Email marketing: newsletter tool providers in comparison

Create, send and monetize serial e-mails

Newsletters not only serve as a proven marketing tool, but also as a direct source of income. Numerous providers help with newsletter management – but which one is right for you??

Numerous cloud services simplify the creation and sending of newsletters.
The services manage the recipients, offer templates and a customized text editor, send the e-mails on a time-controlled basis and determine the success of the newsletter campaign.
Connections to online stores and content management systems turn the services into marketing tools.
Due to the applicable data protection laws, it is preferable to use a service from Germany or Europe. These include Rapidmail, GetResponse, CleverReach, Sendinblue and Steady.
Go to list: ➤ Email marketing: providers compared

The good old newsletter is currently experiencing a true renaissance. And not entirely without reason: with little effort, you can reach a large number of customers in one fell swoop. An email newsletter is thus an excellent marketing tool. In addition, it can be used to quickly inform customers. A software developer could, for example, point out security gaps or critical updates in a timely manner. In conclusion, a newsletter even serves as a source of income. If the emails offer editorial content or other added value, it can be delivered exclusively to paying recipients or redirected to paid content. Some journalistic offerings are currently successfully going down this path.

Quick to set up

Not entirely innocent of the boom in newsletters are numerous cloud services that drastically simplify the dispatch of digital flyers. To do this, they first provide an editor in which a mass email can be quickly written and nicely prepared. As a rule, all you have to do is select a design template, then drag and drop images, text blocks or other content to the appropriate places and finally type in the missing texts. The way it works is similar to the WordPress content management system. Most services allow the newsletter to be personalized so that it addresses recipients by name, for example.

Sent at the click of a mouse

The cloud service also takes care of the dispatch, if desired the emails only set off at a predefined time. This is a timely way to alert customers to a discount promotion, for example. Many cloud services also allow for so-called A/B testing. Thereby one creates two variants of a newsletter, for example with differently lurid subject lines. Selected subscribers will then receive one variant, while another group will receive the second one. The cloud service monitors recipient responses and identifies the more successful version of the newsletter.

Recipient analyses

Furthermore, the cloud service manages the recipients. They can unsubscribe from the mailing list with a mouse click or, conversely, quickly subscribe to the newsletter. The cloud service divides the recipients into groups, which can then be addressed specifically. Thanks to this so-called segmentation, all customers from Bavaria, for example, can be informed about a discount promotion in the company’s local branch. Finally, cloud services track the success of a newsletter campaign. Among other things, this allows you to see how many recipients have opened and read the newsletter.

DSGVO-compliant newsletter

However, some tracking functions collide with data protection laws in Germany, especially the DSGVO. To be able to perform an evaluation, newsletter services observe the click behavior of recipients. They also store personal data, such as the IP and of course the email addresses of the recipients. Sometimes even their preferences are added. Foreign newsletter services, however, are only bound by the data protection guidelines there, which are usually more lax. Moreover, not all marketing and analysis tools offered may be used in Germany. Anyone who wants to send out a legally compliant newsletter should therefore use a provider that is based in Germany, or at least in the EU, and guarantees compliance with the DSGVO. In particular enterprises should be able to be advised additionally by a lawyer.

Email marketing providers in comparison

Below we present some email marketing providers that can be used to create campaigns and send newsletters and serial emails. In terms of DSGVO compliance, we recommend selecting marketing or newsletter providers from Germany or the European Economic Area (EEA). Nevertheless, with Mailchimp in our comparison also a service from the USA listed, since it concerns here the market leader.

rapidmail: Reach your goal quickly with templates ➥
GetResponse: Mailchimp alternative from Poland ➥
CleverReach: Flexible automation tools ➥
Sendinblue: French-German marketing platform ➥
Steady: Monetize newsletters ➥
Mailchimp: Market leader from the USA ➥
Overview: Newsletter providers by country ➥

rapidmail: Reach your goal quickly with templates

The extremely popular in Germany rapidmail* focuses purely on the newsletter dispatch. According to the company, its customers include Check24, VW, Samsonite and Philips. The company from Freiburg im Breisgau advertises a DSGVO-compliant data processing, moreover, the servers are located in Germany.

