How Much Does It Cost To Start An Email Marketing Tool? (In 2024)
Looking to start an email marketing tool?
But curious about:
- how much it costs to start an email marketing tool?
- what are the typical email marketing tool startup costs?
- or the actual cost of starting email marketing tools?
Well, we have the data to prove it, supported by real email marketing tools and how much they actually cost to start.
Let's go over it.
What is the average cost of starting an email marketing tool?
Based on our data reported by actual email marketing tool founders, the average cost of starting an email marketing tool is between $9 and $250,000.
Additionally, our data shows that the the median startup costs for an email marketing tool are around $1K.
Remember, though, not all email marketing tools are the same - and neither are people's budgets. It's important to distinguish between different levels or types of email marketing tools
Real World Examples: How much does it cost to start an email marketing tool?
We asked real email marketing tool founders and business owners how much it actually cost to get started?
Here is what they said:
Ajay Goel
Founder of GMass, Inc. ($450K/month)
"I paid a contractor $5,000 for some backend programming help, my Amazon AWS bill was negligible at the time, and I paid a designer a few hundred dollars to create a logo and some annotated screenshots."
Ajay Goel is the founder of GMass, a Chrome extension that helps users send cold emails and email marketing campaigns with Gmail.
George Hartley
Founder of SmartrMail ($130K/month)
"We raised $400K angel funding in 2017, and have been (just) profitable since the start of this year."
George Hartley is the co-founder and CEO of SmartrMail, an email marketing SaaS for ecommerce merchants.
Tareq Hasan
Founder of weMail ($120/month)
"If it comes to the cost of developing, the process is a continuous one, regarding investments and efforts. Our initial cost was for the webserver, domain & Google cloud servers, and Google cloud functions. You can also consider the investment behind our marketing, engineering, and design team along with the logistics."
Tareq Hasan is the co-founder of weDevs, a company specializing in WordPress products that started in 2008.
Hasan M. Aboul Hasan
Founder of H-supertools ($2K/month)
"For the startup costs, it was mainly a matter of time! Whereas technical material like web hosting, programming libraries, and tools cost me somewhere around $500-1000. That's all!"
"As I already mentioned, the costs were somewhat low (between $500 and $1000), ranging from web hosting, some APIs, and some other programming libraries that I bought. That's all."
Hasan is the founder of H-supertools, a suite of free SEO and digital marketing tools that generate around $2,000 per month in profit.
Troy Ericson
Founder of Email Paramedic ($260K/month)
"Thankfully, the startup costs of my business weren’t very high either. But when I launched my email list, I just got an Amex card & opened an ActiveCampaign account where I got leads from my Facebook profile & some funnels that I’d built from Clickfunnels."
Troy Ericson is the founder of Email Paramedic, a business focused on email list management and email deliverability.
Valentin Wallyn
Founder of Findymail ($2.5K/month)
"Most of the costs were shared with my previous tools: things like hosting, CRM & other tools to run the day-to-day were already paid for by the other tools."
Valentin Wallyn is the founder of Findymail, a high-quality email finder tool for B2B salespeople that started in May 2022 and reached $2,500 MRR shortly after.
Nathan Barry
Founder of ConvertKit ($2.08M/month)
"In 2013, Nathan set a challenge for himself: build a $5K/mo SaaS in 6 months with just $5,000."
Nathan Barry is the founder of ConvertKit, an email marketing platform that helps online creators manage their email automation and monetization efforts.
Shai Schechter
Founder of RightMessage ($30K/month)
"We ended up raising a little over $500k, and used it to hire on both the marketing and the product sides to accelerate the journey."
Shai Schechter is the co-founder of RightMessage, a SaaS business that started in 2017 and has quickly grown to bring in $30k per month.
Sophia O'Neal
Founder of Ignore No More ($13K/month)
"I had $5K in the bank when I started. That was it."
