FluentCRM vs Mailcoach (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, FluentCRM grades higher than Mailcoach: 2.4 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
FluentCRM grades higher on the free plan. They get the same grade on value for money, features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
FluentCRM
CRM and email marketing plugin that runs inside WordPress
Mailcoach
Email campaigns priced by emails sent, hosted or self-hosted
Which one is for you
Pick FluentCRM if
- Fits if you already run a WordPress site and want contacts and email in one place
- Works for agencies, where one $499 licence covers 50 sites
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you do not use WordPress, as there is no separate app
- Watch out: delivery through Amazon SES or similar is billed separately
- Pricey if you renew: the first-year discount does not apply, so it returns to $129, $249 or $499
- Tight if you want drag-and-drop design on the free plugin, since that is Pro
- Not for you if you want email sent for you with no setup
Pick Mailcoach if
- Fits if you have a big list but only email it a few times a month
- Works for teams that want data kept in the EU, or Laravel developers who want email inside their own app
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you need sign-up forms or landing pages built in, as none are named
- Pricey if you email a large list every day, since every email past 2,000 is billed
- Not for you if you like paying yearly, as usage is billed monthly with VAT on top and there's no annual plan
- Watch out: each team picks Mailcoach's sending or its own provider, not both
- Watch out: the self-hosted version is a separate license whose dollar price couldn't be read
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAFluentCRMFair | 2.2GPAMailcoachFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C$129 a year for one site with unlimited contacts is about $10.75 a month, just above the cheapest quarter. The 40% first-year discount ends at renewal, and sending through a delivery service costs extra. | C$9.99 a month with 2,000 emails, then $0.002 an email, a few cents above the cheaper quarter of email tools. Contacts are unlimited, so list size doesn't change the bill, and sending through your own provider halves the per-email fee. |
| Free plan and trial | BThe base plugin is free forever, with contacts, lists, tags, basic segmentation, campaigns and automations. You need your own WordPress site and a sending service. | CNo free plan, but there's a 14-day trial with no card needed. That's time to import a list and send a first campaign. |
| Features | CCampaigns, sequences, automation and segmentation with a Fluent ecosystem. Drag-and-drop design, dynamic segmentation and many integrations are Pro only. | CCampaigns with segments, split tests and analytics, no-code automations, transactional email, pre-send checklists and a newsletter archive. That covers the basics, but no sign-up forms or landing page builder are named among its features. |
| Ease of use | CA plugin on your own WordPress site, with no rating on record. You install it and connect a sender such as Amazon SES. | CNo App Store rating on record and no phone app. The hosted version is a normal web app, though you first choose its sending or your own provider, and the self-hosted one needs a Laravel developer. |
| Platforms and integrations | BRuns inside WordPress only, with WooCommerce, Fluent Forms, FluentCart, FluentBooking, FluentSMTP and other connections. | BWeb, with an API and sending through Postmark, Mailgun, Amazon SES, Brevo or any SMTP server, and developers can run it inside a Laravel app. No desktop or phone app, so B is the ceiling. |
| Best for | WordPress sites that want email inside the dashboard | big lists you only email now and then |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: FluentCRM and Mailcoach. How we grade
Price against what you get
FluentCRM starts at $10.75 a month when paid by the year and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Mailcoach starts at $9.99 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and Mailcoach starts $0.76 a month lower. Of the other email marketing and newsletter tools on the chart, 9 score higher than FluentCRM for less, and 8 score higher than Mailcoach for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Mailcoach is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- FluentCRM also covers forms and reports.
At a glance
| FluentCRM | Mailcoach | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $129 per year for 1 site | $9.99 per month with 2,000 emails, plus $0.002 per extra email |
| Free plan | Free edition: lead generation, email campaigns and automations with the base plugin, with fewer features than Pro. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | 14-day free trial, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| Made by | WPManageNinja | Spatie |
| Price read from | fluentcrm.com | mailcoach.app |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Worth knowing
FluentCRM
- It runs only on WordPress and has no separate app.
- Emails are sent through the site's own email setup, and the connected delivery service, such as Amazon SES, may charge separately.
- The 40% first-year discount does not apply to renewals, which return to $129, $249 and $499.
- Drag-and-drop email design, dynamic segmentation and many integrations are Pro features.
Mailcoach
- There is no annual plan: usage is invoiced monthly, and prices exclude VAT.
- Each team must choose either Mailcoach's sending or its own provider, not both.
- The self-hosted Laravel version is a separate license bought through spatie.be, with a year of updates per purchase; its dollar price could not be read.
- The pricing page names no sign-up forms or landing page builder among its features.
Key features
FluentCRM
- Contact overview
- Each contact record gathers activity, and in Pro also purchase history from WooCommerce, FluentCart and EDD, form submissions and support tickets.
- Email campaigns and sequences
- One-off and recurring campaigns, email sequences and templates, with a drag-and-drop visual builder in Pro.
- Marketing automation
- Funnels that act when someone signs up, buys, books or joins, including abandoned cart recovery.
- Segmentation
- List and tag segments in Free, and dynamic, advanced and activity-based segmentation in Pro.
- Fluent ecosystem
- Connects to the company's own plugins such as Fluent Forms, FluentCart, FluentBooking, FluentCommunity and FluentSMTP.
Mailcoach
- Campaigns
- Newsletters with segmentation, split testing, open and click analytics, pre-send checklists and a searchable archive of past issues.
- Automations
- Workflows for onboarding, lead nurturing and other sequences, built without code.
- Transactional email
- Edit, send and track transactional emails in the same app, sent from your product through Mailcoach's API.
- Unlimited contacts
- Contacts, lists and audiences cost nothing extra; the bill depends only on how many emails go out each month.
- Bring your own provider
- Send through Postmark, Mailgun, Brevo, Amazon SES or any SMTP server instead of Mailcoach's own sending, at half the per-email fee.
- EU hosting and GDPR
- Data is stored encrypted in the EU, and open and click tracking can be switched off.
Plans
FluentCRM
Free$0
The base plugin, described as free forever: contacts, lists and tags, basic segmentation, campaigns and automations.
Solo/Blogger$129
per year for 1 site
Pro license for one site with unlimited contacts and all Pro features, one year of updates and priority support. First year $77.
Small Business$249
per year for 5 sites
Pro license for five sites with all features. First year $149.
Agency License$499
per year for 50 sites
Pro license for fifty sites with all features. First year $299.
Mailcoach
Pay as you go$9.99
per month with 2,000 emails, plus $0.002 per extra email
Unlimited contacts, lists and automations, campaigns, transactional email and the API. Extra emails cost $0.001 each when sent through your own provider.
Ways to pay less
FluentCRM
- Other savings
40% off the first year
The pricing page shows first-year prices of $77, $149 and $299 for the 1, 5 and 50 site licenses; the offer applies to the first year only.
Mailcoach
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, FluentCRM or Mailcoach?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Mailcoach is cheaper to start with: $9.99 a month, against $10.75 a month when paid by the year for FluentCRM. FluentCRM starts at $129 per year for 1 site, and Mailcoach starts at $9.99 per month with 2,000 emails, plus $0.002 per extra email.
Which has a free plan, FluentCRM or Mailcoach?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only FluentCRM has a free plan. Mailcoach does not, though it has a free trial.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.