Constant Contact review: a low entry price and a size-based bill

Does a “Starting at” price ever stay where it starts? Constant Contact prints those two words above Lite, Standard and Premium. Your price follows your contact count.

Two meters run under that price. Contacts is one. Email sends is the other.

Contacts and sends both lift the bill above the sticker price

On yearly billing, checked 2026-11-05, plans run from $10.20 to $68 a month. Both ends move with your list.

Caps grow with your contact count. Lite has the tightest cap and Premium the loosest. Go past it and your mail still sends.

Monthly billing earns no discount, so budget on the yearly prices.

Lite and Standard buyers add texts from $10 a month for 1 to 500 messages. Constant Contact’s pricing page gives no contact count behind any price. Get your own tier in writing before you trust a number.

Lite lands between Brevo Starter and MailerLite Comfort on yearly price

Brevo Starter costs $8.08 a month on yearly billing. MailerLite Comfort costs $10.80 on yearly billing. Both include 500 contacts and 5,000 emails.

Lite sits between them at $10.20. Lite is for beginners who want phone help at $10.20, not Brevo Starter’s $8.08.

Is that gap worth paying? Only if a real voice on the line matters to you. Lite lists live phone and chat with marketing experts, plus live 1:1 onboarding.

If you only need sends, Brevo costs less.

Standard is where the price steps up. You get advanced reporting and 3 automation templates. You also get 10 custom segments.

Overruns and missing open reports are the doubts that cost money

“Will my bill jump when my list grows?” Probably, because contacts set your tier. Constant Contact gives no contact count for any price. Want the count printed? Brevo Starter lists 500 contacts at $8.08 a month, billed yearly.

“Will a send overrun wreck my bill?” Not fast. A 1,000-send overrun costs you $2. Nothing stops your emails, and nothing stops the meter. The meter is the one coworker who never takes a day off.

“Will I see who opens my emails?” Not on Lite. Constant Contact labels Lite reporting “Basic: See what worked and what didn’t”. Standard lists “Advanced: See who opens and clicks on emails”. To get that, you pay $29.75 a month billed yearly.

“Do too many reviews hate it?” Trustpilot’s one-star pile is 399 reviews deep. You could land in that group. The 30-day full refund is your exit. Past day 30, the pricing page gives no cancel steps or renewal terms.

Trustpilot shows fans and furious customers with little in between

Trustpilot’s middle is thin (November 2026). Only 60 reviews give two stars and 97 give three.

Of the newest ten reviews, seven give five stars. All seven praise support or a named rep.

Two of the ten give one star. One cites a payment dispute. The other says the price climbs with contacts and calls open tracking missing.

A four-star nonprofit reviewer says the pricing structure no longer fits.

Pick a rival for a free plan, a cheaper start or a longer refund

Brevo does one thing better on price. Brevo Free costs $0 and lasts forever, with no credit card. Its terms refuse refunds on prepaid or unused fees, while Constant Contact gives 30 days.

MailerLite lists a free plan too. MailerLite Free includes 2,500 monthly emails and 250 subscribers. Pick it to test for nothing. Comfort then costs $10.80 a month, billed yearly, for 3 seats.

Constant Contact Premium gives unlimited users instead, at $68 a month billed yearly. That suits a team, not a solo sender.

Mailchimp lists Essentials from $13 a month for 12 months. Annual plans carry a 60-day money-back guarantee. Pick it if you want the longer safety net.

Constant Contact lists no free plan. See the email marketing picks for more.

Lite is a fair floor once you know your ceiling

Back to those two words, “Starting at”. The floor is fair. The ceiling is whatever your list and your sends make it.

If you want a person on the line, Lite earns its place. The cheapest rival stays cheaper.

Best if: you want live help and a 30-day refund window.

Skip it if: you want a free plan or open tracking on Lite.