At 5,000 subscribers, EmailFig costs $15 a month with sending included, or $10 a month if you connect your own Amazon SES account (BYOS) and pay Amazon about $4 on top. The next cheapest hosted tool is EmailOctopus at $31.50, followed closely by Brevo at $32 if you send four times a month. Prices below were read on October 29, 2026.
5,000 is also the first size where most readers pay at all. EmailFig’s free plan stops at 4,000 contacts, so this is where a flat monthly fee starts, and where the pricing model matters more than the sticker price.
Key Takeaways
- EmailFig is $15/month managed and $10/month BYOS at 5,000 subscribers. Both plan families are free up to 4,000.
- EmailOctopus ($31.50) is the cheapest hosted rival. Brevo is $32 at four sends a month but $46 at eight, because it prices by emails sent.
- MailBluster and BigMailer need your own Amazon SES account. With the SES bill added they cost $33 and $34, against $14 for EmailFig BYOS.
- BigMailer’s price does not change with how often you send. MailBluster’s does: a light sender pays far less than $33.
Hosted pricing at 5,000 subscribers
Each price is the vendor’s cheapest self-serve plan that includes sending, billed monthly, in USD.
| Tool | Monthly price at 5,000 subscribers |
|---|---|
| EmailFig, managed | $15 |
| EmailOctopus (Pro) | $31.50 |
| Brevo (Starter) | $32 at 4 sends a month, $46 at 8 |
| Moosend (Pro) | $48 |
| MailerLite (Comfort) | $49 |
| Mailchimp (Essentials) | $75 |
| Kit (Creator)¹ | $89 |
| beehiiv (Lite) | $109 |
¹ Kit’s pricing page blocked automated reads on October 29. The figure is from our September 2026 read.
EmailOctopus prices by contacts alone, so $31.50 holds whether you send once a month or every day. Brevo prices by emails sent per month, in brackets. A 5,000-contact list mailed four times a month is 20,000 emails, which is the $32 bracket. Mailed eight times, it is 40,000 emails and the $46 bracket. Brevo’s Starter plan also has no marketing automation. That arrives with Standard, which is $69 at 20,000 emails. Contact-based vs send-based pricing explains where the crossover sits in general.
Two cap notes. EmailFig’s managed plans include 10 emails per contact each month, which is 50,000 at this size. Eight sends fits. A daily send to the whole list does not.
Bring your own Amazon SES at 5,000 subscribers
MailBluster and BigMailer do not include sending on their cheap plans. Both need your own Amazon SES account, and AWS bills you directly. Comparing their plan price to a hosted tool’s all-in price is the usual mistake, so each row below adds the SES bill.
The assumption: two campaigns a week, eight sends a month, to 5,000 contacts. That is 40,000 emails. At Amazon’s à la carte rate of $0.10 per 1,000, SES costs $4.00. Accounts new since July 21, 2026 start on the Essentials plan at $0.16 per 1,000, which makes it $6.40. What Amazon SES actually costs covers which plan you are likely on.
| Tool | Platform fee | + Amazon SES | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| EmailFig, BYOS | $10.00 | $4.00 | $14.00 |
| MailBluster (Pro) | $29.00 | $4.00 | $33.00 |
| BigMailer (Business Lite) | $30.00 | $4.00 | $34.00 |
MailBluster’s Pro plan is $5 a month (billed yearly) plus $0.60 per 1,000 emails it meters itself. At 40,000 emails that is $5 plus $24. BigMailer charges $7.50 per 5,000 contacts, but its Business Lite plan starts at $30 a month, so 5,000 contacts pay the $30 floor.
Why send frequency matters
Both close pairs look interchangeable until you change how often you send.
BigMailer’s $30 stays $30 whether you mail your 5,000 contacts once this month or eight times. Only the SES line underneath it moves.
MailBluster moves with every email. Mail the same list once a month instead of eight times, 5,000 emails instead of 40,000, and its own fee drops from $29 to $8: $5 subscription plus $3 of per-email fee. Add $0.50 of SES and the total is $8.50, a quarter of the $33 above.
EmailOctopus, Moosend, MailerLite, Mailchimp, Kit, beehiiv and EmailFig’s managed plan charge the same fee whether you send once or every day. A rare sender pays for headroom they never use. A metered tool like MailBluster charges close to nothing for that same light sender. When BYOS is the wrong choice covers who should skip the AWS setup at any price.
Where EmailFig lands
EmailFig is the cheapest option in both tables: $15 managed against a field starting at $31.50, and $10 BYOS (about $14 with SES) against a field starting at $33. A light sender on MailBluster can undercut that, as the section above shows. At two sends a week, EmailFig is cheaper than every tool checked here.
Frequently asked questions
How much does EmailFig cost at 5,000 subscribers?
EmailFig is $15 a month on the managed plan, sending included. The BYOS plan is $10 a month and connects to your own Amazon SES account, so you add the AWS bill, about $4.00 a month at eight sends. Full ladder on the pricing page.
What’s the cheapest email marketing tool at 5,000 subscribers?
Of the tools checked here, EmailFig’s managed plan at $15 is the cheapest hosted option, and its BYOS plan at $10 plus Amazon SES is the cheapest overall for a regular sender. The next cheapest hosted plan is EmailOctopus at $31.50.
Is EmailOctopus or Brevo cheaper at 5,000 contacts?
EmailOctopus Pro is $31.50 a month at any send frequency. Brevo Starter is $32 at about four sends a month and $46 at eight, so EmailOctopus wins for anyone who sends more than monthly. Brevo’s Starter plan also lacks automation.
Does a BYOS plan’s price include the Amazon SES bill?
No. BigMailer, MailBluster and EmailFig’s BYOS plan all send through your own Amazon SES account, and AWS bills you separately. At 5,000 contacts mailed eight times a month that is about $4.00 at the à la carte rate of $0.10 per 1,000 emails (AWS SES pricing).
Is there a free plan at 5,000 subscribers?
Not on EmailFig: the free plan covers up to 4,000 contacts. Kit’s free plan holds up to 10,000 subscribers, so a 5,000-contact list can stay free there. Free tiers compared lays out the contact and send caps for each vendor.
How to choose
Check how often you send before comparing MailBluster or Brevo to a flat-fee tool. Their prices at 5,000 contacts range widely with your cadence. The full comparison across list sizes covers 5,000 through 100,000. 10,000 subscribers is worth pricing too if your list is close. Why cheap email answers never mention AWS explains why the SES half of this math rarely shows up elsewhere.