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Email Marketing · head to head

GetResponse vs Listmonk

GetResponse logo

GetResponse

Email Marketing

All-in-one email marketing, automation and landing pages

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Listmonk logo

Listmonk

Email Marketing

Self-hosted newsletter and mailing list manager that ships as a single Go binary

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: GetResponse starter, Marketer and Creator plans are all capped at 1,000 contacts regardless of the $19, $59 or $69 monthly price; Listmonk it is not an email service provider. It hands mail to SMTP servers you configure and does nothing about IP warm-up, domain reputation, DKIM, DMARC or inbox placement, so deliverability failures are entirely yours to diagnose and fix.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which GetResponse and Listmonk actually diverge.

Attributes where GetResponse and Listmonk differ
AttributeGetResponseListmonk
Pricing modelsubscriptionOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsWebWeb, Self-hosted, Docker, Linux, macOS, Windows

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Email Marketing).

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 GetResponse

Nothing recorded that Listmonk does not also cover.

Only in Listmonk

  • Single binary deployment
  • SQL segmentation
  • Multi-SMTP queues
  • Arbitrary subscriber attributes
  • Go templating
  • Transactional API
  • Bounce processing
  • Messenger webhooks

What people use each for

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

GetResponse

  • Recovering lost sales from abandoned shopping carts automaticallynot Listmonk
  • Monetizing online courses with zero transaction fees to creatorsnot Listmonk
  • Charging subscriptions for premium newsletters from independent writersnot Listmonk
  • Coordinating promotional campaigns across sales funnels and channelsnot Listmonk
  • Capturing B2B leads through landing pages and signup formsnot Listmonk

Listmonk

  • A publisher with hundreds of thousands of subscribers faces a five-figure annual bill from a hosted provider and can send the same volume through Amazon SES for a fraction of it.not GetResponse
  • A developer wants campaign audiences defined by an arbitrary SQL query against subscriber attributes, which no hosted segment builder will express.not GetResponse
  • An organisation under privacy or data residency rules needs subscriber data to stay on infrastructure it controls, which rules out every hosted newsletter platform.not GetResponse
  • An open source project or nonprofit needs a mailing list tool with no per-subscriber cost, where the list will grow faster than any budget for it.not GetResponse

Where each one falls short

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

GetResponse

  • Starter, Marketer and Creator plans are all capped at 1,000 contacts regardless of the $19, $59 or $69 monthly price
  • Starter plan limits AI tool usage to 3 uses and includes only 1 custom automation workflow
  • SMS marketing and mobile push notifications are reserved for the custom-priced Enterprise tier
  • The $15.58, $48.38 and $56.58 monthly-equivalent rates require paying annually; standard monthly billing is $19, $59 and $69

Listmonk

  • It is not an email service provider. It hands mail to SMTP servers you configure and does nothing about IP warm-up, domain reputation, DKIM, DMARC or inbox placement, so deliverability failures are entirely yours to diagnose and fix.
  • Running it means running PostgreSQL, backups, upgrades and a mail relay, and the true cost is the engineering time to keep that stack healthy rather than the zero licence fee.
  • The campaign editor and analytics are basic next to Mailchimp or Klaviyo: reporting is limited to opens, clicks and bounces, with no revenue attribution, no ecommerce integration and no deep engagement scoring.
  • SQL-based segmentation puts audience definition beyond a non-technical marketer, so a marketing team without engineering support will be blocked on routine tasks.
  • The AGPLv3 licence obliges you to release source modifications if you offer the software as a network service, which is a real constraint for anyone considering embedding it in a commercial product.

Pricing, plan by plan

GetResponse

Free
  • Starter$16/month
    • For small lists: 1,000 contacts at €16/month
    • Scales to 100,000 contacts at €469/month
    • AI-powered email marketing
  • Marketer$54/month
    • Starting at €54/month for 500 contacts
    • Scales to €519/month for 100,000 contacts
    • Unlimited automation workflows
  • Creator$62/month
    • Starting at €62/month for 500 contacts
    • Scales to €599/month for 100,000 contacts
    • Webinars
  • Enterprise$null/custom
    • Custom pricing based on list size
    • SMS marketing
    • Dedicated support

Listmonk

Free
  • Self-hostedFree
    • Full AGPLv3 source
    • Unlimited subscribers and campaigns
    • No feature gating and no send limits in the software
  • Third-party managed hosting$undefined/month
    • Several unaffiliated providers offer hosted Listmonk
    • No official hosted service from the maintainer
    • Prices vary by provider and are not published centrally

Which should you pick?

Choose GetResponse if

  • You want to start without paying.
GetResponse review

Choose Listmonk if

  • You need single binary deployment.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Self-hosted, Docker, Linux, macOS, Windows.
  • You also want sql segmentation.
Listmonk review

Questions people ask

Is GetResponse or Listmonk better?
Neither clearly leads. GetResponse starts at Free and Listmonk at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, GetResponse or Listmonk?
GetResponse starts at Free and Listmonk at Free.
Does GetResponse or Listmonk run on more platforms?
GetResponse runs on Web. Listmonk runs on Web, Self-hosted, Docker, Linux, macOS, Windows.
Can I use GetResponse for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is GetResponse best used for?
GetResponse is most often used for recovering lost sales from abandoned shopping carts automatically, monetizing online courses with zero transaction fees to creators, charging subscriptions for premium newsletters from independent writers, coordinating promotional campaigns across sales funnels and channels. Of those, recovering lost sales from abandoned shopping carts automatically and monetizing online courses with zero transaction fees to creators are not what Listmonk is typically brought in for.
What can GetResponse do that Listmonk cannot?
Listmonk covers Single binary deployment, SQL segmentation, Multi-SMTP queues, Arbitrary subscriber attributes.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

GetResponse: How much does GetResponse cost?

GetResponse pricing ranges from €16 per month for the Starter plan with 1,000 contacts to €469 per month for 100,000 contacts. Plans scale based on contact list size.

Source
Listmonk: Does Listmonk send my emails?

No. It composes, queues and tracks campaigns, then hands the messages to SMTP servers you provide, such as Amazon SES, Postmark or your own relay.

GetResponse: Does GetResponse offer a discount for annual billing?

Customers who pay yearly instead of monthly save an additional 18% on their subscription cost across all plan tiers.

Source
Listmonk: What does it cost to run?

The software is free. The real cost is a small server, a PostgreSQL database and per-email SMTP charges, which through SES are a fraction of hosted newsletter pricing at large list sizes.

GetResponse: Does GetResponse offer special pricing for nonprofits?

GetResponse provides a 50% discount on monthly plans for charities and NGOs.

Source
Listmonk: What licence is it under?

AGPLv3, which requires you to publish modifications if you offer it as a network service to others.

GetResponse: Is there a free trial for GetResponse?

GetResponse offers a free 14-day trial with full access to premium features.

Source
Listmonk: Is there an official hosted version?

No. Some unaffiliated providers offer managed Listmonk, but the maintainer does not run a hosted service.

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