Choosing an email marketing platform is not simply about finding the lowest monthly price. Businesses also need to consider email volume, contact storage, automation, CRM functionality, transactional messaging, deliverability tools, and the cost of adding features as the business grows.
Brevo takes a somewhat different approach from many traditional email marketing platforms. Its pricing is primarily organized around monthly email volume, while paid tiers also specify contact-storage limits. That distinction can make Brevo attractive for businesses that maintain larger databases but do not need to email every contact every month.
This guide explains Brevo’s current pricing structure, what each plan includes, where the platform represents good value, and where another solution may make more sense.
Executive Summary / Quick Verdict
Quick Verdict: Brevo is a strong option for small and midsize businesses, ecommerce operators, and growing brands that want email marketing, automation, transactional email, and basic CRM capabilities in one platform. Its Free and Starter tiers are particularly accessible for businesses testing email marketing, while Standard adds the automation and optimization features most growing teams are likely to need.
Businesses requiring highly specialized ecommerce segmentation, very advanced CRM functionality, or enterprise-level customization should compare Brevo with platforms such as Klaviyo, ActiveCampaign, HubSpot, or other specialized solutions before committing.
LedgCraft Scorecard
| Category | Rating | Our Assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Ease of Use | 4.5/5 | Intuitive interface and visual campaign tools |
| Deliverability | 4.5/5 | Strong infrastructure, but sender practices still matter |
| Multi-Channel Features | 4.5/5 | Email plus SMS, WhatsApp, chat and push capabilities |
| Automation | 4.5/5 | Strong workflow capabilities, especially on Standard and above |
| Value for Money | 4.5/5 | Competitive for businesses that need multiple marketing functions |
Best for: SMBs, ecommerce businesses, agencies, startups, and budget-conscious brands that want an integrated marketing platform.
Consider alternatives if: Your primary requirement is an exceptionally deep ecommerce marketing engine, sophisticated enterprise CRM, or highly specialized sales automation.
Brevo Pricing at a Glance
Brevo currently offers five main plans: Free, Starter, Standard, Professional, and Enterprise. Brevo lists starting prices of $0, $9, $18, $499, and custom pricing respectively. Actual pricing can vary depending on selected email volume, billing arrangement, add-ons, and other requirements.
| Plan | Starting Price | Email Volume / Limits | Best For |
| Free | $0/month | 300 emails/day | Testing and very small send volumes |
| Starter | From $9/month | From 5,000 emails/month | Individuals and small businesses |
| Standard | From $18/month | From 5,000 emails/month | Growing marketing teams |
| Professional | From $499/month | From 150,000 emails/month | High-volume marketing |
| Enterprise | Custom | Custom | Large organizations |
The Free plan allows up to 100,000 stored contacts, but email sending is limited to 300 emails per day. Unused daily sends do not roll over.
Core Features Breakdown
1. Email Marketing & Drag-and-Drop Editor
Email campaigns remain Brevo’s core use case.
The platform includes a visual drag-and-drop email editor designed to let marketers create campaigns without writing HTML. Users can work from templates, create custom designs, reuse sections, and personalize messages.
The Free plan already includes the drag-and-drop editor, custom templates, reusable sections, and basic reporting.
For businesses, the practical advantage is speed. A marketing team can create a newsletter, promotional campaign, onboarding message, or product announcement without requiring a developer for every campaign.
Personalization and segmentation
Brevo can also use customer attributes and engagement information to create targeted campaigns. More advanced plans provide deeper reporting, segmentation, automation, and ecommerce functionality.
For example, an ecommerce business could segment customers according to:
- Previous purchases
- Engagement with previous campaigns
- Customer attributes
- Website activity
- Product-related behavior
- Lifecycle stage
This makes the platform more useful than a basic newsletter sender.
2. Multi-Channel Campaigns
Brevo’s positioning extends beyond email.
Depending on the plan and selected services, businesses can use SMS, WhatsApp, web push, mobile push, and conversations/chat alongside email.
The Free plan includes email and SMS campaigns, while higher tiers expand the available channels. Professional includes WhatsApp campaigns and transactional messaging as well as web and mobile push capabilities.
This matters because modern customer journeys rarely depend on one communication channel.
A retailer, for example, might use:
- Email for product education.
- SMS for time-sensitive promotions.
- WhatsApp for selected customer communications.
- Web push for returning visitors.
- Chat for customer questions.
Not every business needs all of these channels, but having them within one ecosystem can reduce the number of separate platforms required.
3. Marketing Automation & Workflows
Automation is where Brevo becomes more valuable for growing businesses.
The platform can be used to build workflows based on customer actions and attributes. Common use cases include:
- Welcome sequences
- Lead nurturing
- Abandoned-cart campaigns
- Customer onboarding
- Re-engagement campaigns
- Purchase follow-ups
- Behavioral triggers
- Segmentation-based campaigns
The Standard plan includes marketing automation for unlimited contacts, while the Free and Starter tiers have more limited automation capabilities.
