If you are looking for the cheapest email marketing platform in 2026, the honest answer depends on how many contacts you have and how often you send. At 15,000 contacts sending roughly 50,000 emails per month, the platforms rank roughly: MailerLite Growing Business at $25/month, Brevo Business at around $29/month, Mailblast paired with your own Amazon SES at about $30/month total, and Mailchimp Standard at $185/month (AWS, 2026; Email Vendor Selection, 2026). Mailblast + SES retakes the lead past 25,000 contacts, because SES charges a flat $0.10 per 1,000 emails regardless of list size while traditional ESPs price per contact.
This guide ranks the cheapest options at four volume tiers, explains the pricing models that make some platforms look cheap until they aren't, and tells you when "cheap" stops being a useful word.
How to actually compare email marketing costs
Comparing email marketing pricing is harder than it looks because vendors price on different axes. Mailchimp and MailerLite price by contact count. Brevo and Amazon SES price by emails sent per month. The two models cross at roughly 3-4 sends per contact per month - below that, send-based pricing wins; above it, contact-based pricing wins. According to Brevo's pricing documentation, a Brevo Business plan at $29/month covers 20,000 emails, which is the same effective rate as MailerLite Growing Business at 15,000 subscribers if you send twice a month.
The other thing wrecking quick comparisons is the gotcha layer. Every platform has one:
- Mailchimp bills for unsubscribed contacts since April 2024 (Sender, 2024)
- Brevo Starter shows the Brevo logo unless you pay $9/month extra
- MailerLite's free plan caps you at 500 contacts and includes platform branding
- SES has no marketing UI - the $0.10/1k is delivery only
The fair comparison is total cost at your real volume with the features you actually need. Branding removal, automation, A/B testing, and segmentation each unlock at different tiers on different platforms, so the headline "starts at $9" rarely matches your invoice.
The cheapest options ranked, with honest commentary
Across the four volume tiers most small and mid-sized businesses sit in - 500, 5,000, 15,000, and 50,000 contacts - here is what each platform actually costs per month, assuming roughly 3-4 sends per contact:
| Platform | 500 contacts | 5,000 contacts | 15,000 contacts | 50,000 contacts | Pricing model |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mailblast + SES | $0 (free tier) | ~$15 + $1.50 | ~$25 + $5 | ~$40 + $20 | Subscription + $0.10/1k |
| MailerLite | $0 (free, 500 cap) | $15/mo | $25/mo | $89/mo | Per contact, unlimited sends |
| Brevo Business | $0 (300/day cap) | $18/mo | $29/mo | $99/mo | Per send volume |
| Mailchimp Standard | $20/mo | $100/mo | $185/mo | $450/mo | Per contact (incl. unsubs) |
| Mailchimp Essentials | $13/mo | $69/mo | $135/mo | $355/mo | Per contact, branding stays |
Plotted on a chart, the difference at higher volumes is stark:
The ranking shifts by tier: MailerLite is cheapest in the 5,000-25,000 contact range, Mailblast paired with SES is cheapest at the free tier and again past 25,000 contacts, Brevo is competitive if you send infrequently to a large list, and Mailchimp Standard costs roughly 6-8x the cheapest option at the same list size.
Mailblast + Amazon SES: the BYO-SES math
Amazon SES charges $0.10 per 1,000 emails regardless of how many contacts are in your list, with no monthly minimum and no contract. That is the single cheapest per-email rate available from any reputable infrastructure provider in 2026, and it does not change as you scale. The reason most marketers do not use it directly is that SES is a raw SMTP API - there is no list management, no templates, no automation, and no analytics dashboard.
Mailblast is the management layer on top of your own SES account. You pay Mailblast a subscription, on a 32-rung ladder from $10/month (1,000 contacts) to $255/month (500,000 contacts), for the marketing UI, automation, lists, templates, and BeeFree drag-and-drop editor, and SES bills you directly for delivery. The combined cost at 10,000 contacts sending roughly 50,000 emails per month works out to about $20 (Mailblast) + $5 (SES) = $25/month total.
