Best newsletter platform for 500 subscribers
Worked out for 500 subscribers, paying yearly.
The short answer
For 500 subscribers, beehiiv Free and Systeme.io Free both cost $0.
Mailchimp doesn't publish a price at this size, so we show its starting price instead.
We left one tool out. The reason is below.
beehiiv Free
Free
- Systeme.io FreeFree(same total)
- MailerLite Comfort$10.80
We may earn a commission from some links. It never changes the order or the prices. How we make money
9 newsletter or email platforms that fit
Ranked by fit, then by how sure the price is, then by total cost.
Full price published
Number 1: beehiiv Free
Free plan
Free
Why it's here
- Free plan that covers 500 subscribers
Limits to know
- Covers up to 2,500 subscribers, then you need a bigger plan
- 1 team seat included
- No paid subscriptions
- Publications: 1
Number 2: Systeme.io Free
Free plan
Free
Go to Systeme.ioAll Systeme.io plansDetails
Why it's here
- Free plan that covers 500 subscribers
Limits to know
- Covers up to 2,000 contacts, then you need a bigger plan
- Sales funnels: 3
- Automation rules: 1
- Custom domains: 1
Number 3: MailerLite Comfort
14-day free trial
$10.80a month
$129.60 a year
Plan only, billed yearly, no extra fees.
Go to MailerLiteAll MailerLite plansDetails
Why it's here
- Cheapest MailerLite plan for 500 subscribers
- Paying yearly saves $14 a year
Limits to know
- Covers up to 500 subscribers. Prices above that aren't published
- 5,000 emails a month
- 3 team seats included
- Price rises with subscriber count
Number 4: AWeber Lite
14-day free trial
$12.50a month
$150 a year
Plan only, billed yearly, no extra fees.
Go to AWeberAll AWeber plansDetails
Why it's here
- Cheapest AWeber plan for 500 subscribers
Limits to know
- Covers up to 500 subscribers. Prices above that aren't published
- 3 team seats included
- Ecommerce transaction fee 1.0%
- Email lists: 1
Number 5: ActiveCampaign Starter
14-day free trial
$15a month
$180 a year
Plan only, billed yearly, no extra fees.
Go to ActiveCampaignAll ActiveCampaign plansDetails
Why it's here
- Cheapest ActiveCampaign plan for 500 subscribers
Limits to know
- Covers up to 1,000 contacts. Prices above that aren't published
- 10,000 emails a month
- 1 team seat included
- Price changes with contact count
Number 6: GetResponse Starter
14-day free trial
$15.58a month
$186.96 a year
Plan only, billed yearly, no extra fees.
Go to GetResponseAll GetResponse plansDetails
Why it's here
- Cheapest GetResponse plan for 500 subscribers
- Paying yearly saves $41 a year
Limits to know
- Covers up to 1,000 contacts. Prices above that aren't published
- Price changes with list size
- Custom automation workflows: 1
Number 7: Kajabi Basic
$143a month
$1,716 a year
Plan only, billed yearly, no extra fees.
Go to KajabiAll Kajabi plansDetails
Why it's here
- Cheapest Kajabi plan for 500 subscribers
- Paying yearly saves $432 a year
Limits to know
- Covers up to 2,500 contacts, then $125 a month for each 25,000 more
- 2 team seats included
- Kajabi Payments: 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction (US)
- Using a third-party payment provider: 2% fee (excludes PayPal)
Provisional price
Number 8: Kit Creator
Provisional figure
$32.50a month
$390 a year
Plan only, billed yearly, no extra fees.
Go to KitAll Kit plansDetails
Why it's here
- Covers 500 subscribers
- Paying yearly saves $6 a year
Limits to know
- Covers up to 1,000 subscribers. Prices above that aren't published
- Provisional: the vendor's page doesn't state this clearly.
Starting price only. The price at your size isn't published
Number 9: Mailchimp Essentials
Starting price14-day free trial
From $13a month
No published price at your size
Go to MailchimpAll Mailchimp plansDetails
Why it's here
- Cheapest Mailchimp plan not ruled out for 500 subscribers
Limits to know
- 3 team seats included
- Overages apply if contact or email send limit is exceeded
- Sending will be paused if contact or email send limit is exceeded
- Custom-coded templates: create, upgrade to send
- Price at your size not published: Starting price for the lowest contact band; the band size and higher prices are not published.
Left out: 1 tool doesn't fit what you asked for
- Substack
No prices recorded yet
Common questions
What is the cheapest newsletter or email platform for 500 subscribers?
Of the prices published for 500 subscribers, beehiiv Free, which is free and Systeme.io Free, which is free are joint lowest.
Is there a free newsletter or email platform for 500 subscribers?
Of the plans we've recorded, beehiiv Free and Systeme.io Free cover 500 subscribers for free. Free plans have limits, and we list each one's above. Some vendors' free plans aren't recorded yet.
Why do some tools show a "from" price?
Mailchimp doesn't publish what 500 subscribers costs. We show the starting price and rank it below tools whose full cost is published.
How are these ranked?
Fit comes first. The plan has to cover your size, have your must-have features and fit your budget. Next comes how sure we are of the cost, then the lowest total. A tool we earn a commission from can be shown first only when two options are equal on all of that and both costs are fully published and within 5% of each other. The listing says when this happens.