Best Free Email Marketing Software in 2026 (What Survived)
Almost every guide to free email marketing software you’ll find today is quoting limits that no longer exist.
That isn’t laziness. It’s that 2026 has been the year the free tier collapsed across every free email marketing software provider worth naming, with four significant cuts between January and September, and most articles get written once and updated never.
Here’s what actually survived, with dates, and which free email marketing software still gives you a working product rather than a demo.
Table of contents
What got cut in 2026, and when
This is the section no other free email marketing software comparison gives you, and it’s the reason their numbers are wrong. Dates below are cross-checked against vendor pricing pages and the independently maintained change log at EmailToolTester.
| Date | Platform | What changed |
|---|---|---|
| January 2026 | Mailchimp | Free cut to 250 contacts, 500 emails/month, automation removed entirely |
| 16 June 2026 | MailerLite | Free cut from 500 subscribers and 12,000 emails to 250 and 2,500. Paid prices raised across every tier |
| 13 August 2026 | MailerLite | Free accounts capped at 3 automations, 3 forms, 1 landing page, 1 website |
| 17 August 2026 | Benchmark | Free plan limits reduced |
| 3 September 2026 | Kit | Automations removed from the free plan |
Limits sourced from public pricing pages and change logs, September 2026. This category is moving faster than published comparisons can keep up with, which is exactly the problem this page exists to solve. Check the vendor’s own page before committing, including against anything written here.
The pattern is consistent. Platforms are keeping the word “free” while hollowing out what it contains, and the feature that gets removed first is almost always automation. That matters, because free email marketing software without automation is a newsletter sender, not a marketing tool.
The best free email marketing software in 2026
The best free email marketing software in 2026 is Sender, which allows 2,500 subscribers and 15,000 monthly emails with automation included. EmailOctopus is the strongest runner-up, Brevo suits large dormant lists, and MailerLite still offers the widest feature set on a free plan despite the smallest allowance.
Some links below are affiliate links. It doesn’t change what you pay, and it doesn’t decide what we recommend. How we make money.
| Tool | Free subscribers | Free monthly emails | Automation free? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sender | 2,500 | 15,000 | Yes |
| EmailOctopus | 2,500 | 10,000 | Yes, 3 workflows |
| Brevo | Effectively unlimited | 300/day, ~9,000 | Limited |
| GetResponse | 500 | Unlimited sends | No |
| MailerLite | 250 | 2,500 | Yes, 3 max |
| Mailchimp | 250 | 500 | No |
Verified September 2026. Read the automation column first: it’s the one that decides whether a plan is usable.
How we assessed this free email marketing software: MailerLite and Systeme.io we’ve set up and used. Sender, EmailOctopus, Brevo and GetResponse are researched rather than run in production, meaning documentation, pricing pages and user reviews at volume. See how we test software.
1. Sender: the most generous plan left
2,500 subscribers, 15,000 emails a month, automation and segmentation included.
Ten times MailerLite’s subscriber allowance and six times its sending limit, with automation, segmentation, landing pages, popups and transactional email all available at zero cost. No credit card, no expiry.
In a year when everyone else pulled back, Sender didn’t, and that alone makes it the most useful free email marketing software available right now.
We’re not in Sender’s affiliate programme, or EmailOctopus’s. They’re at the top of this page because the numbers put them there. The tools further down do pay us, which is exactly why we’ve told you where they lose.
The catch: Sender branding appears on every email sent from this free email marketing software plan, and there’s no built-in CRM at any tier. Enterprise pricing is quote-only, so very large lists mean a sales conversation rather than self-serve checkout.
Right for you if you want the largest working free tier and can live with branding. Wrong for you if your emails need to look entirely your own from day one.
2. EmailOctopus: cheapest when you outgrow free
2,500 subscribers, 10,000 emails a month, three automation workflows.
Nearly as generous as Sender among free email marketing software, and the upgrade path is where it wins. Ten thousand subscribers and 100,000 monthly sends costs around $40 a month, which Zapier’s testing also found to be the cheapest scaling in this category.
That matters more than the free allowance itself. Choosing free email marketing software is really choosing what you’ll pay in two years, and most people never check that number.
The catch: the three free workflows are basic compared to what competitors offer, and the drag-and-drop editor remains clunky despite a recent visual update. It works, it just isn’t pleasant.
Right for you if you expect to grow past the free tier and want the softest landing. Wrong for you if you’ll be designing campaigns daily.
3. Brevo: free contacts, capped sending
Effectively unlimited contacts, 300 emails a day.
Brevo is the only free email marketing software here priced by sending rather than list size, which inverts the whole comparison. Storing contacts costs nothing, so if you’ve accumulated thousands over years of business and mail them occasionally, this is the obvious choice.
Three hundred a day works out around 9,000 emails a month, generous by free email marketing software standards. Fine for a segment, useless for mailing a large list weekly.
The catch: the daily cap means one campaign to 2,000 people takes a week to go out. Removing Brevo branding costs around $11 a month, which is more than the entry paid plan itself, and landing pages sit behind a higher tier.
Right for you if your list is large and dormant. Wrong for you if you send regularly.
4. MailerLite: most features, smallest allowance
250 subscribers, 2,500 emails a month, 3 automations, 3 forms, 1 landing page, 1 website.
MailerLite still packs more distinct features into free email marketing software than anyone: automation, forms, a landing page and a website builder. The allowance behind them is now the problem.
