Yes. Brevo is genuinely worth it for most startups operating on tight budgets, but only if you’re building a business that doesn’t require A/B testing, advanced landing pages, or complex automations at this time.
At $ 9 per month for 5,000 emails, you get a solid email platform with built-in CRM and SMS features that competitors charge $ 50 or more extra for.
However, if you plan to scale aggressively or need sophisticated marketing tools from day one, you’ll likely outgrow it within 6-12 months and pay considerably more to upgrade or switch platforms.
Brevo wins on affordability and integrated tools. It loses on advanced features and scaling efficiency. Whether that trade-off makes sense depends on where your startup currently stands.
Why This Decision Matters for Your Startup
Here’s what the data actually says: email marketing generates an average of $36 for every $1 spent, which translates to a 3,600% return on investment.
41% of marketers identify email as their most effective channel, beating social media and paid search combined. For e-commerce businesses specifically, retail and consumer goods see email ROI reaching as high as 4,500%.
Most startups won’t see these numbers without a proper email strategy. And most won’t implement that strategy if their email platform costs $30+ per month and requires a learning curve.
The Startup’s Dilemma
You’re in one of three situations:
Situation 1: You have $0-15/month for email marketing. Free tools feel limiting, but paid tools feel expensive. You’re stuck in limbo.
Situation 2: You’ve been using free Mailchimp, but it’s showing 300 emails per day sending limits and basic features that feel like training wheels. You need to upgrade, but don’t want to jump to $50/month.
Situation 3: You’re confused about whether email marketing is even worth your time, given everything else competing for your attention.
Brevo solves Situations 1 and 2 almost perfectly. It partially solves Situation 3 by making email so affordable that the ROI question becomes less about cost and more about execution.
Why Most Startup Email Tools Disappoint
When founders evaluate email platforms, they typically compare:
- Price (they see: “Oh, $15/month, not bad”)
- Features (they see: “It has automation, okay”)
- Deliverability (they see: “It should work fine”)
But they rarely think about:
Hidden Upgrade Costs: You start at $9/month, but A/B testing, advanced automation, and landing pages live on a $18+/month plan. That’s double.
List Management Constraints: Some platforms charge by contact count. If you hit 5,000 subscribers on a cheap plan, you’re suddenly paying 5x more. Brevo charges by email volume instead, which scales differently.
Feature Fragmentation: You need SMS? That’s often an add-on ($20-50/month). Do you need CRM? Another add-on. Brevo includes these from the start, which matters when you’re bootstrapped.
Support Limitations: Cheap plans often mean email-only support with 48-hour response times. When you need help integrating a tool or fixing a broken automation, that hurts.
Brevo addresses most of these pain points in the sub-$20 range, which is why it’s worth examining closely.
Understanding the Startup Email Marketing Challenge
The Three Startup Personas That Matter
Before diving into whether Brevo works, let’s be honest about who needs to use it.
Persona 1: The Bootstrapped E-Commerce Founder
Your situation: You’re running a Shopify store or WooCommerce shop with your own capital. You have 200-1,000 customers and need to reach them with abandoned cart emails, product recommendations, and promotional campaigns. You don’t have a marketing budget larger than $500/month total.
Your primary pain: You need emails to reach inboxes consistently, or you lose revenue. But you also can’t afford a complex email infrastructure.
Why this matters: For e-commerce, the average RPR (revenue per recipient) in food and beverage hits $0.16 per person. That means every undelivered email to 100 people costs you $16. Bad deliverability tanks your bottom line immediately.
Persona 2: The B2B SaaS Founder
Your situation: You’re building a software tool and need to nurture trial signups into paying customers. You’re sending onboarding sequences, feature announcements, and churn prevention emails. Your email list is smaller (100-500 contacts), but your email sending frequency is higher.
Your primary pain: You need reliable automation workflows that trigger on user actions. Missing automations mean missed conversions.
Why this matters: For B2B SaaS, automated emails generate 4x more revenue than one-off sends. This is where platform quality actually matters more than price.
Persona 3: The Creator or Newsletter Founder
Your situation: You’re building an audience through a newsletter or community. You write one or two emails per week and care about template design and reader experience. You have 500-5,000 subscribers and want simplicity over features.
Your primary pain: Most newsletter platforms lock you into their ecosystem. You want an email that gets out of the way and lets you focus on writing.
Why this matters: For creators, the email platform is infrastructure, not strategy. You need something that works reliably without requiring constant tinkering.
The Cost Reality That Changes Everything
Most startup founders say, “I found a tool for $9/month. Problem solved.”
Then six months later, they say: “Wait, I need A/B testing? That costs an extra $9/month? Why didn’t it say that upfront?”
Here’s what actually happens with email tools as you scale:
| Situation | Tool | Starting Price | Real Price at Growth | What’s Different |
| Solo founder, 1,000 monthly emails | Brevo | $9 | $9 | Stays affordable |
| Solo founder, 5,000 monthly emails | Brevo | $9 | $9 | Still fine |
| Small business, 20,000 monthly emails | Brevo | $9 | $18+ | Need a Business plan for A/B testing |
| Growing SaaS, 50,000 monthly emails | Brevo | $9 | $49+ | Way more expensive than alternatives |
| E-commerce with 10,000 contacts | Mailchimp Free | Free | $300+ | Contact-based pricing becomes brutal |
| B2B SaaS with 10,000 contacts | Brevo | $9 | $18 | Email-based pricing scales better |
The key insight: Brevo’s pricing model (based on email volume) is vastly better than contact-based pricing if your contacts are inactive. But it’s worse if you send to your whole list every day.
