7 Best Constant Contact Alternatives for Email Marketing in 2026
Constant Contact has no free plan, a dated UI, and prices that climb with every contact you add. Here are 7 alternatives.
Pick in 30 seconds
- Want a real free plan: MailerLite (1,000 subs) or Mailchimp (500 subs).
- Big list, small budget: Brevo, charges by email volume, not contacts.
- Advanced automation: ActiveCampaign.
- Creator with courses or products: Kit (formerly ConvertKit).
- Need outreach, not newsletters: MentionAgent, $99/mo flat.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Best For | Starting Price | Free Plan | Pricing Model |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MentionAgent | Automated outreach | $99/mo | No | Flat rate |
| MailerLite | Budget email marketing | ~$10/mo | Yes (1,000 subs) | Contact-based |
| Brevo | Large lists | ~$25/mo | Yes (300/day) | Email volume |
| Mailchimp | All-in-one marketing | ~$13/mo | Yes (500 subs) | Contact-based |
| ActiveCampaign | Advanced automation | $15/mo (1k contacts) | 14-day trial | Contact-based |
| Kit (ConvertKit) | Creators & bloggers | ~$29/mo | Yes (1,000 subs) | Contact-based |
| HubSpot | CRM + email | ~$20/mo | Yes (limited) | Contact-based |
1. MentionAgent
Best for: Automated outreach (link building, PR, partnerships)
Not an email marketing tool. If you're here because you need to reach bloggers, journalists, or partners (not send newsletters), MentionAgent handles the full outreach workflow: finding sites, looking up contacts, writing personalized emails, and following up.
- AI finds and qualifies prospects in your niche
- Every email is personalized to the recipient's content
- Built-in deliverability optimization
- Pricing: $99/mo flat, no per-contact or per-seat fees
2. MailerLite
Best for: Cheap email marketing with a real free plan
Free up to 1,000 subscribers (Constant Contact has no free plan), paid from ~$10/month. Cleaner, more modern UI. See our MailerLite review and pricing breakdown.
- Free plan for up to 1,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails/month
- Drag-and-drop email and landing page builder
- Marketing automations on all plans
- Website builder and blog included
- Pricing: Free / ~$10/mo (Growing Business) / ~$21/mo (Advanced)
3. Brevo (formerly Sendinblue)
Best for: Large contact lists (charges by sends, not contacts)
Unlimited contacts on every plan, including free. You pay for email volume, so a 50k list costs the same as a 5k list if you send the same number of emails. Free tier: 300 emails/day.
- Unlimited contacts on all plans (including free)
- Transactional emails, SMS, and WhatsApp marketing
- Marketing automation and CRM included
- Free plan: 300 emails/day
- Pricing: Free / ~$25/mo (Starter, 20K emails) / ~$65/mo (Business, 20K emails)
4. Mailchimp
Best for: All-in-one marketing with the biggest integration ecosystem
The main head-to-head competitor. Similar pricing at entry level, but Mailchimp has a permanent free plan up to 500 contacts and a stronger integration marketplace. See our Mailchimp review and pricing guide.
- Free plan for 500 contacts and 1,000 emails/month
- 300+ native integrations (Shopify, WooCommerce, Salesforce, etc.)
- Landing pages, social posting, and basic CRM included
- Pricing: Free / ~$13/mo (Essentials) / ~$20/mo (Standard)
5. ActiveCampaign
Best for: Advanced marketing automation
Visual workflows, conditional branching, and a deeper CRM than Constant Contact's. Pick this if you've hit the wall on what Constant Contact Standard can automate. Read the ActiveCampaign review.
- Visual automation builder with unlimited actions on Plus+
- Built-in CRM with sales automation
- Predictive sending and content (Pro+)
- Site tracking and lead scoring
- Pricing: $15/mo Starter, $59/mo Plus, $99/mo Pro (all at 1,000 contacts), see the full plan breakdown
6. Kit (formerly ConvertKit)
Best for: Content creators, bloggers, and course creators
Built for creators who make a living from content, courses, and digital products. Subscriber-centric approach with simple automation and built-in commerce.
- Free plan for up to 1,000 subscribers
- Visual automation builder designed for creators
- Commerce features: sell digital products and subscriptions
- Landing pages and forms with no design skills needed
- Pricing: Free / ~$29/mo (Creator) / ~$59/mo (Creator Pro)
7. HubSpot Email Marketing
Best for: Teams that want CRM and email marketing in one platform
HubSpot's email marketing is part of its larger Marketing Hub. If you already use HubSpot CRM (free), adding email connects lead capture directly to nurture sequences.