What you get for that:
- Drag-and-drop email editor (BeeFree)
- Full automation builder on every paid rung (not on free)
- No platform branding on sent emails, from the $10/month rung up
- Customer's own SES means full deliverability ownership
Where the BYO-SES model gets uncomfortable:
- You manage your own AWS account, including the production access request
- Bounces, complaints, and reputation are yours - SES will pause you if rates climb
- You need to handle the SES sandbox warmup (we cover this in Amazon SES pricing)
For teams that already run on AWS or have a technical operator, this is the cheapest sustainable email marketing setup available. For a non-technical solo founder who wants a "click and send" experience, MailerLite is closer to that experience at a slightly higher price.
MailerLite: the cheapest traditional ESP
MailerLite Growing Business starts at $10/month for the entry tier, runs roughly $15/month at 5,000 subscribers, $25/month at 15,000, and $89/month at 50,000 subscribers (MailerLite pricing, 2026). The free plan handles up to 500 subscribers with platform branding, so most paid users start at the Growing Business tier once they cross that cap. It is the cheapest hosted ESP that does not require you to manage your own infrastructure. Unlimited monthly sends are included on Growing Business, which makes the per-send economics excellent for high-frequency senders.
MailerLite's free plan is generous on emails (12,000/month) but caps contacts at 500 and forces a "Sent with MailerLite" footer. The free tier exists to convert you to Growing Business once your list grows, which is the standard freemium pattern and not a knock against the platform.
Where MailerLite is genuinely cheaper than competitors:
- 5,000-15,000 contact range, where most growing newsletters sit
- Single-user accounts (more seats are bundled at $20+/month on Advanced)
- High-frequency senders (3+ campaigns per week)
Where it stops being cheapest:
- Past 50,000 contacts, where the per-contact curve catches up to Brevo and overshoots Mailblast + SES
- If you need 5+ user seats, the Advanced plan jumps the base price
MailerLite is the best non-SES option if you do not want to touch AWS.
Brevo: volume-based pricing for large lists with infrequent sends
Brevo Business starts at $18/month for 5,000 emails and scales to $29/month for 20,000 emails and $129/month for 100,000 emails (Brevo pricing, 2026). Brevo prices by emails sent rather than by contact count, which means you can store up to 100,000 contacts on the free plan and only pay for the volume you send. For a list of 50,000 subscribers that you email twice a month (100,000 sends), Brevo Business at $129/month is roughly the same as MailerLite at that subscriber count - but if you only send to engaged segments of 10,000 people twice a month, you stay on the $29 tier.
Brevo Starter looks cheaper at $9/month, but the Brevo logo stays in your footer unless you pay $9/month for removal, making the real Starter price $18/month - identical to Business at the same volume. Few teams should stay on Starter for long.
Where Brevo wins on cost:
- Large lists with low send frequency (one campaign per month or less)
- Teams that segment heavily and only send to small portions of the list
- Multi-channel use cases (email + SMS + WhatsApp) where the platform pays for itself
Where Brevo gets expensive:
- High-frequency senders (3+ campaigns per week to the full list)
- Heavy automation workloads where every triggered email counts toward your monthly pool
Mailchimp: premium pricing for the brand
Mailchimp Standard runs about $20/month at 500 contacts, $100/month at 5,000, $185/month at 15,000, and $450/month at 50,000 contacts (Email Vendor Selection, 2025). At every tier, Mailchimp is 3-10x the cheapest comparable option. Since April 2024, Mailchimp bills for all contacts including unsubscribed ones, which inflates costs by 15-40% for lists with normal churn (Sender, 2024).
The honest case for paying Mailchimp's premium:
- Industry-leading template library and editor
- Strongest e-commerce integrations (especially Shopify, WooCommerce)
- Mobile app with full campaign creation - rare in the market
- Brand familiarity for marketing teams used to it
The honest case against:
- Costs roughly 6-10x Mailblast + SES at 15,000 contacts
- Costs roughly 5-7x MailerLite at the same tier
- Forces "Sent with Mailchimp" branding on Free and Essentials, requiring Standard ($45+/month) to remove
If price is the deciding factor, Mailchimp is rarely the answer in 2026. If brand, integrations, or mobile app workflow are deciding factors, the premium can be defensible.
Where cheaper options get expensive
Every cheap platform has a transition point where you stop saving money:
- Free tiers end when you cross the contact cap. Mailblast's free plan covers 1,000 contacts and 10,000 emails per month (no automation sends); most others cap at 500-2,500. See our free email marketing tools comparison for the full breakdown.
- MailerLite Growing Business stays cheap up to about 25,000 contacts, then the per-contact pricing curves up and Mailblast + SES pulls ahead.