Brevo’s Pricing Breakdown
Free Plan
Brevo’s free plan includes 300 emails per day with unlimited contacts. Let me translate that into real terms.
Daily limit of 300 emails means:
- You can send one email to 300 people every single day
- Or send one email to 100 people three times a day
- Over a 30-day month, that’s roughly 9,000 emails
For a bootstrapped founder with a small list, this is genuinely usable.
What’s included in Free:
- Drag-and-drop email editor
- Pre-built templates
- Basic marketing automation (workflows, yes—but limited to 2,000 contacts)
- CRM (contact management system, normally $50-200/month separately)
- SMS marketing access (you pay for SMS credits, but the feature is there)
- Live chat widget for your website
- Web push notifications
- Transactional emails (unlimited)
- Basic reporting
What’s NOT included in Free:
- A/B testing (the big one)
- Landing page builder
- Advanced segmentation
- Heat maps and advanced analytics
- Multi-user access
- Phone support
The free plan is legitimately useful for testing whether email marketing moves your business at all. It’s not a permanent solution for any serious business, but it’s excellent for discovering whether you should invest in email tools.
The Starter Plan
The Starter plan costs $9/month and includes 5,000 monthly emails with a 500-contact capacity.
What changes from Free:
- No daily sending limit (you can send 5,000 emails all at once if you want)
- Access to all basic features from the Free plan
- Limited reporting that’s slightly more useful
- Ad-free emails (no Brevo logo unless you want it to be there for branding)
- Better automation capabilities
What still doesn’t include:
- A/B testing (still locked behind Business plan)
- Landing pages
- Advanced automation triggers
- Multiple users accessing the account
- Priority support
Price breakdown: At $9/month paid annually, that’s $108/year. You’re essentially paying $0.0018 per email sent. That’s cheaper than almost any competitor.
Contact capacity nuance: Brevo caps this plan at 500 contacts. That sounds limiting, but here’s what matters: if 50% of your contacts are inactive or haven’t engaged in 90 days, you’re wasting space. Delete them and start fresh. The constraint forces good list hygiene.
The Business Plan
The Business plan starts at $18/month for 5,000 emails and includes landing pages, multi-user access, and priority email support.
What changes from Starter:
- A/B testing (finally!)
- Landing page builder with templates
- Advanced marketing automation (unlimited)
- Segmentation based on user behavior
- Multi-user account access (2-3 team members)
- Priority email support
- Advanced reporting with revenue tracking
- Facebook ads integration
- Enhanced deliverability features
Reality check: The pricing page says “$18 for 5K emails,” but that’s a starting rate. The actual price scales based on monthly email volume:
| Monthly Emails | Business Plan Cost |
| 5,000 | $18 |
| 10,000 | $36 |
| 20,000 | $72 |
| 50,000 | $180 |
At 50,000 monthly emails, you’re spending $180/month. Suddenly, it’s not looking so affordable.
The Hidden Value
This is where Brevo’s strategy becomes clear. It’s not the cheapest tool. It’s the cheapest tool with the most features included.
Built-in CRM: Most CRM platforms (Pipedrive, HubSpot, Zoho) charge $15-50/month just for the CRM. Brevo includes it.
SMS Marketing: Twilio charges $0.0075 per SMS. Brevo lets you buy SMS credits à la carte, starting at $1.09 for 100 SMS to the USA. It’s not free, but it’s available without a separate subscription.
Live Chat: Intercom charges $39/month minimum. Brevo includes it free on all plans.
Web Push Notifications: Most platforms charge $20-50/month for this. Brevo includes it.
Transactional Emails: If you’re sending system emails (password resets, order confirmations), transactional email services charge per thousand sent. Brevo includes unlimited transactional emails on all plans.
Quick calculation: If you used separate tools for all these features, you’d be looking at $120-200/month minimum. Brevo at $18/month includes most of this.
Is Brevo Actually Easy to Use?
The Interface Reality
Marketing platforms fall into two categories: designed for beginners or designed for power users. Brevo tries to be both, which usually means compromising on both.
The Good News:
The drag-and-drop email editor is genuinely intuitive. You don’t need any coding knowledge. Click a button, drag elements onto your canvas, and you have an email. The templates are modern and don’t look like they’re from 2010.
Setting up your first email campaign takes 5-10 minutes if you have your email list ready. That’s competitive with any platform.
The Complicated Part:
Building automation workflows in Brevo requires understanding logic. You need to set conditions: “If subscriber clicks link, then wait 3 days, then send email B.”
For non-technical founders, this takes 30-45 minutes to understand the first time. But once you’ve done it once, it becomes obvious.
The learning curve exists, but it’s not steep. It’s more like a learning “slope”—manageable if you’re willing to spend an afternoon getting familiar.
The Annoying Part:
Brevo’s dashboard has a lot of options. Too many options. Finding specific settings requires clicking through multiple menus. It’s not a dealbreaker, but it’s clunkier than competitors like ConvertKit or Klaviyo.
Template Quality
Brevo provides over 60 customizable templates for email campaigns. Most are mobile-responsive and use modern design patterns.
However, if you’re a designer by nature and want pixel-perfect control, Brevo feels limiting. It’s made for people who just want a template that works, not people who want to craft unique designs from scratch.
