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Buttondown vs Campaign Monitor

Buttondown logo

Buttondown

News

The easiest way to start and grow your newsletter

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Campaign Monitor logo

Campaign Monitor

Email Marketing

Email marketing platform priced by contact tier, with unlimited sends only from the mid tier up

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Buttondown has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Buttondown limited built-in monetization compared to Substack, which offers native payment processing; Campaign Monitor the Lite tier caps monthly sends at 2,500 regardless of contact list size, so a list of any meaningful size cannot be emailed even once a month without exceeding it.
  • They diverge on capability: Buttondown covers Newsletter creation, Campaign Monitor covers Drag-and-drop email builder.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Buttondown and Campaign Monitor actually diverge.

Attributes where Buttondown and Campaign Monitor differ
AttributeButtondownCampaign Monitor
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelUnknownPer month by contact tier and plan level
Free tierYesNo
CategoryNewsEmail Marketing
Founded2017Unknown

Identical on both: platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Buttondown

  • Newsletter creation
  • Markdown support
  • Subscriber management
  • Analytics
  • Paid subscriptions
  • Zapier
  • Stripe
  • Twitter

Only in Campaign Monitor

  • Drag-and-drop email builder
  • Automation workflows
  • List segmentation
  • Send-time optimisation
  • Landing pages and forms
  • Multi-brand management

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Buttondown

  • Newsletter publishingnot Campaign Monitor
  • Email marketingnot Campaign Monitor
  • Audience buildingnot Campaign Monitor

Campaign Monitor

  • A small marketing team wanting straightforward campaign design and automation without a full martech stacknot Buttondown
  • A business with a list under a few thousand contacts and infrequent sends, where the Lite tier's cap is not a real constraintnot Buttondown
  • An agency managing multiple brands wanting Enterprise-tier multi-brand account managementnot Buttondown
  • A team wanting a bundled website builder alongside email on the Premier tiernot Buttondown

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Buttondown

  • Limited built-in monetization compared to Substack, which offers native payment processing
  • Fewer growth and discovery features compared to Beehiiv or Ghost
  • Smaller community and ecosystem than larger newsletter platforms
  • Basic automation compared to full-featured email marketing platforms
  • No native mobile app for managing newsletters on the go

Campaign Monitor

  • The Lite tier caps monthly sends at 2,500 regardless of contact list size, so a list of any meaningful size cannot be emailed even once a month without exceeding it.
  • Unlimited sending only starts at the Essentials tier, so the cheap headline Lite price is not comparable to competitors that offer unlimited sends at their entry tier.
  • Its e-commerce-specific automation (abandoned cart flows, predictive segments) is less developed than Klaviyo's, making it a weaker fit for retail-heavy senders.
  • As part of the Marigold group alongside Sailthru and other acquired brands, product roadmap priority is shared across a portfolio rather than dedicated solely to Campaign Monitor.
  • Pricing multiplies on two axes, contact tier and plan level, so estimating total cost requires checking both dimensions rather than a single number.

Pricing, plan by plan

Buttondown

Free
  • Free$undefined/mo
    • Up to 100 subscribers
    • Core newsletter features
    • Hosted archives
  • Paid$undefined/mo
    • Pricing scales by subscriber count above 100
    • Add-on features from $9/month

Campaign Monitor

On request
  • Lite$undefined/month
    • Monthly send cap of 2,500 emails regardless of list size
    • Basic campaign and template tools
    • Priced by contact tier from under 500 to 50,000+
  • Essentials$undefined/month
    • Unlimited monthly email sends
    • Priority support
    • Priced by contact tier from under 500 to 50,000+
  • Premier$undefined/month
    • Unlimited monthly email sends
    • Premier-level phone support
    • Drag-and-drop website builder included
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Custom quote
    • Multi-brand account management
    • Dedicated account manager, SOC2 and GDPR-aligned security

Which should you pick?

Choose Buttondown if

  • You need newsletter creation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want markdown support.
Buttondown review

Choose Campaign Monitor if

  • You need drag-and-drop email builder.
  • You also want automation workflows.
Campaign Monitor review

Questions people ask

Is Buttondown or Campaign Monitor better?
Neither clearly leads. Buttondown starts at Free and Campaign Monitor at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Buttondown or Campaign Monitor?
Buttondown has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Buttondown and On request for Campaign Monitor.
Does Buttondown or Campaign Monitor run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Buttondown for free?
Yes. Buttondown has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Campaign Monitor starts at On request.
What is Buttondown best used for?
Buttondown is most often used for newsletter publishing, email marketing, audience building. Of those, newsletter publishing and email marketing are not what Campaign Monitor is typically brought in for.
What can Buttondown do that Campaign Monitor cannot?
Buttondown covers Newsletter creation, Markdown support, Subscriber management, Analytics. Campaign Monitor covers Drag-and-drop email builder, Automation workflows, List segmentation, Send-time optimisation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Buttondown: How much does Buttondown cost?

Buttondown is free for your first 100 subscribers and includes core newsletter features. After that, pricing scales based on subscriber count. Add-on features start at $9/month each.

Source
Campaign Monitor: Does the cheapest plan include unlimited sends?

No. Lite caps monthly sends at 2,500 emails regardless of list size; unlimited sending starts at the Essentials tier.

Buttondown: What editor options does Buttondown offer?

Buttondown supports Markdown, HTML, and WYSIWYG editors so you can compose newsletters in your preferred format.

Source
Campaign Monitor: Who owns Campaign Monitor?

Marigold, a marketing technology group that also owns Sailthru and other acquired email and loyalty platforms.

Buttondown: Does Buttondown track analytics?

Analytics are disabled by default in Buttondown, prioritizing privacy. You can enable tracking if desired, and the platform is GDPR-compliant.

Source
Campaign Monitor: Is there a free plan?

A 30-day free trial with a 500-contact limit is available, but there is no permanent free tier.

Buttondown: What is Buttondown's company structure?

Buttondown is an independent, self-funded, and profitable SaaS platform founded by Justin Duke with no plans to take external investment or change that model.

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