News & Media · head to head
ConvertKit vs Parse.ly
ConvertKit
News & Media
The creator platform for digital professionals
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: ConvertKit the free Newsletter plan allows only one basic visual automation, so sequences beyond a single flow require paying; Parse.ly pricing is by quote only: the pricing page names three tiers but publishes no rate, no minimum and no cost driver, and routes buyers to a demo booking
- They diverge on capability: ConvertKit covers Email marketing, Parse.ly covers Content analytics.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which ConvertKit and Parse.ly actually diverge.
| Attribute | ConvertKit | Parse.ly |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | On request | $500/month |
| Pricing model | subscription | quote |
| Founded | 2013 | 2011 |
Identical on both: free tier (No), platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (News & Media).
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 ConvertKit
- Email marketing
- Landing pages
- Subscriber tagging
- Automation workflows
- Digital product sales
- Broadcast emails
- Subscriber segments
- Email templates
Only in Parse.ly
- Content analytics
- Audience tracking
- Real-time metrics
- Recommendations
- Google Analytics
- GDPR
- Cloud deployment
- English language support
Both cover
- Web support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
ConvertKit
- Sending newsletters and email sequences to an audiencenot Parse.ly
- Selling paid subscriptions and digital products to a mailing listnot Parse.ly
Parse.ly
- Real time analytics on article and page performance for publishersnot ConvertKit
- Attributing conversions and subscriptions to contentnot ConvertKit
- Comparing audience engagement across authors, sections and channelsnot ConvertKit
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
ConvertKit
- The free Newsletter plan allows only one basic visual automation, so sequences beyond a single flow require paying
- The free plan is a single user, and the Creator plan at $33 a month allows two
- Subscriber signals, engagement analytics and paid recommendations are Pro only, at $66 a month
- A/B testing is capped at 2 subject lines below Pro, which allows 5
- Paid pricing is banded by subscriber count, so the published figures apply only at the smallest band
Parse.ly
- Pricing is by quote only: the pricing page names three tiers but publishes no rate, no minimum and no cost driver, and routes buyers to a demo booking
- Conversions and attribution reporting require the Content Value tier rather than the entry tier
- Geographic segmentation and video tracking require the top Content Advocacy tier
Pricing, plan by plan
ConvertKit
On request- Creator$29/month
- Up to 10K subscribers
- Email campaigns
- Landing pages
- Creator Pro$79/month
- Unlimited subscribers
- Advanced automation
- Digital products
Parse.ly
$500/month- Standard$500/month
- Content analytics
- Audience insights
Which should you pick?
Questions people ask
- Is ConvertKit or Parse.ly better?
- Neither clearly leads. ConvertKit starts at On request and Parse.ly at $500/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, ConvertKit or Parse.ly?
- ConvertKit starts at On request and Parse.ly at $500/month.
- Does ConvertKit or Parse.ly run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- What is ConvertKit best used for?
- ConvertKit is most often used for sending newsletters and email sequences to an audience, selling paid subscriptions and digital products to a mailing list. Of those, sending newsletters and email sequences to an audience and selling paid subscriptions and digital products to a mailing list are not what Parse.ly is typically brought in for.
- What can ConvertKit do that Parse.ly cannot?
- ConvertKit covers Email marketing, Landing pages, Subscriber tagging, Automation workflows. Parse.ly covers Content analytics, Audience tracking, Real-time metrics, Recommendations. Both handle Web support.