CourseEmailStack

All 14, and what each really costs

Ordered by how useful the free plan actually is, not by what any of them pay us. Every figure came off the vendor's own pricing page between 9 and 24 September 2026, and where a plan has a catch, the catch is in the row.

The short version. 6 of the 14 can run an automated welcome sequence without paying, which is the wall most people meet before the subscriber one. Ordered by that first, and then by how many people the free plan can email at once, the list below starts with Sender. Nothing here is ordered by what a vendor pays us.

Does it talk to where you sell your course?

Only 3 of the 13 email tools here connect directly to all four. 8 connect directly to none of them, so joining one to your course would mean putting Zapier, a separate subscription, in between. One more hosts courses directly and so replaces them rather than connecting, which is why it is counted separately.

Read off each vendor's own integrations directory, using that directory's own search, between 6 and 12 September 2026.

Email toolTeachableKajabiPodiaThinkific
KitDirectDirectDirectDirect
ActiveCampaignDirectDirectDirectDirect
AWeberDirectDirectDirectDirect
MailerLiteNot listedDirectNot listedDirect
GetResponseDirectThrough ZapierDirectThrough Zapier
beehiivNot listedNot listedNot listedNot listed
OmnisendNot listedNot listedNot listedNot listed
SenderNot listedNot listedNot listedNot listed
EmailOctopusThrough ZapierNot listedNot listedNot listed
FlodeskNot listedThrough ZapierNot listedNot listed
MoosendNot listedNot listedNot listedNot listed
Constant ContactNot listedNot listedNot listedNot listed
BrevoNot listedNot listedNot listedThrough Zapier
Systeme.ioHosts your course itself, so it replaces these rather than connecting to them

Direct means the vendor lists it in their own directory. Through Zapier means they list it but their page says it runs on Zapier. Not listed means we searched their directory and it was not there. We did not test any of these connections ourselves.

Only 6 of 14 will email people for you free

The biggest free allowance here is 10,000 subscribers. Brevo stores more, 100,000 free, but sends only 300 emails a day. The number worth checking is not that one: it is whether the plan will send a welcome email on its own, and 6 of the 14 will.

How far the free plans actually go

Subscribers allowed on each free plan, and whether that free plan can run an automated welcome sequence.

Brevo's and Kit's bars are cut short: 100,000 is 40 times the end of this axis, and drawn to scale it would shrink every other bar to a sliver.

See the same figures as a table
PlatformFree subscribersFree sendsWelcome sequence on free
Brevo100,000300 emails/dayYes
Kit10,000Unlimited broadcastsNo
beehiiv2,500Unlimited sendsNo
Sender2,50015,000 emails/moYes
EmailOctopus2,50010,000 emails/moYes
Systeme.io2,000Unlimited emailsYes
MailerLite2502,500 emails/moYes
Omnisend250500 emails/moYes
ActiveCampaignNone14-day trial onlyNo
GetResponseNone confirmed14-day trial onlyNo
AWeberNone14-day trial onlyNo
FlodeskNoneNone on the free planNo
MoosendNone30-day trial onlyNo
Constant ContactNone30-day trial onlyNo

Read from each vendor's own pricing page between 9 and 24 September 2026.

The free plans, and where each one stops

The subscriber cap is the least useful number here. What matters is how each plan stops you, because that is what you hit first.6 of the 14 can automate a welcome sequence without paying, and that is usually the wall people meet before the subscriber one.

