Best Constant Contact alternatives in 2026, ranked by what they cost as your list grows
Constant Contact gets expensive as the list grows and has no free plan. Four alternatives that price differently, including one that bills by emails sent rather than contacts stored.
Verdict
Brevo is the strongest replacement because it bills by emails sent rather than contacts stored, which is the exact cost that makes Constant Contact expensive. AWeber is free to 500 subscribers. ActiveCampaign wins on automation.
The shortlist
Number 1: Brevo
Best pricing modelBills by emails sent, with unlimited contacts even on the free plan. If your list is big but your sending is modest, this inverts the cost structure that makes Constant Contact painful.
From Free, then from about $9/moBest for A large list that you email occasionallyVisit Brevo(opens in a new tab)Number 2: AWeber
Best free planA permanent free plan covering 500 subscribers and around 3,000 emails a month, from an established provider. Constant Contact has no free tier at all, so this alone is a reason to switch for a small list.
From Free to 500, then about $12.50/moBest for A small newsletter that should not cost anything yetVisit AWeber(opens in a new tab)Number 3: ActiveCampaign
Best automationFar deeper automation than Constant Contact offers at any tier. The catch is that the $15 Starter plan caps automations at five actions, so the real entry point is $49 a month.
From From $15/mo, realistically $49Best for Email that drives revenue through behaviour-triggered sequencesRead the full reviewVisit ActiveCampaign(opens in a new tab)Number 4: MailerLite
Cheapest paid tierAround $9 a month at 1,000 subscribers billed annually undercuts almost everything here. Worth knowing that MailerLite cut its free plan to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails a month, and raised paid prices, so it is no longer the free-plan pick it once was.
From From about $9/mo annualBest for A budget-first switch, if you are paying anywayVisit MailerLite(opens in a new tab)
Why people leave Constant Contact#
Two reasons, and they are both about money rather than quality.
There is no free plan. The trial runs 14 to 30 days and caps you around 100 test sends. Every other tool on this list has some free route.
The price scales on contacts stored. Standard runs about $12 a month at the Lite tier and $35 at 500 contacts, reaching roughly $110 at 5,000 and climbing from there. That is fine if you email your list constantly. It is a poor deal if you have a big list you contact monthly.
Constant Contact's genuine strength is that it is the easiest of these tools to learn. If that is what you are paying for and it is working, none of the below is an upgrade. Our Constant Contact review covers where it earns its price.
1. Brevo, if your list is large and your sending is not#
Unlimited contacts
On the Brevo free plan
Capped at 300 emails a day instead. The opposite constraint to Constant Contact's.
This is the pick that actually changes the arithmetic rather than shaving a few dollars off it.
Brevo bills by emails sent. Contacts are unlimited, including on the free plan, which allows 300 emails a day. Paid plans start around $9 a month and step up by monthly send volume.
Work out which side of the trade you sit on:
| Your situation | Better model |
|---|---|
| 20,000 contacts, one email a month | Brevo, by a wide margin |
| 500 contacts, daily sends | Constant Contact or a per-contact tool |
| Growing list, occasional campaigns | Brevo |
| Small list, heavy automation | ActiveCampaign |
Most small businesses with a Constant Contact bill they resent are in the first row.
2. AWeber, if the list is small and should be free#
AWeber's free plan covers up to 500 subscribers and around 3,000 emails a month, permanently. Not a trial. From an established provider with a long deliverability track record.
That is roughly six full sends a month to a 500-person list, which is more than most small businesses do. When you outgrow it, paid starts around $12.50 a month billed annually.
The limitation is real: AWeber's automation stays basic at every tier. If your email plan is a newsletter and a welcome sequence, that is not a problem. If it is anything more, see the next one.
3. ActiveCampaign, if the automation is the point#
The only tool here that is meaningfully more capable than Constant Contact rather than just cheaper. Branching logic, behaviour triggers, conditional content, proper segmentation.
