In this buying guide, we compare the Emma & Constant Contact email marketing platforms on automation, features, and pricing. Spoiler alert: we’re pretty fond of Emma, but we’ll call out where each platform actually wins—even when it stings a little 🤍
Disclaimer: The features, pricing, and details mentioned for each product are as of September 2025 and may have changed since then.
| Category | Emma | Constant Contact |
| Pricing | Starts $99/mo; Emma Lite for 10k contacts, annual contract | 30-day free trial (100 email sends), paid plans from $12/mo |
| User Sentiment | 4/5 average rating (500+ reviews) | 4.1/5 average rating (7000+ reviews) |
| Automation & Workflows | Multi-step journeys with branching, welcome and drip, API and date triggers | Linear workflows with templates (welcome, reminders, nurture) |
| AI Features | AI Assistant for writing and edits, A/B and subject tests, reporting insights | AI Content Generator for emails, posts, SMS; smart suggestions |
| Deliverability & Reliability | High deliverability (99.53% as of a 2022 review), SPF/DKIM/DMARC guidance, SFTP sync | 97% deliverability rate; AI-powered spam checks + authentication guidance |
| Segmentation & Targeting | Dynamic segments with real-time updates, dynamic content, opt-down center | Visual segment builder with custom fields, demographics, behaviors |
| Integration Ecosystem | Hundreds of integrations and open API, deep CRM syncs (Salesforce, Blackbaud, EverTrue), Shopify app, Eventbrite | 300+ integrations (Salesforce, Gmail, Outlook, etc.) |
| Conversion & List-Building Tools | Landing pages included on Essentials plan, brand controls for consistent capture | Basic forms and landing pages |
| Support & Resources | Email and phone support, live tech support Mon–Fri 7am–7pm CT, onboarding services | Phone + live chat on all plans; tutorials, webinars, “Ask a Trainer” coaching |
| Best for… | Franchises, higher ed/nonprofits, and media; consistent branding and engagement. | Small businesses and nonprofits needing simple setup + live support |
“Emma is our top-of-the-line and favorite email marketing tool”
Anna L., Senior Vice President Marketing (G2)“We have never faced failure since day one. I can say that it helps generate a positive turnover. Emma has been our favorite since the start. I decided to choose Emma as our email marketing tool and beyond any doubt it has proved itself over and over again…”
| Feature | Emma | Constant Contact |
| Average Rating | 4/5 (500+ reviews) | 4.1/5 (7000+ reviews) |
| Setup Experience | Quick and easy setup — from minutes to hours for SPF authentication. | Quick setup for beginners with video guides. |
| Learning Curve | Intuitive interface with guide to getting started, and Quick Start training. | Beginner-friendly with strong community support |
| Best for: | Franchises & multi-location teams needing centralized brand control | Absolute beginners prioritizing simplicity |
Emma suits franchises and multi-location teams that want more centralized control with guided training. Its intuitive interface makes it practical for businesses that need both flexibility and structure.
Constant Contact is ideal for absolute beginners who value simplicity and a quick start. With community support and step-by-step guidance, it’s designed for small teams that want to get going fast without complications.
“Emma is very user friendly and insight oriented”
“The navigations to Emma are very simple and self explanatory. There is a very short learning curve and a very clean UI to use.”
| Feature | Emma | Constant Contact |
| Email Editor | Drag-and-drop editor with mobile design mode | Drag-and-drop with AI BrandKit, responsive layouts, and modern elements |
| Template Library | Hundreds of pre-designed, mobile-optimized templates | 200+ branded, mobile-responsive templates |
| Design Flexibility | Style locking, asset sharing, template approval workflows | BrandKit applies logo/colors with mobile adaptation |
| Branding Consistency | Professional templates with brand locking capabilities for consistent branding | BrandKit enforces brand colors, logos, and fonts |
| Best for: | Teams requiring consistent branding across locations | Small businesses wanting simple branded emails |
Emma is built for teams that need strict brand consistency across multiple locations. With advanced controls like style locking and approval workflows, it gives larger organizations the guardrails to keep every campaign on-brand.
Constant Contact appeals to small businesses that want polished emails without heavy lifting. Its AI-powered BrandKit adapts logos and colors automatically, making it easy to produce professional designs quickly.
Car Talk simplified templates and optimized for mobile with clear CTAs using Emma, sustaining ~40% opens and up to 50% clicks on The Puzzler and lifting overall click rates by nearly 20%.
| Feature | Emma | Constant Contact |
| Trigger Options | Signup, date-based, field change, contact import, and custom API events | Form submissions, list actions, opportunity/account field changes via visual workflows |
| Conditional Logic | Branching on opens/clicks; dynamic-content rules from contact fields; up to 20 branches | Yes/No branching with filters within visual workflows |
| Prebuilt Journeys | Common workflows: welcome series, re-engagement/drip, abandoned cart | Automation templates for welcome series, event reminders, lead nurture, and opportunity workflows |
| Journey Complexity | Multi-step workflows with Wait/Send steps and branching; automate from activity inside or outside the inbox | Linear workflows with branching via action groups and filters |
Emma is built for teams that want flexibility in complex workflows. With branching logic and multi-step automations, it’s ideal for organizations that need to personalize journeys both inside and outside the inbox.