Getting Started in 24 Hours
Here’s what you can realistically accomplish:
Hour 1: Setup
- Create your account (5 minutes)
- Verify your email domain for sending (5 minutes)
- Add your first contact list via CSV upload (5 minutes)
- Explore the dashboard (20 minutes)
Hour 2-3: First Campaign
- Choose a template (5 minutes)
- Customize the email with your content (15 minutes)
- Add your first segment (10 minutes)
- Schedule and send (5 minutes)
Day 2: Automation
- Create a welcome email workflow (20 minutes)
- Set a trigger (email received → wait 1 day → send welcome) (10 minutes)
- Review and activate (5 minutes)
By the end of Day 1, you can send emails. By Day 2, you can have automation running.
That’s genuinely fast.
Deliverability – Will Your Emails Actually Reach Inboxes?
This is the question that keeps founders awake: You can send emails for $9/month, but what if they land in spam?
Brevo’s Track Record
Despite its low prices, Brevo includes strong deliverability infrastructure such as marketing automation, CRM, transactional emails, sophisticated forms, and landing pages. The company has been in the email business since 2012 (originally as Sendinblue), which means they’ve spent over a decade building infrastructure.
Authentication Support:
- SPF (Sender Policy Framework): Supported
- DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail): Supported
- DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication): Supported
These are the three technical standards that prove to inbox providers that you’re legitimate. Brevo requires you to set them up (it’s a 10-minute process), and that’s actually a good sign. If they made authentication optional, you should worry.
The Real Deliverability Test
Deliverability depends on three factors:
1. Infrastructure (Brevo’s job): Brevo uses multiple IP address pools and sends through established mail servers. As long as their reputation is good (which it is), your emails should reach inboxes.
2. Your List Quality (Your job): If you’re sending to 1,000 fake or purchased email addresses, no platform will save you. Low-quality lists destroy deliverability.
3. Your Sending Behavior (Your job): If you suddenly send 10,000 emails from an empty list on your first day, spam filters notice. Gradual warm-up (starting small, increasing volume over 2-3 weeks) is essential.
The warm-up strategy:
- Week 1: Send 100 emails/day
- Week 2: Send 500 emails/day
- Week 3+: Send at your target volume
This isn’t a Brevo issue. This is a general email best practice that applies to every platform.
Specific Deliverability Metrics
When we looked at user reports and reviews, deliverability complaints are relatively rare. Most issues stem from user error (bought lists, too-aggressive sending, poor list quality) rather than platform problems.
What users report:
- 92-95% inbox placement rates (typical for good-practice senders)
- Quick support when deliverability issues occur
- Clear guidance on authentication setup
Red flags to watch: If you’re consistently getting 60% or lower open rates after 2-3 campaigns, something’s wrong with either your list quality or your email content—not necessarily Brevo.
Integrations – Does Brevo Play Nice With Your Tools?
The Integration Landscape
This is where Brevo shows its age. Brevo has over 70 integrations, including WordPress and e-commerce platforms like WooCommerce.
That sounds good until you realize competitors like HubSpot or Mailchimp have 500+. It’s not that Brevo is bad. It’s that Brevo doesn’t play with as many tools.
Critical Integrations for Different Startup Types
E-Commerce:
- Shopify: Native integration (solid)
- WooCommerce: Native integration (solid)
- BigCommerce: Not direct (but Zapier works)
- Klaviyo: Competitor, not integrated
If you’re on Shopify or WooCommerce, Brevo works great. If you’re on something else, you’ll likely use Zapier (see below).
B2B SaaS:
- Stripe: Via Zapier (works fine)
- Segment: Not integrated natively
- Intercom: Not integrated
- Slack: Via Zapier (useful for alerts)
SaaS founders typically need to use Zapier for critical integrations. That adds $20-25/month to your stack if you’re using premium Zaps.
Creators/Newsletter:
- WordPress: Native plugin (simple)
- Ghost: Not native (Zapier required)
- Substack: Completely separate (can’t integrate)
- Spotify: Integration available (useful for podcasters)
The Zapier Workaround
If Brevo doesn’t have a native integration, Zapier (a workflow automation tool) connects almost anything to almost anything else.
How it works:
- Set a trigger: “When form is submitted on my website…”
- Set an action: “…add them to a Brevo list and tag them with ‘demo-requestor'”
- Brevo automatically sends them a welcome email
Cost: Zapier’s free plan includes up to 100 tasks/month. Paid plans start at $19/month. If you’re using Zapier for multiple integrations, it makes sense to spring for the paid version.
The real cost of Brevo + Zapier:
- Brevo: $9/month
- Zapier: $19/month
- Total: $28/month
At that point, you’re no longer operating “under $20/month.” You’re at $28/month, which is still cheaper than most competitors’ entry-level plans with native integrations.
What Brevo Includes That Reduces Integration Needs
Here’s where Brevo wins: its built-in tools reduce the number of integrations you need in the first place.
You don’t need a separate CRM because Brevo’s CRM is included.
You don’t need a separate live chat tool because Brevo includes it.
You don’t need a separate SMS platform because Brevo has SMS.
By consolidating these, Brevo reduces your integration complexity even if its integration count is lower.
Real Scenario Testing – Does Brevo Work for YOUR Startup?
Scenario 1: E-Commerce Founder with a Shopify Store
You’re running a dropshipping store with 500 customers. You need abandoned cart emails, post-purchase follow-ups, and monthly promotional campaigns. Budget: $50/month for all marketing tools.
Brevo Setup:
- Shopify integration sends abandoned carts to Brevo automatically
- Create a workflow: “If abandoned cart email → wait 2 hours → send reminder → wait 24 hours → send second reminder with discount”
- Monthly promotional campaigns are sent manually every 2 weeks
Does it work? YES
Why: Brevo’s Starter plan ($9) handles all of this. Shopify integration is native and solid. Automation is reliable.