Many templates
When designing the e-mails, you can choose from over 250 visually appealing templates, which can be examined in advance on a separate page*. The newsletters created in this way automatically adapt to the screen size of the recipients. Alternatively, one uploads one’s own template in HTML. Professionals can also freely create and design newsletters in the tool according to their own wishes. For control purposes, a preview simulates different devices, such as smartphones and tablets, before sending the newsletter. In addition, the texts can be customized with more than 880.000 spice up professional photos provided by rapidmail. rapidmail also uses an editor in which the content is dragged and dropped to the appropriate places. The newsletters can be personalized and provided with a preheader. rapidmail evaluates the quality of the subject line on the basis of various technical criteria such as number of characters, built-in emojis, spam-suspicious special characters or the like. In the test, the tool rated the subject "The first newsletter" as very good. The editor for the actual e-mails is somewhat confusing.

Receiver& Manage target groups
New newsletter subscribers are acquired via a form generated by rapidmail. which can be created with a few clicks if required and designed as desired. If desired, the service even provides this as a printout, which can then be distributed as a handout at events. In addition, rapidmail imports already existing e-mail addresses from an Excel or CSV file. Finally, the service still works with various online stores and CRM systems, including Magento, Shopware, Woocommerce, Shopify and WordPress. Products from online stores can also be transferred to the newsletter with a mouse click. In any case, the recipients can be divided into groups and unwanted subscribers can be put on a blacklist.

Rapidmail: The user interface (2 images)

Spam protection& AB tests
Even before sending, rapidmail checks the newsletter to see how likely it is to be perceived as advertising by spam filters. When sending the newsletter, the service uses, in addition to whitelisting for e-mail services, unspecified measures so that the recipient mailboxes do not automatically classify the incoming e-mails as spam. The actual dispatch takes place at a specified time, if desired. Like the competition, rapidmail supports A/B tests. If desired, rapidmail automatically sends prefabricated mailings in certain situations.

Tracking& Analytics
The dashboard summarizes openings, clicks, unsubscribes and undeliverable emails (bounces) in real time; reports can also be generated. The evaluation depends on the device used. For example, you can quickly see whether an advertising campaign was successful, especially among smartphone users. On top of that, rapidmail determines the location of its users via geo-locating. Click or heat maps show where the recipients have clicked particularly frequently in the newsletter. If desired, the service sends another newsletter to a specific group of recipients, such as all readers who have not yet opened the actual newsletter (follow-up mailing). If necessary, Rapidmail transfers its data to Google Analytics, but you should keep an eye on data privacy.

Dynamic prices
As usual in the industry, rapidmail does not publish a fixed price table. Instead, you have to answer two questions on the cloud service’s website about your expected shipping patterns. However, the query can also be skipped. Based on the information provided, the service then suggests suitable rates. The dispatch of any number of newsletters to 1.000 recipients, for example, cost 19 euros per month. At 10.000 recipients, a monthly fee of 95 euros is due.

GetResponse: Mailchimp alternative from Poland

Like Mailchimp, the Polish service GetResponse* sees itself as a marketing tool and is aimed primarily at companies. Not only can they send newsletters via the cloud service, but they also receive a website builder and other marketing tools. From GetResponse’s point of view, the newsletter function primarily serves as a vehicle for e-mail advertising or marketing campaigns. According to the company, its customers include IKEA, Zendesk, and the game developer CD Project, among others.

After the initial registration, GetResponse offers itself as a web host, where you click together your own website in a construction kit. Templates ensure quick results, SEO tools help with search engine optimization. The cloud service also supports the publication of webinars, which can even be held live. GetResponse can also be integrated into an existing website.

