What does Campaign Monitor do?
Campaign Monitor, part of Marigold, is an email marketing platform with AI Writer, Marketing Studio for on-brand emails and visuals, AI Email Booster suggestions and Marketing Monitor benchmarks. Lite is $13/mo billed monthly at the smallest contact tier. It suits marketers who care about email design; skip it if you need a free plan.
- Marketing Studio. Generates a complete email campaign and custom visuals with your branding built in, translates campaigns and turns emails into Instagram posts.
- AI Email Booster. Points out changes that can improve performance, explains why, and lets you approve edits with one click.
- Marketing Monitor. Compares each campaign with industry benchmarks and recommends tactics based on your goal.
- AI Writer. AI writing help for email copy, included from the Lite plan.
- AI Segment Mapper. An AI segmentation tool listed in Campaign Monitor's product navigation.
- Drag-and-drop email builder. Design emails with templates, custom-coded templates and inbox preview on Essentials.
- Automation and journeys. Automated emails and pre-built journeys from Lite, unlimited on Essentials.
- Send-time optimization. Sends emails when each subscriber is most likely to engage, on Premier.
Who is Campaign Monitor for?
Campaign Monitor is a good fit if you're a business owner, a team lead or a video creator, and you need help sending email campaigns or automating busywork.
How much does Campaign Monitor cost?
Campaign Monitor starts at $13/mo. It has no free plan. Its pricing page lists a free trial. We checked this on Nov 7, 2026 on the official pricing page.
- Starts at
- $13/mo
- Free plan
- No
- Free trial
- 30 days (500 contacts, 500 emails)
Lite billed monthly at the smallest contact tier ($11.70/mo billed yearly, 10% off). Essentials is $31 a month and Premier $171 ($153.90 yearly); Enterprise is custom. Essentials yearly had an extra 20% new-customer discount until Jan 3, 2027. Figures load in a browser only (a US-based fetch showed none) and match an independent July 2026 price check. Checked Nov 7, 2026.
Campaign Monitor plans compared
| Plan | Billed monthly | Billed yearly | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free trial | $0 | $0 | 30 days; 500 contacts and 500 emails; limited trial access to some AI features |
| Lite | $13/mo | $11.70/mo billed yearly | Price at the smallest contact tier; sends up to 5x your subscriber count a month; AI Writer, automated emails, pre-built journeys, transactional emails, custom-coded templates, unlimited signup forms |
| Essentials | $31/mo | Not listed | Unlimited email sends and automated emails, unlimited access to AI-powered email features, Marketing Studio, inbox preview, priority support |
| Premier | $171/mo | $153.90/mo billed yearly | Everything in Essentials plus phone support, pre-built engagement segments, send-time optimization, section locking, team template management, website builder included; unlimited users |
| Enterprise | Custom | Custom | Custom pricing on an annual contract; dedicated account manager, custom DPAs, invoice or PO billing |
Checked on Nov 7, 2026. Campaign Monitor's pricing page loads its figures with JavaScript: a US-based fetch showed blank price fields, so we read the prices in a browser (USD) at the default, smallest contact tier and switched between Monthly and Annual. They match an independent price check last verified July 29, 2026 (costbench.com). Yearly billing is 10% off. Essentials yearly showed an extra 20% off for new customers ($22.32/mo) until Jan 3, 2027, so we don't list a standard yearly Essentials price. Prices rise with contact count; a website builder add-on is $10/mo on Lite and Essentials.
Checked Nov 7, 2026 on Campaign Monitor's pricing page. Prices change often, so confirm before you buy.
Campaign Monitor pros and cons
What stands out
- Several AI tools for writing, design, benchmarks and optimization
- Monthly and yearly prices published
- Unlimited sends and AI features on Essentials
- Polished email templates and design tools
- 30-day free trial
Watch out for
- No permanent free plan
- Lite caps sends at 5x your subscriber count
- Send-time optimization and phone support need Premier ($171/mo)
- Prices only load in a browser, not in a plain page fetch
- Prices rise with contact count
Based on Campaign Monitor's own pages, not hands-on testing.
What are the alternatives to Campaign Monitor?
We list 9 other AI Email Marketing tools: ActiveCampaign, AWeber, Brevo, Customer.io, GetResponse, Keap, Kit, Moosend, Sender. Each one below shows its starting price and when you might pick it instead.
ActiveCampaign · From $15/moChoose ActiveCampaign if you'd like a second option to compare for sending email campaigns.
Customer.io · From $100/moChoose Customer.io if you'd like a second option to compare for sending email campaigns.
GetResponse · From $15.58/moChoose GetResponse if you'd like a second option to compare for sending email campaigns.
Keap · From $320/moChoose Keap if you'd like a second option to compare for sending email campaigns.
Moosend · Price not checkedChoose Moosend if you'd like a second option to compare for sending email campaigns.
Campaign Monitor FAQ
How much does Campaign Monitor cost?
As of Nov 7, 2026, at the smallest contact tier: Lite $13/mo, Essentials $31/mo and Premier $171/mo billed monthly. Yearly billing is 10% off (Lite $11.70/mo, Premier $153.90/mo).
Is Campaign Monitor free?
There's no permanent free plan, but there's a 30-day free trial with 500 contacts and 500 emails.
What AI features does Campaign Monitor have?
AI Writer, Marketing Studio for on-brand emails, visuals, translations and social posts, AI Email Booster suggestions, Marketing Monitor benchmarks and an AI Segment Mapper.
Which plan includes all AI features?
Essentials says it includes unlimited access to AI-powered email features and Marketing Studio. Lite includes AI Writer, with limited trial access to some other AI tools.
Is there a discount right now?
On Nov 7, 2026 the page offered new customers an extra 20% off Essentials annual plans, redeemable until Jan 3, 2027.
Who owns Campaign Monitor?
Campaign Monitor's site describes it as Campaign Monitor by Marigold.
What happens if I go over my plan's limits?
Campaign Monitor says it will notify you and you can upgrade or pay for the additional emails.
Who is Campaign Monitor best for?
Marketers and small teams who want well-designed emails with AI help on design and performance. Budget senders who want a free plan may prefer Sender or Brevo.
Sources and how we checked
- Official pricing page, checked Nov 7, 2026
- Official website
- Campaign Monitor homepage: AI features (read Nov 7, 2026), checked Nov 7, 2026
- Independent price check, last verified Jul 29, 2026 (read Nov 7, 2026), checked Nov 7, 2026