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.
What is an Email Newsletter Platform?
Email marketing platforms help you create, send, and automate the sending of promotional or informational emails. Think of it like your mission control center for all things email.
Email marketing service helps attract, engage, and convert website visitors into subscribers and, eventually, into customers.
Here’s what you can achieve through newsletter service providers:
- Design emails. Choose from a variety of templates or create custom designs that reflect your brand’s style and message easily;
- Schedule emails. Automate sending emails at predetermined times to keep subscribers engaged without manual intervention;
- Manage subscribers. Easy list management features to manage subscribers, including segmentation for targeted groups;
- Analytics and reporting. Gain insights into how your newsletters perform with critical metrics about subscriber behavior.
What to Look for in an Email Newsletter Platform
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.
Email Newsletters Platforms Comparison Table
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:
| Cost | Monthly Emails | Free Plan | Best Feature | |
| Sender | Starts at $15/month | Up to 30,000 emails/month | Yes | Drag-and-drop newsletter builder |
| Mailchimp | Starts at $20/month | Up to 6,000 emails/month | Yes | High email deliverability |
| ActiveCampaign | Starts at $15/month | Up to 10,000 emails/month | No (Free Trial Only) | Advanced automation |
| Constant Contact | Starts at $12/month | Up to 5,000 emails/month | No (Free Trial Only) | List growth tools |
| Campaign Monitor | Starts at $11/month | Up to 2,500 emails/month | Yes | Dynamic elements |
| Omnisend | Starts at $16/month | Up to 6,000 monthly emails | Yes | Premade templates |
| Brevo | $9/month | Up to 5,000 emails per month | Yes | Unlimited logs |
| Benchmark Email | $13/month | Up to 7,500 emails per month | No (Free Trial Only) | List management tools |
| Moosend | $7/month | Unlimited for up to 500 contacts | No (Free Trial Only) | Dynamic content tags |
| Mailjet | $17/month | Up to 1,500 emails per month | Yes | Readymade design blocks |
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
| Plan | Cost | Limits |
| Standard Plan | starts at $15/month | Up to 2,500 contacts and up to 30,000 emails/month |
| Professional Plan | starts at $29/month | Up to 2,500 contacts and up to 60,000 emails/month |
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
| Plan | Cost | Limits |
| Essentials | $13/month | Up to 500 subscribers; 5,000 emails per month |
| Advanced | $20/month | Up to 500 subscribers; 6,000 emails per month |
| Premium | $350/month | Up to 500 subscribers; 150,000 emails per month |
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 deliverability;
- Comprehensive reporting & analytics.
Pricing & Free Plan
| Plan | Cost | Limits |
| Essentials | $15/month | Email sends 10x contacts |
| Advanced | $49/month | Email sends 10x contacts |
| Premium | $79/month | Email sends 12x contacts |
There’s no free plan, however you can try out all the features during a 14-day free trial.
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
| Plan | Cost | Limitations |
| Lite | $12 per month | Up to 500 contacts and 10x contact tier allowance; |
| Standard | $35 per month | Up to 500 contacts & 12x contact tier allowance |
| Premium | $80 per month | Up to 500 contacts and 24x contact tier allowance |
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
| Plan | Cost | Limits |
| Lite | $11/month | Up to 500 subscribers. Time zone sending and countdown timers not available. |
| Essentials | $27/month | Up to 500 subscribers. No sending time optimization. |
| Premier | $147/month | Up to 500 subscribers. Everything unlocked. |
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
| Plan | Pricing | Limits |
| Free | $0/month | Up to 250 contacts and 500 emails/month |
| Standard | $16/month | Up to 500 contacts and 6000 emails/month |
| Pro | $59/month | Up to 2500 contacts and unlimited emails |
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
| Plan | Cost | Limits |
| Starter | $9/month | 500 contacts; 5,000 emails/month |
| Business | $18/month | 500 contacts; 5,000 emails/month |
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:
1. 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
| Plan | Pricing | Limits |
| Free | $0/month | Up to 500 contacts and 3,500 emails/month |
| Pro | $13/month | Up to 500 contacts and 7,500 emails/month |
Benchmark Email’s free plan allows you to send 3,500 emails monthly to up to 500 subscribers.
2. 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
| Plan | Pricing | Limits |
| Pro | $7/month | Up to 500 contacts and unlimited emails |
Moosend’s trial allows you to try all core features for 30 days.
3. 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
| Plan | Pricing | Limits |
| Free | $0/month | Up to 1,500 contacts and 6,000 emails/month |
| Pro | $17/month | Up to 1,500 emails/month and unlimited contacts |
| Pro | $27/month | Up to 1,500 emails/month and unlimited contacts |
Mailjet’s free plan allows you to send 6,000 emails monthly to up to 1,500 subscribers.
Newsletter Platforms FAQs
What key features should a newsletter platform have?
Here are the key features of a good newsletter platform:
- Ease of use. Drag-and-drop editors, intuitive interface.
- Design & customization. Attractive templates, branding options.
- List management. Easy import/export, segmentation capabilities.
- Content creation. Rich text editor, image/video hosting.
- Scheduling & automation. Pre-schedule emails, automated workflows.
- Analytics & reporting. Open rates, click-throughs, subscriber growth.
- Integrations. Connection with your website, social media, etc.
- Deliverability. Features that avoid spam filters.
- Support. Helpful resources and responsive customer service.
Which newsletter platform offers the best value for small businesses?
There are many newsletter platforms to choose from, however, your best choice is Sender. It offers the best value for small businesses with powerful features and generous free plans that don’t even require credit card details.
You get unlimited automation, beautiful templates, and detailed analytics – everything needed to grow your audience affordably.
What are the top platforms for automating newsletters?
Several platforms excel at automating newsletters, including Mailchimp, ActiveCampaign, and Constant Contact.
However, Sender stands out as the best overall choice, especially for small to medium-sized businesses. It offers robust automation features, intuitive design, and excellent deliverability at a competitive price point.
Which platform is best for newsletters?
The best platform for newsletters depends on your specific needs and budget. Popular options include Omnisend, known for its simplicity, and Brevo (formerly Sendinblue), which offers a generous free plan.
However, for a powerful combination of features, ease of use, and affordability, Sender consistently ranks as the top choice for businesses of all sizes. Its intuitive drag-and-drop editor, robust automation capabilities, and detailed analytics make it a complete email marketing solution.
What is the best program to create a newsletter?
While you can create newsletters in email clients like Gmail, for the best results, use a dedicated newsletter platform like Sender. It offers pre-designed templates, automation, analytics, and features to ensure successful delivery and engagement.
What is replacing newsletters?
Nothing is truly replacing newsletters. While social media and other channels are important, email newsletters remain a direct and effective way to communicate with your audience and build lasting relationships.
Why use a newsletter platform?
Newsletter platforms offer tools and features that basic email clients lack, like professional templates, automation, list management, analytics, and improved deliverability – all essential for effective email marketing.
That wraps up our software overview! If you’re curious to learn more, go ahead and check out some of our top articles:
