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Buttondown vs Zoho Campaigns

Buttondown logo

Buttondown

News

The easiest way to start and grow your newsletter

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Zoho Campaigns logo

Zoho Campaigns

Email Marketing

Email marketing tool with a genuine free tier, priced by contact count once paid

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Buttondown limited built-in monetization compared to Substack, which offers native payment processing; Zoho Campaigns template design quality and out-of-the-box deliverability reputation tools are less polished than specialist platforms such as Klaviyo or Campaign Monitor.
  • They diverge on capability: Buttondown covers Newsletter creation, Zoho Campaigns 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 Zoho Campaigns actually diverge.

Attributes where Buttondown and Zoho Campaigns differ
AttributeButtondownZoho Campaigns
Pricing modelUnknownPer month by contact tier once on a paid plan
CategoryNewsEmail Marketing
Founded2017Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Zoho Campaigns

  • Drag-and-drop email builder
  • Zoho CRM integration
  • A/B testing
  • Advanced segmentation
  • Send time optimisation
  • WhatsApp and SMS add-ons

What people use each for

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

Buttondown

  • Newsletter publishingnot Zoho Campaigns
  • Email marketingnot Zoho Campaigns
  • Audience buildingnot Zoho Campaigns

Zoho Campaigns

  • A small business with under 2,000 contacts wanting a genuinely usable free email marketing tool rather than a crippled trialnot Buttondown
  • An existing Zoho CRM or Desk customer wanting email marketing that syncs natively without a third-party connectornot Buttondown
  • A growing list needing to scale from 500 up to 500,000 contacts within one vendor's pricing laddernot Buttondown
  • A team wanting WhatsApp or SMS as an add-on channel alongside email from the same vendornot 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

Zoho Campaigns

  • Template design quality and out-of-the-box deliverability reputation tools are less polished than specialist platforms such as Klaviyo or Campaign Monitor.
  • Advanced segmentation and dynamic content are reserved for the Professional tier, so mid-sized lists needing that capability face a real price step up from Standard.
  • WhatsApp and SMS are separate paid add-ons rather than included channels, so a genuinely multi-channel campaign costs more than the base email price suggests.
  • Its main structural advantage, native Zoho ecosystem integration, does not benefit a buyer using a non-Zoho CRM or helpdesk, who gets no more from Zoho Campaigns than from a specialist alternative.
  • Support responsiveness reflects Zoho's broad, lower-touch model across its whole portfolio rather than dedicated email marketing expertise.

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

Zoho Campaigns

Free
  • Forever FreeFree
    • Up to 2,000 contacts
    • 6,000 emails per month
    • 5 users, basic templates and reporting
  • Standard$undefined/month
    • Starts at 500 contacts, scales to 100,000
    • Unlimited email sends
    • A/B testing and priority support
  • Professional$undefined/month
    • Starts at 500 contacts, scales to 500,000
    • Unlimited email sends
    • Advanced segmentation, dynamic content, custom roles and webhooks

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 Zoho Campaigns if

  • You need drag-and-drop email builder.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want zoho crm integration.
Zoho Campaigns review

Questions people ask

Is Buttondown or Zoho Campaigns better?
Neither clearly leads. Buttondown starts at Free and Zoho Campaigns at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Buttondown or Zoho Campaigns?
Buttondown starts at Free and Zoho Campaigns at Free.
Does Buttondown or Zoho Campaigns run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Buttondown for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
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 Zoho Campaigns is typically brought in for.
What can Buttondown do that Zoho Campaigns cannot?
Buttondown covers Newsletter creation, Markdown support, Subscriber management, Analytics. Zoho Campaigns covers Drag-and-drop email builder, Zoho CRM integration, A/B testing, Advanced segmentation.

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
Zoho Campaigns: Is the free tier good enough for real use, or just a trial?

It is a real, ongoing free tier for up to 2,000 contacts and 6,000 emails a month, not a time-limited trial.

Buttondown: What editor options does Buttondown offer?

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

Source
Zoho Campaigns: Does it integrate with non-Zoho CRMs?

Yes via Zapier and other connectors, but the native, no-extra-fee integration advantage is specific to other Zoho products.

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
Zoho Campaigns: Are WhatsApp and SMS included?

No, they are separately purchased add-ons alongside the email plan.

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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