Compare/Head to head

Constant Contact vs Mailshake

Same facts, side by side: starting price, free tier, MCP, API and what each one is actually built for.

Starting price

Constant Contact

$12/mo 30 day free trial

Permission based email marketing for staffing firms and HR teams that send a candidate newsletter, job alert or client update to people who opted in. Lite starts at $12/mo for the smallest contact tier, with a 30-day free trial capped at 100 sends and live phone support on every plan. It does not allow bought, rented or scraped lists, so it is a nurture tool, not a cold outreach tool.

Where Constant Contact fits

  • Staffing firms sending a monthly candidate or client newsletter
  • Recruiters running hiring events or open houses with sign ups
  • HR teams emailing a talent community that opted in
  • Small teams that want phone support while they learn

Mailshake

$25/mo

Simple email campaigns, drips and follow-ups for small outreach teams, from $25/mo billed annually. You bring your own mailbox, and there is no free trial.

Where Mailshake fits

  • Small sales or recruiting teams sending drips
  • Agencies that want simple campaigns, not infrastructure
  • Buyers who will bring their own mailbox
  • Teams that do not need LinkedIn in the sequencer

At a glance

DetailConstant ContactMailshake
Starting price$12/mo$25/mo
Free tier–No–No
Free trial30 day free trialNot on record
MCP server✓Yes–No
Public API✓Yes–No
Listed underRecruitment marketing, OutreachLead generation, Outreach
Capterra4.3 from 2,951 reviews4.6 from 161 reviews

Where they pull apart

Constant Contact

Stands out: Event registration with payments sits on every plan, so a hiring event, open house or career fair can be promoted, booked and followed up from the same contact list. Live phone and chat support is included even on the $12 Lite plan.

Watch out: Contacts must have opted in: purchased, rented or scraped lists are against its rules, so sourced candidate or prospect lists cannot be emailed from it. Price rises with contact count, sends over the monthly allowance cost $2 per 1,000, and Lite allows one user and one automation.

Not the right fit for

  • Cold outreach to sourced candidates or prospects
  • Teams that need ATS sync of candidate records

Mailshake

Stands out: Straightforward drips without a mailbox-farm product to manage.

Watch out: No free trial. The vendor takes payment up front.

Not the right fit for

  • Teams farming dozens of sending accounts
  • Buyers who want a free trial or MCP

Pros and cons

Constant Contact

  • Live phone and chat support on every plan
  • Event registration and payments built in
  • 30-day trial with no credit card
  • No bought, rented or scraped lists allowed
  • Price climbs with contact count
  • Lite has one user and one automation

Mailshake

  • Simple drips with your own mailbox
  • Clear public pricing
  • A/B testing and warmup from the entry plan
  • No free trial
  • No MCP
  • Email only, no LinkedIn channel

What each one costs

Constant Contact

$12/mo

Lite starts at $12/mo with one user, one automation template and sends up to 10x your contacts each month. Standard starts at $35/mo with three users, scheduling, A/B subject line tests, resend to non-openers, the AI campaign builder and sends up to 12x your contacts. Premium starts at $80/mo with unlimited users, automations and segments, dynamic content, 500 SMS a month and sends up to 24x your contacts. Each price rises with contact count, sends over the allowance cost $2 per 1,000, and prepaying 12 months saves up to 15%. SMS on Lite and Standard is a US only add-on from $10/mo. The free trial lasts 30 days with up to 100 sends and needs no credit card. Confirm current terms on the vendor site.

Checked 9 Oct 2026

Mailshake

$25/mo

Starter is $25 per month billed annually, or $29 monthly, with one sending address and 1,500 sends. Email Outreach is $45 billed annually ($49 monthly) and Sales Engagement, which adds a phone dialer, is $85 billed annually ($99 monthly). Agency pricing is quoted. The vendor says there is no free trial and payment is taken up front. Confirm current terms on the vendor site.

Checked 4 Nov 2026

Common questions

Is Constant Contact cheaper than Mailshake?
Constant Contact starts lower, at $12/mo against $25/mo for Mailshake. That is the entry plan on each side, so the real number depends on seats and the tier you land on.
Can you try Constant Contact or Mailshake for free?
Neither carries a free tier on our listing. Constant Contact offers a 30 day free trial.
Does Constant Contact or Mailshake have an MCP server?
Constant Contact ships a first party MCP server, so an AI assistant can work the product directly.

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Editorial listings, never paid rankings. Prices checked 9 Oct 2026. Confirm current terms on the vendor site. Spot an error?