Constant Contact suits lean teams that want speed and simplicity without a maze of rules. You can stand up practical nurtures and keep them running with minimal checking. Best for local retailers, nonprofits, and SMBs that value easy wins and predictable maintenance.
Dogfish Head activated automated welcomes and a web-series send with Emma, with welcome emails averaging ~78% opens and 27% clicks and the series pulling ~58% opens and 33% clicks.
| Feature | Emma | Constant Contact |
| AI Content Creation | AI Assistant writes/rewrites email copy, fixes grammar, and adjusts tone/length to speed up campaign creation | AI Content Generator drafts emails, pages, posts, and SMS from prompts |
| Design Intelligence | Drag-and-drop editor with mobile design mode; brand controls lock styles and manage shared templates | Ensures brand voice with tone and template options |
| Optimization Tools | Subject line split testing, A/B content testing, click-map visualization, and detailed analytics/compare reports | AI subject lines plus spam/content filtering |
| Predictive Features | Response Dashboard shows robust analytics that reveal subscriber insights so you can double down on what works. | Limited predictive tools–focus on content generation and smart suggestions |
| Best for: | Small businesses needing all-in-one AI help for content, design, and reporting. | Small businesses wanting quick content creation |
Emma is designed for small businesses that want AI to simplify the heavy lifting. Its assistant not only polishes email copy but also helps uncover what actually drives engagement, giving teams confidence to double down on strategies that work.
Constant Contact appeals to brands that value speed and simplicity. Its AI quickly generates usable drafts and content suggestions, making it ideal for businesses that want to move fast without getting bogged down in analytics or testing.
“Very smooth email marketing experience with Emma”
“I liked using the platform a lot, it was very smooth to use and AI suggestions were cherry on a cake truly.”
— Nirmalya N., WhatsApp Chatbots and Automation Information Technology and Services (G2)
| Feature | Emma | Constant Contact |
| Delivery Rate | High deliverability (99.53% deliverability as of 2022 review) | 97% deliverability rate |
| Inbox Placement | Strong reputation management across multiple accounts | Reliable placement supported by reputation safeguards |
| Deliverability Tools | Supports SPF, DKIM, and DMARC authentication with best-practice guidance to improve inboxing | AI-powered spam checks, authentication guidance |
| Sending Reliability | Automated SFTP Connect for steady contact syncs. | Tiered reporting and delivery insights by plan |
| Best for: | Multi-location brands needing to monitor delivery and manage authentication across sub-accounts | Small businesses seeking reliable delivery |
Emma is a strong fit for multi-location brands that need to closely manage reputation and delivery across different accounts. Its approach to authentication and steady syncing helps larger organizations maintain consistent inbox placement without losing control.
Constant Contact is built for small businesses that just want dependable deliverability without complexity. With safeguards and AI checks handling the heavy lifting, it keeps campaigns landing where they should while staying easy to manage.
“Emma is an excellent product for SMEs for email & SMS marketing”
“The deliverability rate of Emma was the highest we ever saw for any of our Email campaigns and we could send numerous campaigns at once that was the highlight.”
| Feature | Emma | Constant Contact |
| Segmentation Capabilities | Dynamic segments with real-time updates based on behavior, demographics | Visual segment builder using custom fields, behaviors, and demographics; supports dynamic conditions |
| Dynamic Content | Dynamic blocks that personalize per subscriber using fields or custom API events. | Dynamic content blocks that adapt per recipient (Premium only) |
| Personalization Tags | Personalization/merge tags from contact fields (e.g., name, custom fields) in the editor. | Personalization using contact info and custom fields, including in subject lines |
| Subscriber Preferences | Customizable subscription center with opt-down options | Basic preference management |
| Best for: | Complex audience management across multiple accounts | Organizations wanting simple, easy-to-use segmentation |
Emma empowers brands managing complex audiences across multiple accounts. Its real-time updates and customizable options make it ideal for organizations that need flexible, nuanced targeting without losing control at scale.
Constant Contact keeps things straightforward for organizations that just want simple, easy-to-use segmentation. Its visual approach to personalization makes it accessible for teams who need quick results without technical hurdles.
