In a sea of WordPress email marketing plugins, the real challenge isn’t finding one – it’s choosing the one that not only fits your unique needs and budget but also feels tailor-made for your goals.
These WordPress email plugins help you streamline your marketing efforts. With minimal effort, you can send emails at every step of the customer journey.
Some are designed specifically for WordPress, and some have great features but score low at ease of use.
To save from the paradox of choice, we have listed the 9 best WordPress email marketing plugins, analyzed their features, and weighed them against their cons.
Let’s dive right in.
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What is a WordPress Email Marketing Plugin?
WordPress email marketing plugin is a tool for creating, sending, and analyzing email campaigns on WordPress. It offers features like automated emails, subscriber segmentation, and performance insights.
One of the key benefits of using the best WordPress plugin for email marketing is the seamless integration with your existing WordPress or WooCommerce website. This integration enables you to easily capture leads through forms and pop-ups that will be directly synced with your email list.
Native WordPress email marketing plugin vs. SaaS apps
WordPress email marketing plugins can be categorized into two types:
- Those that integrate directly with WordPress
- Standalone SaaS applications.
The first type is designed to work seamlessly within the WordPress ecosystem. These plugins are installed and managed directly from the WordPress dashboard, making it easy for users to do WordPress email marketing without leaving their website’s backend.
On the other hand, SaaS-based email marketing solutions offer their services independently but can be connected to WordPress websites. These WordPress plugins usually provide a broader range of advanced features, including advanced automation workflows, detailed analytics, and comprehensive CRM integrations.
While direct integrations offer convenience and simplicity, SaaS apps offer advanced automation capabilities and scalability that can grow with your business, ideal for those looking to take their WordPress email marketing to new heights.
How to Choose the Best Email Marketing Plugin for WordPress?
For businesses leveraging WordPress and WooCommerce, choosing the best WordPress plugin for email marketing will satisfy all your marketing needs, save you time, and help set your email marketing strategies in motion.
Here are the factors to consider when choosing the best WordPress email marketing plugin:
Easy-to-setup automation workflows
In the WordPress email plugin, you should set up the automation workflows in minutes, without a 3-page manual guiding you.
Seamless integration with WooCommerce
The best WordPress email marketing plugins offer seamless integration with WordPress and WooCommerce, allowing you to sync customer data effortlessly. This means you can automatically segment your email lists based on purchase history, customer behavior, and other relevant criteria directly from your store’s data.
Ease of use and no learning curve
The ideal WordPress email marketing plugin should have an intuitive interface, making it easy for you to create, manage, and track your email campaigns without a steep learning curve.
Also, the WordPress email plugin should have a user-friendly drag-and-drop email builder, pre-designed templates, and easy customization options.
High Email Deliverability
Email deliverability is critical to ensure your messages reach your customer’s inboxes. So, choose the best WordPress plugin for email marketing backed by a reliable email service provider (ESP) with a strong reputation for deliverability.
Comprehensive analytics and reporting
You should be able to track abandoned carts and other key email marketing metrics.
Insights into open rates, click-through rates, conversion rates, and bounce rates provide valuable feedback on what resonates with your customers.
Simple pricing and no hidden costs
Finally, consider the WordPress email plugin’s pricing structure. While free plugins are available, they may lack advanced features and support.
A premium full-service WordPress email marketing tool offers more sophisticated functionalities but ensures the cost aligns with your budget and the expected return on investment (ROI).
Best WordPress Email Marketing Plugins Comparison
| Plugin | Best For | Free plan | Cons |
| Retainful | Small businesses requiring all-in-one solution to acquire, nurture, and retain customers | Forever-free plan with access to all features and upto 500 email sends | Lack of omnichannel capability |
| Mailchimp | Best for advanced automation and segmentation | Free plan – 500 contacts and 500 emails/day | – Complicated billing structure – Single-step automation in Free and Basic plan |
| MailPoet | Best WordPress email marketing plugin built for WordPress | Free plan – Upto 1000 subscribers | – Lack of advanced email automation – Limited customization for signup widgets |
| Brevo | Best for sending newsletters | Free plan – 300 emails/day | – Not high email deliverability – Daily email sending limit |
| Optinmonster | Best WordPress email plugin to grow your email list | Free plan – Upto 3 campaigns | – Has only email capture features. – No WooCommerce integration in Basic plan |
| Newsletter | Best native WordPress email plugin for list building and newsletters | A free plan is available | No welcome email series and autoresponder and WooCommerce integration in Free plan |
| Hubspot | Best for large businesses looking for Email marketing + CRM | Free plan – Upto 1000 contacts | Steep learning curve for beginners |
| Kit | Best WordPress email plugin for creators monetizing newsletters | Free plan – Upto 10,000 contacts | Limited e-commerce features and template customization options |
| FluentCRM | Best WordPress email plugin for Native Integration | Free plan – Only basic email sending | No WooCommerce integration in Free plan |
9 Best WordPress Email Marketing Plugins
- Retainful
- Mailchimp for WordPress
- MailPoet
- Brevo
- Optinmonster
- Newsletter
- Hubspot
- Kit
- FluentCRM
Let’s see these WordPress email marketing plugins in detail.
