Email marketing tools are a valuable resource for small businesses. These tools offer a wide range of benefits that can help you streamline your email marketing efforts and reach, engage, and convert more customers.
We’ve put together a list of the top email marketing tools for small businesses below to help you get started.
Table of Contents
Email Marketing Tools For Small Businesses
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.
How did we create this list?
Best Email Marketing Providers for Small Business
Compare all 6 email marketing platforms and their key features below:
BEST IN TEST
sendinblue logo
Sendinblue
Overall Rating
4.7out of 5
Starting from
$25
Small Business Email Ease of Use
Excellent
Number of Templates
60+
Minimum Email Contacts
Unlimited
Design Flexibility
3.5 out of 5 stars
Minimum Monthly Sends
10,000
Phone Support
Yes
AB Test Variables
Subject line, content
Survey Builder
NO
mailchimp logo
Mailchimp
Overall Rating
4.6out of 5
Starting from
$11
Small Business Email Ease of Use
Very Good
Number of Templates
100+
Minimum Email Contacts
500
Design Flexibility
4.3 out of 5 stars
Minimum Monthly Sends
5,000
Phone Support
On highest price plan
AB Test Variables
Subject line, content, send times
Survey Builder
YES
getresponse logo
GetResponse
Overall Rating
4.6out of 5
Starting from
$15
Small Business Email Ease of Use
Excellent
Number of Templates
220
Minimum Email Contacts
1,000
Design Flexibility
4.7 out of 5 stars
Minimum Monthly Sends
Unlimited
Phone Support
On highest price plan
AB Test Variables
Subject line
Survey Builder
YES
1. Sendinblue
Overall Best Email Marketing for Small Business
Editor’s Choice
Sendinblue
Overall Best Email Marketing for Small Business
OUTSTANDING
4.7out of 5
Easy to use
Best value for money
Automation is a priority
Free plan available
Paid Plans: $25 – $599 / month
SEE PROS & CONS
sendinblue logo
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.
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’s Pricing
Sendinblue’s Features
Sendinblue’s Support
Sendinblue Gallery
Click the image below to expand
sendinblue editor
sendinblue organizing contacts
sendinblue templates
sendinblue plans
sendinblue logo
Sendinblue is #1 for a reason.
Want to try out this low-cost, high-value platform?
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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
EXCELLENT
4.6out of 5
Great for organization
Flexible pricing tiers
Overwhelming at first
Free plan available
Paid Plans: $11 – $299 / month
SEE PROS & CONS
mailchimp logo
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.
Mailchimp’s Pricing
Mailchimp’s Features
Mailchimp’s Support
Mailchimp Gallery
Click the image below to expand
mailchimp adding contacts
mailchimp support options
mailchimp email themes
mailchimp plans
mailchimp logo
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3. GetResponse
Best for Ease of Use
GetResponse
Best for Ease of Use
EXCELLENT
4.6out of 5
Intuitive dashboard
Great template designs
Pricier than competitors
Free trial available
Paid Plans: $15 – $99 / month
SEE PROS & CONS
getresponse logo
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’s Pricing
GetResponse’s Features
GetResponse’s Support
GetResponse Gallery
Click the image below to expand
adding contacts
creating lists
getresponse personalization
getresponse plans
email templates
getresponse logo
Need an easy-to-use, quality platform?
GetResponse will help you create professional emails in no time.
More Information
We’ve rounded up the best online business tools that small businesses need to know about.
Learn more about GetResponse’s pros and cons in our full GetResponse Review.
4. MailerLite
Best for Social Integration
MailerLite
Best for Social Integration
GOOD
4.5out of 5
Takes time to learn
Professional templates
Simple pricing structure
Free plan available
Paid Plans: $10 – $1915 / month
SEE PROS & CONS
mailerlite logo
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’s Pricing
MailerLite’s Features
MailerLite’s Support
MailerLite Gallery
Click the image below to expand
mailerlite plans
support options
mailerlite email template choices
mailerlite logo
Ready to take a step up?