Convince & Convert used Emma’s audience-choice segmentation and sponsor-friendly newsletter format to grow and engage the daily “Definitive” readership while preserving trust and giving partners credible visibility.
| Feature | Emma | Constant Contact |
| Number of Integrations | Hundreds of integrations + open API | 300+ integrations |
| CRM Integrations | Salesforce, Blackbaud, EverTrue with deep sync capabilities | Salesforce, Gmail, Outlook, and more via API |
| E-commerce Integrations | Shopify app; SFTP Connect for automated data sync | Shopify, WooCommerce, Stripe |
| API Flexibility | Ecommerce, landing pages, events (Eventbrite) | API access plus App marketplace for no-code connectors |
| Best for | Distributed brands (franchises, universities) needing centralized control with deep CRM integrations. | Small businesses needing broad, hassle-free connectivity |
Emma is built for distributed brands like franchises or universities that need centralized control and deep CRM connections. It’s a strong fit when integration isn’t just about connecting tools but ensuring everything works together with precision and reliability.
Constant Contact appeals to small businesses that want broad, hassle-free connectivity. Its wide app marketplace and easy API access make it a simple choice for teams that prioritize convenience over deep customization.
“Emma is the best ever multi-channel email marketing software”
“Emma is the best ever email marketing software used by me with various features. The ease of use in analytics of campaigns makes my life easier… Integration of this software to my CRM is soo easy and if I get any query, their customer support is ready to help me in the quickest way.”
| Feature | Emma | Constant Contact |
| Starter Offer | $99/mo; Emma Lite (10,000 contacts, annual contract) | 30-day free trial (100 email sends) |
| Most Popular | Emma Essentials — $159/mo (10,000 contacts, annual contract; adds landing pages, unlimited automation, SMS*) | Standard: $35/mo ( automation and AI features) |
| Pricing Model | Contact-based tiers with flat monthly/annual billing; per-contact overages if you exceed your limit; custom quotes for >10k contacts; annual discounts available | Tiered (Lite $12/mo → Standard $35/mo → Premium $80/mo), pricing scales with contacts |
| Best for | Large organizations who want to scale | Businesses desiring affordable, feature-rich marketing plans with easy scaling |
Emma is built for large organizations ready to scale. Its pricing reflects enterprise-level needs, offering predictable annual contracts, discounts for volume, and the ability to handle massive contact lists. It’s best suited for teams that see email as a core growth engine and need a platform that can keep pace.
Constant Contact shines for SMBs wanting affordability and speed. With low entry points and tiered upgrades, it’s perfect for businesses testing AI and automation on a budget, then scaling features only when growth demands it.
| Feature | Emma | Constant Contact |
| Support Availability | Email & phone support, plus Support Hub; live tech support Mon–Fri, 7am–7pm CT. | Phone and live chat support included with all plans; also offers live “Ask a Trainer” sessions |
| Support Response Time | Business-hours live support; priority phone support available on Corporate plan | Responsive support; “Ask a Trainer” sessions enhance real-time help. Ask a Trainer (Monday to Friday, 8am-8pm, ET) |
| Knowledge Resources | Support Hub, Emma 101 resource hub & webinar , and video library | Help center, tutorials, webinars, community Q&A. |
| Onboarding Assistance | Professional Services onboarding packages (strategic kickoff, list import, custom training). | 1:1 onboarding on higher tiers. |
| Best for | Teams wanting business-hours live help + self-serve resources; larger orgs needing priority phone support & services. | Small businesses who want hands-on support and coaching. |
Emma is built for teams that want structured support during business hours with access to a robust knowledge hub, training resources, and optional premium services. Larger organizations benefit most, as Emma offers priority phone support and custom onboarding to match complex needs.
Constant Contact caters to small businesses looking for more hands-on help. With live chat, phone support on all plans, and its unique Ask a Trainer sessions, it feels more like coaching than just troubleshooting. It’s ideal for users who want guidance while building confidence.
“Emma has made my job communicating to my customers so valuable!”
“Emma’s customer support is extremely superior to many other development tools I have used in the past. By using Emma to send my emails, newsletters and landing pages, I am able to get metrics that are so valuable.”
“We have been using Emma for a few years now”
Sarah D., Senior E-commerce Strategy Manager (G2)“We use Emma for marketing our campaigns, target our specific customers and audience as well as send targeted emails for subscriptions and promotions to our targeted customers. Sending mass emails is not a big deal now…Honestly, it works so well for us.”
“Emma email marketing – a multi-tasker email marketing tool”
Angelika E., Marketing & Sales Lead, Retail (Brick and Mortar) Gift Cards (G2)“Emma provides ease to the users for creating and summarizing results. It is easy to update and add new contacts on this platform. It allows people to manage their list of emails. It has great integration with other applications. Users can also edit them for a long time as well. There are certain different features in this regard.”
“Emma captures any type of campaign solution”
Hanna L., Head Of Solutions Media Production (G2)“Emma has supported the creation of a content distribution resolution component; for us, it has been invaluable because it has been able to automate the marketing and sending of mass emails to promote our services… It has helped us improve the quality of our service through customer interaction.”