Landing pages for subscriber acquisition
The next step is to create landing pages that attract new customers and, most importantly, allow them to subscribe to the newsletter. At the same time, a few questions can be asked and DSGVO-compliant consent obtained. Later, depending on the answers, they can send appropriate newsletters. For example, the advertisement for a new notebook model only reaches contacts who have agreed to receive advertising and have expressed an interest in technology.

If desired, GetResponse integrates an invisible Facebook pixel in the landing pages. With an ad on Facebook, you can target all the people who have visited your landing page but not signed up for the newsletter. It may be possible to persuade people to register in this way after all. With such a measure, however, the question remains to what extent it is DSGVO-compliant or legally permissible.

Conversion funnel
Further contacts can be generated via so-called conversion funnels. In simple terms, this is a sequence of precisely coordinated web pages that finally entice interested parties to sign up for the newsletter. GetResponse actively helps to create such funnels. Among other things, one can link the download of an e-book to the registration of a newsletter or lead to a corresponding landing page via Instagram and Facebook ads. Finally, contact data can also be imported, for example from a locally stored Excel spreadsheet.

Recipients& Manage target groups
All registered newsletter subscribers can be grouped thematically on so-called lists, tagged, and given points (scoring). GetResponse automatically performs tagging and scoring based on the actions performed by the subscribers. Based on all stored data, contacts can be segmented and targeted newsletters can be sent to individual groups. For example, you can assign higher point values to particularly active subscribers and then later encourage all people with a few points to participate in a targeted manner.

Create newsletters with templates
A new newsletter is created in an editor, where the components are clicked together by drag-and-drop. Templates also help here with the design. The editor itself is quite clearly designed, but requires a short learning curve. The integration of Google Analytics, e-commerce tracking and click tracking can be turned off separately.

Newsletter delivery
If desired, the dispatch can be time-controlled, whereby GetResponse takes into account the time zone of the recipients. In addition, the cloud service can deliver the email exactly when the respective recipients are most likely to read it. According to its own information, GetResponse achieves a delivery rate of 99 percent, so mail rarely gets stuck in spam filters.

Automated marketing
Those who book the corresponding marketing tools can have e-mails sent automatically. As with the competition, the necessary conditions are clicked together in a diagram. In this way, all newly registered contacts automatically receive a predefined greeting. Frequently used workflows are available as templates. In addition, GetResponse allows A/B tests and sends a predefined response to incoming e-mails (autoresponse).

Interfaces
GetResponse can be linked to other services and web applications. These include Microsoft Dynamics 365, Google Analytics, Magento, PrestaShop and WooCommerce. However, the integration of a store is not mandatory, a store can also be created directly in GetResponse. GetResponse handles payments via the payment service providers BlueSnap, PayPal, PayU, Square or Stripe. Sales are also possible on landing pages.

Prices
The access, which is permanently free of charge, is primarily aimed at newly founded companies and start-ups. In it you get access to the website builder and the email marketing function. Landing pages and contact forms can also be created. If you want to use the marketing and e-commerce functions, you’ll have to fork out a bit of money. The exact costs depend on the contract period, the number of contacts and the range of functions. If you sign up for 24 months and have 1000 contacts, at the time of going to press you were in for 9.10 euros per month. Automation functions as well as a Scoring of the contacts gave it however only starting from 31,50 euro per month.

CleverReach: Flexible automation tools

One of the most popular and particularly feature-rich German newsletter services goes by the name of CleverReach*. According to its own information, customers include Rewe, Spotify, ultje and DHL. The use of the service is free of charge in the simplest tariff Lite, provided that one does not send more than 250 recipients and 1000 e-mails. In addition, the range of functions is limited, among other things, there are prefabricated newsletter templates only with a commercial tariff. The price depends on the number of recipients. Who 1.000 subscribers would like to send an e-mail, for example, pays about 20 euros per month. However, the number of emails is then no longer limited.

