The Top 5 Email Subscription Plugins on WordPress

Are you looking for an effective way to build a loyal following? Start an email list!

With the right email subscription plugin, you can encourage visitors to sign up for your newsletter. You’ll also manage your subscriber list and emails from the same place, streamlining your workflow.

This article shares the top WordPress email subscription plugins and shows you how to choose the right one for your website. So, let’s dive right in.

The five best email subscription plugins for WordPress

Here are some of the best plugins for WordPress email subscriptions:

1. Jetpack Growth

Jetpack Growth is an all-in-one solution for growing your website. It includes a newsletter feature that turns your blog posts into emails and sends them to subscribers automatically.

With this tool, you can design your newsletters in the block editor and manage them from your WordPress dashboard. You can even add a signup form to every post on your blog.

Jetpack Growth is part of the Jetpack suite of products created by Automattic, the people behind WordPress.com. Besides a newsletter, it offers tools like post scheduling and social media posting. 

Key features of Jetpack Growth:

• Support for paid subscriptions
• Performance data on subscribers and campaigns
• Signup forms that you can add to posts and other pages on your site
• Delivery options for recipients, including instant, weekly, and daily digests

Pros of Jetpack Growth:

• There are no limits on the number of emails you can send or the number of subscribers. 
• You can design your newsletter using the multitude of blocks available in the block editor. 

Cons of Jetpack Growth:

• There are other features included in Jetpack Growth that you might not need, like automatic image generation and content scheduling.

Ease of use:

With Jetpack Growth, you’ll have access to the newsletter feature directly inside of the block editor. So, when you’re about to publish a post, you can send it immediately to subscribers. 

You also have the option to automatically email every new post and add a subscription form to all articles. These automation features reduce a lot of work for you and your team. 

Best suitable for:

• Bloggers who want a simple email marketing solution that integrates with the block editor

Jetpack Growth pricing:

Plans start at $9.95/month for the first year, billed annually.

2. Mailchimp for WooCommerce

Mailchimp supports a variety of content management systems, including WordPress, and also provides powerful features for WooCommerce stores.

The Mailchimp for WooCommerce plugin offers segmentation based on purchase history and behavior. It also lets you add discount codes to your emails and automatically embed pop-up forms to gain new subscribers. 

Key features of Mailchimp:

• A large selection of email templates for different niches
• Automated emails like follow-ups and cart reminders
• Detailed reports on your email campaigns, including conversion rates and return on investment

Pros of Mailchimp:

• It helps you boost sales by showcasing product recommendations, offering discounts, and reminding shoppers of abandoned carts. 

Cons of Mailchimp:

• While data from your WooCommerce store is automatically synced with your Mailchimp account, you can’t manage campaigns from your site. You’ll need to create your emails, access reports, and view subscribers in Mailchimp. 

Ease of use:

Mailchimp has a visual email builder with plenty of pre-built templates. You can also use its AI tool to generate content like subject lines. 

Best suitable for:

• Online store owners who want to boost sales with email marketing

Mailchimp pricing:

The plugin is free and you can use it with your free Mailchimp account. This supports up to 500 contacts. 

Paid plans start at $20/month for 500 – 1,500 subscribers and 6,000 monthly emails. 

3. OptinMonster

OptinMonster is a lead generation solution that focuses on email marketing. Its WordPress Popup Builder and Popup Maker plugin has more than one million installations. 

This tool helps you design opt-in forms and display them in the form of floating bars, popups, slide-ins, and more. It also lets you create targeted campaigns based on visitor behavior and location using a drag-and-drop builder. 

Key features of OptinMonster:

• More than 700 customizable templates
• Content optimizations with AI
• Exit-intent popups to help you turn visitors into subscribers

Pros of OptinMonster:

• It gives you a lot of control over the opt-in popups. For instance, you can display them on specific pages only, or to visitors from particular geolocations. 
• It integrates with various ecommerce plugins, including WooCommerce.

Cons:

• This is mainly a subscription form builder, so you’ll need to integrate it with an email marketing service like Constant Contact or Mailchimp.

Ease of use:

Its drag-and-drop builder makes it easy to create opt-in forms and add popups to WordPress. You’ll also get a clean interface for selecting targeting options and display conditions. 

Best suitable for:

• Website owners who are struggling to attract subscribers and want to try targeted offers and other incentives. 

OptinMonster pricing:

The Basic plan starts at $7/month for unlimited subscribers and campaigns. However, this is designed for sites that only get 2,500 monthly page views. 

The Plus plan costs $19 per month and is for sites that receive 10,000 page views.

For ecommerce sites, there’s the Pro plan for $29 per month and 25,000 page views.