What you can’t do: A/B test subject lines to optimize open rates. You’re stuck with sending the same subject line every time.
Cost: $9/month (Brevo) + ~$29 (Shopify) + hosting = within budget
When you’d need to upgrade: When you’re consistently sending 20,000+ monthly emails or when A/B testing becomes your top priority. That’s probably 6-12 months in if you’re growing well.
Scenario 2: B2B SaaS Founder with a Free Trial Product
You built a project management tool with a free trial. Users sign up, get 14 days free, and you send onboarding emails on days 1, 3, 7, and 13, plus a win-back email on day 15. You have 200 trial users in month one, growing to 1,000 by month 6. Budget: $100/month maximum for marketing stack.
Brevo Setup:
- Webhook from your app sends a trial signup event to Brevo
- Automation triggers: 1-hour delay, then email #1
- Follow-up emails on day 3, 7, 13, 15 using the workflow builder
- Track which emails lead to conversions using Brevo’s revenue tracking
Does it work? YES, WITH CAVEATS
Why: Brevo’s automation handles multi-step workflows well. Revenue tracking works.
The problem: You need to use Brevo’s Starter plan ($9) plus probably Zapier ($19) to connect your app (unless you have a developer who can write the webhook).
Cost: $9 (Brevo) + $19 (Zapier) + overhead = $28/month
When you’d need to upgrade: When you hit 50,000+ monthly emails or need advanced segmentation based on user behavior within your app. That’s probably 6-9 months out.
Scenario 3: Creator with a Growing Newsletter
You’re writing a weekly newsletter to 2,000 subscribers. You want beautiful templates, easy subscriber management, and simple reporting. You don’t need complex automation—just send once per week and track opens/clicks.
Brevo Setup:
- Upload your subscriber list (or use a signup form)
- Choose a template each week and write your newsletter
- Send on Wednesdays at 10 AM
- Check open/click rates on Thursday
Does it work? ✓ YES, BUT THERE MIGHT BE BETTER OPTIONS
Why: Brevo works fine for this. The free plan includes everything you need.
The caveat: Platforms like Substack (free with revenue split) or Beehiiv (free up to 500 subscribers) are more optimized for creators. They focus on the newsletter first, the email platform second.
But if you want the email platform to do more later (add CRM, SMS, etc.), Brevo is better.
Cost: Free or $9/month
Scenario 4: Nonprofit Sending Donation Appeals
You run a nonprofit with 3,000 donors. You send quarterly donation campaigns plus monthly newsletters. You need reliable delivery and compliance with email marketing laws. Budget: $30/month.
Brevo Setup:
- Upload donor list
- Create segmentation: “major donors (5+ years)” vs “new donors (< 1 year)” vs “lapsed donors (haven’t given in 2 years)”
- Send targeted campaigns to each segment
- Track donation conversions
Does it work? YES
Why: Brevo’s basic segmentation and automation work well for straightforward campaigns. Compliance features are built in.
Special note: Nonprofits sometimes qualify for discounts through platforms like TechSoup. Check there first.
Cost: $18/month (Business plan for better automation) + potential nonprofit discount
Brevo vs.Competitors Under $20
The Head-to-Head Comparison
| Feature | Brevo Starter | Mailchimp Free | Sender ($10) | Constant Contact ($20) |
| Price | $9 | Free | $10 | $20 |
| Monthly Sends | 5,000 | 10,000 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Contacts | 500 | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Daily Send Limit | None | 2,000/day | None | None |
| A/B Testing | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Automation | Basic | Basic | Advanced | Advanced |
| Landing Pages | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Built-in CRM | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| SMS Marketing | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Live Chat | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Email Support | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Phone Support | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
Breaking Down Each Competitor
Mailchimp Free:
- Best if: You want unlimited contacts and don’t mind sending only 10,000/month
- Worst if: You need A/B testing or want to remove their branding
- Reality: It’s free, so it’s hard to argue against testing it. But features are very basic.
Sender ($10/month):
- Best if: You want unlimited sends and native A/B testing from day one
- Worst if: You like simple interfaces; Sender’s is feature-heavy
- Reality: Better for experienced marketers. A good middle ground between Brevo and enterprise tools.
Constant Contact ($20/month):
- Best if: You want phone support and advanced features at a low price
- Worst if: You need SMS or integrated CRM; you’re paying extra
- Reality: Slightly more expensive than Brevo, but includes features Brevo charges extra for.
When to Choose Brevo Over Competitors
Choose Brevo if:
- You want the most features (including CRM, SMS, live chat) for the lowest price
- You’re scaling based on email volume, not contact count
- You don’t need A/B testing right now but might later
- You value simplicity over power-user features
Choose Mailchimp if:
- You need to send more emails on the free tier (10,000 vs 5,000)
- You have unlimited contacts that you’ll use
- You’re not ready to pay anything
Choose Sender if:
- You need A/B testing from day one
- You’re an experienced marketer who wants more control
- You don’t need CRM or SMS
Choose Constant Contact if:
- Phone support is important to you
- You want phone support included at this price point
- You’re willing to pay slightly more ($20 vs $9)
Honest Limitations and Gotchas
Feature Limitations That Sting
A/B Testing (The Big One)
Brevo’s Starter plan doesn’t include A/B testing. The Business plan ($18+) does. Here’s why that matters:
A/B testing generates $42 for every $1 spent, compared to $21 for marketers who don’t do A/B testing.
