Free Email Marketing Tools for Beginners (2026): Best Picks

Five free plans, compared plainly

If you’re starting an email list with no budget, a free plan is the obvious place to begin. The tricky part is that “free” means very different things from one tool to the next.

Some free plans let you hold thousands of subscribers but skip automations. Others include automations but cap you at a few hundred people. And almost all of them put their own branding on your emails.

I’ve gone through the official pricing and help pages for five tools that suit new creators: Kit, beehiiv, systeme.io, MailerLite and Brevo. Every limit and price below links to where I found it.

A quick, honest note: Some links on this site may be affiliate links. If you sign up through one, we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. I’ve stuck to what each platform’s own pages say and tried to keep this fair.

I’ve been writing on and off for about three years, mostly for my jobs. Lately I’ve started thinking about writing for myself, and that led me to newsletters. I’ve used Kit and beehiiv. My Kit days were a while back, though, so everything about Kit here comes from its current pages. I haven’t used the other three, so for those I’m going only by what their own sites say.

Quick picks

• You want the biggest free list: Kit. Up to 10,000 subscribers on free Kit.
• You want a newsletter with strong growth tools: beehiiv. Up to 2,500 subscribers, unlimited sends and a recommendation network on free beehiiv.
• You want to sell a course or product: systeme.io. Funnels, a course and 0% transaction fees on free systeme.io.
• You want automations on a free plan: MailerLite, systeme.io or Brevo, each with limits. Kit and beehiiv put automations on paid plans.
• You want to store lots of contacts but send rarely: Brevo. It stores up to 100,000 contacts but sends 300 emails a day Brevo help.

The free plans at a glance

	Kit	beehiiv	systeme.io	MailerLite	Brevo
Free list size	10,000 subscribers Kit	2,500 subscribers beehiiv	2,000 contacts systeme.io	250 subscribers MailerLite	100,000 stored contacts Brevo help
Sending limit	No sending limits Kit	Unlimited sends beehiiv	Unlimited sends systeme.io	2,500 emails a month MailerLite	300 emails a day Brevo help
Automations on free	No, paid plans only Kit help	No, from Lite beehiiv	1 rule and 1 email campaign systeme.io	Yes MailerLite	Yes, up to 2,000 contacts Brevo help
Landing pages	Unlimited Kit	Yes beehiiv	3 sales funnels systeme.io	1 landing page MailerLite	Not on free Brevo help
Remove their branding on free	No Kit	No beehiiv	No systeme.io help	No MailerLite	No Brevo help
First paid step	Creator, $39/month at 1,000 subscribers Kit help	Lite, $49/month billed yearly at 1,000 subscribers beehiiv	Startup, $17/month for 5,000 contacts systeme.io	Comfort, from $12/month MailerLite	Starter, from $9/month Brevo help

Prices are in US dollars, as shown on each site.

Each free plan, up close

Kit

Kit’s free plan is the roomiest for list size. You get up to 10,000 subscribers, unlimited forms and landing pages, unlimited email broadcasts, tagging, and the ability to sell digital products and subscriptions Kit help. There are no sending limits on any plan Kit.

The main catch: visual automations and email sequences need a paid plan Kit help. So you can send newsletters, but not an automatic welcome series. Removing Kit’s branding is also a paid feature Kit.

When free stops being enough: when you want automations, or once you pass 10,000 subscribers Kit help. Creator starts at $39/month for up to 1,000 subscribers Kit help, or $390 billed yearly Kit.

beehiiv

beehiiv’s free plan covers up to 2,500 subscribers with unlimited email sends, email templates, landing pages and its recommendation network beehiiv. The website, podcast, community and digital products tools are on every plan, free included beehiiv.

The main catch: automations and paid subscriptions start on Lite, and you can’t remove beehiiv branding until Pro beehiiv. The free plan also gives you 1 team seat and a 30-day analytics lookback beehiiv.

When free stops being enough: past 2,500 subscribers, or when you want automations or paid subscriptions. Lite is $49/month billed yearly at 1,000 subscribers beehiiv. beehiiv says it takes 0% of your paid subscription and digital product revenue, apart from Stripe’s processing fee beehiiv.

From my own time with it, beehiiv was easy to set up, has a lot of options, and does a good job helping you promote your newsletter. That’s also why I’d pick it if I were starting today. But its free list is a quarter the size of Kit’s, so it isn’t the best fit for everyone.

systeme.io

systeme.io is an all-in-one tool rather than a pure email app. Its free plan has 2,000 contacts, unlimited email sends, 3 sales funnels, 1 blog, 1 course with up to 500 students and 1 custom domain systeme.io. It takes 0% transaction fees on every plan systeme.io.

The main catches:

• Only 1 automation rule and 1 email campaign systeme.io.
• A $10,000 lifetime sales cap on free systeme.io terms.
• You must authenticate your own domain to send email. A Gmail or Yahoo address won’t work systeme.io help.
• Free accounts with no login or activity for 6 months are deactivated systeme.io.

