Brevo (formerly known as Sendinblue) is an email marketing tool that has recently evolved into a comprehensive marketing and sales platform. It now includes additional features such as CRM, website chatbots, and SMS marketing. Additionally, it allows you to send transactional emails via SMTP or API.
Though Brevo is excellent for email marketing, it does have some drawbacks, such as the additional payment required to remove their logo from emails and a complex user interface due to the addition of several features.
Best Brevo alternatives
Free tier comparison
| Tool | Free Tier (max subscribers) | Free Tier (max emails) |
|---|---|---|
| Brevo | No capping | 300/day |
| EmailOctopus | 2,500 | 10,000/mo. |
| HubSpot | 1,000,000 | 2,000/mo. |
| MailChimp | 500 | 1,000/mo. |
| Mailerlite | 1,000 | 12,000/mo. |
| Constant Contact | Not available | Not available |
| Drip | Not available | Not available |
| Beehiiv | 2,500 | No capping |
| ConvertKit | 1,000 * ConvertKit has a free plan option with higher limits that requires you to allow advertised recommendations – this is explained in more detail below | No capping |
Paid plan comparison
| Tool | Pricing/mo. (500 subscribers) | Pricing/mo. (10K subscribers) |
|---|---|---|
| Brevo | Starts at $9 | Starts at $39 |
| EmailOctopus | $9 | $40 |
| HubSpot | Starts at $20 | Starts at $410/mo. |
| MailChimp | Starts at $13 | Starts at $110 |
| Mailerlite | Starts at $10 | Starts at $73 |
| Constant Contact | Starts at $12 | Starts at $120 |
| Drip | $39 | $154 |
| Beehiiv | Starts at $39 | Starts at $99 |
| ConvertKit | Starts at $29 | Starts at $119 |
Pros and cons
| Tool | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| Brevo | 1. Inbuilt CRM 2. Supports SMTP relay 3. No contacts limit 4. Ability to run SMS & WhatsApp campaigns too | 1. Basic paid plans need to have Brevo logo in the emails, else you’d have need to pay extra for an addon to remove the logo 2. Has a feature-rich dashboard which can be overwhelming for beginners |
| EmailOctopus | 1. Easy to use 2. Very affordable (up to 70% less than alternatives) 3. No hidden costs. All features included | 1. Zapier integrations required for Ecommerce |
| HubSpot | 1. Inbuilt CRM 2. Multiple sales specific features 3. Extensive landing page builder | 1. Built to works as a CRM and customer support tool, not the best choice solely for marketing emails 2. Steep learning curve |
| MailChimp | 1. A/B testing 2. Inbuilt basic CRM 3. Mobile app | 1. Dashboard feels cluttered due to multiple feature addons 2. Regular price increases with no grandfathering |
| Mailerlite | 1. Inbuilt email validator 2. Feature rich landing page builder 3. Monetisation options 4. Ability to collect subscribers offline | 1. Has multiple plans which means that several features are not available in the basic plans 2. Landing page builder has a slight learning curve |
| Constant Contact | 1. Social media integration 2. Event management 3. AI assistance | 1. UI is cluttered due to several additional features 2. Some segmentation features only available on higher tiers |
| Drip | 1. A/B testing 2. Large collection of email and form templates 3. Native integration with ecommerce platforms | 1. Drip is built for ecommerce so many of it’s features are not useful in general use cases 2. Users have reported Drip having a learning curve |
| Beehiiv | 1. Unlimited emails in all plans 2. Easy to use text editor 3. Hosted emails as blogs 4. Monetisation options | 1. Limited features for email marketing 2. Only has basic email automation |
| ConvertKit | 1. Creator network (feature to let to cross-promote your newsletter) 2. Feature rich landing page builder 3. Monetisation options | 1. Focused towards creator economy, might not be the best choice for other domains/industries |
Best use case and ratings
| Tool | Best for | User Rating (data from GetApp) |
|---|---|---|
| Brevo | Businesses looking for multiple solution under a single tool (email marketing, CRM & customer support) | 4.5 |
| EmailOctopus | Small/medium businesses and newsletter writers | 4.7 |
| HubSpot | Startups and enterprises who are sales heavy | 4.5 |
| MailChimp | Startups and enterprises | 4.5 |
| Mailerlite | Small/medium businesses and startups | 4.7 |
| Constant Contact | Ecommerce and medium sized businesses | 4.3 |
| Drip | Ecommerce businesses | 4.4 |
| Beehiiv | Creators and writers | N/A |
| ConvertKit | Creators and writers | 4.7 |
EmailOctopus
EmailOctopus focuses on providing an easy-to-use email marketing tool with all the essential features while keeping the prices affordable and transparent.
