10 Best Free Email Builder Software for 2024

29.7.2024
Read time: 13 min
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10 Best Free Email Builder Software for 2024
Try Publicate For Free Today
29.7.2024
Read time: 13 min

Email marketing has the potential to take brands to a whole new level.

But customers expect high-quality, professional emails, or they’ll simply delete your mail.

That’s why businesses are turning to free email builder software that lets them customize stunning templates without a single line of code.

If the myriad of email newsletter software out there has got you confused, this blog should help. Here are 10 of the best email builders on the market. Read on to discover the key features, pros and cons of each product, so you can make the best choice for your business.

Guide Index

Why Use Email Builder Software?

Email marketing is one of the strongest channels for good ROI but traditionally, designing professional emails was expensive and time-consuming.

Free email builder software turns that on its head.

It provides a user-friendly way to produce engaging, beautiful HTML email newsletters using ready-made templates and a drag-and-drop builder.

Anyone can create on-brand emails that recipients want to read and engage with. You then simply export HTML emails to Outlook, Gmail or another email provider, where you can send them straight to your database.

Picture from Unsplash

What are the Benefits of Email Builder Software?

Email builders, such as Publicate, are tools that should be used in any email marketing efforts. Here’s why.

1. Save Time

Email builders come with hundreds of ready-to-use, beautiful templates. You can customize them with your branding and content in minutes. Plus there are built in approval flows, to get your email out faster than ever.

2. Easy to Use

The best email template builders have drag-and-drop editors. That means there’s no learning curve, and you won’t need coding or design experience to create stunning emails.

By customizing existing templates or building your own from scratch, you can create your perfect email with ease. There is even a built in image editor so everything you need is in the platform.

3. Collaborate With Your Team

As online tools, all of your designs are stored in your content library, so anyone in your team can log onto a shared workspace and work on emails together.

If you're looking for even more collaborative functionality a tool like Publicate is the only email builder that lets you design newsletters with teammates in real-time.

There is also an approval process with user permissions built in, so only people you invite can access your workspace. This gives you the peace of mind that your brand is safe.

4. Design On-Brand Emails

Easily upload your own fonts, brand colors, content styles and pre-approved templates into your email builder. They’re ready to be used for future newsletters, so emails are instantly on-brand. This is key for consistency for any organization.

What Makes a Good Email Template Builder?

Email builder software lets you design beautiful and professional emails by customizing a varied set of templates.

To find the best free email template builder, there are some characteristics to look out for.

1. Useful Features

Look for a feature-rich template builder. The best email builder software gives you creative control while prioritizing user-friendliness and even performance analytics.

An email builder like Publicate helps you save time during the design process with multiple handy features. From dynamic scraping for web articles to stock image integrations and in-line image editors, designing stunning emails that follow best practices is in-reach for everyone.

While Publicate isn’t free, it’s a platform that's worth every cent. Publicate has more advanced features like detailed analytics no matter where you send your emails from, as well as time-saving features and hundreds of templates for maximum design flexibility and customization.

This removes the need to design emails from scratch or hire a design or coding expert - saving you time and money.

Publicate offers a free trial so you can be sure it’s the best software for your needs, without the commitment.

2. Responsive Designs

Choose an email builder with responsive designs. This ensures your emails look great on every device and email platform, which is key for engagement.

3. Simple Customization

You should be able to customize modules, add content and update templates with your own branding, hassle-free. Opt for drag-and-drop email builders that offer a streamlined design process from start to finish.

4. Varied Template Library

The best email builder libraries have hundreds of free templates, with a template to suit every topic.

Also look for software with simple filtering, so you can quickly find the right template for your needs.

What is the Best Email Builder Software?

Design emails like a pro, even if you don’t have coding skills or the budget to hire a designer.

We’ve gathered some of the best email template builder software, with free trials and free plans to take advantage of.

1. Publicate

Publicate is an email builder loved by small teams through to global organizations like Microsoft and eBay. It’s an easy-to-use HTML email-building software that cuts the email creation time down to minutes.

Teams use it to create engaging newsletters, internal comms and promotional emails. Publicate has a direct integration with Gmail, Outlook and many other email service providers, so it couldn’t be easier to send HTML emails from any existing email platform.