Also worth knowing: accounts opened after November 2025 are billed on total contacts including unsubscribed and bounced addresses. Clean your list regularly. We go through the full cost picture in our ActiveCampaign review, and put it head to head with AWeber in ActiveCampaign vs AWeber.
4. MailerLite, cheapest if you are paying anyway#
Around $9 a month at 1,000 subscribers billed annually, which undercuts nearly everything on this list.
It used to be the free-plan recommendation too. That changed: MailerLite cut its free tier from 1,000 subscribers and 12,000 monthly emails down to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails, and raised paid prices across every tier by roughly 10 to 30 percent.
It is still the cheapest paid option here. It is no longer a free-plan answer, and any comparison written before that change will tell you otherwise.
How to choose in one pass#
- Large list, infrequent sends: Brevo
- Under 500 subscribers, want it free: AWeber
- Email drives revenue through sequences: ActiveCampaign at $49
- Just want the cheapest paid plan: MailerLite
- Value simplicity above cost: stay on Constant Contact
Whichever you pick, migrate to your most engaged segment first. A new sending domain has no reputation, and emailing 10,000 cold addresses on day one is the fastest way to land in spam folders and undo the saving.
Every pick in detail
1. Brevo
Best pricing modelBills by emails sent, with unlimited contacts even on the free plan. If your list is big but your sending is modest, this inverts the cost structure that makes Constant Contact painful.
- Starting price
- Free, then from about $9/mo
- Best for
- A large list that you email occasionally
2. AWeber
Best free planA permanent free plan covering 500 subscribers and around 3,000 emails a month, from an established provider. Constant Contact has no free tier at all, so this alone is a reason to switch for a small list.
- Starting price
- Free to 500, then about $12.50/mo
- Best for
- A small newsletter that should not cost anything yet
3. ActiveCampaign
Best automationFar deeper automation than Constant Contact offers at any tier. The catch is that the $15 Starter plan caps automations at five actions, so the real entry point is $49 a month.
- Starting price
- From $15/mo, realistically $49
- Best for
- Email that drives revenue through behaviour-triggered sequences
4. MailerLite
Cheapest paid tierAround $9 a month at 1,000 subscribers billed annually undercuts almost everything here. Worth knowing that MailerLite cut its free plan to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails a month, and raised paid prices, so it is no longer the free-plan pick it once was.
- Starting price
- From about $9/mo annual
- Best for
- A budget-first switch, if you are paying anyway
Frequently asked questions
- What is the best free alternative to Constant Contact?
- It depends on the shape of your list. AWeber is best if you have under 500 subscribers, since its free plan covers real sending permanently. Brevo is better if your list is large but you send infrequently, because its free plan allows unlimited contacts and limits you on daily sends instead.
- Why is Constant Contact expensive as the list grows?
- Because it prices on contacts stored. The Standard plan runs about $35 a month at 500 contacts and around $110 at 5,000, and keeps climbing from there. If you have a large list you email rarely, you are paying for storage rather than sending.
- Is Brevo actually cheaper than Constant Contact?
- For most senders with a large list, yes, and sometimes by a lot. Brevo charges by emails sent and does not cap contacts, so a 20,000-person list emailed monthly costs far less than the equivalent Constant Contact tier. If you email a small list daily, the maths can go the other way.
- Can I move my Constant Contact list to another tool?
- Yes. Every tool here imports a CSV export of your contacts, tags, and lists. What does not transfer is your sending reputation, so send to your most engaged segment first for a few weeks rather than blasting the whole list on day one from a new domain.
Written by
Tashawar Awais
Researcher and editor
Tashawar handles verification and editing. Every figure in a review is checked a second time before it goes out, and anything that cannot be traced to a vendor page or a documented source is either qualified or cut. Where pricing is genuinely unclear, as it is with Canva team plans or Close CRM tiers, the article says so and tells the reader to confirm directly instead of quoting a number with false confidence.
- Second check on every published figure
- Removes claims the sources do not support
- Flags pricing that changes without notice