• This article compares the various features and costs between Constant Contact, Mailchimp, and HubSpot. 
• Mailchimp can integrate with over 800 applications, while Constant Contact and HubSpot can integrate with around 300 and 80 applications, respectively.
• With 11 million active users and an audience of 4 billion, Mailchimp is the most popular application among the three.

Email marketing requires great software to manage the complex tasks required to be successful.. First off, it means you’re going to have to type out tons of emails. Your emails are going to be a major part of it, yes, but you also need to have the right tools to make it happen. In the world of email marketing, there are three main contenders: Constant Contact, Mailchimp, and HubSpot. 

• Mailchimp is generally considered to be one of the most popular email marketing platforms. 
• Both Mailchimp and Hubspot are preferred for growing small businesses since they have free amenities you can try. 
• Constant Contact is the go-to for e-commerce companies due to their integrations. 

All three programs have their perks and pitfalls, so it’s important to know a little bit about each one before you choose one for your business. 

What is Constant Contact?

Constant Contact is one of the most popular software platforms for people who want to establish a strong email campaign. Ever since its beginnings in 1995, Constant Contact has done everything to stay at the forefront of the email marketing world. It’s one of the most well-known platforms of its kind. 

What features does Constant Contact have?

Constant Contact has a ton of features that make it popular as an email marketing platform. The most popular features we’ve seen offered by the platform include:

• Pop up forms
• Email blasts
• Social media scheduling
• Email templates
• Dynamic content
• AI-powered email marketing assistance
• Subject line prompts or suggestions

How much does Constant Contact cost?

Much like other email services, Constant Contact will charge you different rates based on the number of email addresses you want to market to. For the sake of simplicity, we’re going to show you the rates for people who have 500 or so, just to give you an idea of the starting prices:

• $20 per month gets you unlimited emails, social media posts, email templates, and growth tools. 
• $45 per month gets you all the tools above, plus surveys, pop-up forms, templates, as well as dynamic content tools. 
• $195 per month gets you everything above, plus 20+ playbooks on marketing, AI-powered marketing assistance, and subject suggestions.. 

What is Mailchimp?

Mailchimp is currently the most popular small business email marketing platform in the world. Made in 2001 by Intuit (yes, the same guys who make TurboTax), this platform became famous for its free email packages. Since then, it’s always remained popular---even among companies that need way more than just free services.

What features does Mailchimp have?

Mailchimp is one of those email marketing tools that seems to know how to seal the deal. Some of the more popular features we’ve seen offered by the platform include:

• Pop up forms
• Email blasts
• A/B testing
• Market segmentation
• Email templates
• Dynamic content
• Send time optimization
• Email health tracking

How much does Mailchimp cost?

Mailchimp might be famous for its affordable email, but that doesn’t mean it’s 100 percent free. Heck, it doesn’t even mean the free trial is going to remain free, technically. Here’s the scoop on pricing:

• Free gets you free basic email usage for up to 2000 contacts.
• $9.99 gets you email services with A/B testing, branding, and email templates for 500 people.
• $14.99 gets you email services with send-time optimization and more for 500 contacts.
• $299.99 gets you all the bells and whistles for up to 10,000 contacts.

It’s worth noting that Mailchimp charges different prices based on the number of contacts you have. If you don’t have many, it’s a bargain. Otherwise, you might spend hundreds of dollars per month here. 

What is HubSpot? 

HubSpot is going to be our third and final contender. Unlike Constant Contact and Mailchimp, HubSpot was never just meant to be an email marketing service provider. It also works as a CRM, a marketing platform tool, and an analytics hub. Basically, you need to think of it as a major inbound marketing tool. 

What features does HubSpot have?

HubSpot is one of those email marketing tools that seems to know how to seal the deal. Some of the more popular features we’ve seen offered by the platform include:

• Pop up forms
• Email blasts
• A/B testing
• Market segmentation
• Email templates
• Dynamic content
• Send time optimization
• Email health tracking

How much does HubSpot cost?

So, HubSpot’s pricing setup might be the most intricate of all. Email marketing is actually considered to be one of HubSpot’s free tools. However, it all depends on how many contacts you have as well as the features you want to have. I’ll try to explain it as such:

• Free tools mean you get a limited number of emails and email addresses you can send, as well as a shared inbox, email segmentation, as well as landing pages to help you grow your list. You also get email reply tracking and email health tracking.
• $45 per month gives you all the above, except you remove HubSpot’s branding and have a limit of 1,000 people. 
• $800 a month will give you all of the above for 2,000 people. It also comes with video hosting, omnichannel marketing, social media scheduling, contact create attribution, A/B testing, and more. 
• $3,200 per month (yikes!) will get you all of the above for a grand total of 10,000 contacts. You also get email send caps, team partitioning, as well as behavioral event triggers. 

Which software platform has the most integrations?

Obviously, there is going to be some talk about which platform can integrate with all your other office tools. I mean, let’s be real. No one wants to have to take time out of their day to switch between programs. Integrations make it easier to make your workflow as seamless as possible. 

So, here’s what you need to know about each software platform has:

• Mailchimp is the most integration-heavy platform, with over 800 different integrations you can choose from. 
• Constant Contact and HubSpot come in second and third, respectively. Constant Contact has roughly 300-ish integrations, and HubSpot has over 80 applications that it can integrate with. 
• Mailchimp doesn’t have direct integrations. Constant Contact, on the other hand, does. If you are worried about having to jump through hoops, then you need to stick to Constant Contact. 
• All of the email marketing platforms integrate with top e-commerce names. Shopify? Yep. Social media? Yep. 

Which platform is easiest to use?

Honestly, the jury is still out on this. Most people seem to agree that Mailchimp is the best in terms of ease of use. It’s easy to see why, too. The community and knowledge base for it is huge, easy-to-access style. You can ask a question and get answers fast. 

Moreover, there’s something to be said about the fact that it is the most popular platform in the world. I mean, over 80 percent of all people use it for their small business needs. Since people tend to use it as the default, there are a lot more marketers out there who are used to it. 

The verdict

Overall, we have to say that Mailchimp offers the most bang for small business email marketing. If you are looking for affordability, reliability, ease of use, and integrations, then it’s a clear winner. 

With that said, I couldn’t fault anyone for wanting Constant Contact or HubSpot. They’re pretty valiantly designed programs, too. Here are some quick notes that you should consider:

• Mailchimp is the most popular email marketing platform in the world. So if you are a fan of popularity and having people who know how to use the “status quo” software, then this is the best option for you.
• Many people find that Constant Contact is best for companies that have a strong e-commerce bent. Constant Contact also has a fair amount of predictive software and integrations that work with most software platforms. Small businesses love that stuff. 
• HubSpot is a "safe middle ground" in most situations. It's also more than just email. It's a full marketing and data suite, so it's ideal for "jacks of all trades."

The next steps

Learning about each platform can be intimidating, but it can be a lifesaver. Now that you’ve got the scoop, it’s up to you to determine which one is right for you. Here’s what you need to know about your next steps:

1. Determine what you need for your business.
2. Sign up for a free trial to ensure that you’ve got the right email platform.
3. Try it, then buy it. 

Getting the right software platform is great and all, but it’s not the be-all, end-all of your journey into email marketing. If you want to learn more, it’s best to join SavvySME’s marketing group to find out all the latest tips and tricks.

Editor update [10/04/2022]: Thanks for reading our article by Ossiana Tepfenhart, Content Manager at SavvySME. We hope it has helped you gain a better understanding of Email software management tools. Members at SavvySME have additional questions on the subject, so we have responded to some of these FAQs below.