Brevo (Sendinblue)
Free plan: Brevo vs. Mailrelay
Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) is a French marketing and customer relationship platform that brings email, SMS, WhatsApp, chat and a CRM together in a single tool.
Many people still know it by its old name. It’s one of the most popular Mailchimp alternatives in Europe, mainly because of its free plan, which supports up to 100,000 contacts.
But that plan comes with fine print: it only lets you send 300 emails a day.
Let’s look at what it offers, how much it costs in 2026 and when another option suits you better, such as Mailrelay, which lets you send 80,000 emails a month without paying.
What is Brevo and what is it used for?
It was founded in Paris in 2012 as Sendinblue by Armand Thiberge.
It started out as a newsletter tool and is now a multichannel customer communication platform.
According to the company, it’s used by more than 600,000 businesses in 180 countries.
In December 2025 it closed a €500 million funding round, with the General Atlantic fund among its investors.
It does the same job as any email marketing tool: sending a newsletter, launching promotions and automating emails. But its strong point is combining channels.
With it, you can send an email, follow up with an SMS and close with a WhatsApp message, all from the same dashboard. It also offers a free CRM to manage your sales opportunities.
Why did Sendinblue change its name to Brevo?
On May 4, 2023, Sendinblue was renamed Brevo. The company explained that it was no longer just an email sending tool, but a complete suite with CRM, chat and messaging.
Accounts, data and features stayed the same. That’s why you’ll still see searches using both names: they’re the same platform.
What features does Brevo have?
The platform brings together in a single dashboard what other companies cover with several tools. These are its main functions:
- Email marketing with a drag-and-drop editor and templates.
- Behavior-based automations, such as welcome emails or abandoned carts.
- SMS marketing and WhatsApp, with credits purchased separately.
- Free CRM with a sales pipeline and tasks.
- Website chat and a shared conversations inbox.
- Transactional emails via SMTP and API, included in all plans.
- Aura, its AI assistant for writing and optimizing campaigns.
Some features, such as landing pages and A/B tests, are only available on the higher paid plans.
What does Brevo’s CRM include?
Brevo’s CRM is free and comes with every plan. It lets you store contacts and companies, create sales opportunities in a visual pipeline and assign tasks to your team.
It’s useful for a small business that’s starting to organize its sales. But it doesn’t replace a full CRM like HubSpot or Salesforce if you have a large sales team.
Do you really need a CRM? Many companies just want to segment their customers and see who opens each campaign. We explain it in this article on whether your business needs a CRM.
How much does Brevo cost in 2026?
Unlike Mailchimp, it charges by emails sent per month, not by contacts. That said, its cheapest plan also limits how many contacts you can store.
These are its plans as of September 2026, in US dollars and excluding taxes:
| Plan | Price from | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 300 emails a day and up to 100,000 contacts, with its logo |
| Starter | $9/month | 5,000 emails a month and 500 contacts; $29 for 20,000 emails |
| Standard | $18/month | 5,000 emails a month, landing pages, A/B tests and multiple users; $65 for 20,000 emails |
| Professional | $499/month | 150,000 emails a month, WhatsApp, phone support and a dedicated IP as an add-on |
| Enterprise | Custom | Account manager and service level agreement |
There are some extra costs worth adding up.
On the Starter plan, your emails carry its logo unless you pay for an add-on of about $9 a month.
Each extra user costs $12 a month on Standard. And SMS and WhatsApp messages are paid for separately.
You can also buy sending credits that never expire: 5,000 emails cost about $32. It’s a useful option if you only send a few campaigns a year.
Is Brevo free?
Yes, it has a permanent free plan.
It lets you store up to 100,000 contacts and send 300 emails a day, about 9,000 a month. Sends you don’t use one day don’t carry over to the next.
The free plan includes the editor, the CRM, chat and automations for up to 2,000 contacts. It doesn’t have landing pages, A/B tests or advanced reports, and your emails carry its logo.
So where’s the catch? The daily limit. If you have 1,000 contacts, it takes you four days to send them a single newsletter. And an urgent promotion can’t wait that long.
With Mailrelay, on the other hand, your free account lets you send up to 80,000 emails a month to 20,000 contacts with no daily limit.
Are 300 emails a day not enough for you?
With Mailrelay you can send up to 80,000 emails a month to 20,000 contacts for free, with no daily limit and no logos in your emails.
Brevo pros and cons
It gets good reviews, and rightly so. But it also has limits you should know about before choosing it.
Advantages:
- It charges for emails sent, not for contacts stored.
- It brings email, SMS, WhatsApp, chat and CRM together on the same platform.
- It includes transactional emails in all plans.