Standard also adds A/B testing, advanced reporting, and AI send-time optimization.
For a small business, this can be significant. Instead of manually emailing every new lead, the business can create a workflow once and allow the system to execute it automatically.
Contact scoring
More advanced plans add contact scoring, which can help marketing teams identify contacts showing stronger engagement or buying intent. Professional also includes AI segmentation and advanced ecommerce capabilities.
4. Sales CRM & Pipeline Management
Brevo is not exclusively an email marketing application.
Every plan includes free built-in sales tools. Brevo currently lists features including 50 open deals, one sales pipeline, meeting scheduling, live chat, sales reporting, forecasting, task management, reminders, and a connected calendar and mailbox.
That makes the platform useful for businesses that want basic CRM functionality without purchasing a separate CRM immediately.
However, businesses with complex sales operations should evaluate the CRM carefully. Brevo’s built-in sales functionality is useful, but it should not automatically be considered a replacement for every enterprise CRM.
Advanced sales features are available through paid add-ons, including additional automation, pipeline capabilities, outreach sequences, calling functionality, and other sales tools.
5. Transactional Email
Transactional email is another important part of Brevo’s offering.
Unlike marketing campaigns, transactional messages are typically triggered by specific customer actions. Examples include:
- Account verification emails
- Password resets
- Order confirmations
- Shipping notifications
- Receipts
- Appointment confirmations
- System notifications
Brevo supports transactional email through SMTP and an API, with official SDK support for several programming languages. It can also integrate with platforms such as WordPress and ecommerce systems.
For developers, this means Brevo can serve both marketing and application-generated email requirements.
However, no email provider can guarantee perfect inbox placement. Deliverability depends on authentication, sender reputation, list quality, engagement, message content, and recipient-provider policies.
The Pricing Model Advantage
One of Brevo’s most important pricing characteristics is that its marketing plans emphasize email sending volume rather than simply charging according to the number of contacts in your database.
There is an important nuance here: Brevo’s current paid plans do include specified contact-storage tiers, so it would be inaccurate to describe Brevo as having absolutely no contact-based pricing. Instead, the key difference is that monthly email volume is a central pricing variable, while contact-storage limits are also specified by plan.
This can be advantageous for companies with many inactive or infrequently contacted subscribers.
For example, imagine a business with 20,000 stored contacts that sends one newsletter every month. A platform that primarily ties pricing to contact count may charge based heavily on the size of that database.
Brevo’s email-volume approach can be more attractive when the business maintains a larger database but sends relatively selectively.
Free Plan
The Free plan costs $0 and does not expire.
It includes:
- 300 email sends per day
- Up to 100,000 stored contacts
- One user seat
- Email and SMS campaigns
- Transactional email
- Drag-and-drop editor
- Templates
- Basic reporting
- Limited marketing automation
- Free sales tools
- Email support
The major restriction is the 300-email daily sending limit.
Starter Plan
Starter begins at $9/month and removes the Free plan’s daily sending limitation.
Brevo offers multiple volume tiers, starting at 5,000 emails per month. Contact-storage limits vary according to the selected tier. Starter also adds web push and other capabilities, while removing Brevo branding is available as an add-on.
This is a logical starting point for businesses that have moved beyond testing but do not yet need advanced automation.
Standard Plan
Standard begins at $18/month.
This is arguably the most important tier for growing businesses because it adds:
- Marketing automation for unlimited contacts
- A/B testing
- Advanced reporting
- AI send-time optimization
- Web/event tracking
- Landing pages
- Expanded web push capabilities
For many small businesses, Standard is the tier where Brevo becomes a genuine marketing automation platform rather than simply an email-sending service.
Professional Plan
Professional starts at $499/month and is aimed at high-volume marketing teams.
It starts at 150,000 monthly emails and adds advanced capabilities such as WhatsApp campaigns, AI segmentation, contact scoring, advanced ecommerce features, more landing pages, analytics dashboards, and deliverability support.
Professional pricing is substantially higher than the entry-level tiers, so smaller companies should not upgrade simply for the sake of having more features.
Enterprise
Enterprise uses custom pricing.
It is designed for larger organizations requiring customized sending volumes, enterprise security, advanced data capabilities, dedicated support, and additional organizational controls. Enterprise includes unlimited contact storage and unlimited user seats.
Pros & Cons
Pros
1. Strong entry-level pricing
A permanent Free plan and a Starter tier beginning at $9/month make Brevo accessible to small businesses.
2. Large contact-storage allowance on Free
The Free plan supports up to 100,000 stored contacts, although the 300-email-per-day sending limit makes it unsuitable for large-scale campaigns.
3. Broad marketing ecosystem
Email, SMS, transactional messaging, automation, CRM, chat, and additional channels can be managed within one platform.
4. Useful transactional email infrastructure
SMTP and API options make Brevo relevant for both marketers and developers.
