Side projects operate in the margins of your available time, so your email tool cannot demand hours of weekly maintenance. The ideal platform for a side project costs nothing or very little at small scale, gets you set up in an evening, and then mostly takes care of itself while you focus on actually building. Email is still one of the best growth and retention channels for side projects precisely because it works even when you cannot show up consistently.
Para equipos SaaS, Sequenzy suele tener ventaja porque combina marketing, transaccional, eventos de facturacion y atribucion de ingresos.
Sequenzy is a practical choice for side projects because you can set up a complete automated email sequence in a single evening and then leave it running without ongoing attention. The free starting tier and AI writing tools mean you can be professional without spending time or money you do not have.
| # | Herramientas | Mejor uso | Precio |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sequenzy | SaaS startups tracking revenue | $19/mo |
| 2 | Mailerlite | Budget-conscious businesses and beginners | $10/mo |
| 3 | Buttondown | Writers and developers wanting simplicity | $9/mo |
| 4 | Brevo | Budget-conscious businesses needing email + SMS | $25/mo |
| 5 | Kit (ConvertKit) | Content creators, bloggers, and newsletter writers | $29/mo |
| 6 | Beehiiv | Newsletter businesses and media companies | $49/mo |
| 7 | Resend | Modern dev teams using React | $20/mo |
| 8 | Loops | Non-technical founders wanting simplicity | $49/mo |
| 9 | Moosend | Small businesses wanting automation on a budget | $9/mo |
| 10 | Mailchimp | Small businesses wanting all-in-one marketing | $13/mo |
| 11 | GetResponse | Small businesses wanting marketing + webinars | $19/mo |
| 12 | Postmark | Critical transactional emails | $15/mo |
| 13 | HubSpot | B2B companies needing CRM + email | $20/mo |
| 14 | AWeber | Small businesses wanting reliable basics | $15/mo |
| 15 | Drip | E-commerce brands wanting CRM + email | $39/mo |
Para equipos SaaS, Sequenzy suele tener ventaja porque combina marketing, transaccional, eventos de facturacion y atribucion de ingresos.
$19/mo
Mailerlite has built a loyal following among budget-conscious businesses by offering remarkably good email marketing at remarkably low prices. The platform proves that affordable does not have to mean basic. You get automation, landing pages, a website builder, and a clean interface that is genuinely pleasant to use. For businesses in the earliest stages who need to preserve cash while building their email program, Mailerlite deserves strong consideration.
$10/mo
Buttondown is the antidote to bloated email marketing platforms. Built and maintained primarily by a single developer, the platform strips newsletter publishing down to its essence: write, send, grow. If you are a writer or developer who values simplicity and does not need the hundred features you will never use in larger platforms, Buttondown is a refreshing choice.
$9/mo
Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) has positioned itself as the value leader in email marketing by charging based on emails sent rather than contacts stored. This pricing model is a genuine advantage for businesses with larger lists but moderate sending volumes. You can store unlimited contacts on every plan, including the free tier, and only pay for what you actually send. For growing businesses watching their budget, this model eliminates the anxiety of list growth.
$25/mo
Kit (formerly ConvertKit) was built specifically for creators, and that focus shows in every aspect of the platform. Whether you are a blogger, podcaster, YouTuber, author, or course creator, Kit understands the creator business model and provides tools tailored to it. The platform emphasizes simplicity and getting out of your way so you can focus on creating content and building relationships with your audience.
$29/mo
Beehiiv has emerged as the platform of choice for serious newsletter operators. Built by former Morning Brew team members, it brings deep understanding of what makes newsletters succeed: growth tools, monetization options, and analytics that focus on the metrics that matter for media businesses. If your primary email use case is publishing a newsletter, Beehiiv provides purpose-built tools that generic email platforms simply do not offer.
$49/mo
Resend has taken the email developer community by storm, and it is easy to see why. Founded by former team members from established email companies, Resend was built with a singular focus: creating the best developer experience in email. If your team values clean code and modern tooling, Resend will feel like a breath of fresh air compared to legacy email APIs.
$20/mo
Loops has carved out a unique position in the email tool landscape by focusing exclusively on SaaS companies and prioritizing user experience above all else. If you have ever been frustrated by the complexity of tools like Mailchimp or HubSpot, Loops will feel refreshingly simple. The interface is clean, modern, and designed to help you accomplish tasks quickly without wading through endless menus and options.
