At 10,000 contacts Kit can still be $0 on Creator free. MailerLite, Sender, and EmailOctopus are usually the next verified rungs — ActiveCampaign-class ladders cost several times more.
| # | Tool | Free contacts | At 1k | At 10k | Note | Visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Kit | 10k | $0 | $0 | Creator email OS (formerly ConvertKit) — generous free broadcasts | Visit |
| 2 |  MailerLite | 250 | $19 | $89 | Full-featured email + sites; Comfort is the value paid plan | Visit |
| 3 |  beehiiv | 2.5k | $0 | $139 | Newsletter platform with monetization, website, and ad network | Visit |
| 4 |  Systeme.io | 2k | $0 | $47 | Funnels + email + courses; strong free plan | Visit |
| 5 |  Sender | 2.5k | $0 | $69 | Budget ESP with generous free forever plan | Visit |
| 6 |  EmailOctopus | 2.5k | $0 | $44.50 | Budget ESP; free to 2,500 | Visit |
| 7 |  Brevo | unlimited | $0 | $0 | Multi-channel (email/SMS); free plan is send-capped not contact-capped | Visit |
| 8 |  Substack | unlimited | $0 | $0 | Writer platform; 10% of paid sub revenue, no monthly ESP fee | Visit |
Free up to 10,000 subscribers with unlimited broadcasts; no visual automations or sequences; branding stays.
Free: 250 subscribers, 2,500 emails/mo, 3 automations (5 steps), branding stays. Sending locks if you exceed 250.
Free up to 2,500 subscribers; unlimited sends; no automations or paid-sub tools; branding stays.
Free: 2,000 contacts, 3 funnels, 1 course. Startup $17/mo (5,000 contacts), Webinar $47, Unlimited $97.
Free Forever: up to 2,500 subscribers and 15,000 emails/month.
Free: 2,500 subscribers, 10,000 emails/mo, branding on emails, 1 user/1 form/1 LP.
Full EmailOctopus pricing → · Alternatives · Pricing history
Free: upload contacts free; send up to 300 emails/day after approval. Starter adds volume from ~5,000 emails/mo. Pricing is primarily email-volume based.
Free to publish. Monetization: Substack takes 10% of paid subscription revenue + Stripe fees. Not a traditional ESP.
ListCost’s research shortlist leads with Kit, MailerLite, beehiiv. Order reflects free headroom and verified price ladders — not lab tests or star ratings.
Commission never fills an unknown cell or changes order. beehiiv CTAs are plain official links (affiliate dropped). Other outbound CTAs use /go redirects when applicable.