When free stops being enough: when you need more automations, more than 2,000 contacts, or sales past $10,000. Startup is $17/month for 5,000 contacts systeme.io. Its plans aren’t refundable systeme.io terms.

MailerLite

MailerLite’s free plan includes campaigns, automations, a website, a landing page and signup forms, plus 2 user seats MailerLite. New accounts also get a 14-day trial of premium features MailerLite.

The main catch: it’s small. You get up to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails a month MailerLite. Removing the MailerLite logo is a paid feature MailerLite. Sending through the API isn’t included on free MailerLite.

When free stops being enough: as soon as you pass 250 subscribers. Comfort starts at $12/month billed monthly for up to 500 subscribers, or $10.80/month billed yearly MailerLite.

Brevo

Brevo’s free plan is unusual. It lets you store up to 100,000 contacts but caps sending at 300 emails a day Brevo help. It includes email campaigns, a drag-and-drop editor, templates and marketing automation for up to 2,000 contacts Brevo help.

The main catches:

• If a campaign goes to more than 300 people, only 300 get it that day. You resend the rest on later days Brevo help.
• Free emails always include the “Sent with Brevo” sticker Brevo help.
• Landing pages, popups and A/B testing aren’t on free Brevo help.
• Only one user Brevo help.

When free stops being enough: when 300 a day is too slow. Starter is from $9/month for 5,000 emails a month and up to 500 contacts Brevo help. Removing the logo on Starter is a $9/month add-on Brevo help. Note that Starter stores fewer contacts than free at that first tier.

What about Mailchimp?

Mailchimp has a free plan too, for businesses with fewer than 250 contacts Mailchimp. I left it out of the table on purpose. Its pricing page lists the free sending limit two different ways, and I couldn’t read its paid prices without the page’s calculator. I’d rather skip it than guess.

How to choose

Ask yourself three questions.

1. How many people do you expect in your first year? If it could be thousands, MailerLite’s 250 will feel tight fast. Kit’s 10,000 or beehiiv’s 2,500 give you more breathing room.

2. Do you need a welcome sequence right away? If yes, look at MailerLite, Brevo or systeme.io. Kit and beehiiv put automations on paid plans Kit help, beehiiv.

3. Are you selling something? systeme.io is built around funnels and courses systeme.io. Kit lets you sell digital products on free Kit help.

4. Do you have your own domain? systeme.io won’t send from a Gmail or Yahoo address, so you’d need a custom domain first systeme.io help. If you don’t have one yet, that’s a step to plan for.

And think about where you’ll be in a year. The cheapest first paid step on paper is Brevo’s $9 Starter, but it stores just 500 contacts at that tier Brevo help. systeme.io’s $17 Startup covers 5,000 contacts systeme.io. Compare at the list size you expect, not just the starting price.

What free plans usually don’t include

Across these five, here’s what tends to sit behind a paywall:

• Removing branding. None of the five let you remove their footer or badge on free.
• Full automations. Either none at all, or a small cap.
• Extra team members. Brevo allows one user on free Brevo help, beehiiv one seat beehiiv.
• Advanced reports. beehiiv’s free analytics look back 30 days beehiiv. Brevo’s free plan has basic stats only Brevo help.

Notes for Canadian creators

Here’s what I found on the official pages:

• Brevo supports pricing in CAD, with Starter listed at C$10/month Brevo. Its prices exclude tax, and it collects taxes where local rules require Brevo help.
• Kit lets you sell from Canada and in CAD. It collects VAT only, not Canada’s QST Kit help.
• systeme.io plan prices are in USD systeme.io. Its Stripe card payments support CAD systeme.io help.
• MailerLite shows prices in USD or EUR, which “may be subject to applicable taxes” MailerLite.

For GST/HST on what you sell, check with each platform and the CRA or an accountant.

FAQ

Which free email marketing tool gives you the most subscribers?

Of these five, Kit, with up to 10,000 subscribers on free Kit. Brevo stores up to 100,000 contacts, but you can only send 300 emails a day Brevo help.

Which free plan includes automations?

MailerLite and Brevo include automations on free, Brevo for up to 2,000 contacts MailerLite, Brevo help. systeme.io allows 1 rule and 1 email campaign systeme.io.

Can I remove the branding on a free plan?

Not on any of these five. Each one lists branding removal as a paid feature.

Can I switch tools later?

Yes. Kit and systeme.io both let you export your list as a CSV Kit help, systeme.io help. Starting free keeps the cost of switching low.

My honest take

There’s no single best free tool. It depends on what you need first.

If you want room to grow a list without paying, Kit’s free plan goes furthest. If you want automations from day one, MailerLite or Brevo will get you there, within tight limits. If you’re selling a course, systeme.io bundles the most.

I’d pick beehiiv if I were starting today, because of how much it helps with promotion. But that’s my preference, not the right answer for everyone.

Try beehiiv free

My advice? Pick the free plan that fits the next few months, and send your first email this week.

Prices and limits checked November 2, 2026, on each tool’s own website. Prices are in US dollars unless noted and can change, so please double-check before you sign up.