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Email Marketing · head to head

Klaviyo vs Postscript

Klaviyo logo

Klaviyo

Email Marketing

The email and SMS marketing platform for ecommerce

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Postscript logo

Postscript

Marketing

SMS marketing built for Shopify merchants, with carrier fees billed on top of message rates

From
$49/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Klaviyo has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Klaviyo the free plan caps active profiles at 250 and sends at 500 emails a month; Postscript carrier pass-through fees are billed on top of the per-message rate, roughly $0.00418 per SMS and $0.00841 per MMS in the United States, and are routinely missing from the cost comparisons buyers build.
  • They diverge on capability: Klaviyo covers Email marketing, Postscript covers Shopify segmentation.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Klaviyo and Postscript actually diverge.

Attributes where Klaviyo and Postscript differ
AttributeKlaviyoPostscript
Starting priceFree$49/month
Pricing modelfreemiumPer month plus per message sent
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebWeb, iOS
CategoryEmail MarketingMarketing
Founded2012Unknown

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 Klaviyo

  • Email marketing
  • SMS marketing
  • Push notifications
  • Marketing automation
  • Segmentation
  • A/B testing
  • Reporting & analytics
  • Ecommerce integrations

Only in Postscript

  • Shopify segmentation
  • Automated flows
  • Subscriber acquisition
  • Two-way conversations
  • MMS campaigns
  • Revenue attribution
  • Headless SDK
  • Usage-based tiers

What people use each for

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

Klaviyo

  • Email and SMS marketing automation for ecommerce storesnot Postscript
  • Segmenting customers on purchase and behaviour datanot Postscript

Postscript

  • A Shopify direct-to-consumer brand that wants abandoned cart recovery by text rather than another email in an ignored inboxnot Klaviyo
  • A brand running a product drop where a timed broadcast to an opted-in list is the whole launch mechanismnot Klaviyo
  • A merchant segmenting by past purchase and variant to send replenishment reminders at the right intervalnot Klaviyo
  • A store on headless Shopify or a custom stack that still wants SMS built on order data through the SDKnot Klaviyo

Where each one falls short

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

Klaviyo

  • The free plan caps active profiles at 250 and sends at 500 emails a month
  • Pricing scales with stored profile count rather than with messages sent, so an unengaged list costs the same as an active one
  • SMS is metered separately, with only $5 of mobile messages included on the free plan
  • Paid tier prices are not published on the pricing page and depend on profile count

Postscript

  • Carrier pass-through fees are billed on top of the per-message rate, roughly $0.00418 per SMS and $0.00841 per MMS in the United States, and are routinely missing from the cost comparisons buyers build.
  • The cheapest per-message rates require the $500 a month plan, so a small sender pays more than double the headline low rate per text.
  • The $0 Starter plan carries a $49 minimum monthly spend, so it is not a free tier and quiet months still generate a bill.
  • US SMS marketing carries real legal exposure under consent, quiet hours and carrier registration rules, and the compliance obligation sits with the merchant, not the platform.
  • It is SMS and MMS only, so email, push and on-site messaging live in a separate tool and audience suppression between the two has to be managed across systems.

Pricing, plan by plan

Klaviyo

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Up to 500 contacts
    • Unlimited campaigns
    • Basic automation
  • Pro$20/month
    • Unlimited contacts
    • SMS campaigns
    • Advanced automation

Postscript

$49/month
  • Starter$49/month
    • $0 base fee but a $49 minimum monthly spend
    • SMS at $0.015 and MMS at $0.045 per message
    • Campaigns, automations, acquisition tools and analytics
  • Growth$100/month
    • Lower per-message rates than Starter
    • Full campaign and automation feature set
    • No contract required
  • Professional$500/month
    • Rates falling towards $0.007 SMS and $0.024 MMS
    • Suited to high-volume senders
    • Upgrade or downgrade at any time
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Custom pricing on a contract
    • Negotiated message rates and support terms

Which should you pick?

Choose Klaviyo if

  • You need email marketing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want sms marketing.
Klaviyo review

Choose Postscript if

  • You need shopify segmentation.
  • You work on Web, iOS.
  • You also want automated flows.
Postscript review

Questions people ask

Is Klaviyo or Postscript better?
Neither clearly leads. Klaviyo starts at Free and Postscript at $49/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Klaviyo or Postscript?
Klaviyo has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Klaviyo and $49/month for Postscript.
Does Klaviyo or Postscript run on more platforms?
Klaviyo runs on Web. Postscript runs on Web, iOS.
Can I use Klaviyo for free?
Yes. Klaviyo has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Postscript starts at $49/month.
What is Klaviyo best used for?
Klaviyo is most often used for email and sms marketing automation for ecommerce stores, segmenting customers on purchase and behaviour data. Of those, email and sms marketing automation for ecommerce stores and segmenting customers on purchase and behaviour data are not what Postscript is typically brought in for.
What can Klaviyo do that Postscript cannot?
Klaviyo covers Email marketing, SMS marketing, Push notifications, Marketing automation. Postscript covers Shopify segmentation, Automated flows, Subscriber acquisition, Two-way conversations.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Klaviyo: Is Klaviyo free?

Klaviyo has a free tier covering up to 250 active profiles, 500 email sends per month and $5 of mobile messages per month, with 10,000 Composer credits. Email support on the free tier lasts only the first 60 days.

Source
Postscript: Is Postscript only for Shopify?

It is built for Shopify and that is where its segmentation advantage lies, but headless and non-Shopify stores are supported through an SDK with more setup work.

Klaviyo: How much does Klaviyo cost?

Klaviyo does not publish a paid rate card on its pricing page. Paid tiers are priced by active profile count and message volume, and a figure is produced through the plan estimator rather than shown as a list price.

Source
Postscript: What is the real cost per text?

The plan rate plus carrier fees. On Starter that is about $0.015 plus roughly $0.00418 in US carrier fees per SMS, so budget close to two cents a message before discounts.

Klaviyo: What counts as an active profile in Klaviyo?

Klaviyo defines active profiles as the contacts eligible to receive marketing, and the free tier is limited to 250 of them. Profile count is the main input to what a paid plan costs.

Source
Postscript: Is the Starter plan free?

No. The base fee is $0 but there is a $49 minimum monthly spend, so it functions as a $49 floor.

Postscript: Do I need a contract?

No. Contracts are offered but not required, and plans can be moved up or down at any time under usage-based billing.

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