Email Marketing Voodoo compares email service providers and related tools using what the companies publish: pricing pages, plan limits, feature lists, help centres and developer documentation. This page explains which criteria we use, how we read industry benchmark reports, how we source news, and how we fix mistakes. We are a new, independent site, and we would rather show our method than ask for your trust.
What we cover
We write about the tools people use to send email and the rules that decide whether it arrives. That includes:
- Email service providers for newsletters and marketing campaigns
- Transactional email services and sending APIs
- Deliverability tools, such as authentication checkers, blocklist monitors and inbox placement services
- List verification and hygiene tools
- Supporting software like form builders, landing page tools and CRM integrations
What our reviews are based on
Our reviews and comparisons are research-based. We read and compare what each provider publicly documents about its product. We do not claim to have run test accounts, sent test campaigns or measured inbox placement for the products we write about, and we won’t describe a product as “tested” unless that is literally true for that page.
This shapes how we write. When a vendor says its platform does something, we report it as the vendor’s claim and point to where it’s documented. When documentation is vague or missing, we say so instead of filling the gap with guesses.
The criteria we compare
We look at the same core areas for every provider so comparisons line up.
| Area | What we look for | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Entry price, how cost scales with contacts or sends, overage rules, annual vs monthly terms | Official pricing pages and plan terms |
| Free plan | Contact cap, monthly or daily send limit, branding requirements, locked features | Official plan pages and help docs |
| Deliverability features | SPF, DKIM and DMARC setup, custom sending domain, dedicated IP options, one-click unsubscribe support | Help centres and setup guides |
| Automation | Trigger types, branching, time delays, which plans include it | Feature pages and documentation |
| Integrations | Native connections, API access, webhooks, which plans unlock them | Integration directories and API docs |
| Support | Channels offered, which plans get live help, published response commitments | Support and plan pages |
| Documentation | Coverage, clarity, whether it’s current and searchable | The docs themselves |
Pricing
Email pricing is rarely a single number. Most providers charge by contact count, some by send volume, and plenty mix both. We compare cost at the same list sizes across providers and flag anything that changes the real bill, such as charging for unsubscribed contacts or requiring an annual commitment to get the advertised rate. We note the currency and the date we checked, because pricing pages change often.
Free plan limits
A free plan with 1,000 contacts and a daily send cap is a very different thing from one with a monthly cap and no automation. We list the actual limits, mention required footer branding, and name the features that sit behind a paywall.
Deliverability features
No provider can promise inbox placement, and we treat any page that implies otherwise with suspicion. What we can compare is whether a platform gives you the tools to send properly. Since February 2024, Google and Yahoo have required bulk senders to authenticate mail with SPF and DKIM, publish a DMARC policy, offer one-click unsubscribe and keep spam complaint rates low. We check how clearly each provider documents these steps and which plans allow a custom sending domain or a dedicated IP.
Automation and integrations
We describe what automation is available on each plan, since this is one of the most common places where a cheap plan turns out to be limited. For integrations, we separate native connections from ones that rely on a third-party connector, and we note whether API access is available on lower tiers.
Support and documentation
We report the support channels each provider says it offers and which plans include them. Documentation gets its own weight because it’s often what you’ll lean on most. A provider with thorough, current setup guides for domain authentication earns credit for it.
How we keep comparisons fair
- Same snapshot. Prices and limits in a comparison are gathered over the same period, and each page shows when it was last checked.
- Same scenarios. We compare plans at matching list sizes and send volumes rather than each vendor’s preferred example.
- Trade-offs stated. A tool that’s cheaper but lacks automation is described as exactly that. We name who a tool suits and who it doesn’t.
- Recommendations aren’t for sale. No company can pay to rank higher or to change what we write. If a page ever earns a commission from a link, that page will say so clearly.
How we read benchmark reports
Our monthly benchmarks report summarises published industry data on open rates, click rates, unsubscribe rates, bounce rates and similar metrics. We don’t generate these figures ourselves. We read what providers and research firms publish and explain what the numbers can and can’t tell you.
For every source we cite, we state:
- Who published it and whether they sell an email product
- The sample, such as the number of accounts or messages analysed, when the report discloses it
- The time period the data covers
- How metrics are defined, especially open rates, which have been inflated by Apple Mail Privacy Protection since 2021
- The limits, such as a sample drawn only from one provider’s customers or a report that doesn’t disclose its methodology
Two reports can show very different “average” open rates because they measure different senders in different ways. When sources disagree, we show both figures and explain the likely reason instead of picking the more flattering number.
How we source email news
News on this site comes from two places: the companies’ own announcements, and credible reporting from established outlets. That means official blogs, changelogs, press releases, help centre updates and policy pages from providers, mailbox providers like Google, Yahoo and Microsoft, and standards bodies.
We tell you which is which. A confirmed change from a provider’s own documentation is reported as fact. A report from a trade publication is attributed to that publication. Something that only appears in forums or social posts is labelled as unconfirmed, or left out if we can’t find support for it. We don’t publish rumours about pricing or policy changes as if they were settled.
What we will never recommend
Some advice gets sent to the spam folder for good reason, and we won’t give it.
- Buying, renting or scraping email lists. Purchased lists damage sender reputation, raise complaint rates and break the terms of service of nearly every reputable provider.
- Skirting anti-spam law. We won’t suggest ways around the US CAN-SPAM Act, Canada’s CASL, the EU’s GDPR and ePrivacy rules, the UK’s PECR or comparable laws elsewhere.
- Deceptive tactics. That covers misleading subject lines, hidden or broken unsubscribe links, sender spoofing, and tricks designed to evade spam filters rather than earn the inbox.
When we write about compliance, we explain what the rules require in plain terms. We aren’t lawyers, and for decisions with legal consequences you should get advice specific to your situation.
Keeping pages current
Email tools change their pricing and plans frequently. We revisit comparison and review pages and update them when we spot changes, and each page shows the date it was last reviewed. If a provider discontinues a plan or feature, we update the page or note the change instead of leaving outdated details in place.
Corrections
We get things wrong sometimes, and we want to know when we do. If you spot an outdated price, an incorrect plan limit or a factual error, please contact us through the site with the page and the details.
When we confirm an error, we fix it promptly. For anything that changes the substance of a page, such as a wrong price, a misattributed claim or an incorrect conclusion, we add a short note explaining what was corrected and when. Minor fixes like typos are corrected without a note.