1. Retainful – All-in-one solution to acquire, nurture, and retain customers
WordPress Rating: 4.8 / 5 (3000+ active installations)
Retainful is the best free WordPress email marketing plugin that provides a cost-effective solution to all your WooCommerce email marketing needs – from email automation to sending personalized emails. It has it all.
This email marketing plugin for WordPress boasts the best abandoned cart recovery rate in the market – featuring single-click cart recovery and pre-built multiple abandoned cart email series. You can set up in 3 clicks and start recovering carts in minutes.
This best WordPress email marketing automation plugin features seamless email automation, which allows you to launch all types of email campaigns based on customer actions with zero setup headaches. With the visual workflow builder and pre-built workflows, you will never be on your own.
It features targeted sign-up forms and popups that collect the email addresses of visitors and grow your email list. It can be triggered and targeted based on visitor behavior like time spent on pages, scroll-depth, geo-location, and more.
Coming to designing WordPress marketing emails, it has a drag-and-drop email editor, and pre-designed templates to make the job easier for you.
If you want an all-in-one solution to help you from acquiring customers to retaining them, Retainful would be the best choice.
Pros:
- Easy-to-setup email automation
- Single-click cart recovery
- Targeted sign-up forms/ popups
- Customizable email templates
Cons:
- No landing page builder
- Lacks omni-channel capability
Pricing:
- Forever free plan is available
- $19/month – 20,000 emails
- $49/month – 50,000 emails
Grow your email list, engage through follow-up emails, and recover abandoned carts – all with the Retainful WordPress plugin.
2. Mailchimp for WordPress – Best WordPress email plugin for advanced automation and segmentation
WordPress Rating: 4 / 5 (400,000+ active installations)
Mailchimp is the best email marketing plugin for WordPress that offers a wide range of features, including email automation, advanced segmentation, A/B testing, comprehensive analytics, and an extensive library of templates.
It has an easy-to-use visual automation workflow builder and pre-built workflows to automate your WordPress email marketing without much of a learning curve.
Other than email marketing channel, it has social media scheduling, landing page builder, retargeting ads, and popups.
Mailchimp has a very extensive email template library, but most of them are only available in paid plans.
The pricing of the WordPress email plugin increases very rapidly with email list size and advanced features.
While the basic features are straightforward, leveraging Mailchimp’s more advanced capabilities, such as detailed segmentation and automation workflows, may require a bit of a learning curve.
Pros:
- Easy-to-use in spite of advanced features
- 15+ pre-built automation workflows for WooCommerce
Cons:
- Complicated billing structure
- Limited email template customization.
- Lack of abandoned cart tracking
- Single-step automation in Free and Basic plan
Pricing:
- A free plan is available.
- $4.53/month – 5000 emails
- $6.91/month – 6000 emails
- $138.10/month – 150000 emails
3. MailPoet – Best WordPress email marketing plugin built for WordPress
WordPress Rating: 4.4 / 5 (600,000+ active installations)
Unlike many of its competitors, MailPoet is not just compatible with WordPress; it’s built for WordPress.
With this WordPress plugin, you can manage your email campaigns directly from your WordPress dashboard, eliminating the need to juggle multiple platforms.
Compared to specialized email marketing platforms, this native WordPress email marketing solution might lack some advanced features such as detailed behavior tracking, extensive third-party integrations, and deep analytics that larger businesses may require for more sophisticated marketing strategies.
If you consider moving away from WordPress in the future, this best WordPress email marketing plugin’s tight integration with the CMS proves tough for transitioning to a new platform.
