11 Top Newsletter Platforms for Marketers & Small Businesses

Your newsletter design drastically affects the chances of success of an email marketing campaign. Most email platforms come with features to help you design an email.

But which platform has the best newsletter builder features? 

In this blog, we cover the most intuitive email builders to design beautiful email newsletters to help you pick the right newsletter platform for your business. Let’s begin. 

How to Choose the Best Platform for Your Needs

Choosing the right platform is essential for successful email marketing efforts. Not only should it be aligned with your marketing plans, but it should offer email marketing features that make it easy to create and send beautiful newsletter campaigns.

Here are some tips to remember: 

• Pick something that suits your needs and goals; 
• Decide based on how many subscribers you want to manage; 
• The platform should be user-friendly;  
• It should be affordable as you scale 
• It should have insightful analytics capabilities. 

Considering all the above tips, here are the key features to look for in online newsletter platforms:

• Drag-and-drop editor. The drag-and-drop interface lets you design newsletters quickly without coding; 
• Responsive design options. Responsive design makes your newsletters look great on all devices, from desktops to smartphones; 
• Template variety and customization. The platform should offer customizable templates to match your brand’s aesthetics; 
• Personalization tools. To help you tailor messages based on subscriber data, enhancing relevance and engagement; 
• Integration capabilities. Integrations with CRM and other tools for automating workflows. 

Top Newsletters Platforms – A Quick Roundup

Before diving into the specifics of different platforms, let’s compare some of the best email newsletter platforms available, focusing on options that cater to everyone — from small businesses to enterprises. 

The following table provides a quick snapshot of major email marketing tools and their pricing plans, helping you identify the perfect fit for your needs and budget:

Best Newsletter Platforms for Marketers

You’ve landed at the right place if you’re searching for the best email newsletter platforms. We’ve curated a list of email newsletter services you can use to send beautiful and professional newsletters.

Here’s the list that includes free newsletter platforms and paid platforms: 

1. Sender — Best Email Marketing Software

Sender has a powerful email builder that helps you design responsive emails without coding knowledge. It has many valuable features to make your newsletter design journey faster and easier. 

• Drag-and-drop builder; 
• Countdown timer block; 
• Built-in image editor. 

Ratings: Capterra: 4.6 | G2:  4.4 | Shopify:  4.3

Sender’s drag-and-drop builder is created for non-designers. Use ready-made design elements like email countdown timers and product blocks to create interactive emails that make subscribers want more. 

You can also use its free responsive templates, so you don’t have to start from scratch. Plus, you can use its powerful segmentation features to personalize your subject line and email copy. 

Use its powerful automation builder to automate all your email newsletters, lead nurturing, and transactional emails. 

Also read: What is Customer Segmentation? Definition, Examples & Tools

The intuitive dashboard and responsive human support make it easy for beginners to leverage their full potential without wasting time trying to figure things out. 

Features

• Drag-and-drop email builder;
• Readymade templates & design blocks; 
• Visual automation builder; 
• Custom fields for personalization; 
• Behavioral triggers and automation. 

Pricing & Free Plan

Use the free forever plan to send up to 15,000 monthly emails to 2,500 subscribers. Set up automation workflows, segment subscribers, and use the email builder without restrictions.

Email design is your top priority? Then check out our list of 15 free email template builders + HTML editors.

2. Mailchimp — Great Newsletter Automation Software

Mailchimp is a popular player in a popular email marketing automation software with a robust newsletter builder. You can create personalized emails using the drag-and-drop builder easily. 

• Drag-and-drop builder with templates; 
• AI writer for assisting with email copy; 
• Mix and match content blocks. 

Ratings: Capterra:  4.5/5 | G2:  4.3/5 | Shopify: 3.3/5

Mailchimp lets you create beautiful campaigns using premade templates or HTML templates. You can then use its drag-and-drop functionality to start customizing the design. Its design builder helps you customize the experience on mobile and desktop separately, pick layouts, and add ready-to-use design blocks. 

Once you’re done designing, you can schedule or automate the email campaigns using its automation builder. The tool also has all the basic features of any other email marketing tool. 