Choose from hundreds of professional, engaging and fully customizable templates that are coded to load quickly, be responsive and look great across every platform or device.

A powerful drag-and-drop builder means you don’t need any design or coding skills to create stunning emails. Publicate’s content library overshadows that of other tools. Save and organize content from anywhere, from web articles to videos, Slack channels and GIFs.

The platform dynamically scrapes web content, so you can share relevant information without having to save and upload images, and add titles, descriptions and calls to action. Everything is done for you, and the process takes just seconds!

What really sets Publicate apart is its unmatched analytics. Measure your campaign’s performance to double down on what works and optimize future campaigns. No matter where you send emails, Publicate lets you track important metrics like click-through and open rates.

Having this knowledge at your fingertips is the only way to really recognize the value of your email marketing, and continually improve your emails.

Pros

  • Contains a vast library of templates and multi-media
  • One-click export to email service providers
  • Powerful analytics and audience insights
  • Safe, streamlined collaboration tools
  • Crop and align images directly inline in the editor

Cons

  • Not free but offers a 14-day free trial

2. Postcards

Postcards has a simple user interface and claims to speed up the creation of email templates by 20x. However, it’s more straightforward to create emails from scratch than to use templates on this platform.

Pros:

  • Focuses on design, with lots of Google fonts to choose from
  • Free plan available

Cons:

  • The free plan only allows 10 email template projects and 5 exports
  • No analytics to track email success
  • Templates aren’t well organized so finding the right one is time-consuming

2. Unlayer

Another user-friendly, drag-and-drop email template builder, Unlayer is designed for eCommerce stores and small businesses.

It’s one of the best free email template builders for basic functionality, such as customizing templates and landing pages. However, more advanced features are only available on a paid plan and you might run into a few limitations with the free version.

Pros

  • Easy to use
  • Great collaboration capabilities

Cons

  • Lack of analytics and email tracking
  • No A/B testing available
  • Users report lots of bugs causing downtime
  • Emails don’t automatically render well across email service providers, which may lead to poor formatting

3. Dyspatch

Dyspatch unlocks access to free email template designs, which you can edit and use the HTML files anywhere.

The paid platform enables interactive content blocks, like email surveys and in-email product reviews.

Pros

  • Lots of interactivity
  • No code knowledge needed
  • Enables personalization

Cons

  • No free trial
  • Limited number of public reviews
  • Some features may be too advanced for beginners to properly make use of
  • No template subfolders makes it difficult to find ideal templates
  • One of the more expensive platforms

4. Stripo

The Stripo drag-and-drop email template builder contains endless templates, modules and content blocks. It provides the option of adding custom HTML elements for those with coding knowledge.

Pros

  • Integrates with lots of ESPs (email service providers)
  • Free plan available

Cons

  • Not overly user-intuitive - those with HTML knowledge will probably get better results
  • No collaborative features for the Free or Basic plans, so teams might run into some issues
  • Limited number of templates available on free plan
  • Editor sometimes glitches and has to be re-loaded

5. Tabular

Tabular is a no-code email template builder that lets users create mobile-friendly emails for a range of purposes.

It affords full control over mobile email design, so users can create different emails for mobile and desktop.

Pros

  • Access dynamic content for more personalization
  • Re-usable building blocks speed up the build
  • Powerful email testing

Cons

  • Doesn’t integrate with all email marketing platforms
  • Free plan only includes 37 templates
  • Templates aren’t well organized so it’s difficult to browse and find one
  • Doesn’t offer analytics to track email performance

6. Topol.io

Ideal for beginners, Topol lets you create emails in minutes using a drag-and-drop editor.

It is packed with customization options, with folders to keep your designs organized.

Pros

  • A range of free templates is available
  • No learning curve
  • Emails are responsive on different devices and clients

Cons

  • Integration options are limited and only available on paid plans
  • The free version feels clunky
  • No in-line image editing, which means you have to edit and re-upload images
  • No built-in analytics to track and improve email marketing

7. Moosend

Moosend lets you design emails using templates, and export them to other platforms for sending, or send them directly from Moosend.

It has good automation capabilities as well as reporting, but it’s not clear if analytics are available when you send emails from other ESPs, or how many integrations are available.

