Let’s be real: AWeber is a popular but traditional tool. They invented autoresponder but there is a serious lack of valuable updates now. You pay a minimum of $19/mo but still face some issues:
- Charges you for duplicate contacts and unsubscribes.
- Outdated email templates.
- Basic automation.
- Limited customization options in the editor.
- Split testing of emails not available.
If I had to use it one more day, I would be like a kid left crying. And you better not start that. So to help you the best option amongst various AWeber alternatives & make an informed decision we have six top picks for you:
#1. SendX
Before we get deeper, here's a quick comparison between SendX and AWeber.
And now the comparison. The best features I like in SendX are:
- Easy to use & feature-rich editor
- Powerful automation
Easy to use editor:
This is something that you don’t get at AWeber. To use SendX’s email editor, you don’t need to know HTML or secret Sanskrit mantras. You don’t need to even start building your email from scratch.
You get a responsive, pre-built library of templates that can be customized to your brand or use case.
The editor allows easy personalization with the recipient’s names, birthdays etc.
You can go a step further and create any number of custom fields for your contacts and use them in your emails to make them engaging. For example, you can create a designation field, home city field or company name field.
Finally, when you are done, with instant email preview feature, you get to see what your message will look like in your recipients' inboxes on both desktop and mobile.
Powerful Automation:
Putting your business on auto-pilot is not a luxury but a necessity.
Email marketing automation can help you save time, grow engagement, and profit your bottom line.
The automation features in SendX lets you create a series of emails that are sent to subscribers when triggered by a specific time, activity, or event.
Some examples are:
- Starting a series on onboarding emails when a user buys a subscription
- Congratulating a user for completing a milestone in the user journey
- Rewarding with offers on cart abandonment
- Stopping a campaign on receiving the required action or reply
SendX offers a number of in-built triggers and other settings, so you can quickly find and create the right campaign for your business needs. You can also create custom automation from scratch.
This is not part of some premium package but very affordable pricing plans. SendX pricing is based on your subscribers and you get access to all features from the get-go.
AWeber Vs SendX Comparison:
Customer support | 24/7 customer support on email, chat, and mobile |
Pricing Compared to AWeber | SendX is 90% cheaper than AWeber! |
Trial? | 14-day free trial with access to all features. No credit card required |
Recommended if | If you are looking for an easy to use editor for your bulk emails or newsletter, SendX is a great choice |
Not recommended if | If you’re looking for multi variant testing, workflows or e-commerce tracking then SendX won’t suffice for you. However, the team is proactive in spinning out new features so you can expect new features very soon. |
Pricing:
Pricing Comparison:
Contacts | SendX | Constant Contact |
0-500 | $7.49/mo | $16.1/mo |
500-2500 | $7.49/mo - $14.99/mo | $26.1/mo |
2500-5000 | $29.99/mo | $46.1/mo |
*All prices billed annually
#2. HubSpot Email Marketing
HubSpot’s email marketing software is just one part of an all-in-one marketing platform.
HubSpot uses its powerful CRM (which is free, forever) and marketing automation to power up your email marketing strategy. That’s where you get the true value out of HubSpot.
HubSpot is a great tool for collecting data on your website visitors and subscribers and then using that data to personalize not only your emails but your entire communications. Of course, all of these advanced features come at a higher price because, with HubSpot, you get much more than just an email tool.
In comparison to AWeber, HubSpot shines in two areas:
- Advanced automation
- Deep personalization
Advanced Automation:
HubSpot’s automation goes beyond email marketing. With HubSpot, you can create custom autoresponders and drip campaigns, and add them to more complex automation workflows. You can choose from a variety of trigger options, like when someone fills out a form or clicks on a certain link or any other information you have on them in the CRM (more on the CRM below).
You can also automate internal processes, like sending notifications and setting up tasks, manage and segment your leads, or update certain information on your subscribers.