5. Good progression from basic to advanced marketing
The platform offers a relatively clear upgrade path from Free to Starter, Standard, Professional, and Enterprise.
Cons
1. The Free plan’s daily limit is restrictive
300 emails per day is sufficient for testing but can become inconvenient for businesses with larger audiences.
2. Advanced features require higher tiers
Features such as advanced automation, A/B testing, advanced analytics, contact scoring, and expanded multichannel capabilities are distributed across higher plans.
3. Professional is expensive for smaller businesses
Starting at $499/month, Professional is a substantial jump from Standard. Businesses should calculate their actual requirements before upgrading.
Brevo vs Competitors
Pricing structures change frequently, so competitor comparisons should always be checked against the provider’s current pricing page before purchase.
| Platform | Pricing Structure | Contact Limits | Multi-Channel Capabilities | Built-in CRM |
| Brevo | Primarily email-volume based, with contact tiers | Varies by plan; Free up to 100K | Email, SMS, WhatsApp, push, chat | Yes |
| Mailchimp | Contact + email-send limits | Plan-dependent | Email, SMS and other marketing features | Limited/marketing-focused |
| ActiveCampaign | Primarily contact-based pricing | Plan-dependent | Email, SMS and automation | Yes |
| Klaviyo | Profile/contact and messaging based | Profile-based | Email, SMS and ecommerce-focused messaging | Customer/marketing CRM capabilities |
Mailchimp currently limits its Free plan to 250 contacts and 500 monthly sends, while paid plans use contact and email-send limits. Klaviyo’s current Free plan allows up to 250 active profiles and 500 email sends per month.
The important takeaway is not that one platform is universally cheaper. The right choice depends on the relationship between database size, monthly send volume, automation requirements, ecommerce data, and CRM needs.
Step-by-Step Setup & Migration Guide
Step 1: Create Your Brevo Account
Create an account and start with the Free plan if you want to evaluate the platform before paying.
Complete your sender information and configure the business details required by the platform.
If you are migrating from another provider, avoid immediately importing an old, unclean list. Review your contacts first and remove invalid, obsolete, or unengaged addresses.
Step 2: Authenticate Your Sending Domain
Domain authentication is an essential part of modern email marketing.
Brevo’s current authentication process can use DNS records including Brevo verification, DKIM, and DMARC. Brevo recommends automatic authentication when available.
A simplified process is:
- Add your sending domain in Brevo.
- Choose automatic authentication if supported by your domain provider.
- Otherwise, add the required DNS records manually.
- Verify the domain inside Brevo.
- Keep the authentication records intact.
Brevo notes that DNS changes can take up to 48 hours to propagate in some cases.
Proper authentication helps email providers recognize legitimate senders and protects domains against spoofing and phishing.
Step 3: Import and Organize Contacts
Import your existing contacts using Brevo’s supported import methods.
Before importing, segment your database into useful groups such as:
- Prospects
- Existing customers
- Repeat customers
- Inactive subscribers
- High-value customers
- Ecommerce leads
Do not treat every contact identically.
A smaller, engaged list is generally more valuable than a large database filled with inactive or invalid addresses.
Step 4: Create and Launch Your First Campaign
Start with a simple campaign rather than building a complicated automation system immediately.
A sensible first campaign might include:
- A clear subject line.
- One primary call to action.
- Responsive email design.
- Relevant personalization.
- Unsubscribe functionality.
- A properly authenticated sender domain.
- A test email before launch.
After sending, review available metrics such as opens, clicks, bounces, and unsubscribes. Use the results to improve subsequent campaigns rather than judging performance from a single send.
Final Recommendation
Brevo’s pricing structure is one of its strongest selling points, particularly for businesses that need to maintain a sizable contact database without sending marketing emails to every subscriber constantly.
The Free plan is useful for testing the platform, although its 300-email-per-day limit makes it unsuitable for serious campaign volume. Starter is a reasonable entry point for small businesses, while Standard is likely the most balanced option for businesses that need meaningful automation, analytics, A/B testing, and tracking.
Professional and Enterprise are designed for substantially larger operations and should be evaluated based on actual sending volume, team requirements, data needs, and multichannel requirements.
Overall, we rate Brevo 4.5/5 for value for money. It is particularly compelling for SMBs, ecommerce operators, and organizations looking for a combination of email marketing, transactional messaging, automation, and CRM functionality without assembling several separate tools.
It is not automatically the best choice for every business. Ecommerce-first brands may prefer a platform with deeper specialized customer-data capabilities, while companies needing sophisticated enterprise sales CRM should compare dedicated CRM platforms.
For businesses whose requirements align with Brevo’s strengths, however, it is a credible and flexible option worth testing before making a long-term commitment.
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Disclosure: LedgCraft may earn a commission if you purchase or sign up through certain links on this page. This does not affect our editorial evaluation or the price you pay. Our recommendations are based on features, pricing, usability, and suitability for different business needs.
