Constant Contact Free Plan: What You Actually Get Before Paying
Constant Contact has no free plan, only a trial capped at 100 email sends. Lite starts at $12 a month for up to 500 contacts. Here is what the trial covers.
By Galactic News Editorial · Published 2026-11-12T10:26:04+00:00 · Updated 2026-11-12T10:26:04+00:00
Constant Contact Free Plan: What You Actually Get Before Paying
Constant Contact has no free plan. There is no permanent free tier. What exists instead is a free trial. Recent checks put the trial at 30 days with no credit card required. The limit that matters is 100 total email sends. That cap, not the clock, decides how much testing you can do. This guide explains what the trial includes, what the paid plans cost, and how to use the trial without wasting it.
Is There a Constant Contact Free Plan?
No. Constant Contact removed its permanent free plan in June 2025. Since then, the only no-cost entry is the free trial. After the trial ends, you must pick a paid plan to keep sending email. There is no free tier to fall back on.
Do not confuse the trial with a free plan. A free plan lasts forever with limits. A trial ends. Constant Contact gives you a trial, then you pay. If you need a truly free plan to build a list over time, look at MailerLite, Kit, or HubSpot instead. Each offers a permanent free tier.
The trial needs no credit card. You can build unlimited campaigns and upload unlimited contacts during the trial. You can send only 100 emails in total. One email to 10 people uses 10 of those sends. A single campaign to a 200-person list would use up the whole allowance twice over. Plan your test sends carefully.
What the Free Trial Includes
The trial gives you full access to the platform for its duration. You can test the email editor, try the automation templates, and build your contact lists. You can also test the reporting tools and the contact upload flow. The 100-send cap is the main constraint. Everything else is open.
Trial terms have changed before. Some checks have reported a 14-day trial instead of 30 days. The send cap has also varied. Confirm the current length and send limit on the pricing page before you sign up. Do not start the trial until your test list is ready. The clock runs from signup, and the trial cannot be paused.
New paid plans also carry a 30-day money-back guarantee on the base subscription. That gives you a second safety net after the trial ends.
Constant Contact Plans and Prices
Constant Contact sells three self-serve plans. Prices depend on your contact count. The figures below are the entry tier, for up to 500 contacts, on monthly billing. Your price rises as your list grows.
| Plan | Monthly price (up to 500 contacts) | Prepaid 12 months | Monthly send allowance | Users |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lite | $12 | $10.20 | 10x your contacts | 1 |
| Standard | $35 | $29.75 | 12x your contacts | 3 |
| Premium | $80 | $68 | 24x your contacts | Unlimited |
Prepaying for 12 months saves 15% on every tier. Nonprofits can save up to 30%. Prices climb a ladder of contact bands. At 1,000 contacts, Lite costs $30, Standard costs $55, and Premium costs $110 a month. At 10,000 contacts, the same plans cost $120, $160, and $275 a month. At 50,000 contacts, they reach $430, $460, and $575 a month. Above 50,000 contacts, pricing moves to a custom quote.
Lite is the entry plan. It includes the email editor, an AI copy generator, one automation template, and basic reporting. Standard adds segmentation, A/B subject testing, scheduling, and fuller automation. Premium adds advanced automation, custom segmentation, advanced reporting, and 500 SMS messages a month. A fourth option, Multi-Account, serves franchises and teams with five or more accounts. It is priced through sales.
Constant Contact also lists a cheaper email-only Starter Email plan. A September 2026 review put it at $6 a month for unlimited contacts and 2,500 sends a month. Confirm its current availability on the pricing page, since it is not shown on every version of the page.
Going over your send allowance does not block your emails. Constant Contact keeps sending and bills the extra at $0.002 per email, or $2 per 1,000 sends. That is a fair overage rate. It also means a big campaign can add a surprise line to your bill. Watch your send multiple.
How to Use the Trial Without Wasting It
The 100-send cap makes the trial easy to burn. Use this checklist to get real value from it.
- Prepare before you sign up. Clean your contact list first. Draft two or three test campaigns in advance. Do not start the clock with nothing ready.
- Send to a small test group. Send your first campaign to 10 or 20 people, not your whole list. Check deliverability, formatting, and links before you spend more sends.
- Test one automation. Lite includes one automation template. Try a welcome email flow. See whether the builder fits your workflow.
- Check the reporting. Open rates and click rates tell you whether the tool earns its price. Test reporting during the trial, not after you pay.
- Price your real list. Use the pricing page selector to find your cost at your actual contact count. The $12 entry price only applies up to 500 contacts. A 501st contact more than doubles the Lite price to $30.
- Decide before day 30. Pick a plan or walk away before the trial ends. Your contacts and drafts stay in the account, but sending stops without a paid plan.
One more warning matters. Constant Contact is built for permission-based email to your own list. Its Acceptable Use Policy rules out cold prospecting lists on every tier. Do not buy it for cold outreach.
Bottom Line
There is no Constant Contact free plan. The 30-day trial with 100 sends is the only free test. It is enough to check the editor, the automation, and the reporting. It is not enough to run a real campaign to a real list. If the tool fits, Lite starts at $12 a month for up to 500 contacts. Budget for the contact ladder, not the entry price. And confirm the current trial terms on the pricing page before you sign up, since they change.