- Free email marketing with HubSpot CRM (2,000 emails/month)
- Drag-and-drop editor with personalization tokens
- Deep CRM integration for targeted campaigns
- Forms, live chat, and landing pages included
- Pricing: Free / ~$20/mo (Marketing Hub Starter) / ~$890/mo (Professional)
You have a small business with 800 subscribers and want a free email marketing plan. Constant Contact has no free plan. Which alternative works?
Correct! MailerLite's free plan covers 1,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails/month, which fits 800 subscribers comfortably. Mailchimp and Kit also offer permanent free plans worth considering.
MailerLite has the most generous free plan at 1,000 subscribers. ActiveCampaign only offers a 14-day trial, and HubSpot Professional is a paid tier.
You run events and need invitations, RSVPs, and ticketing built in. Constant Contact has this. Does any alternative match that?
Correct! Native event management is one of Constant Contact's differentiators. Alternatives don't match it directly, but most integrate with Eventbrite or similar ticketing platforms.
Constant Contact's built-in event tools (RSVPs, tickets) aren't standard in other email tools. Most alternatives rely on Eventbrite or similar integrations instead.
Why people switch from Constant Contact
- No free plan. Constant Contact offers a 60-day trial but no permanent free tier. MailerLite, Mailchimp, Brevo, and Kit all offer free plans for small lists.
- Pricing scales with contacts. Like most platforms, costs grow as your list grows. Brevo charges by email volume instead, which can be cheaper at scale.
- Dated interface. The UI feels older than most newer competitors. MailerLite and Kit have more modern, streamlined builders.
- Basic automation. Constant Contact's automation is simpler than ActiveCampaign or Mailchimp Standard. If you need branching workflows or behavioral triggers, look elsewhere.
- No cold email support. If you need outreach (not marketing), Constant Contact won't work. MentionAgent handles automated outreach for link building and PR.
How to choose the right alternative
| If you need... | Choose |
|---|---|
| Cheapest email marketing with a free plan | MailerLite |
| Large list, low cost | Brevo (charges by sends) |
| All-in-one marketing platform | Mailchimp |
| Advanced automation | ActiveCampaign |
| Creator-focused tools | Kit (ConvertKit) |
| CRM + email in one | HubSpot |
| Automated outreach (not marketing) | MentionAgent |
You want to reach out to bloggers for backlink partnerships. None of these email marketing tools allow cold outreach. What should you use?
Correct! Email marketing tools prohibit cold outreach. MentionAgent ($99/mo) is purpose-built for outreach, it finds blogs, looks up contacts, and handles personalized emails and follow-ups.
Email marketing platforms prohibit cold outreach. For link building, you need a dedicated outreach tool. MentionAgent automates the full workflow from prospect finding to follow-ups.
Need outreach, not newsletters?
MentionAgent finds relevant blogs, looks up contacts, writes personalized pitches, and follows up. You just approve the emails. $99/mo flat, no per-contact pricing.
Start Getting Mentioned For $99/moFrequently asked questions
What is the best alternative to Constant Contact?
It depends on your needs. For budget email marketing, MailerLite. For large lists, Brevo. For creators, Kit (ConvertKit). For advanced automation, ActiveCampaign. For outreach instead of marketing, MentionAgent.
What is cheaper than Constant Contact?
MailerLite starts around $10/month with a free plan up to 1,000 subscribers. Brevo is free with 300 emails/day and charges by send volume, not contacts. Mailchimp's entry price is similar to Constant Contact's but includes a permanent free plan.
Does Constant Contact have a free plan?
No. Constant Contact offers a 60-day free trial but no permanent free tier. For a forever-free plan, consider MailerLite, Mailchimp, Brevo, or Kit.
Can I use Constant Contact alternatives for cold outreach?
Is Mailchimp or Constant Contact better?
They cover similar ground. Mailchimp has a permanent free plan up to 500 contacts and more integrations. Constant Contact has native event management (RSVPs, ticketing) and phone support on all paid plans. Pick Mailchimp for a free starter plan, Constant Contact for events and guided support.
Can I import my Constant Contact list into another tool?
Yes. Export your contacts from Constant Contact as a CSV, then import into MailerLite, Mailchimp, Brevo, or ActiveCampaign using their standard import tools. Most platforms also publish guided migration docs for Constant Contact specifically.
Do Constant Contact alternatives offer a nonprofit discount?
Yes, most do. Mailchimp, MailerLite, and Brevo all offer nonprofit discounts on paid plans (typically 15-30%). Constant Contact itself also discounts nonprofit plans when prepaid annually, so compare discounted prices before switching.