Features 

• Pre-designed templates and layouts;
• Audience segmentation and personalization; 
• Automated campaign flows; 
• Creative design assistant powered by AI; 
• Dynamic product recommendations. 

Pricing & Free Plan 

The free plan is useful only for sending up to 1,000 emails per month to a list of up to 500 subscribers. 

3. ActiveCampaign — Advanced Email Marketing Tool for CRM

ActiveCampaign has advanced features that are particularly beneficial for businesses looking to leverage the power of Customer Relationship Management (CRM). 

• Advanced automation workflows;
• CRM features for detailed contact management;
• Built-in sales and marketing automation.

Ratings: Capterra: 4.6/5 | G2: 4.5/5 | Shopify: 4.4/5

With ActiveCampaign, you can segment your contact list based on detailed demographics, behaviors, and engagement, allowing for highly personalized email campaigns that resonate with individual subscribers. 

Beyond segmentation, ActiveCampaign empowers you to automate your marketing efforts based on subscriber actions and preferences. Imagine welcoming new subscribers with a tailored onboarding sequence or sending targeted product recommendations based on past purchases. 

Key Features

• Advanced automation;
• Built-in CRM;
• Email segmentation & personalization;
• Powerful email deliverability;
• Comprehensive reporting & analytics.

Pricing & Free Plan

There’s no free plan, however you can try out all the features during a 14-day free trial. 

Newsletter Platforms for Ecommerce Stores

4. Constant Contact — Email Newsletter Platform with Signup Forms

Constant Contact is particularly well-suited for businesses focused on growing their audience.

• Intuitive drag-and-drop email editor;
• Pre-designed templates;
• Built-in tools for list growth.

Ratings: Capterra: 4.3/5 | G2: 4.0/5 | Shopify: 3.0/5

One of this top newsletter platform’s standout features is the seamless integration of signup forms, making it easy to expand your reach and capture leads directly from your website or social media channels.

Beyond list building, Constant Contact empowers you to nurture those valuable subscribers with engaging email campaigns. You’ll find intuitive tools for designing visually appealing newsletters, automating welcome series, and tracking the performance of your email marketing efforts.

Key Features

• Email marketing automation; 
• Event management;
• List-building tools;
• Real-time reporting & analytics;
• Surveys & polls.

Pricing & Free Plan 

While Constant Contact doesn’t offer a free plan, you can explore its full potential risk-free with a 14-day free trial.  During the trial, you’re free to choose any plan based on your needs, whether that’s determined by how many subscribers you have or your desired email-sending volume.

5. Campaign Monitor — Feature-Rich Newsletter Creator 

Campaign Monitor has many unique features to make your newsletters more engaging and interactive for subscribers. 

• One-click builder from URL; 
• Access to Unsplash images; 
• Dynamic elements like countdown. 

Ratings: Capterra:  4.5/5 | G2:  4.1/5 | Shopify:  NA

You can create personalized email newsletters with dynamic elements like countdown timers and customize your emails through custom fields. Plus, the drag-and-drop editor comes with a template library. 

Campaign Monitor also offers a team template manager so you can collaborate with different members on design, content, and other specifics. It also lets you create light and dark modes for a single email campaign. 

Features 

• Liveclicker for hyper-personalized campaigns; 
• Vast & customizable template library; 
• Segmentation features; 
• Marketing automation builder; 
• AI writer. 

Pricing & Free Plan 

You can use a free plan to send emails to just five subscribers. It’s mainly for testing and demo purposes. 

6. Omnisend — User-Friendly Email Marketing Platform

Omnisend shines as a user-friendly email marketing platform specifically designed to support the needs of an ecommerce store. 

• Omnichannel marketing automation;
• Pre-built ecommerce workflows;
• Integration with ecommerce platforms.

Ratings: Capterra: 4.7/5 | G2: 4.5/5 | Shopify: 4.7/5

Omnisend seamlessly integrates with popular ecommerce platforms, pulling in customer data and purchase history to enable highly targeted and personalized email campaigns. 

