Newsletter Plugins Comparison

Create Newsletters with WordPress: The Best Plugins Compared

Having your own newsletter is one of the most effective and cheapest ways to stay in contact with your target group. But what options does WordPress offer for newsletters? Which plugins should you have on your radar? And what are the legal aspects of sending your own newsletter? We have the answers for you.

The word newsletter is unfortunately far too often associated with annoying email spam. Sure, there is more than enough of that. But a well-done newsletter is a true super talent in online marketing and conversion. We see this again and again with our Raidboxes newsletter.

Benefits of newsletters

Whether you want to send your readers your latest blog articles, let them know about discount promotions or show them the new features in your online store, sending a newsletter is one of the easiest ways to do just that.

Moreover, a newsletter is one of the cheapest channels in online marketing as it works without spending huge amounts of money on advertising. Although you can, of course, speed up the process with paid ads. At the end of the day, you are converting visitors who are already on your site, blog or shop to newsletter subscribers. So you're already passively building your newsletter list without having to put in too much effort.

Running a newsletter is not rocket science either. You need a system or plugin for your newsletter, a list of subscribers and, of course, a good idea or suitable topic that interests your target group. We show you which WordPress plugins you can use to put your own newsletter together. And how you can turn your visitors into subscribers with forms for the newsletter.

Newsletter systems for WordPress

First up, there's the question of which newsletter system you want to use. Here you have two options: build your own or use an existing system. If you don't have much experience with newsletters, WordPress and email marketing, I recommend using an existing system. Well-known providers include, for example, Mailchimp, SendInBlue or CleverReach.

The advantage of such providers is that the whole infrastructure is already ready. All you have to do is import a list of your subscribers or install the forms for rebuilding the list on your site website. Then you can start sending your emails immediately. Most newsletter providers are initially free to use. However, with larger lists or functional requirements, you should plan for a budget in the mid double-digit to low triple-digit range per month.

If you already have some experience with WordPress, you can also build your own newsletter system with plugins. There are several well-known plugins to help you with this and we'd like to introduce you to three of them.

Sending newsletters with WordPress : pros and cons

Sending newsletters via WordPress is sometimes controversial. The option is very convenient, partly free of charge and you don't have to use an external system. On the other hand, users report that the delivery rate can suffer when sending via WordPress . See the topic Allow Listing. If in doubt, you should test to what extent your e-mails arrive with which system or not.

Newsletter plugin

The plugin Newsletter from Stefano Lissa & The Newsletter Team is actively used by over 300,000 WordPress installations. With 4.5 out of five possible stars and almost 1,000 ratings, it is one of the most used and most popular plugins for email marketing in the WordPress and WooCommerce plugin directories.

WordPress  Plugin  Newsletter
The WordPress plugin "Newsletter

This plugin has no limits on the number subscribers or newsletters you send. There's a built-in spam check and a drag-and-drop editor for creating your newsletters. Furthermore, you can extend the functionality of the plugin with a range of free and paid extensions. The creators describe it as GDPR and SMTP ready - a few notes on data protection in a moment.

MailPoet - Emails and newsletters in WordPress

The plugin MailPoet 3 is a classic. It's currently used by over 100,000 active WordPress installations and scores 4.5 out of a possible five stars from just under 1,000 reviews.

MailPoet is better adapted to WordPress visually than Newsletter and therefore more comfortable for beginners to use. But the functionality is similar. MailPoet allows you to create forms and newsletters, have an integration for WooCommerce, generate statistics and get free ready-made templates.

You also have the option to use the MailPoet Sending Service. This way you don't have to send your emails via your own host. The sending service is free for up to 1,000 subscribers. If you have more subscribers, you'll need to pay for an upgrade or use your own host.

MailPoet WordPress  Plugin
MailPoet 3 for WordPress and WooCommerce

Email subscribers & newsletters

Icegram's plugin Email Subscribers & Newsletters has similarly impressive stats to MailPoet: Over 100,000 active installs and 4.5 out of five stars from nearly 1,000 reviews.

With this plugin, you can store unlimited contacts, send newsletters, create email templates and various lists. It comes with an integrated spam check, automatic mailings for new blog articles and a number of ready-designed forms.

The paid Pro version of the plugin activates additional functions including, for example, autoresponder sequences that automatically send emails according to a schedule you define. This allows you to create entire mailing sequences once and send them out to your new subscribers.

