How we evaluated
Freelancers buy email software differently than companies. There is no marketing team, no dedicated ops person, and no patience for a two-week onboarding. We judged each tool on what matters to a solo operator: how generous the free tier is, what the first paid dollar buys, how painful automation is to set up alone, and whether pricing punishes you as your list grows.
One Canada-specific note before we start: every tool on this list bills in USD. Budget accordingly.
| Feature | Kit | GetResponse | Brevo | AWeber | Mailchimp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free tier | 10,000 subscribers | 500 contacts | Unlimited contacts | 500 subscribers | 250 contacts |
| Free tier sends | Unlimited broadcasts | 2,500/month | 300/day | 3,000/month | 500/month |
| Cheapest paid (USD/month) | $39 | $19 | $9 | $15 | $13 |
| Pricing model | Per subscriber | Per contact | Per email sent | Per subscriber | Per contact |
| Visual automation builder | |||||
| Landing pages included | |||||
| Bills in CAD |
1. Kit: best for creators and freelancers building an audience
Kit, formerly ConvertKit, is built for people whose business is their audience: freelancers, consultants, and creators selling expertise. The free Newsletter plan is the most generous here by a wide margin: up to 10,000 subscribers with unlimited broadcasts, forms, and landing pages.
Paid tiers are subscriber-based. Creator starts at USD $39/month billed monthly (USD $33/month on annual billing) for up to 1,000 subscribers, and Creator Pro starts at USD $79/month (USD $66/month annual) for the same list size, adding advanced automation, deliverability reporting, and subscriber scoring. Prices scale with your list, which is the model to understand: at 5,000 subscribers you are paying meaningfully more.
What Kit gets right for freelancers is focus. There is no drag-and-drop template gallery to get lost in. You write, you send, you tag subscribers based on what they click, and you build simple sequences. The automation is visual but restrained, which means you can set up a welcome sequence in an afternoon instead of a week.
Kit
Pros
- Most generous free tier: 10,000 subscribers, unlimited broadcasts
- Built specifically for creators and solo operators
- Simple, fast editor with no template rabbit holes
- Good deliverability reputation
Cons
- Bills in USD only
- Subscriber-based pricing gets expensive as you grow
- Fewer design templates than Mailchimp
- Reporting is basic compared to GetResponse
2. GetResponse: best value for automation
GetResponse restructured its plans in 2026 into Free, Starter, Marketer, Creator, and Max. Starter at USD $19/month billed monthly (USD $15.58/month annual) for 1,000 contacts with unlimited sends is the best automation-per-dollar on this list.
The free tier covers 500 contacts and 2,500 newsletters a month, which is enough to validate that anyone actually wants your emails. Marketer at USD $59/month adds ecommerce tools and deeper automation, and Creator at USD $69/month adds courses and paid newsletters, which is a genuinely interesting bundle for freelancers who want to sell a course alongside services.
Where GetResponse beats Kit is depth: webinars, conversion funnels, and more sophisticated automation at a lower entry price. Where it loses is simplicity: the interface has more menus, more options, and more ways to get distracted from the actual job of sending emails.
GetResponse
Pros
- Best automation features per dollar
- Unlimited sends on paid plans
- Webinars and courses bundled on higher tiers
- Generous 500-contact free tier
Cons
- Bills in USD only
- Interface is busier than Kit or AWeber
- Contact-based pricing penalizes large cold lists
- Brand is less known, which matters to no one except you
3. Brevo: cheapest way to pay
Brevo, formerly Sendinblue, prices by emails sent rather than contacts, which flips the math. The free tier allows 300 emails a day with unlimited contacts. Starter at USD $9/month (USD $8.08/month annual) covers 5,000 emails a month, and Standard at USD $18/month (USD $16.17/month annual) adds automation and A/B testing at the same volume.
If you have 8,000 subscribers and email them once a month, Brevo costs you USD $9 while Kit costs you well over USD $100. If you email that same list weekly, the math reverses. Know your sending frequency before you choose.
Brevo also handles transactional email (order confirmations, password resets) on the same account, which is handy if your freelance business includes any web work. The tradeoff is that the product feels built for volume senders: capable, slightly utilitarian, and less delightful than Kit.
Brevo
Pros
- Cheapest paid tier at $9/month
- Unlimited contacts on every plan
- Transactional email included
- Good for infrequent senders with big lists
Cons
- Bills in USD only
- Daily send cap on the free tier
- Less polished than Kit
- Automation requires the Standard tier
4. AWeber: simplest for absolute beginners
AWeber is the old reliable. Free covers 500 subscribers and 3,000 sends a month. Lite at USD $15/month (USD $12.50/month annual) adds one list, three landing pages, and three automations. Plus at USD $30/month (USD $20/month annual) removes those limits.
Nobody picks AWeber for cutting-edge features. People pick it because the support is genuinely excellent, the interface has not been redesigned into confusion in years, and everything works exactly as documented. If the phrase "automation workflow" makes your eyes glaze over, AWeber is the gentlest on-ramp here.
The honest knock is momentum. AWeber innovates slowly, the template designs show their age, and at higher subscriber counts it is priced above competitors with more features. It is the safe, boring, dependable choice.
AWeber
Pros
- Excellent human support
- Simplest interface for beginners
- Everything works as documented
- No surprises in pricing
Cons
- Bills in USD only
- Dated templates and slower innovation
- Expensive relative to features at scale
- Free tier is smaller than Kit's or Brevo's
5. Mailchimp: only if you are already there
Mailchimp's free tier has been shrinking for years and now covers 250 contacts and 500 sends a month, the stingiest here. Essentials starts at USD $13/month for 500 contacts, Standard at USD $20/month. Prices scale aggressively with list size: 10,000 contacts on Standard runs about USD $135/month.
Mailchimp remains fine software with the best template designer of the five and deep ecommerce integrations. But for a freelancer starting fresh in 2026, there is no reason to choose it over Kit's free tier or GetResponse's cheaper automation. The one good reason to use Mailchimp is that you already do: migrating an engaged list is a hassle, and the devil you know has value.
Mailchimp
Pros
- Best template designer
- Deep ecommerce integrations
- Everyone has heard of it
Cons
- Bills in USD only
- Stingiest free tier on this list
- Pricing scales aggressively with list size
- No compelling reason to switch to it in 2026
Our verdict
4.5Start on Kit's free tier. Ten thousand subscribers with unlimited broadcasts costs nothing, and it is purpose-built for people selling expertise. When you outgrow free and need real automation, GetResponse's Starter plan at USD $19/month is the best value. Choose Brevo if you have a large list you email infrequently, AWeber if you want the simplest possible experience, and Mailchimp only if you are already on it.
Frequently asked questions
How many subscribers do I need before paying for email marketing?
Most freelancers can run on a free tier until roughly 500 to 1,000 engaged subscribers. Pay when you need automation sequences, not before. A small engaged list on a free plan beats a big cold list on a paid one.
Are these tools billed in CAD or USD?
All five bill in USD, so Canadians should budget roughly 35 to 40 percent above the listed price after conversion and your card's foreign transaction fee. None of them offer CAD billing.
What is the difference between contact-based and send-based pricing?
Contact-based pricing (Kit, Mailchimp, AWeber) charges by list size no matter how often you email. Send-based pricing (Brevo) charges by email volume with unlimited contacts. If you email rarely but have a big list, send-based is cheaper. If you email weekly, contact-based usually wins.
Does email marketing still work for freelancers in 2026?
Yes. Social reach is rented and shrinking; an email list is the only audience you own outright. For freelancers selling services, a simple monthly newsletter consistently outperforms posting into the algorithm.