Deep Personalization:
This is where the true power of HubSpot’s email marketing tool comes from -- the CRM. HubSpot’s free CRM collects information on your site visitors and subscribers. The form and popup tool can be used to capture new email addresses to be added to your email list and CRM. Once they’re in the CRM, any additional interaction someone has with your company is tracked in a tidy timeline. You can see if someone opens your emails, what they clicked on, etc.
You can use this information to personalize your emails and create a better experience for your subscribers while also increasing your email conversions.
AWeber Vs HubSpot Comparison:
Customer support | The support options available will depend on the plan you’re on. Free accounts get access to knowledge base articles, the community forum and Academy courses. On the paid plans, you get live chat, email, phone, and access to the Customer Success Team. |
Pricing Compared to AWeber | Not comparable as HubSpot has tiers and AWeber offers all features for any size of the contact list. AWeber cheapest plan - $16.1/mo Mailchimp cheapest plan - $50/mo. |
Trial? | Free forever plan for up to 2,000 email sends and unlimited contacts. It includes access to all of HubSpot’s free tools. There is a 14-day free trial for the premium features. |
Recommended if | If you are looking for an all-in-one platform & you have the budget for advanced functionality. |
Not recommended if | If you’re looking for a simple email marketing tool only and don’t wish to pay enterprise-level prices for tools you won’t need. |
Pricing:
Pricing Comparison:
Contacts | HubSpot (Starter plan) | AWeber |
0-500 | $40/mo | $16.1/mo |
500-2500 | $40/mo - $120/mo | $26.1/mo |
2500-5000 | $120/mo - $192/mo | $46.1/mo |
#3. Mailchimp
Mailchimp is usually criticized for its pricing policy but hey, isn’t AWeber in the same boat? They both charge for more than just subscribers. But Mailchimp does deliver on features, sleek UI and useful updates. Plus, it offers a wide range of ready to use newsletter templates.
You can use Mailchimp no matter what your experience level is or what’s the stage of your business. But yes, take care that they do charge for unsubscribers.
I would recommend Mailchimp if you are looking for:
- Advanced reporting
- Integrations with other platforms
Advanced reporting:
After you send an email campaign, you will be able to track and analyze data on clicks, opens, purchases and other interactions.
For your automation campaign, you can see the monthly performance - total emails sent and subscribers who have been sent all the emails in the series, opens & clicks for the whole series.
You can choose to get this data in an activity digest email.
Integrations:
Things that MailChimp features can’t handle on its own, it helps you do so by helping you integrate with third-party tools, easily.
For example, you can integrate PayPal with Mailchimp and import contacts of everyone who buys using your PayPal into your email marketing ecosystem. Or you can create sophisticated forms and quizzes for lead generation, sales, and client onboarding on Typeform & integrate with your Mailchimp account.
Vs
Mailchimp has a bigger selection of integrations & it’s easier to integrate.
For some integrations, you might need to set up configurations in AWeber while Mailchimp is a pretty straightforward or default option (e.g. Shopify, Squarespace).
AWeber Vs Mailchimp Comparison:
Customer support | Support depends on the payment plan you choose. You get 30 days of free email support to new Free accounts. |
Pricing Compared to AWeber | Not comparable as Mailchimp has tiers and AWeber offers all features for any size of the contact list. AWeber cheapest plan - $16.1/mo Mailchimp cheapest plan - $9.99/mo |
Trial? | Forever free plan for up to 2000 contacts and limited features. |
Recommended if | If you have a solid plan of growing your list where budget won’t be a constraint and wish to use all advanced features ranging from geo-analytics, heatmaps, and even CRM in the future, Mailchimp would be a good choice. |
Not recommended if | If you don’t have a huge marketing budget or plan to do affiliate marketing. |
Pricing:
Pricing Comparison:
Contacts | Mailchimp (Standard plan) | AWeber |
0-500 | $6.87/mo | $16.1/mo |
500-2500 | $22.98/mo | $26.1/mo |
2500-5000 | $34.63/mo | (Unlimited plan only) $899/mo |
*All prices billed annually
More on Mailchimp pricing here. And if you are curious.
