beehiiv vs HubSpot Email Marketing
beehiiv is a newsletter platform while HubSpot Email Marketing is a all-in-one marketing platform. HubSpot Email Marketing has been around since 2006, giving it a 15-year head start over beehiiv (founded 2021). HubSpot Email Marketing starts at $20/seat/mo versus $43/mo for beehiiv. Both offer free plans to get started. HubSpot Email Marketing has the edge with SMS marketing.
Quick Verdict
beehiiv wins on deliverability, rating.
HubSpot Email Marketing wins on price, integrations.
Best for most users: beehiiv (newsletter creators).
beehiiv
The newsletter platform built for growth
beehiiv was built by the team behind Morning Brew's growth to 4 million subscribers. It's specifically designed for newsletter businesses with built-in monetization through ad networks, paid subscriptions, and referral programs. The highest affiliate commission in the space at up to 60%.
HubSpot Email Marketing
Email marketing powered by CRM data
HubSpot's email marketing is part of its complete Marketing Hub. While the free and Starter tiers offer competitive email marketing, the real power comes with Professional tier and above, where HubSpot's CRM data feeds into sophisticated automation and personalization.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | beehiiv | HubSpot Email Marketing |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.5/5 | 4.4/5 |
| Starting Price | $43/mo | $20/mo |
| Free Plan | 2,500 subscribers | 2,000 emails/month |
| Founded | 2021 | 2006 |
| Email Templates | 20 | 80 |
| Integrations | 40 | 1,500 |
| Deliverability Rate | 98% | 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 | ✓ | ✓ |
beehiiv: Pros & Cons
Pros
- +Purpose-built for newsletter businesses
- +Built-in ad network for monetization
- +Referral program to grow subscribers
- +Paid subscription support
- +Founded by ex-Morning Brew team
Cons
- −Limited to newsletter use case
- −Fewer templates than established tools
- −Smaller integration ecosystem
- −No SMS marketing
- −Relatively new platform (2021)
HubSpot Email Marketing: Pros & Cons
Pros
- +Best-in-class CRM integration
- +1,500+ integrations (largest ecosystem)
- +Powerful marketing automation
- +All-in-one marketing, sales, and service platform
- +Excellent analytics and attribution
Cons
- −Professional plan is very expensive ($890/mo)
- −Annual commitment required for higher tiers
- −Complex pricing structure
- −Steep learning curve
- −Email features alone don't justify the cost
The Verdict
beehiiv and HubSpot Email Marketing are closely matched — both score within 0.1 points of each other in our overall rating. Your decision should come down to specific needs rather than overall quality. On deliverability, beehiiv reports 98% compared to 97% for HubSpot Email Marketing — a meaningful difference if inbox placement is critical for your campaigns.
| Criterion | Weight | beehiiv | HubSpot Email Marketing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | 30% | $43/mo | $20/mo |
| Deliverability | 25% | 98% | 97% |
| Rating | 25% | 4.5/5 | 4.4/5 |
| Integrations | 10% | 40 | 1500 |
| Free Tier | 10% | Yes | Yes |
Weights determine how much each criterion counts toward the final score. See full methodology
Choose beehiiv if…
- + You're a newsletter creators
- + You're a media companies
- + Purpose-built for newsletter businesses
Choose HubSpot Email Marketing if…
- + You want lower starting costs ($20/mo)
- + You need SMS marketing
- + You're a b2b
- + You're a saas