AWeber is one of the original email marketing services, founded in 1998 in Pennsylvania, and it still has a reputation as the easy, dependable choice. It’s built for small businesses, bloggers and creators who want to grow a list and send good-looking newsletters without learning a complex platform. Landing pages, automations, a simple ecommerce tool and AI writing help are all included.
We like it for beginners, and its support has long been one of its selling points. Two things changed recently that you should know: AWeber no longer leads with a free plan, offering a 14-day trial instead, and the cheaper Lite plan limits you to one list and three automations. For a simple newsletter that’s fine. For anything more, Plus is the plan to price.
AWeber pricing
AWeber prices by subscriber count. We checked these on aweber.com on October 24, 2026.
| Subscribers | Lite monthly | Lite annual | Plus monthly | Plus annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 500 | $15 | $150 ($12.50/mo) | $30 | $240 ($20/mo) |
| 1,000 | $25 | $250 | $45 | $450 |
| 2,500 | $35 | $350 | $55 | $550 |
| 5,000 | $60 | $600 | $90 | $900 |
| 10,000 | $100 | $1,000 | $135 | $1,350 |
Both plans start with a 14-day trial. Annual billing saves up to roughly a third on smaller lists. Lists above 100,000 get custom pricing.
AWeber also sells a Done For You plan: $20 a month billed annually plus a setup fee that was discounted to $79 from $599. Its team builds your email template, a landing page, a sign-up form and a thank-you page in 7 days, with 30 days of unlimited edits.
Lite vs Plus
| Lite | Plus | |
|---|---|---|
| Email lists | 1 | Unlimited |
| Landing pages | 3 | Unlimited |
| Automations | 3 | Unlimited |
| Users | 3 | Unlimited |
| Custom segments | 1 | Unlimited |
| Monthly sends | 10x subscribers | 12x subscribers |
| AWeber branding | Shown | Removable |
| Support | 24/7 | Priority 24/7 |
Lite is enough for a single newsletter with a welcome sequence. Plus is the better fit once you run several lead magnets, segment readers or sell products, and it adds sales tracking with lower transaction fees on AWeber’s ecommerce tool.
Should you pay for Done For You?
Look closely and Done For You costs the same $20 a month as Plus on an annual plan at 500 subscribers, plus the one-time setup fee. In other words, during the current offer you pay $79 extra in year one to have AWeber’s team build your template, landing page, sign-up form and thank-you page, and to get weekly newsletter drafts.
For a busy business owner who would otherwise lose a weekend to setup, that’s good value. If you enjoy building things yourself, skip it and start on Plus directly, using the templates and the 14-day trial to learn the editor. Check the setup fee at checkout, since the $79 price is a limited-time discount.
What AWeber does well
- Ease of use. The drag-and-drop editor and templates are friendly for first-timers.
- Landing pages and sign-up forms, plus a WordPress plugin for list building.
- Automations for welcome series, tagging and simple funnels.
- AWeber Ecommerce to sell products and subscriptions directly from emails and landing pages.
- AI writing help for subject lines and copy.
- Integrations with common site builders, stores and payment tools.
Support is the long-standing strength, with 24/7 help on every plan and priority support on Plus.
Deliverability basics
AWeber handles the technical side of sending, but your sender reputation is yours. Authenticate your domain, send only to people who signed up, and make unsubscribing easy. Google’s email sender guidelines explain the rules for bulk senders, and the FTC’s CAN-SPAM guide covers US legal requirements such as a physical address and a working opt-out.
What users complain about
AWeber gets credit for reliability and support. The complaints we see are mostly about value and limits:
- Price per subscriber that’s higher than some rivals at larger list sizes
- Lite’s limits, with just 1 list and 3 automations
- Automation depth that’s simpler than tools like ActiveCampaign
- Template designs that some users find dated
- No free plan at the moment, only a 14-day trial
If you need complex branching automations, it will feel basic. If you want to send a good newsletter reliably, those complaints matter less.
Getting the most from AWeber
- Start on Lite if you have one newsletter, then upgrade when you need more lists.
- Pay annually once you’re sure, to cut the monthly cost.
- Build one automation first: a 3-email welcome series.
- Use a landing page as your sign-up hub instead of building a website.
- Clean your list every few months to protect deliverability and cost.
AWeber vs alternatives
| AWeber | GetResponse | ActiveCampaign | Systeme.io | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strength | Simple, reliable newsletters | Email plus webinars and courses | Advanced automation and CRM | Funnels, courses and email in one |
| Entry price | $15/mo (500 subs) | $19/mo (1,000 contacts) | Higher | Free plan |
| Free option | 14-day trial | Free plan to 500 contacts | Free trial | Free plan |
| Best for | Beginners and bloggers | Creators who teach and sell | Complex funnels | Budget all-in-one |
For webinars and courses in the same account, see our GetResponse review. If automation depth matters, our ActiveCampaign review is the step up, and Systeme.io combines funnels and email on a free plan. Budget senders with big lists should compare Brevo. To grow your list from Instagram, see our ManyChat review. More tools are in our email marketing reviews.
Who should skip AWeber
Skip it if you need advanced automation and CRM features, if you have a large list and want the lowest cost per subscriber, or if you want a permanent free plan. The pros and cons are below.
Our verdict on AWeber
AWeber remains one of the easiest, most reliable email tools for small businesses and creators, with 24/7 support on every plan and a gentle learning curve. Lite at $15 a month covers a simple newsletter, and Plus opens up the unlimited lists and automations most growing businesses need. Use the 14-day trial to make sure it fits, and it’s a safe, sensible choice.
Our review method explains how we research software we haven’t tested hands-on.