#4. Constant Contact
While evaluating AWeber alternatives, it is worth mentioning that both AWeber & Constant Contact started around the same time, in the late 90s, but Constant Contact has been more popular compared to AWeber. See this Google Trends data:
This huge gap is because Constant Contact provides a high email delivery rate and that is what marketers care about more than anything else.
While many email marketing tools also have a cap on how many messages you can send in a month, Constant Contact doesn't.
It also fairs very well in two areas:
- Templates & Editor
- Contact Management
Templates & Editor:
Constant Contact provides a vast library of 100+ templates. You can even create your own branded templates using the template builder. All this with very few steps and almost no coding.
For the technically savvy marketer, Constant Contact allows for complete customization of an email campaign in HTML or XHTML.
Contact List Management & Segmentation:
First of all, it’s super easy to upload your list from Excel, Outlook, your e-commerce platform or wherever you currently store it.
Next, you can assign tags to contacts, which is useful if you want to track things such as how they signed up if they are a top customer or other details. You can also create segments of users based on location, interests, and other information you have collected from your contacts.
Their email list cleaning service will be able to remove duplicates or unsubscribers for you so you keep your list absolutely clean.
AWeber Vs Constant Contact Comparison:
Customer support | Call support is from Mon-Sat & Chat support from Mon-Fri with fixed hours. |
Pricing Compared to AWeber | Constant Contact is 57% more expensive |
Trial? | 30-day trial but requires you to signup with your credit card |
Recommended if | If you are a small business or nonprofit, this would be a good investment |
Not recommended if | If you are looking for advanced automation, testing capabilities or e-commerce tracking this might not be a great choice |
Pricing:
Pricing Comparison:
Contacts | Constant Contact | AWeber |
0-500 | $12/mo | $16.1/mo |
500-2500 | $50/mo | $26.1/mo |
2500-5000 | $80/mo | (Unlimited plan only) $899/mo |
*All prices billed annually
#5. Brevo
Brevo offers a drag-and-drop email editor. As you can see in the image below, it offers a limited number of design elements - title, text, image, button and space. The drag and drop is pretty easy to use. You can also see your email preview along with editing.
It also has some pre-made content elements like Image box, which has image, text and button combined into one element that you can drag & drop.
Brevo doesn't have many templates. But you can create your own and save for later use.
You can get started with automation by using one of the pre-made workflow templates.
Reporting is basically like any other platform but also focuses on conversions. You can set your own way to judge what conversion means for you and the dashboard will track that. If you have a premium plan, you can also get data based on the location of people who clicked or opened your emails.
Their segmentation capabilities allow you to store as many data points as you want, on your contacts, without paying anything extra.
Brevo offers dedicated transactional email templates & reports.You get different setup options for your transactional emails, such as API, SMTP Relay, eCommerce plugins, or marketing automation.
AWeber Vs Brevo Comparison:
Customer support | Chat and email support |
Pricing Compared to AWeber | The lowest plan of Brevo is $10 more than that of AWeber but you are charged based on the number of emails sent and not subscribers (as with AWeber) |
Trial? | Forever free for up to 300emails/day |
Recommended if | If you are looking for low-cost software and want to leverage SMS also, then Brevo would be a fine choice. |
Not recommended if | If you are looking for many integrations and your list is cold, then Brevo might not help much. |
Pricing:
*AWeber charges based on the number of contacts and Brevo charges based on the number of emails sent, so not doing a price comparison between the two.
#6. MailerLite
In comparison with the different AWeber alternatives, MailerLite is an email marketing platform best suited for small businesses because of it's affordable plan and easy to use editor.
MailerLite’s Email Editor:
The drag-and-drop editor is simple to use with a clean design. Users can create, edit, modify content without any hassle. They also provide a collection of templates to choose from.
Key features:
Subscriber Management:
You can set up your subscriber list pretty easily with MailerLite. Duplicate records will be removed automatically. You can use the filter tool to find the subscribers. Add as many custom fields as you want, to create an extensive database. You can also create groups and segments based on various conditions, which can be customised too.