Pros:
- Built for WordPress
- Great list management
Cons:
- Limited customization for signup widgets
- Lack of advanced email automation compared to all other platforms
- Very expensive as the list grows
Pricing:
- Free – 1000 subscribers
- $10/month – 500 subscribers and unlimited emails
- $30/month – 500 subscribers/website
4. Brevo – Best WordPress email marketing plugin to send newsletters
WordPress Rating: 4.2 / 5 (100,000+ active installations)
Brevo is a native WordPress email marketing plugin that caters to WordPress users needing simple email marketing capabilities. It offers basic tools for creating email campaigns.
Features like drag-and-drop email builders and customizable templates make it easy to design branded WordPress emails that engage and convert.
You can trigger WordPress marketing emails based on actions like visitor’s email engagement and website engagement behavior.
This best free email marketing plugin for WordPress provides comprehensive A/B testing tools and detailed analytics, allowing you to test different email elements and track performance metrics.
The wide array of features and tools may present a learning curve for some users, especially those new to WordPress email marketing.
The major advantage is the contact limit: you can have up to 100,000 contacts even in the free plan
Pros:
- User-friendly though filled with complex features
- Fast delivery of emails
- Generous contact limits
- Additional features: SMS, built-in CRM tool, Conversations app, and WhatsApp campaigns.
Cons:
- Not high email deliverability
- Limited sign-up form templates
- Free plan has a daily sending email limit of 300 emails.
Pricing:
- A free plan – 300 emails/day
- $25 – 20k emails/month
- $65 – 20k emails/month + A/B Testing
5. OptinMonster – Best WordPress email plugin to grow your email list
WordPress Rating: 4.3 / 5 (1 million+ active installations)
OptinMonster is the best WordPress lead capture plugin for growing your email list in WordPress email marketing. It offers features like exit-intent technology, advanced segmentation, and a variety of lead generation forms.
OptinMonster excels at converting visitors into subscribers and customers. Its array of lead generation tools, including popups, floating bars, and slide-ins, are designed to capture attention and capture email addresses.
The best email marketing plugin for WordPress offers advanced popup targeting options based on location, site behavior, and device type, ensuring that your messages reach the right audience at the right time.
The A/B testing functionality allows you to experiment with different email capture strategies, helping you test different popups to grow email list.
For small businesses or those just starting out, the pricing of this WordPress email marketing plugin might be a bit steep, especially when compared to free or lower-cost alternatives.
Pros:
- Vast library of templates
- Advanced targeting options
- Conversion optimization tools like dynamic content, page level targeting, countdown timers and more.
Cons:
- Has only email capture features. Has to be integrated with another plugin to send emails.
- Free plan requires credit card
- No WooCommerce integration in Basic plan
- No exit-intent popup in the basic plan
Pricing:
- Free plan – 3 campaigns
- $9/month – 1 site + 2500 pageviews
- $19/month – 2 sites + 10,000 pageviews
- $29/month – 3 sites + 25,000 pageviews
6. Newsletter – Best native WordPress email plugin for list building and newsletters
WordPress Rating: 4.6 / 5 ( 300,000+ active installations)
As a native WordPress email marketing plugin, Newsletter simplifies email campaign management directly from WordPress.
This best free email marketing plugin for WordPress also comes with a built-in CRM system that allows you to manage your subscribers efficiently. You can segment your customers based on various criteria, including behavior and demographics, directly within your WordPress site.
The WordPress plugin offers several options to grow your email list through customizable subscription forms and widgets. You can place these on your store to capture leads and integrate them directly into your email campaigns.
Unlike many other email marketing plugins for WordPress, Newsletter doesn’t put a cap on the number of emails you can send or the number of subscribers you can have. This is especially beneficial for growing businesses that don’t want to pay more for expanding their reach.
Pros:
- No limit on email sends and contacts
Cons:
- No welcome email series and autoresponder in Free plan
- No WooCommerce integration in Free plan
Pricing:
- A free plan is available
- $79/year – 3 sites
7. HubSpot WordPress Plugin – Best for large businesses looking for Email marketing + CRM
WordPress Rating: 4.4 / 5 ( 300,000+ active installations)
HubSpot is not just an email marketing tool for WordPress; it’s a comprehensive CRM platform. This integration allows for seamless synchronization of customer data across your marketing, sales, and service efforts, providing a 360-degree view of customer interactions.
