ is that as your business grows and your needs evolve, the hope is you’ll be satisfied enough with the service to upgrade to a paid plan.
What Do You Get for Free?
As highlighted, numerous mailing list services offer free plans. We’ve focused on ‘hosted’ services, meaning they are self-contained and don’t require your own email server or software installation.
They all include bounce management, automatically handling emails that don’t reach recipients by removing them from your list after several attempts, thus maintaining a clean contact list.
Unsubscribe management is another standard feature, allowing recipients to easily opt out without manual intervention.
Finally, these providers offer statistics, enabling you to track email opens and engagement, helping you refine your newsletter content for better performance.
Limitations of Free Mailing List Services
Most free email services limit either subscriber numbers, email volume, or both. Feature access is also often restricted, and many include their branding in your emails, typically a footer badge. For ad-free options, consider exploring cheap email marketing services.
Advanced email automation is rarely included in free plans, which is important if you plan to implement a marketing automation strategy. Detailed reporting is also often limited in free accounts. For sophisticated features, consider ActiveCampaign. Compare prices using our email marketing cost calculator.
For beginners, Kit, MailerLite, or Sender are good starting points due to their generous limits and ease of use. Kit is excellent for monetization, MailerLite offers great features and multi-language support, and Sender includes advanced automations for free.
Conclusion: Choosing Your Best Free Email Service
Selecting the right free email provider involves understanding the limitations and finding a service that best fits your needs. The best approach is to try a few—they are free, after all!
Note: Follow email deliverability best practices and our guide to email authentication before sending. For list-building, see our guides on how to build an email list, lead generation, and email list management.
Explore more providers in our Constant Contact alternatives guide and the best free CRM providers.
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The Authors
Learn more about us
Roberta Phillips
Marketing Manager
Hi, I’m Roberta! As a digital marketer, I’ve tested numerous marketing tools. I’m here to help you find the best email marketing and CRM tools. I’m familiar with tools like Brevo, MailerLite, and Hubspot, so reach out if you need help choosing!
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Robert Brandl
Founder and CEO
Hello, I’m Robert, an email marketing expert with 15+ years of experience. I founded EmailTooltester to help small to medium businesses. Connect on LinkedIn for email marketing insights. Ask me for ESP recommendations for your needs—I have experience with ActiveCampaign, GetResponse, Mailchimp, and Brevo.
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06 Feb 2025 – Updated Mailerlite 15 Jan 2025 – Added Beehiiv 10 Oct 2024 – Updated Sender 02 Sep 2024 – Optimized ToC, changes in SmartMail profile (lower allowance) 27 Jun 2024 – Moved Kit to top of list due to new free plan inclusions 05 Jan 2024 – A couple of smaller improvements and corrections 05 Dec 2023 – Email Octopus removed support in the free tier (included only the first 30 days) 04 Dec 2023 – Mailchimp free plan no longer offers automations 11 Oct 2023 – Added new ‘Best free email marketing software’ video 07 Aug 2023 – Added Kit 03 Aug 2023 – Small change for EmailOctopus related to Amazon SES, Moonmail removed (no more free plan) 02 June 2023 – Smart Quiz updated 16 March 2023 – Updated Mailchimp’s pricing 22 Dec 2022 – Moved GetResponse down since they reduced sending allowance. 15 Dec 2022 – Added badge 01 Dec 2022 – Omnisend video review added 15 Sept 2022 – Moved Mailchimp down since they reduced sending allowances 01 Aug 2022 – Removed Moosend as they no longer offer a freemium plan 07 June 2022 – Added SmartrMail 15 March 2022 – Added AWeber and removed YMLP 03 Feb 2022 – Updated Sendpulse 20 Jan 2022 – Moved Mailchimp down since they removed the ability to schedule emails on the free plan 09 Dec 2021 – Updated Zoho in light of changes to allowances and features 26 Oct 2021 – Moved Brevo up 25 Oct 2021 – Added smart finder 19 Oct 2021 – Added GetResponse 20 Sept 2021 – Omnisend’s pricing updated and moved down. Moosend moved up 15 Jun 2021 – Small updates for Moosend 3 Feb 2021 – Zoho added 15 Dec 2020 – New video added 25 Nov 2020 – Added ‘What can I expect from free email marketing software?’ section 28 Apr 2020 – Added updated MailerLite video 22 Apr 2020 – Changes to Benchmark free plan allowance 18 Oct 2019 – CleverReach reduced their free allowance 17 Jan 2024 – Sender introduced split testing features in automations. 22 Oct 2019 – HubSpot added to list. 16 Oct 2019 – Updated EmailOctopus. 22 May 2019 – Changes to Mailchimp free plan. 11 April 2019 – Drip no longer offers a free plan. 28 Feb 2019 – CleverReach allowance is higher now. 20 Sep 2018 – SendPulse added to list. 4 Dec 2018 – Sender added to list. 25 Feb 2018 – Moosend added to list.
Our Methodology
This article was written and researched using the EmailTooltester methodology.
Our Methodology