  • Sender
    2,500free subscribers
    YesEmail automation is listed on the free plan
    Where it stopsA smaller name with a smaller integration list. Check it connects to your course platform before you commit.
    Start free
  • EmailOctopus
    2,500free subscribers
    YesConfirmed on the free plan, but capped: up to 3 sequences with up to 5 steps each, and only a single trigger per sequence. Pro raises this to up to 3 triggers and up to 650 steps.
    Where it stopsFewer features than the others by design. Good if you only need to send, thin if you need funnels.
    Start free
  • Systeme.io
    2,000free subscribers
    YesThe free plan includes 1 automation rule and 1 workflow. Paid plans raise the cap: 10 rules/5 workflows on Startup, 100/20 on Webinar, unlimited on Unlimited.
    Where it stopsThe free plan holds one course only, and takes 0% on sales, which is rare.
    Start free
  • Brevo
    100,000free subscribers
    YesAutomation is included free for up to 2,000 unique contacts entering your active automations. Once that limit is reached, no more contacts can enter
    Where it stopsSending is the limit, not your list. The free plan stops at 300 emails a day, so a campaign to more than 300 people has to be resent by hand, 300 a day, and free emails always carry the Sent with Brevo logo. On its three smallest paid tiers, passing 500, 1,500 or 2,500 contacts moves you up a tier automatically and the price rises.
    Start free
  • MailerLite
    250free subscribers
    Yes3 automations included free
    Where it stopsTheir logo stays on your emails until you pay.
    Start free
  • Omnisend
    250free subscribers
    YesAutomation included, but 500 sends is tight
    Where it stops500 free emails a month is roughly 2 sends to a 250-person list.
    Start free
  • Kit
    10,000free subscribers
    NoSequences need the Creator plan
    Where it stopsDigital product sales carry a 3.5% + 30c fee on every plan.
    Start free
  • beehiiv
    2,500free subscribers
    NoAutomations need the Scale plan
    Where it stopsYou cannot sell anything from the free plan: paid subscriptions and digital products both need a paid plan.
    Start free

No free plan at all: ActiveCampaign, GetResponse, AWeber, Flodesk, Moosend, Constant Contact. Trials only, so budget from day one.

Read off each vendor's own pricing page between 9 and 24 September 2026.

Every platform, in full

Sender

The most generous free plan we found

2,500 free subscribers, 15,000 free emails a month, and automation included at no cost. Almost nobody offers all three.

Free plan
2,500
15,000 emails/mo
Welcome sequence, free
Yes
Email automation is listed on the free plan
Paid from
$9/mo
Standard, billed yearly at up to 500 subscribers; a 30%-off first-year promo brings the first year to $6.30/mo, renewing at $9/mo-equivalent (about $108/yr) after that

Watch out A smaller name with a smaller integration list. Check it connects to your course platform before you commit.

Scored elsewhere 4.7 on G2 (278 reviews), 4.9 on Trustpilot (1,421 reviews).Where these come from

Start free on SenderRead the full Sender breakdown

EmailOctopus

Cheapest way to run a plain list

2,500 free subscribers and 10,000 free emails a month, then a flat low price. Deliberately simple rather than full featured.

Free plan
2,500
10,000 emails/mo
Welcome sequence, free
Yes
Confirmed on the free plan, but capped: up to 3 sequences with up to 5 steps each, and only a single trigger per sequence. Pro raises this to up to 3 triggers and up to 650 steps.
Paid from
$9/mo
Pro, billed yearly; subscriber tier not stated

Watch out Fewer features than the others by design. Good if you only need to send, thin if you need funnels.

Scored elsewhere 4.2 on G2 (46 reviews), 4.8 on Trustpilot (267 reviews).Where these come from

Start free on EmailOctopusRead the full EmailOctopus breakdown

Systeme.io

Course hosting, funnels and email on one free plan

Hosts the course itself as well as the list, with unlimited emails free to 2,000 contacts and no transaction fee on sales.

Free plan
2,000
Unlimited emails
Welcome sequence, free
Yes
The free plan includes 1 automation rule and 1 workflow. Paid plans raise the cap: 10 rules/5 workflows on Startup, 100/20 on Webinar, unlimited on Unlimited.
Paid from
$17/mo
Startup, 5,000 contacts

Watch out The free plan holds one course only, and takes 0% on sales, which is rare.

Scored elsewhere 4.8 on G2 (750 reviews), 4.9 on Trustpilot (8,448 reviews).Where these come from

Start free on Systeme.ioRead the full Systeme.io breakdown

Brevo

Stores a big free list, but sends only 300 emails a day

The free plan stores up to 100,000 contacts and includes automation for up to 2,000 of them, but it caps sending at 300 emails a day. Paid plans are priced by monthly email volume rather than list size, starting at $9 a month.