Beyond its intuitive interface, Omnisend simplifies email campaign management with pre-built automation workflows tailored to common ecommerce goals, like recovering abandoned carts or welcoming new customers.

Key Features

• Robust segmentation & targeting;
• Intuitive newsletter design tools;
• Popups & signup forms;
• Pre-built automation workflows.

Pricing & Free Plan 

Omnisend’s free plan allows you to send 500 emails monthly to up to 250 subscribers.

Also read: 20 Newsletter Popup Examples (Email Subscription)

7. Brevo — Powerful Email Editor with Library of Templates 

Brevo offers a drag-and-drop email editor and a vast template library for businesses to create responsive email campaigns. 

• 50+ free email templates; 
• Drag-and-drop email builder; 
• Email preview feature. 

Ratings: Capterra 4.5 | G2 4.5 | Shopify 2.6 

With Brevo, you can have professional-looking emails that look great on all devices. You can use its readymade email templates to create emails for any occasion or promotional campaign. 

Plus, it comes with AI features to generate subject lines and newsletter content. You can also optimize the sending times based on subscriber engagement. Also, you get all the features of a standard email marketing platform, like automation, SMS marketing, push notifications, WhatsApp marketing, etc. 

Features 

• Readymade design blocks; 
• AI-powered writer; 
• Advanced analytics; 
• Email and SMS automation; 
• Form builder. 

Pricing & Free Plan 

Brevo’s free plan allows users to send up to 300 emails daily and includes basic features such as email templates and an editor. For advanced features, you’re required to sign up for a paid subscription. It also has larger plans with unlimited subscribers for big companies. 

Also read: SMS Campaigns: Complete Text Marketing Guide + Examples

Top Free Newsletter Platforms for Small Businesses

As a small business just starting with newsletter creation tools, you’ll be happy to know that building an effective email strategy doesn’t have to break the bank! 

There are excellent free newsletter platforms available that provide all the features you need to integrate newsletters into your digital marketing strategy seamlessly:

8. Benchmark Email — Essential Email Marketing Features

For small businesses seeking robust features without the hefty price tag, Benchmark Email emerges as a top contender among email automation platforms. Its free plan goes beyond the basics, providing a surprisingly comprehensive set of tools to kickstart your email marketing efforts.

• Builder with pre-designed templates;
• Basic email automation features;
• List management tools.

Ratings: Capterra: 4.3/5 | G2: 4.3/5 | Shopify: 1.0/5

Don’t let the “free” tag fool you; Benchmark doesn’t skimp on functionality. You’ll have access to a plethora of basic features, empowering you to create professional campaigns and track their performance.

Key Features

• Basic email automation features;
• List management tools;
• Signup forms & pop-ups;
• Reporting and analytics;
• A/B testing.

Pricing & Free Plan 

Benchmark Email’s free plan allows you to send 3,500 emails monthly to up to 500 subscribers.

9. Moosend — Email Marketing and Automation Features

Moosend emerges as a strong contender among free newsletter platforms, offering a combination of email marketing and automation features suitable for small businesses. 

• Intuitive drag-and-drop email editor;
• Pre-designed email templates;
• Email automation workflows.

Ratings: Capterra: 4.6/5 | G2: 4.6/5 | Shopify: NA

Moosend’s intuitive interface and drag-and-drop editor make it easy to craft visually appealing email campaigns, even for users with limited design experience. 

Beyond email, it provides tools to enhance your marketing efforts, including the ability to create landing pages for lead capture and campaign-specific promotions. 

Key Features

• Intuitive drag-and-drop email editor;
• Variety of pre-designed email templates;
• Email automation workflows;
• Subscription form builder;
• List Segmentation;
• Landing page builder.

Pricing & Free Plan 

Moosend’s trial allows you to try all core features for 30 days.

10. Mailjet — Newsletter Software with Transactional Emails

Mailjet is a versatile email platform catering to marketing and transactional email needs, making it a practical choice for small businesses seeking a single solution for all their email communication.

• Intuitive email editor;
• Contact management tools;
• Transactional email capabilities.

