Ecommerce SMS platforms compared
Brevo and Constant Contact are both email platforms that added SMS, and for an online store the question is not which sends prettier newsletters but which can actually run SMS as a revenue channel. This comparison puts both side by side on where SMS is available, what it costs, what ecommerce features are gated, and how each reports on revenue, so you can see which fits your store and where a platform built for messaging fits alongside them.
Best for: businesses that want email, SMS, CRM and a sales pipeline from one vendor and sell in more than one country.
Plans from $9 per month. SMS credits sold separately, and WhatsApp only from the $499 tier.
Rating for ecommerce
Best for: small US businesses that want simple email marketing with SMS attached and one person running it.
Lite $12, Standard $35, Premium $80 per month. SMS marketing is US customers only.
Rating for ecommerce
Best for: established ecommerce brands that want WhatsApp and SMS run as a revenue channel, with every order attributed to the message that drove it.
One usage based rate per message, unlimited users, platform and managed service included.
Rating for ecommerce
The full comparison
Everything below is taken from what each company publishes about itself. Where a vendor does not publish something, the cell says so instead of guessing.
| Capability | BrevoBusiness suite | Constant ContactSMB email | ZefirRevenue platform |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you are actually buying | |||
| Product category | Business suiteEmail, SMS, chat, CRM and a sales pipeline in one account | SMB email toolEmail marketing for small businesses, with SMS attached | Managed channelAI WhatsApp and SMS revenue platform built for ecommerce |
| What the pricing is built around | Email volumePlans step up by emails per month, from 5,000 to 150,000 | ContactsPlans step up by contacts, with send limits of 10x to 24x your list | Messages sentOne regional rate per message, nothing else metered |
| Who operates the channel | Your team | Your team | Zefir operates itChannel built and operated by Zefir, per their pricing page |
| Channel coverage | |||
| SMS availability | InternationalSMS included from the Starter plan, credits bought separately | US customers onlySMS marketing is restricted to US customers | InternationalOne regional rate per message by destination |
| $499 per month tierWhatsApp appears only on the Professional plan | Not listedNo WhatsApp channel published | YesNative, on the same rate as SMS | |
| YesFrom 5,000 emails per month on Starter | YesSend limits of 10x, 12x or 24x your contact count by plan | Not a channelZefir runs alongside your existing email platform | |
| Ecommerce and revenue | |||
| Ecommerce automation | Professional tierAdvanced ecommerce features start at $499 per month | Premium tierEcommerce automation templates arrive on the $80 Premium plan | IncludedBuilt only for ecommerce |
| Per order revenue attribution | Contact scoringRFM and CLV scoring on Professional, per order attribution not published | Not publishedReporting is built around campaigns, not orders | IncludedEvery order attributed to the exact message that made the sale |
| Abandoned cart flows | From StandardMarketing automation on the $18 plan and up | Premium tierCustom automations and ecommerce templates on the $80 plan | Built for youFlows live within the first week, copy written in your brand voice |
| Product recommendations | Professional tierAI recommendations, back in stock alerts and coupons from $499 per month | Not published | IncludedAI decides the product and the timing per customer |
| Automation and AI | |||
| Automation on the entry plan | Not on StarterMarketing automation begins on the $18 Standard plan | One templateLite includes a single automation template | Built for youZefir builds the flows rather than handing you a builder |
| Automation at the top plan | Included | Unlimited templates and custom automationsOn the $80 Premium plan | Built for you |
| AI features | Professional tierAI segmentation and an AI data analyst from $499 per month | Standard tierAI campaign builder from the $35 plan | On every messageAI personalization applied to every send |
| Pricing model | |||
| Entry price | $9 per monthStarter, from 5,000 emails per month | $12 per monthLite | NoneUsage based only, full platform included |
| Mid tier | $18 per monthStandard | $35 per monthStandard | NoneUsage based only, full platform included |
| Top published tier | $499 per monthProfessional, 10 seats, from 150,000 emails | $80 per monthPremium | NoneUsage based only, full platform included |
| Published SMS rate | Not publishedSMS credits sold separately with no per message rate on the pricing page | Not publishedNo per message SMS rate on the pricing page | Quoted to volumeOne regional rate covering SMS, WhatsApp and AI conversations |
| Users included | 10 on ProfessionalMulti user access is a Professional tier feature | 1 to 3One user on Lite, three on Standard | Unlimited |
| Hidden line items to budget for | ThreeSMS credits on top, WhatsApp gated at $499, Sales Advanced at $58.50 per user per month | TwoSMS credits on top, and send limits tied to your contact count | No hidden feesPlatform, managed service and unlimited users are all inside the per message rate |
| Team, scale and control | |||
| Cost of the second user | Upgrade to $499Multi user access is gated to Professional | Upgrade to $35Lite includes a single user | $0 |
| What a dormant list costs you | Counts toward tierPlans step up with contacts and email volume | Counts toward tierPricing and send limits are both tied to contact count | NothingYou pay per message sent, never per contact stored |
| Compliance and support | |||
| Compliance handled for you | Not publishedDeliverability specialist time on Professional, no TCPA service | Not published | ManagedTCPA and Meta compliance managed as part of the service |
| Who writes the message copy | You do | You do | Zefir doesFlow copywriting in your brand voice, included |
Weighted scorecard
The weighting below is built for an established ecommerce brand doing seven figures a month. Change the buyer and the ranking changes, so the weights are printed rather than hidden.