- Brevo Business is cheap if you email infrequently. Cross 100,000 sends per month and the price climbs sharply.
- SES sandbox limits apply until you request production access. New AWS accounts ship with 200 emails/day and 1/second; expect 24-48 hours for production approval.
- Add-ons can double a headline price. Dedicated IPs ($30-$145/month), branding removal ($9/month on some plans), SMS credits, and overage fees are all common.
The general rule: cheapest at 500 contacts is not cheapest at 50,000 contacts. Re-evaluate at every list-size doubling.
Recommendation by sending volume tier
Based on the cost data above, here is the cheapest sensible choice for each tier:
- 0-1,000 contacts, low send volume: Mailblast free plan. 1,000 contacts, 10,000 emails/month, no automation sends, "Sent with Mailblast" footer.
- 1,000-5,000 contacts: MailerLite Growing Business at $15/month, or Mailblast paid from $10/month + minimal SES cost. MailerLite is slightly cheaper at the low end here but Mailblast wins on automation depth and unbranded sending.
- 5,000-25,000 contacts: MailerLite Growing Business is the cheapest sustainable option if you don't want to touch AWS. Mailblast + SES is close behind and pulls ahead once you cross roughly 25,000 contacts.
- 25,000-100,000 contacts: Mailblast + SES takes the lead and extends the cost gap. Brevo Business is competitive if you send infrequently. MailerLite stays in the running if you do not want to touch AWS.
- 100,000+ contacts: Mailblast + SES is essentially the only option that does not require a five-figure annual budget. Even at 500,000 sends per month, SES delivery is $50.
For most growing newsletters and SaaS teams above 25,000 contacts, Mailblast + SES delivers the cheapest total cost of ownership in 2026. Below that, MailerLite is the cheapest single hosted platform if you don't want to manage AWS. Mailchimp is rarely the cheapest choice at any tier.
FAQ
What is the cheapest email marketing platform in 2026?
At 15,000 contacts and around 50,000 monthly sends, MailerLite Growing Business is cheapest at $25/month, Brevo Business is close at around $29/month, and Mailblast paired with the customer's own Amazon SES runs about $30/month total (~$25 Mailblast + ~$5 SES at $0.10 per 1,000 emails). Mailchimp Standard runs $185/month. Mailblast + SES pulls back ahead above 25,000 contacts, where the flat SES rate beats per-contact and per-send tiers.
Is Amazon SES really the cheapest way to send email at scale?
Yes, for the raw delivery cost. SES charges $0.10 per 1,000 emails with no contact-based fees (AWS, 2026). At 100,000 emails per month that is $10. The catch is SES is a raw SMTP API, not a marketing platform - you need a layer like Mailblast on top for lists, automation, templates, and analytics, or you build all of that yourself. Even with a management layer, the combined cost stays well below traditional ESPs above 20,000 contacts.
Why is Mailchimp so much more expensive than the alternatives?
Mailchimp prices by total contact count including unsubscribed contacts (a policy change in April 2024) and has not adjusted its tier curve to match cheaper challengers like MailerLite or Brevo. Standard plan runs about $135/month at 10,000 contacts, $310 at 25,000, and $800 at 100,000 (Email Vendor Selection, 2025). You pay for the brand, the template library, and the integrations - not for cheaper delivery.
Does free email marketing software actually save money long-term?
Only at small scale. Most free tiers cap at 500-2,500 contacts and a few thousand sends, then convert you to a paid plan at the worst moment - when your list is growing. Mailblast's free plan covers 1,000 contacts and 10,000 emails per month with no automation sends; the first paid rung is $10/month for that same 1,000 contacts. Compare lifetime cost at your projected list size, not the first month.
What hidden fees should I watch for when picking a cheap ESP?
Five common ones: charging for unsubscribed contacts (Mailchimp post-2024), platform branding removal as a paid add-on (Brevo Starter, MailerLite free), dedicated IPs ($30-$145/month extra on most platforms), SMS credits on top of email plans (Brevo), and overage charges for going over monthly send limits. Always price the plan with the features you actually need - the headline number is rarely the real number.
Disclosure: Mailblast (the publisher of this blog) is a hosted management layer for Amazon SES. We have included MailerLite, Brevo, and Mailchimp in this ranking based on their public pricing as of September 2026 and have priced Mailblast against the same volume tiers using the same methodology.