Two cuts in three months took it from 500 subscribers and 12,000 emails down to 250 and 2,500, then added caps on automations and forms. Most comparison articles still quote the pre-June numbers.
Where it earns its place is what happens next. Paid plans start around $12 with full automation included, and the editor is the best in this group. If you know you’ll pay eventually, starting here avoids a migration later. Our MailerLite vs GetResponse comparison covers that decision in detail.
The catch: 250 subscribers is the smallest allowance in this free email marketing software comparison and it arrives fast, and MailerLite screens new accounts manually, rejecting some.
5. GetResponse: unlimited sending, small list
500 contacts, unlimited monthly sends, no automation.
Double Mailchimp’s contact allowance and no sending cap at all, which is rare in free email marketing software, which makes it the pick if you mail a small list frequently. GetResponse also runs a 30-day trial of paid features without requiring a card, so you can test automation properly before deciding.
The catch: no automation on free, and real automation lives on the $59 Marketer plan rather than the $19 entry tier. GetResponse also issues no refunds at all, so use the trial properly.
6. Systeme.io: free plan that isn’t only email
Free plan with funnels, courses and checkout alongside email.
Worth naming because it solves a different problem. If you need to sell something rather than just send newsletters, no free email marketing software on this page includes a checkout and a course host. Systeme.io does.
The catch: one automation rule on free, which is the tightest limit here. Our Systeme.io review explains why that’s the ceiling that actually stops people.
Free plan or free trial? They’re not the same
A large share of articles listing free email marketing software include tools offering a 14-day trial and describe them as free. They are not. A trial ends, takes your card, and starts charging. Everything on this page is a permanent free plan with no expiry and no card required at signup.
Before you commit a list to anything, check for two things: an expiry date, and a card field at signup. Either one means it’s a trial.
The second thing worth checking is how the free email marketing software plan is capped. Some limit contacts, some limit monthly sends, some do both. A plan capping sends but not contacts suits small active lists. A plan capping contacts but not sends suits infrequent large campaigns. Picking the wrong shape costs more than picking the wrong brand.
Which one fits your situation
Starting from zero
Sender. The largest working free email marketing software tier, automation included, nothing expires.
Growing steadily
EmailOctopus. Nearly as generous free, and the cheapest bill when you outgrow it.
Old list, rare sends
Brevo. Contacts cost nothing, so storing thousands of dormant addresses is free.
You’ll pay eventually
MailerLite. Smallest free allowance, best paid experience, no migration later.
Small list, frequent sends
GetResponse. Unlimited sending on free, though automation needs a paid tier.
Selling a product
Systeme.io. Checkout and course hosting included, which no email tool here offers.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free email marketing software right now?
Sender, on the numbers. It allows 2,500 subscribers and 15,000 monthly emails with automation, segmentation, landing pages and popups included, which no other permanent free plan matches in September 2026. EmailOctopus is close behind at 2,500 subscribers and 10,000 emails with three workflows. Both carry branding on free sends. If you need contacts rather than volume, Brevo’s model of free storage with a daily send cap suits large dormant lists better.
Is Mailchimp still free?
Technically, but barely. The free plan now covers 250 contacts and 500 emails a month with a 250-per-day cap, and automation was removed entirely. In 2022 the same plan allowed 2,000 contacts and 10,000 emails. Mailchimp also continues billing for unsubscribed and inactive contacts unless you archive them manually, which most competitors don’t do. As free email marketing software it’s now among the weakest options rather than the default one.
Why did free plans get worse in 2026?
No vendor has published a detailed explanation. What’s observable is the pattern: Mailchimp cut in January, MailerLite twice in June and August, Benchmark in August, Kit in September. The feature removed first is almost always automation, which is the one that converts free users into paying ones. Rising deliverability and infrastructure costs are the usual industry explanation, though none of these companies has stated it directly.
Can I run a business on free email marketing software?
Up to a point, and that point is automation rather than list size. Sending campaigns manually to 2,000 people is perfectly viable. What free plans increasingly remove is the ability to trigger sequences automatically, which is where most of the value sits. If your welcome email and purchase follow-up both need to fire on their own, budget for a paid plan at roughly $10 to $15 a month.
Should I choose free software with no upgrade path?
Be careful with lifetime deals from newer platforms. They’re usually offered by companies building a user base, and the risk is real: pricing changes, features get restricted, or the company is acquired, and migrating a list is always painful. A generous ongoing free tier from an established provider is the safer bet for long-term free access than a one-time purchase from someone unproven.
When is free no longer worth it?
When branding on your emails starts costing you credibility, or when you’re building workarounds to avoid a limit. If you find yourself splitting a campaign across three days to stay under a daily cap, the time you’re spending exceeds the $12 you’d pay. Free plans are for validating that people want to hear from you. Once they clearly do, paying is cheaper than the workaround.
The verdict
- Sender has the strongest free email marketing software plan available today: 2,500 subscribers, 15,000 emails, automation included.
- EmailOctopus if you expect to outgrow free, because $40 for 10,000 subscribers is the cheapest landing.
- Brevo if you’re storing a big list you rarely mail.
- MailerLite if you know you’ll pay eventually and want the best editor.
- Check every list you read against the vendor’s own page. Half the numbers published today predate the 2026 cuts.
More on this: Mailchimp alternatives covers what to do if you’re already paying, and the freelancer guide looks at the same question from a solo business angle.