That’s a 2x difference in ROI. If you’re sending 5,000 emails/month, you’re potentially leaving money on the table by not testing.
Workaround: You can test manually. Send version A to half your list, version B to the other half, and compare results. It takes longer to analyze, but it works.
Advanced Segmentation (The Sneaky Limitation)
Brevo’s Starter plan allows basic segments: “opened last 30 days” or “clicked in link.”
But you can’t segment on: “clicked link A but not link B” or “opened email AND made a purchase.” That requires the Business plan.
Workaround: Export your contacts, segment them in Excel or Google Sheets, and re-upload. Time-consuming but doable.
Landing Page Builder (Completely Missing on Starter)
If you need a landing page to capture email signups, you need the Business plan. This is significant because landing pages have 2-3x higher conversion rates than homepage forms.
Workaround: Use a separate landing page tool (Leadpages $37/month, Unbounce $79/month). That blows your budget if you’re trying to stay under $20.
Account and Scaling Limitations
Daily Sending Limits (Depends on Plan)
- Free plan: 300/day
- Starter plan: No daily limit, but 5,000/month cap
- Business plan: No daily limit, scales with plan
If you exceed your monthly limit, Brevo pauses your sending until next month. This is annoying and means you need to monitor your usage.
Contact Capacity Caps
- Free: Unlimited
- Starter: 500 contacts
- Business: 5,000 contacts
If you exceed your cap, you either delete old contacts or upgrade. It’s not a hard wall, but it forces decision-making.
Integration Gaps
Limited Third-Party Integrations
If you use Shopify, you’re set. If you use a less common e-commerce platform or SaaS tool, you might be hunting for Zapier workarounds.
API Rate Limits
If you’re a developer who wants to pull data programmatically (build reports, export contact interactions), Brevo’s API has rate limits. Most startups won’t hit them, but it’s worth knowing.
Customer Support Reality
What’s included:
- Email support (24-48 hour response on Starter plan)
- Live chat during business hours (sometimes)
What’s NOT included:
- Phone support (Starter plan only)
- Dedicated account manager
- 1-on-1 training
When you have questions, you’ll wait. It’s not a dealbreaker for most startups, but it’s a limitation if you need immediate help.
The Red Flags to Watch
- Email authentication issues: If emails bounce or land in spam constantly, you might have an SPF/DKIM/DMARC configuration problem. Brevo has docs, but support can be slow.
- Automation bugs: Some users report occasional glitches where automations don’t trigger on schedule. Rare, but it happens.
- Reporting inconsistencies: Open/click rates sometimes differ from what you see in Google Analytics. This is industry-wide, not specific to Brevo, but it’s confusing.
- Account security: Two-factor authentication is available, which is good. But security practices could be more transparently documented.
Getting Started – Your First 24 Hours
Hour 1: Setup (Done Right)
Step 1: Create Your Account (5 minutes)
- Go to brevo.com
- Click “Sign up free”
- Enter your email, create a password, confirm
- You’re in
Step 2: Verify Your Domain (10 minutes)
This is the technical part. Don’t skip it.
- In Brevo, go to Settings → Sender information
- Click “Add a sender email”
- Enter your business email (hello@yourcompany.com, not gmail)
- You’ll get two options:
- Simple verification: Add a DNS record (requires access to your domain’s DNS settings)
- SPF/DKIM setup: More thorough but takes 5 minutes longer
Simple process:
- Brevo gives you a DNS value
- Log into GoDaddy, Namecheap, or wherever you registered your domain
- Add the DNS record Brevo specifies
- Wait 30 minutes for it to propagate
- Brevo confirms it’s done
This step isn’t optional. If you skip it, your emails land in spam.
Step 3: Explore the Dashboard (20 minutes)
Don’t feel rushed. Poke around.
- Left sidebar: Campaigns, Contacts, Automation, CRM, Transactional
- Top navigation: Dashboard, Settings, Account
- Main area: Your dashboard showing recent activity
What to focus on:
- Contacts section: This is where your email list lives
- Campaigns: Where you’ll create emails
- Automation: Where you’ll build workflows
You don’t need to understand everything yet. Just get familiar with the layout.
Hour 2-3: Import Your First Contacts
Step 1: Prepare Your Contact List (5 minutes)
Brevo accepts contacts via:
- CSV file (spreadsheet upload)
- Manual entry
- Integration (Shopify, WooCommerce, etc.)
CSV format matters:
- Column headers in row 1: Email, First Name, Last Name, Phone (optional)
- Data starts in row 2
- No special characters or formatting
- Save as CSV (not Excel)
Example:
Email,First Name,Last Name
john@example.com,John,Smith
sarah@example.com,Sarah,Jones
Step 2: Upload (5 minutes)
- Go to Contacts → Add contacts
- Choose “Import”
- Select your CSV file
- Map columns (tell Brevo which column is “Email,” which is “Name,” etc.)
- Confirm and upload
Brevo automatically deduplicates, so if someone’s already in your list, they won’t be added twice.
Step 3: Create Your First List/Segment (5 minutes)
Brevo organizes contacts into “Lists.” You can have multiple lists:
- “Newsletter subscribers”
- “Abandoned carts”
- “Trial users”
For your first time, create one list called “Newsletter” or “My List” and import your contacts there.