Free plan
100,000
300 emails/day
Welcome sequence, free
Yes
Automation is included free for up to 2,000 unique contacts entering your active automations. Once that limit is reached, no more contacts can enter
Paid from
$9/mo
Starter, billed monthly for 5,000 emails a month and up to 500 contacts, read in USD through their own currency selector ($8.08/mo billed yearly). The page defaulted to AUD for us: A$12 monthly, A$10.83/mo billed yearly. The price climbs with email volume: $15.25/mo at 10,000 emails and $22.50/mo at 15,000, billed yearly

Watch out Sending is the limit, not your list. The free plan stops at 300 emails a day, so a campaign to more than 300 people has to be resent by hand, 300 a day, and free emails always carry the Sent with Brevo logo. On its three smallest paid tiers, passing 500, 1,500 or 2,500 contacts moves you up a tier automatically and the price rises.

Scored elsewhere 4.0 on Trustpilot (7,204 reviews).Where these come from

Start free on BrevoRead the full Brevo breakdown

MailerLite

Best free plan for a real welcome sequence

Start here

A free plan that automates a welcome sequence, which most will not. The catch is the ceiling: 250 subscribers.

Free plan
250
2,500 emails/mo
Welcome sequence, free
Yes
3 automations included free
Paid from
$12/mo
Comfort, starting price; scales with list size

Watch out Their logo stays on your emails until you pay.

Scored elsewhere 4.6 on G2 (1,113 reviews), 4.1 on Trustpilot (3,281 reviews).Where these come from

Start free on MailerLiteRead the full MailerLite breakdown

Omnisend

Only if you also ship physical products

Built for online stores rather than courses. Worth it when the course sits next to a Shopify catalog.

Free plan
250
500 emails/mo
Welcome sequence, free
Yes
Automation included, but 500 sends is tight
Paid from
$11.20/mo
Standard, starting price, at up to 500 contacts; the price then climbs with contact count ($14 at 501-1,000, $17.50 at 1,001-1,500)

Watch out 500 free emails a month is roughly 2 sends to a 250-person list.

Scored elsewhere 4.6 on G2 (1,246 reviews), 4.4 on Trustpilot (506 reviews).Where these come from

Start free on OmnisendRead the full Omnisend breakdown

Kit

Biggest free list, sells products out of the box

10,000 free subscribers and built-in digital product checkout. But no automated sequences until you pay.

Free plan
10,000
Unlimited broadcasts
Welcome sequence, free
No
Sequences need the Creator plan
Paid from
$33/mo
Creator, at 1,000 subscribers

Watch out Digital product sales carry a 3.5% + 30c fee on every plan.

Scored elsewhere 4.4 on G2 (236 reviews), 4.1 on Trustpilot (154 reviews).Where these come from

Start free on KitRead the full Kit breakdown

beehiiv

Best if the course sits beside a newsletter

2,500 free subscribers with unlimited sends, a custom domain and a website included at no cost.

Free plan
2,500
Unlimited sends
Welcome sequence, free
No
Automations need the Scale plan
Paid from
$43/mo
Scale, at 1,000 subscribers

Watch out You cannot sell anything from the free plan: paid subscriptions and digital products both need a paid plan.

Scored elsewhere 4.5 on G2 (40 reviews), 4.0 on Trustpilot (386 reviews).Where these come from

Start free on beehiivRead the full beehiiv breakdown

ActiveCampaign

Deepest automation, once the list pays for itself

The most capable automation builder on this list. There is no free tier at all, only a 14-day trial.

Free plan
None
14-day trial only
Welcome sequence, free
No
No free plan exists
Paid from
A$23/mo
Starter, billed annually; priced to us in AUD

Watch out Starter caps you at 5 actions per automation, which a real welcome sequence will hit.

Scored elsewhere 4.4 on G2 (14,791 reviews), 2.7 on Trustpilot (1,433 reviews).Where these come from

See ActiveCampaign pricingRead the full ActiveCampaign breakdown

GetResponse

Capable all-rounder, but nothing is free

Strong automation and landing pages in one place. We could not confirm any permanent free plan, only a trial.

