MailPoet vs Constant Contact vs DoubleScale: Email Marketing for Small Businesses on WordPress

Small businesses tend to choose Constant Contact for one reason: it holds your hand. Guided setup, phone support, event invitations. MailPoet is the opposite, a WordPress plugin you run yourself at a much lower price. DoubleScale, which we build, sits in a third place: a WordPress CRM that handles email alongside bookings, quotes, invoices and customer support.

If your website is on WordPress, this is how the three compare for a small business.

Full disclosure: we make DoubleScale. We have kept the two other tools’ strengths in, quoted every price from their own pricing pages, and listed the cases where DoubleScale is the wrong choice.

Here is our MailPoet vs Constant Contact vs DoubleScale comparison for WordPress-based small businesses.

Verdict

Price for a small list

Constant Contact plans start at about $12 a month (Lite), $35 (Standard) and $80 (Premium) for up to 500 contacts, and rise with your list; its larger tiers depend on the calculator on its pricing page. MailPoet Business is $10 a month at 500 subscribers. DoubleScale Pro is $99 a year for one site with unlimited contacts.

MailPoet Business$120

Constant Contact Lite$144

Constant Contact Standard$420

DoubleScale Basic + Amazon SES$101

Monthly billing, four campaigns a month. MailPoet’s free plan also covers 500 subscribers with branding.

Round 1: Getting help

Constant Contact wins this outright: live phone and chat support and marketing guidance are part of the product. MailPoet offers a knowledge base and forum on free, priority support on paid plans. DoubleScale offers community support on free and standard to priority support on Pro, plus full documentation.

Round winnerConstant Contact

Round 2: Sending a campaign

All three let you set sender, subject and preview text, build an email and pick recipients. DoubleScale shows a live phone inbox preview while you write the subject line, so you can see how it will look before you send.

Round winnerTie

Round 3: Events, bookings and appointments

Constant Contact handles event invitations, registration and RSVPs. MailPoet does not. DoubleScale includes a booking module in the free plugin: event types, availability and booking confirmations, with Google Calendar, Outlook, Apple Calendar and Zoom on Pro, and every booking lands on the customer’s record.

Round winnerConstant Contact for one-off events; DoubleScale for appointments and services.

Round 4: Knowing your customers

Constant Contact and MailPoet manage subscribers. DoubleScale manages customers: emails, SMS, calls, quotes, invoices, bookings and support tickets on one timeline, with free proposals and invoices built in.

Round winnerDoubleScale

Round 5: Automation for busy owners

Constant Contact’s automation grows with the plan, with the most useful features in Standard and Premium. MailPoet sends welcome emails and post notifications for free. DoubleScale Pro automates around your business: a thank-you after a booking, a reminder before an invoice is due, a follow-up when a support ticket closes.

Round winnerDoubleScale for business events; Constant Contact for guided marketing automation.

Round 6: Quotes and invoices

Neither Constant Contact nor MailPoet sends quotes or invoices. DoubleScale’s free plugin includes proposals that clients accept online and invoices with branded PDFs; Pro adds online payments through Stripe, PayPal and four more gateways.

Round winnerDoubleScale

Getting started with DoubleScale

1. Install DoubleScale free on your WordPress site.
2. Connect a sending provider (Amazon SES, Brevo, Gmail or your host’s SMTP).
3. Import contacts from CSV and connect your contact form plugin.
4. Set up booking and invoices if you need them, then send your first campaign.

When DoubleScale is not right for you

• There is no built-in sending service. You connect your own provider (Amazon SES, Brevo, Mailgun, SendGrid, Postmark and more) and add its DNS records once.
• No A/B testing yet.
• We are new on WordPress.org, so there are fewer tutorials and community answers than for the big names.
• Automations that send email, sequences, automated campaigns, WooCommerce triggers, SMS and WhatsApp need a Pro plan (from $99 a year). The free automation builder handles tags, lists and contact updates.
• If you want someone on the phone to help you set up campaigns, Constant Contact is the better fit.

Choose by situation

Two-way view: MailPoet vs Constant Contact.

How we compared: prices were read on each vendor’s pricing page on October 17, 2026 (USD, monthly billing unless noted); the cost examples assume 4 campaigns a month to the whole list; DoubleScale screenshots are from DoubleScale 1.6 on a test site.

FAQ

Does Constant Contact have a free plan?

No, only a free trial. MailPoet is free up to 500 subscribers and DoubleScale’s free plugin has no contact limit.

Which is best for a service business?

DoubleScale, because bookings, proposals, invoices and email live on the same customer record. Constant Contact and MailPoet focus on email.

Does DoubleScale have phone support?

No. DoubleScale offers community support on the free plugin and standard to priority support with Pro plans. Constant Contact includes phone support.

Can DoubleScale send SMS reminders?

Yes, with Pro: SMS through Twilio and WhatsApp through the WhatsApp Business API, including booking reminders.

Is MailPoet good for small businesses?

Yes, for newsletters and WooCommerce emails on WordPress. It is free up to 500 subscribers and $10 a month at 500 on Business.

Can DoubleScale send invoices?

Yes. Proposals and invoices with branded PDFs are in the free plugin; online card payments need Pro.