Hours 4-6: Send Your First Campaign
Step 1: Choose a Template (5 minutes)
- Go to Campaigns → Create a campaign
- Choose “Email”
- Browse templates
- Pick one that roughly matches what you want to send
- Click “Use template”
Templates available include:
- Newsletter templates (clean, simple)
- Promotional templates (eye-catching, discount-focused)
- Announcement templates (formal, professional)
- Welcome templates (brand introduction)
Step 2: Customize Your Email (15 minutes)
The drag-and-drop editor is intuitive:
- Click on text → Edit it
- Click on images → Replace them
- Click on buttons → Change text and link
- Colors, fonts, spacing all adjustable
Key sections of every email:
- From name and subject line (visible in inbox)
- From: “Your Company Name”
- Subject: “Weekly Newsletter – January 23”
- These make or break open rates
- Header (first thing people see)
- Your logo or main visual
- Should be recognizable
- Body content (the meat)
- 2-4 paragraphs max for newsletter
- 3-5 sections for promotional emails
- Use short paragraphs; long paragraphs get skipped
- Call-to-action button (where conversions happen)
- “Read more,” “Get it now,” “Learn more”
- Make it contrast with the rest of the email
- Footer (legal requirement)
- Company name and address
- Unsubscribe link (Brevo adds this automatically)
Step 3: Choose Your Audience (5 minutes)
- Select “Recipients” → Choose the list you created
- Optionally, add a segment: “opened email in last 30 days”
- For your first email, just send to your whole list
Step 4: Schedule or Send (2 minutes)
- Click “Send now” or “Schedule”
- If scheduling, pick date and time
- Confirm and send
You’ll get a confirmation. Your first email is on its way.
What happens next:
- Brevo starts sending (instantly for send now, scheduled time for later)
- Subscribers receive it within 2-15 minutes
- Open rates and clicks start tracking immediately
- You can check results in Campaigns section
Day 2: Set Up Your First Automation
Automation is the game-changer. It sends emails without you.
Step 1: Create a Welcome Email Workflow (20 minutes)
- Go to Automation → Marketing Automations
- Click “Create automation”
- Choose “Trigger” → Select an event
- Most common trigger: “Contact added to list”
Here’s a simple workflow:
- Trigger: Contact added to “Newsletter” list
- Action 1: Wait 1 hour (let them check their inbox)
- Action 2: Send email (title: “Welcome to our newsletter!”)
- Action 3: Wait 2 days
- Action 4: Send email (title: “3 tips you’ll love”)
- Action 5: Wait 3 days
- Action 6: Send email (title: “Here’s what’s new”)
Time to set this up: 20 minutes if it’s your first time, 5 minutes after that.
Step 2: Create Your Workflow Emails (30 minutes)
For each email in your workflow:
- Click “Create email”
- Write the content (or use a template)
- Save and confirm
After this, your automation runs automatically. Every new subscriber gets this sequence.
By End of Day 2, You’ve Accomplished:
✓ Set up your domain correctly (emails won’t land in spam)
✓ Imported your first contact list ✓ Sent your first campaign
✓ Set up automation (future emails send themselves)
Time invested: ~4 hours total Value gained: You now have a working email platform that requires maintenance, not creation
The Real Cost of Using Brevo
Breaking Down the Actual Monthly Spend
Most startup founders calculate the cost incorrectly. They see “$9/month” and think “My email marketing costs $9/month.”
That’s not complete. Here’s the actual math.
Scenario 1: Solo Founder, Small E-Commerce Store
Monthly activities:
- 1,000 customer emails (promotional, updates, abandonment)
- 10 hours/month spent managing emails
Cost breakdown:
| Item | Cost | Notes |
| Brevo Starter | $9 | 5,000 sends/month capacity |
| Integrations | $0 | Shopify integration is free |
| Supporting tools | $0 | Using free Canva for images |
| Time (10 hrs @ $50/hr) | $500 | Your opportunity cost |
| TOTAL MONTHLY COST | $509 | The real cost |
Hidden insight: The platform costs $9, but the actual cost of managing email marketing is $509. This is why many founders say “email marketing isn’t worth it”—they’re not accounting for time.
But here’s the ROI: If those 1,000 emails generate even $1,500 in revenue (typical e-commerce), you’re making $1,500 from a $509 investment. That’s a 295% return.
Scenario 2: B2B SaaS, 500 Trial Users
Monthly activities:
- 2,000 trial signup emails
- 2,000 nurture emails
- 500 onboarding reminders
- Total: ~5,000 emails
- 15 hours/month managing campaigns
Cost breakdown:
| Item | Cost | Notes |
| Brevo Starter | $9 | Fits 5,000 emails |
| Zapier integration | $20 | Connecting app to Brevo |
| Time (15 hrs @ $75/hr) | $1,125 | Your time |
| TOTAL MONTHLY COST | $1,154 |
Expected ROI: If 10% of trial users convert to paid ($100/month each), that’s 50 customers × $100 = $5,000 revenue. Your $1,154 investment returns $5,000. That’s 433% ROI.
But here’s the reality: email might only account for 20-30% of that conversion. So your actual email-attributed ROI might be $1,000-1,500 revenue from $1,154 cost.
Scenario 3: Creator with Newsletter
Monthly activities:
- 1 email per week (4 emails)
- 2,000 subscribers
- ~5-8 hours/month writing and sending
Cost breakdown:
| Item | Cost | Notes |
| Brevo Free or Starter | $0-9 | Free if < 300/day |
| Time (5 hrs @ $50/hr) | $250 | Your writing time |
| TOTAL MONTHLY COST | $250-259 |
Expected ROI: Creators typically monetize through sponsorships, ads, or products. If your newsletter generates $1,000/month through sponsorships, your $250 cost = 400% ROI.
