AWeber vs Listmonk
AWeber is a email marketing platform while Listmonk is a newsletter platform. AWeber has been around since 1998, giving it a 20-year head start over Listmonk (founded 2018). Listmonk starts at free versus $15/mo for AWeber. Both offer free plans to get started. AWeber has the edge with marketing automation, A/B testing, landing pages.
Quick Verdict
AWeber wins on deliverability, integrations.
Listmonk wins on price.
Best for most users: AWeber (small businesses).
AWeber
Powerfully simple email marketing
AWeber is one of the original email marketing platforms, serving small businesses since 1998. It offers the largest template library (600+) and an impressive integration ecosystem. While its automation isn't as advanced as newer competitors, its reliability and excellent affiliate program make it a solid choice.
Listmonk
Self-hosted newsletter and mailing list manager
Listmonk is a free, open-source, self-hosted newsletter and mailing list manager written in Go. It handles millions of emails with minimal resources and is best for developers and technical users who want full control over their email infrastructure.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | AWeber | Listmonk |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.2/5 | 4.2/5 |
| Starting Price | $15/mo | Free |
| Free Plan | 500 subscribers | Unlimited (self-hosted, open source) |
| Founded | 1998 | 2018 |
| Email Templates | 600 | 5 |
| Integrations | 750 | 10 |
| Deliverability Rate | 97.8% | 97% |
| Marketing Automation | ✓ | ✕ |
| A/B Testing | ✓ | ✕ |
| Landing Pages | ✓ | ✕ |
| Segmentation | ✓ | ✓ |
| Drag & Drop Editor | ✓ | ✓ |
| SMS Marketing | ✕ | ✕ |
| Ecommerce Features | ✓ | ✕ |
| API Access | ✓ | ✓ |
| Multi-Language | ✕ | ✓ |
| Web Push Notifications | ✓ | ✕ |
| Live Chat | ✓ | ✕ |
| Advanced Analytics | ✓ | ✓ |
AWeber: Pros & Cons
Pros
- +600+ email templates (largest library)
- +750+ integrations
- +Established and reliable (since 1998)
- +Free plan available
- +Excellent affiliate program (up to 50% recurring)
Cons
- −Interface feels dated compared to newer tools
- −Automation capabilities lag behind competitors
- −Free plan is limited
- −Lite plan restricts automations to 3
- −No SMS marketing
Listmonk: Pros & Cons
Pros
- +Completely free and open source with no usage limits
- +Handles 7+ million emails with minimal CPU and 57 MB RAM
- +Single binary deployment with Docker support
- +SQL-based subscriber segmentation for advanced querying
- +Zero recurring costs — self-hosted with no per-subscriber fees
Cons
- −Requires technical knowledge to set up and maintain
- −No built-in SMTP, must configure an external provider like Amazon SES
- −Lacks automation workflows, A/B testing, and landing pages
- −Community support only via GitHub
- −No managed hosting option — you handle server maintenance yourself
The Verdict
AWeber and Listmonk are closely matched — both score within 0.0 points of each other in our overall rating. Your decision should come down to specific needs rather than overall quality. On deliverability, AWeber reports 97.8% compared to 97% for Listmonk — a meaningful difference if inbox placement is critical for your campaigns.
| Criterion | Weight | AWeber | Listmonk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | 30% | $15/mo | Free |
| Deliverability | 25% | 97.8% | 97% |
| Rating | 25% | 4.2/5 | 4.2/5 |
| Integrations | 10% | 750 | 10 |
| Free Tier | 10% | Yes | Yes |
Weights determine how much each criterion counts toward the final score. See full methodology
Choose AWeber if…
- + You need marketing automation
- + You need ecommerce integrations
- + You need built-in landing pages
- + You need A/B testing
Choose Listmonk if…
- + You want lower starting costs (Free)
- + You're a developers
- + You're a self hosters