Head to head
Neither platform publishes a per message SMS rate, which for a channel sold as SMS marketing is the finding rather than an omission on our part. What they do publish is where SMS works and what it sits behind.
The first question is not price. It is whether SMS is available to you at all, and on one of these two it depends on where your business is registered.
| Line item | BrevoBusiness suite | Constant ContactSMB email | ZefirRevenue platform |
|---|---|---|---|
| Can you use SMS at all | YesFrom the Starter plan | US customers onlySMS marketing is restricted to US customers | YesInternational, priced by destination region |
| Per message rate published | Not published | Not published | Quoted to volume |
| Platform fee before sending | $9 to $499Depending on which features you need | $12 to $80Depending on plan | $0 |
| Ecommerce automation included there | From $499 | From $80Premium plan | Included at any volume |
| Users at that price | 1 until $499 | 1 on Lite, 3 on Standard | Unlimited |
Both platforms put the ecommerce features a real store needs on their top tier, and both start with a single user.
| Capability | BrevoBusiness suite | Constant ContactSMB email | ZefirRevenue platform |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marketing automation | From $18 | One template on Lite, three on Standard | Built for you |
| Ecommerce templates | From $499 | From $80 | Included |
| More than one user | From $499 | From $35 | Unlimited |
| From $499 | Not available | IncludedSame rate as SMS | |
| Revenue per order | Not published | Not published | Included |
The decision
Find the row that sounds like your business. The recommendation is the honest one, not the convenient one.
| Your situation | Pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| You are a small US business sending simple campaigns | Constant Contact | Lite at $12 per month with SMS available and a single user is the cheapest honest starting point. |
| You sell outside the United States | Brevo | Constant Contact restricts SMS marketing to US customers, so it is not an option at all. |
| You want email, CRM and a sales pipeline from one vendor | Brevo | The only one of the three that publishes a CRM and sales product alongside marketing. |
| SMS is a revenue channel, not a newsletter add on | Zefir | Both competitors sell SMS as a credit on an email plan and neither publishes a rate. |
| You have to prove what the channel earned, to the dollar | Zefir | Every order attributed to the exact message that made the sale. Neither of the other two publishes this. |
| Your list is large and mostly dormant | Zefir | You pay per message sent, not per contact stored or per seat. |
| You want the channel live without hiring anyone to run it | Zefir | Setup, flows, templates and copy are built for you, and the channel is live within 72 hours. |
| BFCM is coming and cash flow is tight | Zefir | Post paid billing on a credit line scaled to volume, seasonal peaks included. |
The third option
Both are email platforms first. SMS is a credit you buy on top, which is why neither publishes a rate and neither reports what the channel earned. Zefir publishes 1,000 plus ecommerce brands on the platform, more than $530M in WhatsApp attributed revenue, and an average revenue increase of 12 to 15 percent measured per order.
Both sell SMS as a separate credit and neither shows a per message rate on its pricing page. For a channel marketed as SMS marketing, that makes budgeting impossible before you talk to sales.
Zefir quotes one regional rate covering SMS, WhatsApp and AI conversations, with no platform fee underneath it.
Brevo puts AI recommendations, back in stock alerts and coupons on the $499 plan. Constant Contact puts ecommerce automation templates on the $80 Premium plan. On the entry plans, neither is an ecommerce product.
Zefir is built only for ecommerce, with nothing gated by tier.
Brevo scores contacts. Constant Contact reports on campaigns. Neither publishes attribution from a specific order back to the specific message that caused it, which is the number a finance team asks for.
Zefir attributes every order to the exact message that made the sale.
If you already picked one
The subscriber list and the consent behind it are the two things that matter. Everything else is rebuildable.
| What moves | Leaving Brevo | Leaving Constant Contact | Arriving at Zefir |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subscriber list and consent | Exportable | Exportable | Imported, compliance reviewed |
| WhatsApp number and WABA | Check ownershipConfirm the number is registered to you, not to the provider | Check ownership | Migration handledSetup and templates handled as part of onboarding |
| Message templates | Re approval neededTemplates are approved per provider | Re approval needed | Rewritten and submitted |
| Automations and flows | RebuildNo cross platform format exists | Rebuild | Rebuilt for you |
| Historical reporting | Export before you leave | Export before you leave | Starts freshAttribution begins from the first message sent |
Frequently asked
Zefir connects your store, builds the WhatsApp and SMS channel, and attributes every order to the message that produced it. Live within 72 hours.
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All nine sit on the WhatsApp and SMS comparison hub.