Data protection and data import
CleverReach promises a newsletter dispatch in conformity with data protection laws. When a reader signs up for a newsletter, for example, they must go through a double opt-in process. You click together the forms that are used and then integrate them into your own website. CleverReach helps you to comply with data protection with a checklist.

Contact data can be imported from CSV or Excel files, and CleverReach can also retrieve e-mail addresses from connected systems. Connections exist to numerous online store, CRM and content management systems. Among them are the usual suspects, such as Salesforce, Shopify, Magento, Typo3, WordPress, and Microsoft Dynamics. On top of that, there is a REST API that allows your own software to communicate with CleverReach.

Recipients& Manage target groups
No longer valid or incorrect email addresses, the service automatically kicks them off the mailing list upon request. All recipients can be divided into groups based on filter criteria (segmentation). CleverReach enables quite complex criteria and conditions to be met. Recipients placed on a blacklist will no longer receive a newsletter in the future. A so-called bounce management recognizes undeliverable e-mails and removes these unreachable readers from the distribution list. For each recipient, the service calculates a quality based on the previous opening rate. In addition, the individual interests of the recipients can be attached as keywords (tags). The tags in turn help with the automation and targeted sending of newsletters. When a recipient clicks on a link in an e-mail, CleverReach can automatically assign a suitable keyword.

Newsletter design
The newsletters automatically adapt to the screen sizes of the recipients (Responsive Design). You assemble your content from building blocks in a clear editor by drag-and-drop. CleverReach allows you to enter a preheader that complements the subject line. In addition, all elements required by the data protection regulation are included in the newsletter. This also includes a link that the recipients can use to unsubscribe again. HTML experts can also intervene directly in the structure of the message in a source code editor. If no suitable template is available, you can upload your own. CleverReach checks the newsletter for its quality and whether spam filters potentially recognize it as advertising. If desired, the e-mail is sent only at a predefined time.

A/B tests
CleverReach supports A/B tests, in which selected recipients receive a variant of the newsletter. The service then determines the winning variant based on a predefined criterion, such as the opening rate. CleverReach sends the latter to all other recipients on request. The criteria and goals can be defined quite extensively. You can also specify a period of three days, for example, after which the comparison ends. In addition, surveys can be carried out, although this function is still in the beta stage.

Dynamic dispatch& Automation
Like the market leader Mailchimp, CleverReach can automatically send appropriate newsletters in predefined situations. For this purpose, CleverReach provides an editor called THEA, in which the automatic processes can be flexibly clicked together as in a graphical construction kit. In this way, it is possible to specify, among other things, that a new subscriber will receive a voucher two weeks after signing up. THEA also enables the use of A/B testing within the automation chain.

Spam protection
CleverReach advertises that newsletters sent via the service are less likely to get caught in recipients’ spam filters. Membership of the Certified Senders Alliance, whose members trust each other when sending e-mails, is supposed to help in this respect. In addition, recipients can verify the authenticity of the sender using SPF and DKIM methods. If a recipient’s e-mail program marks the newsletter as spam, this is reported to various mailbox operators (such as Web.de) back to CleverReach. The latter service then automatically puts the recipient on the blacklist. According to CleverReach, the servers are located exclusively in the European Union.

Tracking& Analytics
CleverReach counts, among other things, how many recipients have opened the e-mails and how often they have clicked on a link. In addition, the service monitors unsubscribes and all emails that could not be delivered (bounce rate). The service prepares this information in corresponding statistics, which in turn help in the evaluation of a campaign. Among other things, CleverReach shows where recipients are located, when the most emails were opened on which devices after sending, and which links in the newsletter are particularly popular. Finally, the service can pass on the data to Google Analytics for further analysis. Who flirts with it, however, should first take a look at the data protection regulation again.

Prices
CleverReach’s monthly price is also based on the number of newsletter recipients. Whoever sends any number of newsletters to 1.000 recipients would like to send, pays 19 euros per month. For 10.000 recipients the price rises to 100 euros / month. Up to 250 recipients can be reached with a free test account.