Sophia O’Neal is the founder of Ignore No More, a marketing agency that specializes in building un-ignorable brands for SaaS companies.
Phaiboon Trikanjananun
Founder of Taximail ($120K/month)
"The MVP took just 2 weeks to build and cost only $400. I registered the domain and it cost $12.99. It really didn't cost much."
Phaiboon Trikanjananun is the founder of Taximail, an email marketing and automation platform that serves over 5,000 reputable organizations and continues to grow globally.
Enjoyed reading these real world examples?
Our platform is full of case studies of successful email marketing tools that you can learn from.
Starting an email marketing tool - what you should know:
Launching an email marketing tool involves several cost factors that vary based on choices and requirements.
Cost of Development
The initial development cost can range anywhere from $30,000 to $100,000, heavily dependent on whether you opt for a basic version or a more feature-rich tool. If you choose to hire freelance developers, rates usually range from $50 to $150 per hour. Building a team of in-house developers might cost more upfront but offer long-term benefits in terms of consistent maintenance and updates.
Software and Tools
To efficiently develop and maintain an email marketing platform, you will also need to invest in various software licenses and tools. A decent email server can cost around $100-$500 per month. Additionally, integrating third-party APIs, which are crucial for functionalities like tracking and analytics, can range from $10 to $200 per month depending on the services you use.
Hosting and Infrastructure
Cloud hosting services like AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure generally charge based on usage. To handle a moderate volume of emails, you might expect to spend around $200-$1,000 per month. Scaling up will significantly increase your costs, so it's wise to monitor usage and traffic closely.
Marketing and Acquisition
Setting aside a budget for attracting your first set of users is equally important. Paid marketing campaigns, partnerships, and influencer promotions could cost anywhere from $5,000 to $20,000 in the initial months. Don't forget about customer acquisition costs (CAC), which can vary greatly but are generally in the range of $50 to $200 per user.
Ongoing Maintenance
Lastly, keep a budget for ongoing maintenance, which could be around 15%-20% of your initial development costs yearly. This includes updating features, fixing bugs, and ensuring overall system security. Based on a $50,000 initial development, expect to shell out approximately $7,500 to $10,000 per year for maintenance.
By understanding these costs and planning accordingly, you can better manage your budget while starting your email marketing tool.
Potential Costs of Starting an Email Marketing Tool
Starting an email marketing tool involves a variety of costs, including hosting fees, labor fees, software tools, and more. Below is a detailed breakdown of these potential costs.
| Cost Category | Description | Estimated Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Domain Registration | Cost for registering your domain name | $10 - $20 per year |
| Web Hosting | Hosting service to keep your website online | $20 - $100 per month |
| Email Sending Service | Services like Amazon SES or SendGrid for email delivery | $15 - $80 per month |
| Development | Hiring developers to build the tool | $50,000 - $200,000 one-time |
| UI/UX Design | Hiring designers to create user interfaces and experiences | $5,000 - $25,000 one-time |
| Software Licenses | License fees for essential software (e.g., database, analytics) | $500 - $5,000 per year |
| Marketing | Digital marketing, SEO, and promotions | $1,000 - $10,000 per month |
| Customer Support | Hiring staff or using services for customer support | $2,000 - $10,000 per month |
| Legal and Compliance | Costs related to GDPR and other regulations | $1,000 - $5,000 one-time |
| Office Space | Renting an office space (if not remote) | $500 - $2,000 per month |
| Payment Gateway Fees | Fees for processing online payments | 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction |
| Subscription to Email Marketing Tools | Tools like Mailchimp or Constant Contact for features and analytics | $20 - $300 per month |
| Content Creation | Costs for writing blogs, guides, or templates | $500 - $2,000 per month |
| Technical Support and Maintenance | Ongoing support to fix bugs and update features | $1,000 - $5,000 per month |
| Utilities and Miscellaneous | Other unforeseen costs (internet, utilities, etc.) | $100 - $500 per month |
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Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