Ratings: Capterra: 3.8/5 | G2: 4.0/5 | Shopify: NA

Users will appreciate the intuitive drag-and-drop email editor, pre-designed templates, and contact management tools. 

The seamless integration of transactional emails, such as order confirmations and password resets, makes Mailjet a convenient platform for businesses handling both marketing and operational communications.

Key Features

• Email automation;
• Real-time collaboration;
• A/B testing;
• Advanced statistics and reporting;
• Deliverability optimization.

Pricing & Free Plan 

Mailjet’s free plan allows you to send 6,000 emails monthly to up to 1,500 subscribers.

11. Beehiiv — Popular Platform for Content Creators

Beehiiv gets that what a content creator needs. They’ve built a platform specifically designed to help you grow and monetize your audience. 

• Website integration;
• Content-focused design;
• Robust analytics;
• Post scheduling & automation.

Ratings: Capterra: 4.6 | G2: 4.7 | Shopify: N/A

You can easily integrate Beehiiv with your website so people can sign up for your newsletter right there. Plus, their analytics go beyond the basics, showing you what content really resonates with your readers so you can create more of what they love.

But Beehiiv goes further than just sending emails. They help you build a community. Readers can comment directly on your posts, and you can even offer exclusive content through paywalls.

However, this laser focus on content creators means Beehiiv lacks some features traditional email marketing platforms offer. If you need advanced marketing automation or want to send more promotional-heavy emails, Beehiiv might not be the best fit.

Key Features

• Integrated commenting system;
• Paywalls & subscription options;
• Referral program tools;
• Customizable branding;
• Mobile optimization;
• Dedicated support team.

Pricing & Free Plan

Beehiiv’s free Launch plan allows users to send unlimited emails to up to 2,500 subscribers, providing essential tools like a custom website, custom newsletters, campaign analytics, and up to three publications

Newsletter Platforms FAQs

What is an email marketing platform?

An email newsletter platform is a newsletter service that allows you to create, send, and manage email newsletters. Think of it as your all-in-one email newsletter tool for executing your email marketing strategy. These platforms or apps go beyond basic email by providing newsletter management features like:

• Design templates. Easily create visually appealing newsletters without design skills;
• List management. Organize your subscribers and segment them for targeted campaigns;
• Automation. Schedule emails and set up automated sequences based on subscriber behavior;
• Performance tracking. Analyze open rates, click-through rates, and other metrics to improve your campaigns.

Which newsletter platform is the best value for small businesses?

While many online newsletter platforms exist, Sender stands out as the best value for small businesses. Why? Because it offers a powerful suite of features at an incredibly competitive price point. 

With Sender, you get:

• Drag-and-drop editor: Effortlessly design stunning newsletters;
• Advanced segmentation: Target the right subscribers with the right message;
• Automated workflows: Nurture leads and drive conversions on autopilot;
• Detailed analytics: Track your progress and make data-driven decisions.

Sender’s intuitive interface and affordable pricing make it the ideal newsletter subscription platform for businesses of all sizes, especially those just starting with email marketing.

What are the top newsletter platforms for automating newsletters?

Several digital newsletter platforms excel in automation, making it easy to send timely and relevant emails to your subscribers. Here are a few top contenders:

• Sender. Offers powerful automation features like welcome emails, abandoned cart reminders, and personalized product recommendations.
• Omnisend. Provides a user-friendly interface and robust automation capabilities for small businesses.
• ActiveCampaign. A more advanced option with sophisticated automation workflows for sales and marketing automation.

That wraps up our software overview! If you’re curious to learn more, go ahead and check out some of our top articles:

• 12 Best Free Newsletter Websites in 2024
• Email Newsletter Software: 7 Providers You Should Consider
• 12 Low-Cost Email Marketing Platforms for Savvy Marketers

About author

Emily Austin

Author

Sender

Emily is a content manager who has dipped her toes in almost all fields of marketing, including PR, social media, email, and ecommerce. She loves perfecting digital content, ensuring everything is polished and ready to go live.

Writer - Vesta Oldenburg