The best email newsletter software of 2026: Expert tested

Brevo is the most accessible entry point for businesses new to email marketing. I was impressed by how quickly I could set up campaigns using its drag-and-drop editor, even without applying any complex design knowledge. You won’t get lost in complex menus or overwhelming feature sets here.

Brevo lets you combine email with SMS and WhatsApp campaigns from a single dashboard. This becomes really valuable as your marketing strategy evolves beyond email. Its website tracking feature automatically triggers emails based on user behavior, which is great because it also lets you set up transactional emails at this price.

The free plan’s 300 daily emails (9,000 monthly) is genuinely useful, not just a teaser. I tested this plan in quite some detail and found it sufficient for most small businesses starting their newsletter journey. When you’re ready to scale, paid plans start at just $9 monthly, making it one of the most cost-effective solutions available.

Core functionality is great, but this one lacks some advanced features found in pricier alternatives. The template library feels limited compared to competitors, analytics could be more detailed, and it’s not built with monetization in mind. Yet for businesses prioritizing affordability and ease of use, these limitations can be easily overlooked.

Brevo features: Basic email automation | SMS marketing | Landing page builder | Contact management features | Website visitor tracking | Transactional emails | SMTP relay

Omnisend is purpose-built for e-commerce, something it wears proudly on its sleeve. I liked the prebuilt customer segments, options like “high potential buyers” and “frequent store visitors” that made targeting effortless. This platform integrates seamlessly with Shopify, WooCommerce, and other major e-commerce platforms, pulling in customer data from everywhere in real time.

I also tested its abandoned cart workflows, which were incredibly sophisticated. Conditional splits adjust messaging based on cart value. And you can combine email, SMS, and push notifications in a single workflow to deliver a cohesive customer experience across touchpoints.

You also get the full depth of e-commerce-specific analytics tools. You can track not just email performance but also revenue attribution and customer lifetime value. It shows exactly which campaigns are driving sales, making it easy to optimize your strategy based on impact over vanity metrics and gut feelings.

The main drawback here is the scaling cost. Omnisend becomes expensive as your subscriber list grows, starting at $16 monthly for just 500 contacts. The free plan is comparatively limited at 250 contacts and 500 monthly sends. But for e-commerce businesses serious about email marketing, you’ll get a good ROI.

Omnisend features: Behavioral triggers | Product recommendations | Cart abandonment | SMS integration | Push notifications | Advanced segmentation | E-commerce analytics

Kit (formerly ConvertKit) is categorically a creator-focused newsletter platform, built for influencers rather than businesses. Its email editor basically works like a website builder — you click the plus button and add elements rather than dragging and dropping. It’s great when you’re building narratives rather than designing layouts, because you get the full breadth of creative freedom.

Monetization works great, too. I tested the paid subscription setup, which integrates very easily with Stripe Payment Processing. You can sell digital products, run paid newsletter editions, and manage subscriber contributions all within the same platform. This eliminates the need for multiple tools and simplifies your creator workflow a ton.

Kit’s free plan is remarkably generous with up to 10,000 subscribers with unlimited emails. However, there’s a catch — you’ll need to display recommendations for other newsletters when people subscribe. (Not necessarily the best play for competitive businesses, but it works fine for influencers who don’t mind showing their fellow creators some support.)

But Kit’s emphasis on minimalist aesthetics and text-forward design can be limiting if you want visually rich newsletters. While Kit recently added 15 visual themes, the aesthetic remains quite simple compared to other platforms with rich branding options.

Kit features: Digital product sales | Paid subscriptions | Landing pages | Audience segmentation | Creator network | Automation sequences | Payment processing

Beehiiv was created by the team behind Morning Brew, a popular business newsletter that’s been running since 2015. These people designed and ran a newsletter for a whole decade, so they know all about the little things that can make your workflows pleasant. Creating newsletters feels effortless. Its prestyled canvas comes with heading tags, buttons, and content tiles. You can simply start populating it with your content.

Beehiiv has a huge focus on growth mechanics. Its referral program feature lets you incentivize readers to invite friends, creating viral growth loops that most platforms don’t offer. Many users say that it’s quite effective for organic audience expansion. Its platform also includes an ad network that lets you monetize your newsletter through sponsored content.

Analytics are impressively detailed, going beyond basic open rates to show engagement by specific segments. You can track which growth tactics are working and optimize accordingly. Multilingual support for six languages opens up global audience opportunities that most competitors don’t match.

Beehiiv’s generous free plan supports up to 2,500 subscribers, which is more than most alternatives. However, as a newer platform, it lacks some integrations that established competitors offer. The learning curve is also steeper than simpler alternatives, though the advanced features justify the complexity for serious newsletter creators.

Beehiiv features: Referral programs | Advanced analytics | Multilingual support | Ad network | Premium subscriptions | Custom domains | Audience insights

Substack takes a radically different approach to the other platforms on this list. It’s a publishing platform that doubles as both a blogging tool and a newsletter. Every newsletter automatically becomes a blog post, so you can leverage both email and SEO. Its dual publishing approach is a hit among independent journalists and authors, who get to own their audience segment without tying themselves to one platform.

Monetization is beautifully simple. When you’re ready to start offering paid subscriptions, just set your price. Substack handles everything else and takes a 10% cut of your earnings. It’s great for new creators who are just beginning to build an audience, since you don’t have any other fees or charges to deal with. But it can get expensive when you really rack up an audience.

Substack also removes all technical barriers to publishing, for better or worse. The writing interface is clean and distraction-free, letting you focus entirely on content creation. There’s no need to worry about design, hosting, or payment processing — everything just works. But if you want to have a really distinct brand aesthetic, this platform is not for you.

There’s no automation, A/B testing, or advanced segmentation. Analytics are basic compared to dedicated email platforms, though you can integrate with Google Analytics. There’s also a social discovery tool that lets creators and their audiences give likes, have conversations, or recommend each other. But on the downside, Substack is not the most SEO-optimized if you’re going to be serious about search.

Substack features: Paid subscriptions | Web publishing | Discovery network | Comments system | Podcast hosting | Mobile app | SEO optimization

Email marketing platforms typically focus on promotional campaigns, sales funnels, and customer acquisition. Newsletter software emphasizes content publishing, subscriber engagement, and building long-term reader relationships through regular content delivery.

Most platforms offer free tiers for small lists (500-2,500 subscribers) and paid plans starting around $9 to $29 per month. Costs scale with subscriber count, but pricing models vary. Some charge per contact, while others price by email volume sent.

Most reputable platforms allow CSV exports and imports of subscriber data. However, you’ll need to rebuild automation workflows, templates, and custom segments when switching, which can take significant time depending on complexity.

Modern newsletter platforms use drag-and-drop editors that require no coding knowledge. Most offer professional templates you can customize with your content, colors, and branding without technical expertise.

Extremely important. Poor deliverability means your content never reaches subscribers’ inboxes. Established platforms with good sender reputations typically achieve 95%+ deliverability rates, while newer or cheaper services may struggle with spam filters.