Sendinblue: French-German marketing platform

At Sendinblue*, newsletter dispatch is just one function of many. The cloud service offers a marketing solution for companies that combines various communication channels under one user interface. In addition to e-mails, it is also possible to send targeted text messages and conduct chats. Multiple employees can view a mailbox together. This means that Sendinblue already partially fulfills the criteria of a ticket system.

Privacy& DSGVO
Behind Sendinblue is the French company of the same name. Customers from Germany are served by Sendinblue GmbH in Berlin, which in turn emerged from a merger of the service Newsletter2Go. Sendinblue explicitly advertises a DSGVO-compliant data processing and a corresponding certification by the TuV (German Technical Inspection Agency). The servers are charged by the German hoster Hetzner. In addition, the company says it operates in a climate-neutral manner. Customers include PONS, MAN, Otto and Haribo, among others. The range of functions and the working methods are extremely similar to those of the competition. This is how Sendinblue generates individual registration forms and landing pages. Double-Opt-In is used throughout the process.

Newsletter design
A new newsletter can be written in several different editors at once. One of more than 70 different design templates, whose predefined areas can then be populated with images, text and other elements via drag-and-drop, is a particularly quick way to reach your goal. The newsletter clicked together in this way is responsive, i.e. it adapts to the recipient’s screen size. The newsletters also automatically contain the important information required by the DSGVO, including an unsubscribe link. Alternatively, you can also write the complete newsletter in a simpler Rich Text Editor. Finally, HTML connoisseurs may still directly adapt the HTML code in a code editor.

AI as a dispatch assistant
In any case, the newsletters can be personalized. Artificial intelligence determines the best time to send. The latter observes the already sent newsletters and calculates from it the optimal sending time for each recipient. Sendinblue also allows A/B testing. Sendinblue selects the better newsletter variant based on the opening rate or number of clicks.

Recipients, target groups& Tracking
The cloud service offers its own CRM solution. Contacts can be divided into groups based on various criteria (segmentation). Possible criteria include the interests of the recipients, their location, or their past activities. Sendinblue can even generate the segmentation dynamically. If desired, the cloud service automatically sends appropriate messages at predefined events. The corresponding behavior can be clicked together in the form of a flowchart, similar to CleverReach.

Corresponding statistics provide the open and click rates. Heatmaps show which areas in the newsletter were clicked on particularly frequently. Sendinblue also finds out which recipient has already interacted with the newsletter and in which region of the world they are currently located.

So-called plugins can be used to connect other services and online stores with Sendinblue. The service can interact with Shopify, Magento, WooCommerce, WordPress, Prestashop and Microsoft Dynamics, among others. If it is an online store, Sendinblue can even automatically generate a matching email for an order or other transaction. Via a programming interface, developers are also allowed to integrate Sendinblue into their own software.

Prices
Sendinblue can be used free of charge, provided that no more than 300 e-mails are sent per day. You have to do without many additional functions, such as the A/B tests. This is only available in the cheapest tariff, which starts at 19 euros per month and offers up to 10.000 emails per month allowed.

Steady: Monetize newsletters

Steady Media GmbH, based in Berlin, primarily targets journalists and publicists who want to monetize their newsletters. The cloud service also takes care of the billing. Among the better-known users are Boris Rosenkranz and Stefan Niggemeier from ubermedien, as well as Josha Sauer, the creator of the Nichtlustig cartoons.

Newsletter for paying subscribers
If desired, Steady can be integrated into your own website. There, potential readers can then be offered various subscriptions at different price levels. On WordPress sites, a suitable plugin helps with integration. In total Steady can collect money in 12 different currencies. The cloud service also supports free trial phases, in which subscribers can initially read the newsletter free of charge for a specified period of time. Similar to crowdfunding, so-called goals can be set: If enough paying subscribers are collected so that a predefined monthly amount is reached, the readers can be rewarded with an additional service – such as an additional newsletter per week.

