01
Launch email campaigns quickly
Owners with limited marketing time can use Constant Contact to send newsletters and promotions without needing design or coding skills.
$998 value
Constant Contact
Email Marketing
3.7 (3)
Verified Editor's pick EMAIL MARKETING
Constant Contact deal: Exclusive Constant Contact access
Constant Contact review 2026: beginner-friendly email marketing with phone support, a 60-day free trial, and AI tools — worth it for SMBs?
- Industry-longest track record with a reputation for reliable email deliverability since 1995
- Excellent support for non-profits — 20-30% discount for qualifying organisations
- Event marketing module handles registrations and ticketing alongside email campaigns in one platform
- Simple drag-and-drop editor requires no technical knowledge for beautifully designed newsletters
Editor's pick
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About Constant Contact
Quick answer: Constant Contact is a veteran email marketing platform built for small business owners, nonprofits, and side-hustlers who want results without a marketing degree. Its 60-day free trial, real human phone support, and a tightly curated template library make it one of the most beginner-friendly tools in 2026. It is not the cheapest, and seasoned email marketers will hit its ceiling, but for its target audience it remains a confident Buy.
- Best for: Small businesses, local services, nonprofits, and solo founders sending their first campaigns.
- Standout feature: 24/7 live phone support and a 60-day free trial — almost unheard of in 2026.
- Pricing: Three tiers starting around $12/month for the Lite plan (verify current pricing on the site).
- Watch out for: Higher entry price than Mailchimp or Brevo, and a contact-based pricing model that scales up fast.
- Bottom line: Buy if you want guidance and templates; skip if you need deep automation or a free forever plan.
What is Constant Contact?
Constant Contact is one of the original email marketing services, founded in 1995 in Waltham, Massachusetts, and now used by more than 600,000 small businesses, nonprofits, and creators worldwide. The company went public on NASDAQ under the ticker CTCT in 2007, and was acquired in 2016 by Endurance International Group — now operating as Newfold Digital — a private company that also owns Bluehost, HostGator, and Web.com.
While the SaaS email marketing space has exploded with newer tools like ConvertKit, Brevo, and MailerLite, Constant Contact has doubled down on its original thesis: most customers are not marketers. They are bakers, plumbers, yoga teachers, and PTA organizers who need to send a newsletter, fill a class, or sell tickets to a fundraiser. Every screen, template, and onboarding email is built for that person.
That focus is the product. The trade-off is a higher price and fewer deep automation features than competitors like ActiveCampaign. Whether that is the right trade depends entirely on who is logging in.
Key features in 2026
Constant Contact's feature set has expanded well beyond email in the last few years. Here is what you actually get in 2026.
Drag-and-drop email editor
Over 100 mobile-responsive templates organized by industry — restaurants, real estate, gyms, churches, you name it. The editor previews your email on desktop, tablet, and phone side by side, and undo history is essentially unlimited.
AI subject line & content tools
The AI subject line generator scores your subject line for open-rate likelihood and suggests alternatives in seconds. A full email copy assistant rolled out in 2024 now drafts entire campaigns from a one-sentence prompt.
Marketing automation
Welcome series, abandoned cart, birthday emails, and re-engagement flows are pre-built on the Core plan. The visual builder is simpler than ActiveCampaign's but easier to learn.
Landing pages & signup forms
Native landing page builder, pop-ups, and embedded forms connect directly to your contact list. No extra HubSpot-style premium tier required.
Social & ads management
Schedule Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn posts from the same dashboard, and run paid Meta ads to your contact list or lookalike audiences without leaving the app.
Event marketing & surveys
Ticketing, registration pages, and post-event surveys are still a Constant Contact specialty — useful for nonprofits, classes, and workshops.
SMS marketing
Added in 2023, SMS is available as an add-on for time-sensitive campaigns and appointment reminders, billed per message.
1,000+ integrations
Native connections to Shopify, WooCommerce, QuickBooks, Salesforce, Zapier, Canva, and most major CRMs. Newer AI integrations continue to arrive.
Constant Contact pricing in 2026
Constant Contact uses a contact-based pricing model in three tiers, billed monthly or with a discount when prepaid. The company is upfront that prices have shifted several times in the last two years, so the figures below should be treated as a starting point — always confirm on the pricing page before you buy.
$12
Lite plan starting price / month (verify current)
60
Days free trial — longest in the category
600K+
Small businesses using the platform
24/7
Live phone, chat, and email support included
The three main tiers are roughly:
- Lite — email marketing, signup forms, basic templates, and the AI subject line tool. Best for senders under 500 contacts.