HubSpot offers a suite of tools including content management, social media marketing, SEO, and analytics. This means you can manage much of your online marketing from one place.
This WordPress email marketing plugin excels at segmenting your audience based on a variety of criteria and personalizing WordPress email content to suit these segments.
Due to its comprehensive nature, there can be a learning curve in fully utilizing all of its capabilities. Businesses new to advanced email marketing practices may need time to leverage the platform fully.
Pros:
- Effortless integration with CRM suite
Cons:
- Steep learning curve for beginners
- Not suitable for small businesses
Pricing:
- Free CRM software: Upto 1000 contacts
- $800/month – Professional
- $3,600/month – Enterprise
8. Kit (formerly ConvertKit) – Best WordPress email plugin for creators monetizing newsletters
WordPress Rating: 4.9 / 5 (40,000+ active installations)
ConvertKit is explicitly built with creators in mind – bloggers, authors, and online educators benefit from tools designed to grow and monetize their audience.
Unlike many WordPress email plugins, ConvertKit prioritizes subscriber-centric tagging and segmentation. Instead of duplicating contacts across lists, you maintain a single subscriber list, tagged by behavior or interest.
It includes pre-designed landing page templates, eliminating the need for third-party tools to capture leads.
While it excels in simplicity, ConvertKit lacks advanced design capabilities, especially for highly customized or visual-heavy emails.
Pros:
- Clutter-free design
- Easy-to-use drag-and-drop automation builder
- Creator-centric features like paid subscriptions and landing page builders.
Cons:
- Limited template customization options
- Expensive compared to Retainful and MailChimp
- Limited ecommerce features
Pricing:
- Free plan – Upto 10,000 contacts
- Creator plan – Starting $15/month – Upto 300 contacts
- Creator Pro – $29/month – Upto 300 contacts + Unlimted users
9. FluentCRM – Best WordPress email plugin for Native Integration
WordPress Rating: 4.7 / 5 (50,000+ active installations)
As a native WordPress plugin, FluentCRM integrates effortlessly with your existing WordPress setup. FluentCRM is the best WordPress email plugin if you want to do WordPress email marketing without leaving WordPress.
Beyond email marketing, FluentCRM includes CRM functionalities such as contact management, activity tracking, and pipeline management, offering a holistic marketing solution.
The major advantage is that you get to send unlimited campaigns in all of the paid plans.
But without a paid plan, you can’t trigger WordPressemail automation based on new purchases and order refunds on WooCommerce.
Pros:
- Self-hosted plugin
- Easy-to-use and intuitive UI
Cons:
- No WooCommerce integration in Free plan
- Limited ready-made templates
- No drag-and-drop visual builder in Free plan
Pricing:
- A free plan is available
- $77/year – 1 site
- $149/year – 5 sites
- $299/year – 50 sites
Do cost-effective email marketing using Retainful without missing out on any essential WordPress email marketing features.
Wrapping up!!
Each WordPress email marketing plugin comes with its unique set of features, strengths, and limitations, catering to different needs and levels of expertise.
If you need to carry out WordPress email marketing without leaving your WordPress dashboard, choose a native WordPress email marketing plugin or an all-in-one solution that has advanced features, and choose a standalone plugin like Retainful.
Whether you prioritize ease of use, advanced segmentation, comprehensive analytics, or seamless CRM integration, there is a plugin out there for you.
To create an email marketing campaign in WordPress, you’ll need to select an email marketing plugin, install it, and set it up with your email service provider.
Then, design your email using the plugin’s templates and tools, segment your audience as needed, and schedule or send your campaign directly from your WordPress dashboard.
An email plugin for WordPress is a tool designed to integrate with your WordPress site to enhance email marketing efforts. It enables you to send newsletters, automate emails, manage subscribers, and track the performance of your email campaigns directly from your WordPress admin area.
The best free plugin for WordPress often depends on your specific needs, but Retainful gives you comprehensive features like sign-up forms, email automation, segmentation, and pop-ups at a fair price.
To collect emails for marketing in WordPress, use a plugin that creates signup forms or popups. Place these forms strategically across your site – on your homepage, blog, and sidebar.
Yes, WordPress supports email automation through various plugins. These plugins allow you to set up automated welcome emails, follow-up messages, and targeted campaigns based on user behavior or milestones.