Automation:
You can send personalised messages to subscribers on occasions. You can also boost sales by reminding customers of the items in their cart and show them updates and offers based on their interests. The segments and groups can be individually targeted to send relevant content. All of this can be made more productive by creating your own workflow.
AWeber Vs MailerLite Comparison:
Customer support | Chat and email support |
Pricing Compared to AWeber | AWeber is 2x more expensive compared to Mailerlite. So yes, in terms of affordability, we would recommend Mailerlite. (or better.. Sendx ;) ) |
Trial? | Forever free for up to 1000 contacts |
Recommended if | Recommended if you are a small business with no much complicated automations or CRM needs. MailerLite is best for freelancers, bloggers, and small businesses |
Not recommended if | If you are looking for many integrations, automations or a large number of templates. |
Pricing:
Just 2 ways to go (Simple!).
Free - Up to 1k subscribers and you can send up to 12k emails/month
Paid - Starts at $10 every month for 1000 subscribers. You get all the features, including Unlimited emails per month no matter how many subscribers you have.
Pricing Comparison:
Contacts | MailerLite | AWeber |
0-500 | $7/mo | $16.1/mo |
500-2500 | $10/mo | $26.1/mo |
2500-5000 | $21/mo | $46.1/mo |
*All prices billed annually
Comparison of AWeber Alternatives in a Table
Platform | Great 👍 | Uh-oh 👎 |
AWeber | Fast & friendly support. Good list management tools. | Charges you for unsubscribers, old templates and not easy to use. |
SendX | Extremely affordable. Excellent Customer Support. Very Intuitive UI. | Doesn’t have advanced workflows. |
HubSpot Email Marketing | Easy to use. Free forever plan. All-in-one platform. | Expensive as your audience grows. |
Mailchimp | Many integrations. Forever free plan. All-in-one marketing platform. | Pricing can get expensive as your audience grows. |
Constant Contact | Simple Interface. High deliverability rate. | Expensive for the limited set of features offered. Only basic automation. |
Brevo | Very affordale. Option to leverage SMS. | Not many integrations. |
MailerLite | Simple drag-and-drop editor. Easy subscriber list management. | Limited automation capabilities. Not many integrations. |
Which is the Best Pick Amongst AWeber Alternatives?
All of these platforms are best in what they do but each suits a particular kind of business, stage of your email list and how you plan to scale.
If I have to look at features provided, ease of use and email deliverability I would go for SendX.
We love a good bargain — and it’s even sweeter when the best product is the one that costs the least. SendX will cost you only $7.49/mo for 1000 contacts and access to all subscribers.
Psst, and unlimited emails.
Other than pricing, there are more reasons to check out SendX. So, let me repeat why you will love SendX.
💃They have a free 14-day trial that requires no credit card and enables you to check out all the features. You will be impressed with their simplicity, customer support, powerful automation tools & vast options for landing pages. Here is another chance to sign up if you press that glossy green button below. 👇
✅In a short journey of 3 years, SendX has already empowered 3000+ marketers, bloggers, entrepreneurs and businesses all over the globe.
And once upon a time, a genius marketer from Drivezy said the following about SendX.
“Got amazing support from the SendX team. They helped me set up the tool. Setting up drip campaigns is extremely easy and it is extremely easy to import/export contacts and set up campaigns. I can tell that this is easily among the best of all similar tools available in the market.”
So, what I am trying to say is, you should hit the shiny green button and take up the 14-day free trial. No credit card is required.
FAQs
1) Why should I look for an alternative to AWeber?
AWeber is a popular but traditional tool. They invented autoresponder but there is a lack of valuable updates now. You pay a minimum of $19/mo but still face some issues:
1. Charges you for duplicate contacts and unsubscribes.
2. Outdated email templates.
3. Basic automation.
4. Limited customization options in the editor.
5. Split testing of emails not available.
2) What are the best alternatives to AWeber?
Apart from SendX, Mailchimp and Constant Contact can be considered as good alternatives to AWeber.