Publication of own content (not only) via e-mail
When registering, Steady automatically creates its own subpage on its website, such as "https://steadyhq".com/sample". The part behind the domain name can be chosen by the subscriber within limits. Later, potential readers can subscribe to the newsletter via this page. In addition, one can publish there, among other things, free or only accessible against payment contributions (posts). A newsletter is such a post for Steady, but the service does not publish it on a website, but sends it as an e-mail. The dispatch can be postponed to a freely selectable point in time. The editor for posts only allows simple text formatting such as bold, templates are not available. In return, media such as YouTube videos and audio files can also be integrated. When sending as a newsletter, the cloud service replaces this content with links if necessary. Steady offers a comment function for posts and can also provide podcasts or audio contributions.

Tracking& Analytics
On an overview page, Steady summarizes the most important key figures in real time. In addition to the number of subscribers and (paying) members, this also includes the sales achieved and the subscribers lost. Steady monitors the number of openings and clicks. The service promises compliance with the DSGVO and German data protection laws.

Prices
The use of Steady is free of charge at first, with a maximum of 12.000 newsletters can be sent. As soon as revenues flow in, Steady keeps 10 percent of them as commission. In addition, the cloud service passes on the fees of the payment service providers and automatically pays the VAT to the tax office. A calculator can be used to estimate the expected costs.

Mailchimp: Market leader from the USA

From a pure newsletter sender, Mailchimp has transformed into a fairly comprehensive marketing platform. In addition to sending out e-mails, the US service also plays out targeted marketing campaigns via social media if desired. Customers can even build their own website as well as a store, whose operation Mailchimp supports with appropriate marketing tools.

Newsletter subscription
The registration page for the newsletter can be tailored to the look and feel of the company’s own website or corporate identity. Mailchimp also offers a pop-up form that opens automatically in a window embedded in the company’s own website and suggests registration to the visitor. In addition, so-called landing pages can be created, which entice to subscribe to the newsletter. For example, one could set up a page with a competition, which requires the registration to the newsletter as a prerequisite for participation. In any case, in addition to the e-mail address, further information can be requested in the corresponding registration forms, including the full name or preferences for selected topics. Mailchimp also records how the subscribers became aware of the newsletter.

Recipient& Managing target groups
Subscribers can be divided into groups (segments) and then specifically addressed. Mailchimp recognizes patterns even in the existing user data independently and suggests groups that match them. A newsletter or marketing campaign can be launched on the basis of each recorded property. For example, with a single mouse click, you can target all subscribers who have registered via a specific landing page (such as the sweepstakes page) or who open the newsletter regularly. Conversely, an email can be resent to anyone who hasn’t opened it yet – Mailchimp reports the appropriate time to do so. Cloud service even tries to identify age and gender of recipients.

Behavioral targeting
Subscriber tracking even goes as far as Mailchimp recording the behavior of each newsletter recipient. The cloud service reveals, among other things, whether a subscriber is using a smartphone and when they logged in. Furthermore, customers can attach keywords (tags) and then launch targeted campaigns based on the tags. Which groups Mailchimp automatically creates depends on both the package booked and the available data. In this way, a campaign can only be based on purchasing behavior if Mailchimp has previously been fed with e-commerce data via an appropriate interface. However, this then also enables individual product recommendations.

Mailchimp can automatically send tailored messages in certain situations. For example, when a new subscriber signs up for the newsletter, Mailchimp immediately sends a welcome message. The appropriate actions and conditions are clicked together comfortably with the mouse. Together with segmentation, this automation enables behavioral targeting, i.e. marketing campaigns that are based on the behavior of the subscribers.