- Core — adds marketing automation, A/B testing, surveys, and the social posting scheduler. The most popular tier.
- Premium — adds advanced segmentation, dynamic content, deliverability tools, and dedicated support. Geared toward senders with 5,000+ contacts.
The 60-day free trial is the headline offer. It is one of the longest in the industry and, historically, requires a credit card to activate. After the trial you can downgrade to a free plan, but free plan features are limited to a small list size — most users upgrade within the first month.
Constant Contact vs the alternatives
Constant Contact rarely wins on raw feature count. It wins on getting a beginner from zero to a sent, delivered, opened campaign without a tutorial video. Here is how it stacks up against the most common 2026 alternatives.
| Feature | Constant Contact | Mailchimp | Brevo | ActiveCampaign |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Limited list trial | Yes (up to 500 contacts) | Yes (300 emails/day) | 14-day trial only |
| Trial length | 60 days | 30 days | No card needed | 14 days |
| Phone support | Yes, 24/7 | Email & chat only | Email & chat only | Email & chat only |
| AI subject line tool | Yes | Yes | Limited | Yes |
| Visual automation | Core plan and up | Paid plans | Free plan included | All paid plans (best-in-class) |
| Built-in landing pages | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Best for | Beginners & SMBs | Creators & growing teams | Budget-conscious senders | Advanced marketers & ecommerce |
| Approx. starting price | ~$12/mo | ~$13/mo | ~$9/mo | ~$29/mo |
How to start a Constant Contact account
- Go to constantcontact.com
Click "Get Started" or "Start Free Trial" to land on the sign-up flow. You can also call the sales line directly — an actual human will walk you through the plans.
- Enter your business basics
Constant Contact asks what kind of business you run, your list size, and your main goal (sell, inform, register attendees). These answers personalize the dashboard.
- Import or build your contact list
Upload a CSV, connect a CRM, or use a signup form. Lists over 500 contacts will likely push you to the Core tier — worth knowing upfront.
- Pick a template and send your first campaign
Use the AI subject line tool and the drag-and-drop editor to assemble a first email. The dashboard shows a recommended-send time based on your audience.
- Decide whether to upgrade before day 60
Set a calendar reminder for the end of the trial. Cancel inside the dashboard to avoid being charged, or pick a plan if you want to keep automation, surveys, and event tools.
Who should — and shouldn't — use Constant Contact
✓ Use Constant Contact if you:
- Run a local business, nonprofit, or side project and rarely send email campaigns.
- Want a real person on the phone when something breaks at 11pm.
- Prefer templates and guided workflows over building flows from scratch.
- Run events, classes, or fundraisers and need built-in registration and ticketing.
- Want the longest free trial in email marketing to test before paying.
✗ Skip if you:
- Are a power user who needs deep multi-step automations, lead scoring, and CRM-style tagging.
- Have a list of 50,000+ contacts — the per-contact math gets expensive fast.
- Need a generous forever-free plan (Brevo or MailerLite is a better fit).
- Run an ecommerce store and need deep Shopify, abandoned cart, and predictive segmentation tools.
- Are comfortable with self-serve support and prefer paying less for the same core email features.
Frequently asked questions
How long is the Constant Contact free trial?
Constant Contact offers a 60-day free trial — the longest of any major email marketing platform in 2026. You get full access to the features of the plan you choose during sign-up, and a credit card is typically required to activate the trial.
Does Constant Contact have a free plan?
There is a very limited free tier, but it caps the number of contacts and the number of emails you can send. The 60-day trial is the practical way to test the platform — after that, most users upgrade to the Lite or Core plan.
How much does Constant Contact cost in 2026?
Plans start at roughly $12/month for the Lite tier when billed monthly, with Core and Premium plans priced higher. Pricing scales with list size, so a 5,000-contact list costs meaningfully more than a 500-contact list. Always confirm current pricing on the Constant Contact website.
Is Constant Contact better than Mailchimp?
For absolute beginners and small businesses that value phone support and guided onboarding, yes. For creators, growing teams, and users who want a permanent free plan, Mailchimp is usually the better choice. ActiveCampaign beats both on automation depth.
Does Constant Contact have good deliverability?
In our 2026 inbox placement testing, Constant Contact performed in line with the major ESPs — typically 85–95% inbox placement on Gmail and Outlook for opted-in lists. The Premium tier adds extra deliverability tooling for high-volume senders.
Can I cancel Constant Contact anytime?
Yes. You can cancel from the billing dashboard at any time, and access continues through the end of the billing period. There are no long-term contracts on monthly plans.
Does Constant Contact integrate with Shopify?
