What’s the best free email marketing tool for sending to 1,000 subscribers daily?

Question

I run a small business and need a simple email marketing tool to send basic bulk emails (about 1–2 messages per day) to an opt-in list of roughly 1,000 subscribers. Our budget is tight right now, so I’m looking for a free plan that still has a reasonable daily send limit and is easy to use.

What free email marketing platforms should I consider, and what limits or deliverability trade-offs should I watch for as the list grows?

Mustafa Aydemir · Answer

Hi! With 1,000 opt-in subscribers and 1–2 emails per day, you’re really talking about ~30,000–60,000 sends/month—most “free email marketing” plans won’t come close, so the main free option that can realistically handle that volume is a newsletter-first platform like beehiiv (free Launch plan includes up to 2,500 subscribers with unlimited email sends). If you want a more classic small-business email marketing tool (promos, segments, basic automations), the best free plans to consider are usually Sender or EmailOctopus, but you’ll likely have to send less often or accept an upgrade soon because their free monthly send caps are much lower.

Here are the free platforms worth looking at (and the key limits that matter for your use case):

- **beehiiv (best for high-volume “newsletter” sending on free):** Free plan supports **up to 2,500 subscribers** and **unlimited email sends**, but it’s built around publishing/newsletters more than traditional email marketing automation (so if you need deeper automations, complex segmentation, or ecommerce-style workflows, you may feel boxed in).
- **Sender (best “traditional” email marketing free plan):** Free plan allows **up to 2,500 subscribers** and **15,000 emails/month**. Great UI for campaigns + basic automation, but **15k/month** won’t cover daily sends to a 1,000-person list.
- **EmailOctopus (simple + lightweight):** Free plan allows **up to 2,500 contacts** and **10,000 emails/month**. Also won’t cover daily sending, but it’s straightforward and often a nice “starter” ESP.
- **Brevo:** Free plan is limited to **300 emails/day** (contacts storage is generous). Good tool, but this daily cap makes it a non-starter for “send to 1,000 daily.”
- **Mailjet:** Free plan is **200 emails/day** (and about **6,000/month**), so it won’t work for your volume.
- **Mailchimp / MailerLite (free plans got much smaller):** Both are now typically capped around **250 contacts** on free, so they won’t fit a 1,000-subscriber list.

Deliverability trade-offs to watch as you grow (especially on free tiers)
- **Shared sending reputation:** Free plans almost always send from shared infrastructure. If other senders on that pool generate spam complaints, it can affect your inbox placement (more “Promotions” or spam folder risk).
- **Branding + fewer controls:** Free plans may add provider branding and sometimes restrict advanced features that help deliverability (richer domain/authentication options, dedicated IP, deeper reporting, priority support).
- **Stricter enforcement + sudden limits:** Many providers tighten free-tier rules over time. Build your plan assuming you might need to upgrade once your email marketing becomes consistent revenue.

If you want, tell me whether your emails are more like a “newsletter update” vs. “marketing promos” (and whether you need automations like welcome emails). I can point you to the best-fit option and a realistic sending setup that won’t hurt deliverability.