Newsletter design
When creating a newsletter, an assistant guides you through the entire process. In it, the target group is defined with a mouse click, a design template is selected, the text is entered and the evaluation is configured. If required, the newsletter can be personalized. Mailchimp analyzes the subject line and other components of the email and provides suggestions for improvement. Among other things, the service points out a subject line that is too short. By default, Mailchimp sends HTML messages and generates an additional text version, in which you can intervene if necessary. The embedded analytics and tracking functions can also be turned off.

If you are not satisfied with the given design templates, you can click together your own from prefabricated building blocks or write it completely yourself in HTML code. The user interface seems a bit confusing at first. However, once you’ve got the hang of it, it’s easy to use. The cloud service provides its own app that simplifies access on mobile devices.

Shipping& Analytics
The dispatch is time-controlled if desired. Mailchimp also logs when the emails are read and recommends an optimal time to send them based on this information. Mailchimp generates numerous statistics that can be used to track the success of a newsletter. Among other things, you can see how many recipients have read the newsletter and how quickly the number of subscribers is growing. Open, click and unsubscribe rates can be compared with other campaigns. Mailchimp also allows A/B tests and creates surveys that can be referenced from the newsletter.

The cloud service integrates with numerous products, most notably online stores such as Magento, Shopify and Presta Shop. Via a programming interface, you can integrate Mailchimp into your own web applications or apps. In the simplest case, your own web application generates a newsletter and then feeds it to Mailchimp. In addition, Mailchimp can also be fed with further data in this way and thus support segmentation.

Prices
Mailchimp can be used free of charge, but you can only address up to 2.000 contacts. In addition, the range of functions is quite limited. Email templates, A/B tests and other functions are only available for around 10 euros per month. This is the entry-level tariff, which only allows 500 contacts. For an additional charge, the number of contacts can be increased. A rate calculator on the Mailchimp homepage calculates the appropriate price.

Newsletter providers at a glance

The number of newsletter providers on the market is huge. Presenting them all in detail is beyond the scope of this post. Therefore, we have added other potentially interesting email marketing services to the following list. All providers are standalone solutions – pure plugins such as MailPoet, which integrates as a newsletter service in WordPress, are not part of the list.

Newsletter tools from Germany

Cleverreach*
Inxmail
Klick-Tipp*
Mailjet
rapidmail*
Steady

Newsletter tools from Europe

GetResponse* (Poland)
Moosend* (Denmark)
MailerLite* (Ireland)
Omnisend (Lithuania)
Sender.net (Lithuania)
Sendinblue* (France)

Newsletter tools from outside Europe

Note: Providers based in non-European countries are not bound by the GDPR.

ActiveCampaign (USA)
Campaign Monitor (Australia)
Constant Contact (USA)
Emma (USA)
iContact (USA)
Revue/Twitter (Ireland, USA)
Sendpulse (USA)
Substack (USA)
Twilio SendGrid (USA)
VerticalResponse (USA)
Zoho Campaigns (India)

Mailchimp is one of the market leaders in newsletter distribution and offers a correspondingly lavish range of functions. However, this service is now completely trimmed to the analysis and tracking of subscribers, and the data also ends up on servers in the USA. Mailchimp is therefore likely to collide with the DSGVO in some areas.

The German-based services CleverReach* and Sendinblue* as well as GetResponse* from Poland offer a similar range of functions to Mailchimp – with the difference that the companies guarantee compliance with the GDPR. On top of that, the cloud services score with sophisticated and flexible automation as well as connectivity to countless store and content management systems. Which of the services you prefer depends on your own requirements.

If you don’t need such flexible automation, you can take a look at the competitor Rapidmail*. Its numerous templates and photos lead beginners quickly to their goal, but the editor could be a bit easier to use.

Steady cannot keep up with the range of functions of the competition. The service is easy to use, and the newsletter can be easily monetized. If you want to offer your newsletter for a fee with other cloud services, you first have to activate a corresponding billing service. However, Steady’s offer is primarily aimed at publicists and self-employed persons.

* Links marked with an asterisk are affiliate links for which we may receive compensation. It does not increase the purchase price!