MailerLite is perfect for small business owners with some email marketing experience.
More Information
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
GOOD
4.5out of 5
Lots of design freedom
Powerful marketing tools
Big learning curve
Free trial available
Paid Plans: $15 – $599 / month
SEE PROS & CONS
activecampaign logo
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.
free email marketing tools
Marketing trends and channels evolve over time. While some trends come and go quickly, one of the channels that has remained more or less the same is email. In fact, email continues to be the top channel for content marketing with both B2C and B2B marketers. 87% of B2B marketers and 77% of B2C marketers use it to nurture their audience.
It can even help you amplify your other marketing channels such as social. With that said, marketers still face a ton of challenges in their email marketing efforts. One of these key challenges is simply the amount of time it takes to create a great looking email from scratch. Without efficient tools, marketers may end up spending a lot of time creating and sending out emails that don’t exactly look stunning. This hinders productivity while dragging down your email marketing ROI.
A lot of companies settle for this situation because they’re not ready to invest in a tool to simplify the process. However, email marketing tools don’t necessarily have to be expensive. You can find plenty of free email marketing tools that can help you save time and money.
If you’re looking for a social management solution to complement your email marketing, test out a free 30-day trial of Sprout Social:
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Read on for our list of the top free email marketing tools:
- HubSpot Email Marketing
HubSpot, probably best known for their marketing automation platform, recently launched a free email marketing tool that can support a lot of a small business’ transactional email needs.
Whether you need to send kickback emails from lead offers, thank you emails after purchase, or just promote current campaigns, HubSpot Email Marketing’s free version can do that. One of the best parts of HubSpot’s free email tool is its ease of use. The tool features a handy drag-and-drop visual editor, and it also comes equipped with ready-made templates to get you up and running immediately.
What makes HubSpot Email Marketing stand out is, of course, its native integration with other HubSpot tools, such as the free-forever CRM. Once you start an account, you get access to both tools so you can create a centralized contacts database, organize it in lists, and manage and track email performance.
hubspot email marketing tool
- Sender
Sender is one of the best free email marketing tools in the market with features to ensure deliverability. It lets you create stunning newsletters without any HTML knowledge. Just choose from a template and customize it with elements like images, videos and text. You can even personalize your newsletters for each recipient to create an even bigger impact.
Sender dashboard screenshot
Sender’s robust analytics feature is one of the top reasons why it’s on our list. It lets you track who opened your emails and clicked on the links, when they were opened and more. It even helps you build accurate buyer profiles based on your subscriber actions, so you’ll be able to optimize your existing email strategy and craft compelling offers.
- Sendinblue
Sendinblue is a marketing communication platform that features both email marketing tools and additional functions such as customer relationship management and landing page creation. With over 70 design templates, Sendinblue’s email design functions make it easy to create a great-looking email. Plus, all of these templates are responsive, and you can preview your results to can ensure your design looks the way you want on any screen format.
After you design your email, you can use features like A/B testing and segmented recipient lists to take the manual effort and guesswork out of optimizing your campaigns and targeting your ideal audiences.
sendinblue email editor
- Omnisend
Omnisend is a sophisticated ecommerce marketing platform that integrates all your communication platforms in one place. Its free plan includes only email, but it’s more than enough to support the email marketing efforts of small and medium businesses. It allows you to automate your email delivery using behavioral triggers and easily time your communications based on your customers’ convenience.
You can utilize its comprehensive audience insights to send out more relevant email marketing messages. Design attractive newsletters using time-saving features like the Product Picker, which lets you select all the products you want to include in your email. You can also include scratch cards, discount coupon codes and gift boxes to further optimize your email performance.
Omnisend dashboard screenshot
- SendPulse
SendPulse advertises itself as a multi-channel marketing platform, but its email marketing feature is the most popular. It comes with a ton of professionally-designed email templates that you can easily customize using a drag-and-drop editor. You can then set up these customized emails to be automatically sent out at the right time based on user behavior, event trigger and other variables.
