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ConvertKit vs Sendy

ConvertKit logo

ConvertKit

News

The creator platform for digital professionals

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Sendy logo

Sendy

Email Marketing

Self-hosted newsletter app bought once for $69 that sends through your own Amazon SES account

From
$69/one-time
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only ConvertKit has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: ConvertKit the free Newsletter plan allows only one basic visual automation, so sequences beyond a single flow require paying; Sendy free updates run only to the next major version, so the one-time purchase is really one purchase per major release and the long-term cost is not zero.
  • They diverge on capability: ConvertKit covers Email marketing, Sendy covers One-time licence.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which ConvertKit and Sendy actually diverge.

Attributes where ConvertKit and Sendy differ
AttributeConvertKitSendy
Starting priceFree$69/one-time
Pricing modelfreemiumOne-time purchase
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebWeb, Linux
CategoryNewsEmail Marketing
Founded2013Unknown

Identical on both: 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 ConvertKit

  • Email marketing
  • Landing pages
  • Subscriber tagging
  • Automation workflows
  • Digital product sales
  • Broadcast emails
  • Subscriber segments
  • Email templates

Only in Sendy

  • One-time licence
  • Amazon SES delivery
  • Multiple brands
  • Autoresponders
  • Segmentation
  • Bounce and complaint handling
  • Reporting
  • Client access

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 Sendy
  • Selling paid subscriptions and digital products to a mailing listnot Sendy

Sendy

  • A publisher with a large list sending frequently, where a hosted platform bills by subscriber count month after monthnot ConvertKit
  • An agency managing newsletters for several clients who each get their own brand and login under one licencenot ConvertKit
  • A business that must keep subscriber data on its own infrastructure for privacy or contractual reasonsnot ConvertKit
  • A developer wiring signups from a custom application into a mailing list without paying platform API feesnot 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

Sendy

  • Free updates run only to the next major version, so the one-time purchase is really one purchase per major release and the long-term cost is not zero.
  • Deliverability becomes entirely your problem: SES gives you a raw sending pipe and no warm-up guidance, reputation dashboards or deliverability consultants when a campaign starts landing in spam.
  • Amazon SES requires production access approval and will suspend accounts on high bounce or complaint rates, which can take a list offline mid-campaign with little warning.
  • The template editor and design tooling are basic next to Mailchimp or Klaviyo, so anything visually ambitious means hand-written HTML email.
  • You own the server: PHP upgrades, database backups and patching are yours, and an unmaintained Sendy install holding a subscriber list is a data breach waiting to happen.

Pricing, plan by plan

ConvertKit

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Up to 10,000 subscribers
    • Unlimited landing pages and forms
    • Unlimited email broadcasts
  • Creator$33/month
    • Up to 1,000 subscribers
    • Unlimited visual automations
    • Email sequences
  • Pro$66/month
    • Up to 1,000 subscribers
    • Everything in Creator plan
    • Subscriber engagement scoring

Sendy

$69/one-time
  • Sendy licence$69/one-time
    • One-time purchase, no subscription
    • Free updates only up to the next major version
    • Unlimited lists, subscribers and campaigns
  • AI Assistant bundle$39/one-time
    • Optional add-on, listed at a discount from $49
    • AI writing assistance inside the campaign editor
  • Installation service$79/one-time
    • Optional one-off setup by the vendor
    • For buyers who do not want to configure hosting and SES themselves

Which should you pick?

Choose ConvertKit if

  • You need email marketing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want landing pages.
ConvertKit review

Choose Sendy if

  • You need one-time licence.
  • You work on Web, Linux.
  • You also want amazon ses delivery.
Sendy review

Questions people ask

Is ConvertKit or Sendy better?
Neither clearly leads. ConvertKit starts at Free and Sendy at $69/one-time, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, ConvertKit or Sendy?
ConvertKit has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for ConvertKit and $69/one-time for Sendy.
Does ConvertKit or Sendy run on more platforms?
ConvertKit runs on Web. Sendy runs on Web, Linux.
Can I use ConvertKit for free?
Yes. ConvertKit has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Sendy starts at $69/one-time.
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 Sendy is typically brought in for.
What can ConvertKit do that Sendy cannot?
ConvertKit covers Email marketing, Landing pages, Subscriber tagging, Automation workflows. Sendy covers One-time licence, Amazon SES delivery, Multiple brands, Autoresponders.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

ConvertKit: How much does ConvertKit cost?

ConvertKit offers a free tier and two paid plans: Creator at $33/month (annual $390/year saving $78) and Pro at $66/month (annual $790/year saving $158). All plans include unlimited landing pages, email broadcasts, and audience management features.

Source
Sendy: What does it actually cost to send?

The licence is $69 once. Delivery is Amazon SES at roughly $1 per 10,000 emails, plus your own hosting, so a 50,000-contact weekly newsletter costs a few dollars a month to send.

ConvertKit: What does the free ConvertKit plan include?

The free plan supports up to 10,000 subscribers with unlimited landing pages, forms, email broadcasts, audience tagging, and digital product sales. No credit card required to start.

Source
Sendy: Are updates free forever?

No. Updates are free up to the next major version, for example within 7.x. Moving from 7.x to 8.x is a paid upgrade.

ConvertKit: What are the subscriber limits on ConvertKit plans?

The free plan supports up to 10,000 subscribers. Both Creator and Pro paid tiers support up to 1,000 subscribers. This creates a subscriber limit decrease when upgrading from free to paid plans.

Source
Sendy: Do I need to know how to set up a server?

Standard PHP and MySQL hosting is enough and the vendor compares it to installing WordPress, but the SES side needs AWS configuration. An $79 installation service is offered if you would rather not.

Sendy: What happens if Amazon suspends my SES account?

Your sending stops until you resolve it with AWS. There is no alternative delivery route built in, and this is the single biggest operational risk of the model.

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