Email Subscribers Newsletters plugin
The plugin Email Subscribers & Newsletters

Of course, there are many more plugins for building a newsletter with WordPress out there. To find the right one, you can install a selection and test which best suits your needs. Simply search for "newsletter" in the WordPress plugin directory.

Pay attention to the active installations as well as the ratings of the individual plugins. You can find more tips on how to find the best plugins in our tutorial on choosing plugins.

Mailchimp, SendInBlue & others: Integrate newsletter forms

As mentioned above, you don't necessarily have to build your newsletter system yourself. You can also choose email marketing providers like Mailchimp, SendInBlue, CleverReach and Co. to do all the work for you.

Besides writing and sending the newsletter, you only have to do one thing yourself: collect the email addresses of your visitors.

Integrate forms in WordPress

You can collect the email addresses using forms integrated on your website. Examples of suitable placements are the sidebar, under each article, as a pop-up or on a separate newsletter page that you can link in the menu, header or footer.

Almost all major email marketing providers offer their own WordPress plugins for forms you can include on your website. Example: If you decide to use Mailchimp, just search for "Mailchimp form" in the plugin directory and pick one of the providers. Ideally, one with many active installations, good ratings and a version that is as up to date as possible.

The Mailchimp WordPress integration

Since there are countless different providers for email marketing and the plugins always work similarly at the core, we will only present the integration of such plugins using the example of Mailchimp. With over two million active installations, we chose the hugely popular plugin MC4WP: Mailchimp for WordPress.

Once installed and activated, you need to link the plugin with your newsletter provider. This is usually done via an API interface. The plugins will explain to you during the process exactly how this works and where you can find the necessary information from your provider.

Mailchimp WordPress  API
The API settings in Mailchimp for WordPress

Once that's done, you can create a form. You place it either by code or - a bit easier - by shortcode where you want it to be. Some form plugins also come with suitable widgets that you can integrate at the various widget locations within your WordPress website.

When your visitors want to subscribe, they only need to enter their data. The plugin transfers everything to your newsletter provider who handles the rest.

Double-Opt-In and GDPR

Important: A newsletter is a sensitive topic when it comes to data protection. You must observe certain basic legal rules if you want to operate a newsletter in compliance with the law.

It's important, for example, to use a so-called double opt-in system, i.e. to ask your users again by email after entering their address whether they actually want to receive the newsletter. This prevents a third party from unauthorizedly registering other people for newsletters.

You also have to make sure you inform your users exactly what happens to their data, how it is stored and what you do with the data after they unsubscribe. This information belongs in your privacy policy - and it must be acknowledged when your users register.

The best way to ensure this is to make a checkbox mandatory for registration. Your visitors then check the box to confirm they have read the privacy policy. Another topic to pay attention to here is the so-called coupling prohibition of the GDPR for your email marketing. For more information, check out our article on the GDPR prohibition of coupling. You should have all of these points checked by a law firm specializing in online law to make sure you're on the safe side.

All the plugins presented in this article give you the option to set up a GDPR-compliant newsletter. You should, however, find out more about this yourself and, if in doubt, also consult a law firm or data protection expert who will set up your newsletter with you in compliance with the law.

Conclusion: Create newsletters with WordPress

As with pretty much everything you want to achieve with WordPress, there are plenty of plugins in WordPress plugin directory to help you create a newsletter. They all simplify the setup considerably. You simply have to decide for yourself whether you want to use your own system or a well-known newsletter provider. Then you can set up a newsletter with a few clicks or integrate with other providers via forms.

Cost is also not a big hurdle in setting up a newsletter. Most plugins offer free versions to start with and most providers also have a free limit up to which you can operate your newsletter free of charge. If your newsletter list then grows over time, you can continue to use the services for minimal costs. But by that point, your newsletter should already bring you a return in the form of recurring visits and, ultimately, customers. Ideally, you should measure which visitors come via the newsletter and then also convert or buy from you.

By the way, as long as you pay attention to GDPR, it's a good idea to collect email addresses even if you don't have a regular newsletter yet. A large email list can give your online marketing a good boost. With an existing list, you don't have to start from scratch with your future newsletter.

Your questions about Newsletter plugins

Which newsletter plugin do you use? What questions do you have about the extensions presented in this article? Feel free to use the comment function. Do you want more tips on WordPress and WooCommerce? Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or subscribe to our newsletter.

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