Best Free Email Marketing Tools for Shopify (2026): Free Plan Limits Compared
Shopify Messaging, Omnisend, Klaviyo, Mailchimp, Brevo and MailerLite free plans compared on contacts, sends, automations and catches.
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A free plan is the right way to start: set up your welcome and abandoned-cart flows, prove email makes money, then pay. The catch is that each free plan limits something different – contacts, sends, automations or branding. Here’s how they compare, from each vendor’s own pages (checked October 20, 2026).
Free plans side by side
| Tool | Contacts | Email sends | Automations | Main catch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shopify Messaging | Your Shopify customers | 10,000/month free, then from $1 per 1,000 | Basic marketing automations | Fewer advanced segmentation and flow options |
| Omnisend Free | 250 | 500/month | All core e-commerce flows | Omnisend branding; low send limit |
| Klaviyo Free | 250 active profiles | 500/month | Flows included | Email support only for the first 60 days |
| Mailchimp Free | 250 | 500/month (max 250/day) | Not included | No automation flows |
| Brevo Free | Up to 100,000 stored | 300/day | Up to 2,000 contacts in active automations | “Sent with Brevo” branding; one user |
| MailerLite Free | 250 subscribers | 2,500/month | 3 active automations, 5 steps each | Community support only |
Which free plan should you pick?
- You want abandoned-cart and post-purchase flows now: Omnisend Free – it includes all core features, and Omnisend says the free plan has everything the paid plans have (with branding and lower limits).
- You mainly send campaigns to existing customers: Shopify Messaging – 10,000 free emails a month is by far the most volume.
- You want a simple newsletter plus a few automations: MailerLite Free.
- You have a large list but send rarely: Brevo Free, which stores up to 100,000 contacts but sends 300 a day.
- Skip for e-commerce: Mailchimp Free, which doesn’t include automation flows.
Omnisend Free
Best free plan for storesBest for: Shopify stores under 250 subscribers that want proper e-commerce automations
- Abandoned cart, welcome and post-purchase flows
- Email, SMS and push
- 24/7 support even on free
- 500 emails/month
- Omnisend branding
When to upgrade
Upgrade when email is clearly making money and you hit a limit: more than 250 subscribers, more sends than the free cap, or you want to remove branding. At 1,000 contacts, Omnisend Standard costs $20/month and Klaviyo $30/month – see Omnisend pricing and Klaviyo pricing.