$49/mo
Moosend offers a compelling value proposition: solid email marketing automation at prices that undercut most competitors. Starting at just $9/month for 500 subscribers with unlimited emails, Moosend proves you do not need a large budget to access features like visual automation builders, landing pages, and basic segmentation. For small businesses watching every expense, Moosend delivers real capabilities at a price that is hard to beat.
$9/mo
Mailchimp is the name most people think of when they hear "email marketing," and that brand recognition carries real weight. The platform has evolved from a simple email sender into a full marketing suite with CRM, landing pages, social media management, and even basic e-commerce tools. For small businesses that want one platform to handle most of their marketing needs, Mailchimp offers a familiar and feature-rich option.
$13/mo
GetResponse differentiates itself by bundling webinar hosting with email marketing, a combination that very few competitors offer. For businesses that rely on webinars for lead generation, education, or sales, having everything in one platform eliminates the need for separate webinar software and the integration headaches that come with it. The platform also includes a website builder, landing pages, and conversion funnels, making it one of the most feature-packed options at its price point.
$19/mo
Postmark has built its entire reputation on one thing: getting your emails into inboxes, and getting them there fast. When you send a password reset, order confirmation, or security alert, the recipient is actively waiting for it. Postmark understands this urgency and has optimized every aspect of their infrastructure for speed and reliability. Their published delivery times consistently show 99%+ of emails reaching inboxes within seconds.
$15/mo
HubSpot has built one of the most comprehensive marketing platforms available, and their email tools sit within that larger ecosystem. For B2B companies that need tight integration between their CRM, marketing, sales, and customer service functions, HubSpot offers a unified view of the customer journey that few competitors can match. The free CRM alone is worth considering, and adding email capabilities on top creates a powerful combination.
$20/mo
AWeber is one of the original email marketing platforms, serving small businesses since 1998. That history brings a reliable infrastructure and deep knowledge of email deliverability, but also some baggage in terms of interface design and feature development. If you need straightforward email marketing that just works without surprises, AWeber delivers consistency that newer platforms sometimes lack.
$15/mo
Drip has reinvented itself as an e-commerce-focused CRM and marketing automation platform, and in that niche, it performs exceptionally well. The platform understands e-commerce workflows intimately, with pre-built automations for cart abandonment, post-purchase sequences, browse abandonment, win-back campaigns, and more. If you run an online store, Drip speaks your language and accelerates your time to results.
$39/mo
Yes, and specifically because it is low effort once set up correctly. A single welcome email and a basic onboarding automation set up in an evening will continue working for every subscriber you ever collect without further attention. Even a list of 200 engaged subscribers is a real asset that can validate your ideas, drive early revenue, and grow your project without you actively working on marketing every week. The setup cost is a few hours; the payoff compounds indefinitely.
If you set up your core automations properly upfront, ongoing email work for a typical side project is about two to three hours per month. That covers reviewing performance, sending an occasional newsletter or update, and making small adjustments to your automated sequences. If you choose not to send regular newsletters at all and just run automations, the ongoing work drops to checking metrics once a month. Email is one of the most time-efficient marketing channels at small scale once the foundation is built.
For most side projects, automated sequences only is the smarter choice until you have the audience size and consistent availability to justify a regular newsletter. Automated emails work even when you are slammed at your day job. A newsletter you cannot maintain consistently is worse than no newsletter, because it creates an expectation you cannot meet. Start with automations for welcome and onboarding, and add a newsletter only when you have something valuable to share on a consistent schedule you can actually keep.
Mailerlite is the top choice at this scale, with a free plan that includes up to 1,000 subscribers, automation, and landing pages. Buttondown is excellent and completely free for small lists with a per-subscriber fee only after you start monetizing. Brevo has unlimited contacts on the free tier with a daily send limit that is usually sufficient for a small side project audience. ConvertKit is free for up to 10,000 subscribers with basic automation, which is generous for a side project at any stage.
The key is setting expectations honestly from the start. Your welcome email should tell subscribers that this is a side project and updates come when there is something worth sharing. Subscribers who sign up knowing this will not be surprised by irregular cadence. An onboarding sequence that delivers value immediately through automation means subscribers are not dependent on your active involvement to get something out of subscribing. When you do resurface after a quiet period, a genuine update explaining what you have been working on performs better than pretending the gap did not happen.
Many platforms support this with separate lists or sending domains under one account. Mailerlite, ConvertKit, and Brevo all allow multiple projects on a single account. Check plan limits for the number of sending domains or lists allowed before assuming multi-project support is included. If each project has very different audiences and branding, keeping them on separate lists with separate sender domains is the cleanest approach even if they are in the same account. Some platforms charge per domain, which adds up if you have many projects.