You get all the essential features like drag and drop email builder, no-code signup forms, automated emails and much more at a fraction of the cost versus alternatives.
Features:
- Easy to use drag and drop email builder
- List segmentation
- No-code signup, popup forms and landing pages
- Email automation
- Zapier and Make integrations
EmailOctopus is a popular Brevo alternative that’s been used by over 80,000 businesses and individuals for their newsletters and email marketing activity.
Pricing:
Free for upto 2500 subscribers, with paid plans starting from $9/mo.
HubSpot
HubSpot offers a suite of products for inbound marketing, sales, and customer service. It includes tools for email marketing, social media management, content management, analytics, and customer service automation.
Features:
- Email automation
- Segmentation
- Forms & landing Pages
- Inbuilt CRM
- Added customer support tools
Pricing:
Has free plan with a generous contact limit with restricting limits on number of emails. Paid plans start at $20/mo.
Mailchimp
Mailchimp is one of the most popular and well-known email marketing tools and has been for many years. They used to have a generous free plan of 12,000 emails to 2,000 subscribers per month and were known for their affordability. However, in 2023 they increased their prices three times and have reduced their free plan to a maximum of 1,000/month or 500/day with a 500 subscribers limit.
So, although Mailchimp remains a good email marketing platform, we’d recommend checking out all the other great alternatives to find the best fit for you.
Features:
- Email automation
- Segmentation
- Forms & landing Pages
- Dynamic content
- A/B testing
Pricing:
Has a free plan that’s good enough for testing, but not suitable for real life use cases. Paid plans start at $13/mo.
MailerLite
MailerLite is another popular email marketing platform, known for providing good tools at an affordable price. Despite a price increase in 2023, it’s still a great option if you need extra features like a comprehensive landing page builder.
Features:
- Easy to use drag and drop email builder
- List segmentation
- No-code signup and popup forms
- Extensive landing pages builder
- Email automation
- Zapier and Make integrations
MailerLite offers many additional features, like a native payment gateway and locked content. However, these extras can sometimes distract from the core service of email marketing. If you need these extra features and don’t mind paying a bit more, MailerLite could be a good choice.
Pricing:
A generous free plan exists, and paid plans start at $10/mo.
Constant Contact
Constant Contact started off as an email marketing tool, but as of 2024, they have expanded into a full-fledged marketing communications platform. They now offer SMS marketing, social media marketing, and marketing automation.
Features:
- Email automation
- List segmentation
- Forms & landing pages
- Dynamic content
- A/B testing
- AI assistant
Constant Contact is a feature-rich tool, but it’s best if you need all its features. If not, a simpler email marketing tool like EmailOctopus might be a better fit.
Pricing:
No free plan exists, and paid plans start at $12/mo.
Drip
Drip started as a popup tool and has evolved into an email marketing platform. It’s designed to integrate seamlessly with Shopify and includes all the features needed to scale your ecommerce business.
Features:
- Email automation
- List segmentation
- Large popup template collection
- Dynamic content
- A/B testing
Pricing:
Has no free tier, and paid plans start at $39/mo.
Beehiiv
Beehiiv is an email marketing and content platform built for creators and authors. It’s ideal for sending newsletters, but if you have broader email marketing needs, other tools may be better for you.
Features:
- Basic email editor
- List segmentation
- No-code hosted signup and popup forms
- Zapier integrations
Pricing:
Has a generous free plan and paid plans starts at $39/mo.
ConvertKit
ConvertKit is an email marketing tool focused on the creator economy, aiming to empower individual creators to build and monetise newsletters successfully. All its features are designed to help creators grow.
Features:
- Easy to use drag and drop email builder
- List segmentation
- Natively supports paid newsletters
- Extensive landing pages builder
- Email automation
- Zapier and Make integrations
- Monetise your newsletter with paid recommendations and ads
If you’re a creator, ConvertKit is an excellent choice. The only downside might be it’s pricing, especially if you’re not using all its premium features.
Pricing:
Has a generous free plan and paid plans starts at $29/mo.
Frequently asked question
What is Brevo used for?
Brevo is a comprehensive digital marketing platform designed to help businesses manage their email marketing campaigns, automation, SMS marketing, and customer relationships.
Is Brevo a CRM?
Yes, Brevo includes CRM (Customer Relationship Management) functionalities. It allows businesses to manage and analyze customer interactions and data throughout the customer lifecycle, with the goal of improving customer service relations and assisting in customer retention.
Can EmailOctopus be a Brevo replacement?
If you’re looking for a tool to meet your email marketing needs, EmailOctopus can certainly serve as a Brevo replacement. However, for other requirements such as CRM and transactional email, Brevo remains the better choice.
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