Pros:

  • 30-day free plan available
  • Includes a number of content elements, such as countdown timers and products

Cons:

  • Not many direct integrations with third parties
  • No free plan available
  • Interface could be more user-friendly
  • Many user reviews say the editor is buggy

8. Beefree

Another drag-and-drop HTML editor in the list, Beefree speeds up the email process with simple design and export capabilities.

With a large collection of templates to choose from, and good image editing options, Beefree provides plenty of creative freedom.

Pros

  • Easy to create engaging, multi-media emails
  • Designs can be exported, downloaded as HTML or as a PDF
  • Get started for free

Cons

  • Limited functionality and Beefree branding on the free plan
  • Some users experience issues with email rendering on mobile
  • Design capabilities. For example, no option to include multiple font sizes and colors in the same content block
  • Some templates are outdated and could be refreshed more regularly
  • Limited customization and formatting in the designer
  • No analytics

9. Chamaileon

Craft stunning emails with a few drags and drops. Chamaileon is another no-code email builder platform for brands that want to create professional emails on limited budgets.

Pros

  • Loaded with responsive, modern designs
  • Integrates with multiple email service providers
  • Built-in image editor

Cons

  • No stock image site integration
  • Limited direct integrations
  • Relatively expensive
  • Limited to one test per email, which isn’t ideal when you have multiple rounds of edits
  • No option to add brand fonts for design consistency
  • Limited number of pre-made templates

What are the Best Features of Email Builder Software?

Make sure your email builder has the features that make the design process fast, easy and seamless.

Read on for our pick of must-have features.

1. Collaborative Features

Does the email builder let your team work together, in real-time on an email design - regardless of their geographic location and in real time?

This is key in the age of remote working. Look for email builders that put collaboration at the forefront.

They should make all your brand assets available to every person logged into your platform, and provide real-time editing and approvals for a seamless, scalable process.

2. One-Click Exports

Some email builder software lets you send HTML emails in Gmail, Outlook or over 50 other email clients. Others don’t.

You can look forward to a simpler process when your software offers direct integrations. It’s best if you can send emails from your chosen ESP with just a click or two.

3. Multi-Media Libraries

Your subscribers expect engaging, interesting emails, but it’s easy to waste hours trawling the web for content.

Choose an email builder that lets you discover fresh content right inside the platform. Many connect to stock image and GIF sites, and can link up to your company’s Slack channel and other websites.

That means all the content you need is ready and waiting.

4. Analytics

Good-looking emails are great, but how do you know how well they’re performing?

The best email-building software includes detailed analytics that track performance across all platforms, including all-important metrics like open rates and click-through rates.

Bonus points if your software offers heat maps to visually track how readers are engaging with your content, and audience insights that let you get to know your readers for more personalized email campaigns.

Publicate is the only email builder to offer analytics to its users, who get access to all of the features mentioned in this section - and more!

How to Choose the Best Email Builder Software?

Avoid sticking to free email-building software when looking for the best email design tool.

Many of the free platforms have limited capabilities and hidden costs, and paid email builders are usually more affordable than you might think (with way more features!)

To choose the best email builder, look out for:

  • Affordability
  • A vast content library that includes royalty-free images, videos and more
  • Responsive templates
  • Positive public reviews
  • Resources and a help center
  • In-line image editing
  • Compatibility with email service providers
  • Advanced analytics that work across every sending platform
  • The ability to save and organize templates and components (for time saving and collaboration benefits)
  • Dynamic scraping from web pages and more

Wrap Up

More and more companies are realizing they don’t need to blow their budgets to pay coders to build their emails. Instead, they’re leveling up with the many free email builder software options out there.

To find the best one for you, consider features as well as price, as the free options aren’t always the best.

Many companies sign up for free software and quickly run into roadblocks and limitations. They then have to switch to a new tool, which is a hassle. Instead, consider choosing paid platforms that offer full functionality from the start with options to suit every budget.

Want to give it a go? Try Publicate as an email-building tool, with a 14-day free trial.

It’s the only platform that lets you track the performance of your emails whether you send them from Gmail, Outlook or another USP. It’s also unmatched when it comes to a content library that becomes a hub for your saved content and royalty-free items from a variety of sources.