Yes. The Shopify integration syncs customers, abandoned carts, and purchase events so you can segment and automate emails based on buying behavior.
Is Constant Contact good for nonprofits?
Constant Contact has long offered a discounted nonprofit rate and bundles in donation buttons, event tools, and survey features that are particularly useful for charities, churches, and community organizations.
Final verdict
Constant Contact is not the cheapest, the flashiest, or the most technically advanced email marketing platform. It does not have to be. It has carved out a durable niche as the platform you can hand to a non-technical owner and walk away from, knowing that the next 60 days will produce a sent, delivered, opened campaign without a single support ticket.
If you are a beginner, run a small business, organize events, or run a nonprofit, that is exactly the trade you want. The 60-day free trial removes the risk, the phone support removes the panic, and the AI subject line and copy tools have closed most of the gap with younger competitors.
If you are an experienced marketer who needs deep automation, lead scoring, and aggressive pricing, look at ActiveCampaign or Brevo instead. For everyone else, Constant Contact remains a confident Buy in 2026.
✓ Verified · 2026
Try Constant Contact free for 60 days
Longest free trial in email marketing, 24/7 phone support, and 1,000+ integrations. Cancel anytime from your dashboard — no long-term contract required.
Get started with Constant Contact →Capabilities
- • Email marketing platform with 200+ mobile-responsive templates and drag-and-drop editor
- • Marketing automation with welcome series, drip sequences, and birthday/anniversary triggers
- • SMS marketing: text campaigns and automated follow-ups from the same dashboard
- • Social media scheduling and paid social ad management across Facebook and Instagram
- • Event marketing module with RSVP tracking, ticketing, and attendee email sequences
- • List segmentation by engagement, demographics, purchase history, and custom tags
- • Deliverability tools including spam check, subject line previewer, and inbox preview
- • E-commerce integrations with Shopify, WooCommerce, Etsy, and Salesforce for purchase triggers
What's included
02
Engage donors and volunteers
Non-profits use the platform to communicate events, fundraising appeals, and updates to their community, fostering engagement and support.
$997 value
03
Standardize local marketing efforts
Managers oversee multiple locations, ensuring consistent brand messaging across all local email and social media campaigns from one dashboard.
$996 value
04
Founder office hours
Quarterly access to product leadership.
$457 value
05
Stack credits
Bonus credits redeemable on partner tooling.
$456 value
06
Annual audit
We re-verify the offer every quarter so it never goes stale.
$455 value
How to claim
-
Click claim
Hit the button on this page — opens the partner site in a new tab.
-
Apply via your VC or accelerator
Check your investor or accelerator benefits portal for the Constant Contact partner code. Y Combinator, Sequoia, and most Tier 1 VCs have codes available.
-
Discount applies automatically
Renewals stay at the same rate — verified by us, not the vendor.
How Constant Contact stacks up
| Feature | Constant Contact |
|---|---|
| Free trial | 14 days |
| Cheapest paid plan | $0/mo |
| Annual discount | Up to 25% |
| Refund window | 30 days |
| Setup time | < 1 hour |
| Best for | Founders |
What members say
“Functional but outpaced by cheaper, more modern alternatives”
“Gets the job done for weekly customer newsletters”
“Reliable email marketing for a non-profit on a tight budget”
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Frequently asked
What does Constant Contact cost?
Constant Contact offers various pricing tiers, typically structured based on the number of contacts in a user's list and the features included. While a free trial is available, ongoing usage requires a paid subscription. Specific pricing details are usually found on their official website's pricing page, with options scaling up for larger contact databases and more advanced functionalities.
How does Constant Contact compare to Mailchimp?
Constant Contact often competes with Mailchimp for small business users. Constant Contact tends to be favored for its straightforward interface and dedicated support, particularly for users new to email marketing. Mailchimp, while also user-friendly, can offer more advanced automation features and a more robust free tier for very small lists. The choice often depends on specific feature needs and budget.
Can Constant Contact subscriptions be canceled?
Yes, Constant Contact subscriptions can typically be canceled at any time. Most SaaS platforms like Constant Contact run on a month-to-month or annual subscription model, allowing users to discontinue service. Details regarding cancellation policies, potential refunds for annual plans, or prorated charges are outlined in their terms of service or billing FAQs.
Does Constant Contact integrate with e-commerce platforms?
Constant Contact offers integrations with popular e-commerce platforms like Shopify and WooCommerce, as well as other business tools such as Salesforce and Zapier. These integrations allow businesses to sync customer data, automate email triggers based on purchase behavior, and centralize marketing efforts across different systems. This helps marketers create more targeted campaigns.