Free plan
None confirmed
14-day trial only
Welcome sequence, free
No
No permanent free plan confirmed
Paid from
€16/mo
Starter, 1,000 contacts; priced to us in euros

Watch out We could not confirm a permanent free plan on their pricing page, only a 14-day trial.

Scored elsewhere 4.3 on G2 (1,141 reviews), 4.3 on Trustpilot (1,029 reviews).Where these come from

See GetResponse pricingRead the full GetResponse breakdown

AWeber

Automation from day one of the trial, no free plan behind it

Their free plan is gone. What's left is a 14-day trial, then straight to a paid plan, with campaign automations included from the entry tier. Running since 1998.

Free plan
None
14-day trial only
Welcome sequence, free
No
No free plan exists as of 2026-09-09; automations are included once you're on a paid plan
Paid from
$12.49/mo
Lite, billed yearly at 0 to 500 subscribers

Watch out The paid Lite plan allows one email list and three automations, so the second funnel you build is what pushes you up to Plus, not the size of your list.

Scored elsewhere 4.2 on G2 (650 reviews), 4.3 on Trustpilot (176 reviews).Where these come from

See AWeber pricingRead the full AWeber breakdown

Flodesk

The best looking emails, but nothing free to send with

Design-led email for people who care how the thing looks in the inbox. The free plan builds forms and landing pages only: by their own FAQ it does not send email.

Free plan
None
None on the free plan
Welcome sequence, free
No
Their FAQ says the free plan has no workflow automations
Paid from
$25/mo
Pro, billed yearly for up to 1,000 subscribers; $28 billed monthly

Watch out Two catches. Their pricing table lists email sending on the free plan while their own FAQ says the free plan does not include it, so read the free plan as forms and landing pages only. And their pricing page currently serves two different plan line-ups from the same address, one with a cheaper Lite plan and one without, so check which one you are actually offered before you commit.

Scored elsewhere 4.8 on G2 (302 reviews), 4.9 on Trustpilot (364 reviews).Where these come from

See Flodesk pricingRead the full Flodesk breakdown

Moosend

Cheap once you pay, but nothing is free

A 30-day trial with no card required, then seven dollars a month at 500 contacts with unlimited sends. Now owned by Constant Contact.

Free plan
None
30-day trial only
Welcome sequence, free
No
There is no free plan, so automations need a paid plan once the trial ends
Paid from
$7/mo
Pro, billed yearly at 500 contacts; $9 billed monthly

Watch out There is no permanent free plan, only a 30-day trial, so there is no way to park a list here without paying every month.

Scored elsewhere 4.6 on G2 (744 reviews), 2.8 on Trustpilot (83 reviews).Where these come from

See Moosend pricingRead the full Moosend breakdown

Constant Contact

A well-known name in small-business marketing, built before online courses existed

A broad marketing suite: email, social posting, SMS and events, not a course-creator specialist. There is no permanent free plan, only a 30-day trial, and none of Teachable, Kajabi, Podia or Thinkific show up in their own integrations directory.

Free plan
None
30-day trial only
Welcome sequence, free
No
There is no free plan. The 30-day trial caps you at 100 total email sends and campaigns cannot be published to real contacts until you pay
Paid from
A$12.75/mo
Lite, billed annually for up to 500 contacts; priced to us in AUD. Their own FAQ separately states plans start at $12/month

Watch out There is no self-service way to cancel. You have to call their Billing Support line, and the moment the account closes you lose access to your contacts, campaigns and reports immediately, with only a 30-day window before an inactive account's data can be deleted for good.

Scored elsewhere 4.1 on G2 (7,450 reviews), 4.0 on Trustpilot (2,011 reviews).Where these come from

See Constant Contact pricingRead the full Constant Contact breakdown

What we haven't checked yet

These are on our list. We will not publish figures for a platform until we have read them off the vendor own page and can date them.

  • MoosendPrices sit behind an interactive slider we could not read reliably.
  • FlodeskConflicting signals on whether the entry plan includes automation.
  • AWeberWe could not confirm whether a permanent free plan still exists.
  • MailchimpListed for completeness. It runs no public affiliate program, so we have no reason to rank it here.

Narrow it down

14 is too many to hold in your head. 5 questions get you to one, with the reasons it picked that one.

Find your stackCompare the cost