SendPulse’s subscriber rating feature is an excellent way to identify your most valuable subscribers. It lets you analyze the open and click rates as well as the read and unread rate of each subscriber. You can even set replaceable text fields to personalize your emails by name, gender, date of birth, age and job role.
SendPulse subscriber rating
- Benchmark Email
Benchmark Email is a great option for an email marketing tool to design responsive emails that look great no matter which device they’re viewed on. If you need to add images to your email, you can even edit the image right on the platform. The email editor lets you add effects, stickers and text to effectively send across your message.
You have the option to choose from tons of pre-designed templates based on industry, type and occasion. For the more HTML savvy, you can even use the code editor to build emails from scratch. The dual view feature lets you see your email design as you’re editing it, which simplifies the whole email creation process.
Benchmark Email responsive design templates
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- Mailchimp
Mailchimp is a leader in email marketing tools that you’ve probably heard of. Their free plan provides you with basic email marketing features such as email creation and scheduling. What makes this a great email marketing tool is its smart recommendations feature, which provides you with valuable audience insights to optimize your marketing efforts.
Designing emails on the platform is easy using the Content Manager, where you can store your images and files for easy access. Mailchimp lets you automate your emails at crucial steps of the buyer journey, so you can easily send out welcome emails, order confirmations, abandoned cart reminders and more.
Mailchimp content manager screenshot
- MailerLite
Sophisticated features like the landing page builder and the pop-up customizer make MailerLite stand out among free email tools in the market. In addition to the basics like the drag-and-drop email builder, the tool comes with a rich text editor and a built-in photo editor to create stunning emails.
MailerLite email customizer
You can create responsive landing pages to match the emails that you send, which will improve your chances of driving conversions. You can run split tests on different variations of your email to see what works best to drive clicks and conversions. MailerLite also provides you with a comprehensive campaign report that contains important stats like click rate, unsubscribe rate, open rate and more.
- Mailjet
Mailjet comes with intuitive and collaborative tools to help you build effective email marketing campaigns. Customize any of the pre-designed templates and create responsive emails to impress any recipient no matter which device they’re using. If you work with a team, you’ll love the platform’s real-time collaboration feature that allows for seamless collaboration.
This email marketing tool also lets you add dynamic content so you can create personalized and relevant emails for each recipient. This helps you get much better results out of your email marketing campaigns. You can also integrate the platform into your CRM and easily manage your mailing list through a single dashboard.
Mailjet contact statistics
- Moosend
Moosend is an excellent email marketing tool that lets you automate repetitive tasks and saves you time. You can design behavioral email campaigns based on your subscribers’ information and/or activities. You can use its advanced segmentation feature to send highly accurate emails to each recipient, increasing open rate and click-through rate as well as ROI.
This tool provides you with a detailed campaign performance report so you know exactly how to optimize your campaigns and get even better results. You can even integrate it with some of your favorite apps to seamlessly pass on vital information between different tools. It’s also one of the only free email marketing tools that won’t include its logo in your emails.
Moosend email performance report
- EmailOctopus
EmailOctopus is a simple email marketing tool that runs on the Amazon SES infrastructure. While the free plan doesn’t offer as many features as some of the other free email marketing tools on this list, it does allow a lot more emails per month than most of them.
You can send out unlimited emails from as many email addresses as you like. This makes it the perfect solution for a small agency or entrepreneur representing other brands. It also integrates with third-party apps like MailOptin, WordPress and Zapier so you can seamlessly exchange customer data between different tools.
EmailOctopus email performance report
Bottom line
Most of these free email marketing tools come with robust features even without the need to upgrade to a paid plan. Small businesses and marketers should be able to make the most of them while saving time and money. Even if you need to upgrade to accommodate your business needs, you’ll find that many of the paid plans are affordable and flexible enough to fit your budget.
Conclusion
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