- Interface and ticket support in Spanish.
Disadvantages:
- The free plan only allows 300 emails a day.
- Its logo appears on the free and Starter plans unless you pay extra.
- Phone support is only available on the Professional and Enterprise plans, starting at $499 a month.
- Extra users, SMS and WhatsApp drive up the bill.
Brevo: user reviews
User reviews are generally positive.
The review site EmailToolTester gives it 4.7 out of 5 and highlights its low prices, its automations and its combination of email, SMS and WhatsApp.
The recurring criticisms concern support and extras.
EmailToolTester points out that live chat with people has been replaced by an AI agent. And that to migrate from another tool you have to hire a partner, because the company doesn’t have its own team for that.
Some users also find its landing page editor slow. And the cost of adding users surprises growing teams.
How is Brevo different from Mailrelay?
Both are complete platforms and both charge by emails sent. The difference lies in what you get for free and in the support.
| Brevo | Mailrelay | |
|---|---|---|
| Contacts on the free plan | 100.000 | 20.000 |
| Free emails | 300 a day (about 9,000 a month) | 80,000 a month, no daily limit |
| Provider’s logo in your emails | Yes, on Free and Starter | No, not on any plan |
| Phone support | Only on Professional and Enterprise | On all plans, in Spanish |
| Free landing pages and A/B tests | No | Yes |
| Transactional emails | Included | SMTP and API (30 days free on the free account) |
| SMS and WhatsApp | Yes, with credits purchased separately | SMS in automations; WhatsApp with a 10-day trial |
Imagine you have 5,000 contacts and send one newsletter a week: about 20,000 emails a month.
With Brevo you need the $29 Starter plan, plus the add-on to remove the logo. If you also want A/B tests, the Standard plan goes up to $65.
With Mailrelay you can do it with the free account.
As you can see, Brevo wins if you just want to store a lot of contacts. But if what you need is to send, Mailrelay gives you much more volume without paying.
When to choose Brevo and when to choose Mailrelay?
Brevo is a good fit if you want to combine email, SMS, WhatsApp and a CRM in the same tool. Also if you have a huge database and send little.
Mailrelay suits you if you send newsletters often and want to send up to 80,000 emails a month without paying.
Or if you value being able to call and speak to a person who will help you in Spanish, whatever plan you have.
You’ll find a comparison of the Mailrelay, Brevo and Mailchimp free plans on our blog: free email marketing comparison.
Other Brevo alternatives
If you’re comparing tools, these are the most common ones:
Mailchimp is the best known, but in 2026 its free plan was cut to 250 contacts and 500 sends a month.
MailerLite is simple, although it also cut its free plan to 250 subscribers. Mailjet stands out for transactional emails.
You can also look at Acumbamail, a Spanish tool, or GetResponse if you sell with webinars. You’ll find the full comparison in our guide to Mailchimp alternatives, which also applies if you’re coming from another tool.
If you already use it and want to switch, export your contacts as a CSV and import them into Mailrelay.
Move your unsubscribes to your suppression list and authenticate your domain to meet Gmail and Yahoo requirements and protect your deliverability.
How Mailrelay helps you
Mailrelay is the Brevo alternative for anyone who needs volume without paying.
The free account includes up to 80,000 emails a month and 20,000 contacts, with no daily limit and no ads in your emails.
All plans, including the free one, include an AI editor, email and SMS automations, segmentation, landing pages, A/B tests and automatic list cleaning.
And human support by chat, ticket or phone is always available, in Spanish. You can see the paid plans on the Mailrelay pricing page.
Switch from Brevo to Mailrelay hassle-free
Import your contacts in minutes and keep sending for free. If you have a question, we’ll help you in Spanish by chat, ticket or phone.
Frequently asked questions about Brevo
What is Brevo and what is it used for? It’s a French platform for sending emails, SMS and WhatsApp messages, with a CRM and chat. It’s used for email marketing and managing your customer relationships.
Is Brevo the same as Sendinblue? Yes. The company changed its name in May 2023, but the platform is the same.
Is Brevo free? It has a free plan with 300 emails a day and up to 100,000 contacts, with its logo in your emails. To send more, plans start at $9 a month.
How much does Brevo cost? The Starter plan starts at $9 a month for 5,000 emails, and Standard at $18. The Professional plan, with phone support, starts at $499.
Is Brevo available in Spanish? Yes. The platform and ticket support are available in Spanish, as well as in English, French, German, Italian and Portuguese.
Which is better, Brevo or Mailchimp? The former charges by sends and stores more contacts for free; Mailchimp has more integrations. To send a lot without paying, Mailrelay beats both.