4. Constant Contact

Created in the 1990s, Constant Contact is one of the oldest email marketing solutions on the market. Its Constant Contact Forms plugin for WordPress helps you create professional signup forms on your site. 

The plugin automatically adds all new subscribers to your Constant Contact account, where you can design newsletters using a drag-and-drop editor and an AI writing assistant.

Key features of Constant Contact:

• Customizable email templates, including welcome messages and thank you notes
• Segmentation based on customer actions and interests, as well as custom criteria
• Subject line recommendations to boost open rates
• Advanced engagement reports and campaign comparisons

Pros of Constant Contact:

• Its AI tool helps you create complete campaigns that align with your branding. You can simply feed it a few keywords and it will write the copy for you. 

Cons of Constant Contact:

• Segmentation and automation are very limited unless you purchase the highest-tier plan. 

Ease of use:

Constant Contact has a visual email builder with templates and an AI copy generator, so it’s simple to create your newsletters. However, learning how to set up custom segments may take a while, especially if you’ve never done it before. 

Best suitable for:

• Small businesses and marketers who want to use email marketing for market research, as Constant Contact lets you add surveys and polls to your newsletters. 

Constant Contact pricing:

The Light plan starts at $12/month, but you’ll only get one automation template and one segmentation. 

The Standard plan costs $35/month and includes three automations and ten segmentations. 

The Premium plan starts at $80/month and has no restrictions. 

5. MailPoet

MailPoet is a newsletter tool built specifically for WordPress and WooCommerce. It offers a variety of options for displaying subscription forms, including popups, fixed bars, and slide-ins.

With MailPoet, you’ll also have more than 50 newsletter templates to choose from, plus segmentation options based on subscriber behavior and interests. 

Key features of MailPoet:

• Customizable templates and subscription forms with a drag-and-drop editor
• Automated welcome emails 
• Deep integration with WooCommerce 
• Automatic emails to subscribers when you publish a new post

Pros of MailPoet:

• You can manage most aspects of your email marketing from the WordPress dashboard, including newsletters and subscriber lists. 

Cons of MailPoet:

• The free plan displays the MailPoet branding in your newsletters, so you’ll need to purchase a premium plan if you want to look more professional.

Ease of use:

MailPoet integrates directly into the WordPress dashboard, so you won’t need to learn a new interface. Plus, there’s a large selection of templates for both subscription forms and newsletters. 

Best suitable for:

• Bloggers who are looking for more advanced functionality like multi-condition segmentation (which you’ll get with a paid plan). 

Pricing:

The Starter plan is free and supports up to 500 subscribers and 5,000 emails/month. 

The Business plan costs $9/month (billed annually) and gives you unlimited emails.

A comparison of the top email subscription plugins on WordPress

	Key feature	AI & automation	Best for	Starting price
Jetpack Growth	Seamless integration with WordPress	Yes	Bloggers and beginners	$9.95/month
Mailchimp for WooCommerce	Detailed reports	Yes	WooCommerce store owners	$20/month
OptinMonster	Various ways to display opt-in forms	Yes	People who are struggling to gain subscribers	$7/month
Constant Contact	Surveys and polls in newsletters	Yes	Small business owners and marketers	$12/month
MailPoet	Multi-condition segmentation	Yes	Bloggers who want advanced segments	$9/month

Factors to consider when choosing a WordPress email subscription plugin

Here are some factors to consider when deciding on an email subscription plugin for your WordPress site: 

1. Learning curve and ease of use

If you run a business or a professional blog, you don’t want to spend ages learning how to use a plugin. There are more important things to take care of, like creating and promoting content.

Some plugins are built with beginners in mind, offering intuitive dashboards and drag-and-drop email builders. Others may require more technical knowledge or extensive configuration.

If you’re new to email marketing, opt for a plugin with a minimal learning curve. It should integrate seamlessly with your WordPress website and offer visual design tools.

2. AI and automation features

Automation is a game-changer for email marketing. It saves you a lot of time and enables you to create your content in advance.

For example, you might design a welcome email that is automatically sent to new subscribers. 

AI-driven features will also help you create more effective emails. Many of the best newsletter plugins can optimize your subject lines and email copy for higher open rates.

3. Customization options

Ideally, your email content will reflect your brand, while opt-in forms should align with your website’s design. 

Look for plugins that give you full control over subscription forms, email templates, and layouts. For example, you should be able to personalize messages, adjust color schemes, and use branded content like logos. 

Many good email subscription plugins include drag-and-drop functionality. This enables you to add and edit elements like images and text and see your changes in real time. 