When Costs Jump Unexpectedly
Scenario: You’re growing
Month 1: 1,000 emails, $9/month
Month 3: 5,000 emails, $9/month (still in Starter)
Month 6: 15,000 emails, $18/month (upgrade to Business for A/B testing)
Month 9: 35,000 emails, $45/month (you can’t A/B test 35k efficiently on Business plan, need higher tier)
Month 12: 75,000 emails, $180/month (at this volume, look at competitors)
The shock: You went from $9 to $180 in a year. That’s a 20x increase. Many founders switch platforms at this point.
The True Cost
Brevo’s real cost advantage is under $20/month, BUT:
- You’re not saving $20/month
- You’re avoiding the $50-200/month cost of other platforms
- Your actual email marketing cost includes your time, which usually exceeds the platform cost
- Scaling makes Brevo’s economics worse, not better
The real value proposition: Brevo lets you start email marketing for almost nothing, without committing to a $50+/month platform while you’re still testing if email works for your business.
Final Verdict – Is Brevo Worth It?
Yes, Brevo is worth it for most startups under $20/month—but only if you understand what you’re actually getting.
You’re not getting a comprehensive marketing platform. You’re getting a solid, affordable email tool with enough integrated features to replace 3-4 separate tools.
Who Should Use Brevo (Right Now)
✓ Bootstrapped founders with $100 or less/month marketing budget
✓ E-commerce stores under $50k/month revenue
✓ B2B SaaS with <10k users
✓ Newsletter creators with 500-5,000 subscribers
✓ Anyone needing CRM + email + SMS in one tool for minimal cost
Who Should Look Elsewhere
✗ Data-driven marketers who need A/B testing as a core function (choose Sender or Klaviyo) ✗ Growing e-commerce sending 50k+ emails/month (Klaviyo is better suited)
✗ Agencies managing multiple client accounts (HubSpot or ActiveCampaign)
✗ Founders who value support over features (Constant Contact offers phone support at the same price)
✗ Anyone who needs unlimited integrations (Mailchimp or HubSpot)
The 12-Month Reality Check
If you start with Brevo today:
Months 1-3: You’ll love it. It’s cheap, easy, and works.
Months 3-6: You’ll hit the A/B testing limitation. You’ll realize you want more segmentation. You might upgrade to the Business plan ($18).
Months 6-9: You’ll get frustrated with support response times. Features will feel limiting. You’ll start researching alternatives.
Months 9-12: If your business is growing, you’ll likely switch to a more feature-rich platform. If it’s stable, you’ll keep Brevo.
The insight: Brevo is a stepping stone, not a destination. And that’s perfectly fine.
What Makes Brevo Worth $9-18/Month
The real value props:
- Integrated CRM: Normally $50-200/month separately. In Brevo, it’s free.
- SMS capability: Most platforms charge $15-50/month. Brevo includes it.
- Live chat: Another $20-40/month elsewhere. Brevo includes it.
- No contact-count pricing: You can have unlimited inactive contacts. You only pay for emails sent.
- Transactional emails: Unlimited. Most platforms charge per thousand.
If you valued these separately, you’d spend $150+ monthly. At $9, that’s a genuine deal.
What Brevo Doesn’t Win On
- Advanced features: A/B testing, landing pages, dynamic content
- Support: You won’t get phone support or rapid responses
- Scaling economics: Costs jump faster as you grow
- Integrations: Fewer native connections than competitors
- Design flexibility: Templates are good, but not customizable
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Is Brevo free? Can I really never pay?
A: Yes and no. You can send 300 emails per day on the free plan forever. But once you exceed that, you need to upgrade. Most serious businesses upgrade within 1-2 months. The free plan is genuinely useful for testing, not for running a business long-term.
Q: What’s the difference between Brevo and Sendinblue?
A: They’re the same company. In 2022, Sendinblue rebranded to Brevo. If you see old reviews mentioning Sendinblue, they’re talking about the same platform.
Q: Can I export my contacts if I leave Brevo?
A: Yes. You can export your contact list as CSV anytime. No lock-in. If you want to leave for Klaviyo or another platform, your data comes with you.
Q: Does Brevo have a mobile app?
A: Not a full app, but you can access Brevo through the browser on mobile. It’s not ideal, but it works if you need to check on a campaign while traveling.
Q: Will my emails land in spam if I use Brevo?
A: No, as long as you set up authentication correctly (SPF/DKIM/DMARC). The issue isn’t Brevo’s infrastructure. It’s usually the email list quality or your sending practices.
Q: Can I use my own domain with Brevo?
A: Yes. You configure it in Settings → Sender information. This is important for brand trust and deliverability.
Q: How long does it take to set up email authentication?
A: 5-10 minutes for setup, then 30 minutes to an hour for DNS propagation. Total time: ~1 hour.
Q: What if I have a large contact list already?
A: You can import up to 500 contacts on the Starter plan. If you have 5,000 contacts, either upgrade to the Business plan or delete inactive ones from your existing list first.
Q: Can I schedule emails in advance?
A: Yes. You can schedule campaigns weeks or months in advance. Automations run on their own schedule (immediately or with delays you specify).
Q: Why is the Starter plan capped at 500 contacts?
A: Brevo charges by email volume, not contacts. If you had 10,000 inactive contacts and sent one email, you’d pay for just one email sent—unlike Mailchimp, which would charge based on having 10,000 contacts stored. The 500-contact cap is a practical limit, not a hard limitation on list size.