4. Pricing structure

Many subscription plugins offer free versions, but limit the number of emails you can send and only support a small number of subscribers. 

Plans are typically priced according to the size of your contacts list. So, compare prices across different tools for the same number of subscribers. Some plans also have restrictions on the number of emails you can send per month. 

Besides choosing a plugin that fits your budget, ensure that you can easily scale as your audience grows.

5. The ability to create a paid newsletter subscription

If you’re planning to monetize your newsletters, you’ll need a plugin that supports paid subscriptions. It should offer tiered plans and automated billing, and integrate seamlessly with payment gateways like Stripe or PayPal. 

A paid newsletter plugin will also provide advanced options. For example, subscribers should be able to choose between monthly and annual payments. 

What makes a good WordPress email subscription plugin?

Are you still unsure what tool to use? Here are the key features of a solid email subscription plugin for WordPress:

1. Ease of use for non-technical users

A good email subscription plugin should be easy to install, configure, and manage. 

The best tools on the market offer intuitive interfaces and drag-and-drop builders that simplify the email marketing process. You’ll be able to set up subscription forms, create campaigns, and monitor subscriber activity without a steep learning curve.

2. AI capabilities for content creation

AI-powered features enhance your email marketing campaigns. For example, a powerful email subscription plugin can generate subject lines, suggest email content, and optimize send times for maximum engagement. 

It might also offer AI-driven insights to boost open rates and conversions, while minimizing the amount of work required to create emails.

3. Built-in blocks to streamline workflow

Pre-designed content blocks make the email creation process more efficient. These include elements like images, call-to-action buttons, social media links, and product showcases. 

The right plugin will integrate seamlessly with the WordPress block editor, so you can design your content within a familiar interface. 

4. List segmentation and personalization

Segmentation and personalization help you target the right people with the right message.

A good email subscription plugin lets you segment your audience based on various criteria like demographics, behavior, and engagement levels. This way, you’ll be able to create emails that cater to the interests and needs of a specific subscriber group.

5. Paid newsletter subscription functionality

As a content creator or small business owner, a newsletter is another monetization opportunity. You could sell subscription plans that give followers access to exclusive and more valuable content. 

A quality email subscription plugin helps you set up paid newsletters. It lets you charge subscribers for premium content, using secure payment processors like Stripe or PayPal.

How Jetpack Growth embodies these characteristics

Jetpack Growth was designed with beginners in mind. It integrates into WordPress, enabling you to manage your subscription forms and newsletters without leaving your website.

It’s also very easy to configure. Once you set up Jetpack Growth on your site, you can navigate to Jetpack → Settings → Newsletter and enable any features you want, using the toggle buttons, as shown here:

For instance, you might automatically add a Subscribe block to the end of every post. This will increase the visibility of your email list, leading to more subscribers. 

You also have the option to display subscription forms as popups, overlays on the homepage, and floating buttons.

When you’re about to publish a post in the block editor, you’ll see an option to email it to your subscribers.

Jetpack Growth also lets you set up premium newsletters and accept payments via Stripe. You can even paywall your articles so that visitors will need to subscribe to receive exclusive content.

Plus, readers can subscribe to particular topics only, like your recipes or digital marketing tips. All you have to do is select the newsletter categories you want to make available.

Jetpack also includes a stats dashboard. Here, you can see key data like email opens and clicks for each newsletter and monitor your subscriber growth.

Overall, Jetpack Growth is the best email subscription plugin in terms of ease of use. It also offers automation options to streamline your workflow and helps you make money with a paid newsletter. 

Frequently asked questions

Let’s wrap up by answering some common questions about email subscription plugins.

What is a WordPress email subscription plugin?

This is a plugin that lets you build an email list through a subscription form on your website. Many email subscription plugins also offer newsletter creation tools, audience segmentation, performance reports, and other essential features.

Is it easy to set up and use an email subscription plugin on WordPress?

It can be easy or complicated, depending on the plugin. For example, some tools require advanced configuration, while others are designed for beginners. 

Jetpack Growth is very straightforward to use. The newsletter feature integrates with the block editor so you can access it while creating your content. 

Plus, you’ll configure its settings with just a few clicks. For example, you might choose to enable a subscription option in your comment section, add a floating subscribe button, or show a subscription popup when a visitor scrolls through a post. 

What is the best WordPress email subscription plugin?

Jetpack Growth requires minimal setup on your end. It’s very user-friendly, with toggle buttons for settings and preferences. You can even design and send emails directly from the block editor and monetize your newsletter.

Where can I learn more about Jetpack Growth?

You can learn more about Jetpack Growth by visiting the official Jetpack website.