Q: When would I actually need to upgrade?
A: When you need:
- A/B testing (requires Business plan)
- Landing page builder (requires Business plan)
- More than 5,000 emails/month (costs go up on Starter)
- Advanced automation (requires Business plan)
Most startups upgrade around month 6-9 if they’re growing.
Q: Does Brevo offer annual discounts?
A: Yes. Paying annually saves 10-15% compared to monthly billing. If you’re committed to the platform, annual billing makes sense.
Q: What happens if I exceed my monthly send limit?
A: Brevo stops sending emails until next month. This is a real limitation. You can’t temporarily upgrade mid-month to send more. Plan your campaigns accordingly.
Q: Can I connect my Shopify store to Brevo?
A: Yes. It’s a native integration. Abandoned carts, post-purchase emails, and customer segmentation work automatically.
Q: How do I connect my custom app to Brevo?
A: Through Brevo’s API or Zapier. If you have a developer on staff, they can write API calls. If not, Zapier handles most use cases. Zapier adds $20/month to your costs, though.
Q: Can I use Brevo with WordPress?
A: Yes. There’s a WordPress plugin (WP Mail SMTP) that works with Brevo. Easy to install and configure.
Q: Does Brevo work with Stripe?
A: Through Zapier, yes. Direct integration, no. This is a limitation if Stripe integration is critical to your workflow.
Q: Is my data safe with Brevo?
A: Brevo complies with GDPR, CCPA, and other privacy regulations. They use data centers with standard security practices. Like any SaaS, there’s always some risk, but it’s no worse than competitors.
Q: Can my subscribers easily unsubscribe?
A: Yes. Every email includes an unsubscribe link (required by law). One click and they’re off your list. This is actually a good thing—it keeps your list clean.
Q: Does Brevo sell my data?
A: No. Brevo’s business model is selling the platform to you, not selling your data. Your subscriber list is yours.
Q: Can I GDPR-comply with Brevo?
A: Yes. Brevo has built-in compliance features. You still need to get proper consent (double opt-in is recommended), but the platform supports it.
Q: How often is Brevo down?
A: Brevo claims 99.9% uptime. That means a maximum of 43 minutes of downtime per month. In practice, most users don’t experience regular outages, but occasionally there are brief hiccups.
Q: How fast are emails delivered?
A: Usually within 5-15 minutes of sending. This varies based on ISP queues and other factors. Brevo doesn’t have special speed guarantees.
Q: What’s the typical open rate for Brevo emails?
A: This depends entirely on your content and audience, not Brevo. Average email open rates are 17-28% across industries. If you’re getting 5-10%, your content or subject lines need work.
Q: Can I track clicks in emails?
A: Yes. Brevo automatically adds tracking links. You can see which links were clicked and by whom.
Q: When should I switch to a different platform?
A: When:
- Your monthly email volume exceeds 50,000, and Brevo pricing becomes uncompetitive
- You need advanced features (sophisticated AI optimization, advanced landing pages)
- Your business model changes significantly
Most businesses can stay with Brevo through $100kin revenue. Beyond that, it depends on your needs.
Q: Can I upgrade my plan without losing data?
A: Yes. Upgrading is seamless. All your contacts, automations, and campaign history transfer.
Q: Is there a penalty for leaving Brevo?
A: No. You can export everything and leave anytime. No lock-in period or cancellation fees.
Q: Will my automations keep running if I cancel?
A: No. Once you cancel, Brevo stops sending. You need to move your automations to a new platform or deactivate them before leaving.
Q: Is Brevo better than Mailchimp?
A: It depends. Brevo is better if you want an integrated CRM and SMS at a low price. Mailchimp is better if you want more free send volume and don’t need CRM. Neither is universally better.
Q: How does Brevo compare to Klaviyo?
A: Klaviyo is more powerful and designed for e-commerce. Brevo is more affordable and more general-purpose. For most e-commerce under $100k revenue, Brevo works. Beyond that, Klaviyo’s ROI advantages justify the higher cost.
Q: Is Brevo or HubSpot better for startups?
A: HubSpot is more comprehensive but pushes you toward expensive paid plans quickly. Brevo is cheaper longer. For the total cost of ownership in the first year, Brevo is better. For long-term capabilities, HubSpot is better.
Q: Should I use Brevo or Constant Contact?
A: Constant Contact offers phone support at $20/month. Brevo offers more integrated features at $9-18/month. If support is worth extra cost, use Constant Contact. If you want to keep costs down, Brevo.
Q: Emails are landing in spam. What’s wrong?
A: Usually list quality, not platform. Check:
- Are you sending to engaged contacts only?
- Did you authenticate your domain?
- Are you warming up your sending gradually?
- Is your content triggering spam filters (too many links, ALL CAPS)?
Q: Automations aren’t triggering. Why?
A: Most common causes:
- Conditions are too specific (check logic)
- Contacts don’t meet the criteria
- Automation isn’t activated (there’s an “off” switch)
- Brevo has occasional glitches (rare, but it happens)
Q: My open rates are really low. Should I switch platforms?
A: No. Low open rates usually mean poor subject lines, poor sending time, or a low-quality list—not a platform problem. Change your subject lines and see if it improves.
Q: How do I improve deliverability?
A: The proven steps:
- Use your own domain (not Gmail or generic email)
- Authenticate SPF, DKIM, DMARC
- Build clean lists (remove bounces, inactive contacts)
- Warm up by sending volume gradually
- Write engaging content (no spam trigger words)