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It's a split decision.
Choose Constant Contact if you need email, SMS, social and event marketing in one platform. Its listed plans start at $12 monthly or $10.20 per month with annual billing, and caps vary by tier. Choose Format for a hosted creative portfolio, client galleries and a commission-free store. Its Basic plan shows a $14 monthly rate or a $4 annual-billing equivalent, but its pricing page notes promotional annual rates and conflicting FAQ prices. Neither product lists a free plan.
01Side by side
| Constant Contact | Format | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $12 monthly; $10.20/month annually | $14 monthly; $4/month annual equivalent |
| Free plan | No free plan listed | No free plan listed |
| Best for | Email, SMS, social and event marketing | Creative portfolios and client workflows |
| Core strength | Multi-channel campaigns and marketing automation | Portfolio design, galleries and commission-free store |
| Learning curve | Ease-of-use score: 4.5 | Ease-of-use score: 7.5 |
| Integrations/data | Not specified on the vendor's site | Not specified on the vendor's site |
| Team/seat costs | 2 users on Lite; 3 on Standard; unlimited on Premium | User limits not published |
| Support | Support score: 4 | Support score: 5 |
Constant Contact Choose Constant Contact if
- Choose Constant Contact if email and social tools are your starting point.
- Choose Constant Contact if you need SMS and event marketing features.
- Choose Constant Contact if Premium's unlimited users and automations fit.
Format Choose Format if
- Choose Format if you need a hosted creative portfolio.
- Choose Format if client galleries, proofing and file transfers matter.
- Choose Format if you want a commission-free store for products or services.
02Pricing compared
Constant Contact’s listed plans start at $12 per month for Lite, $35 for Standard and $80 for Premium. Annual billing brings those prices to $10.20, $29.75 and $68 per month, respectively. Lite includes 2 users and 1 automation template; Standard includes 3 users and 3 templates; Premium includes unlimited users and automations, plus 500 SMS messages per month. SMS for Lite and Standard starts at $10 per month, and email overages cost $0.002 per send.
Format’s plan cards show Basic at $14 monthly or a $4 monthly equivalent with annual billing; Pro is $24 or $9.35, and Pro Plus is $36 or $14.30. Format says Pro and Pro Plus annual rates are promotional first-year prices, and its FAQ lists different annual prices. Treat those annual figures as provisional. Neither product lists a free plan; Format lists a 14-day trial.
03Features and depth
These products solve different problems. Constant Contact is for marketing to an audience: it combines email campaigns, automation, SMS, social media tools, contact management and event marketing. Its email tools include AI-assisted copy, subject-line testing and scheduled sends. Automation covers examples such as welcome messages, birthdays, re-engagement and abandoned carts. Plan limits matter: Lite has 1 automation template and 1 custom segment, while Standard has 3 templates and 10 segments. Premium lists unlimited custom automations and segments, plus 500 monthly SMS messages.
Format is a portfolio and client-workflow platform, not an equivalent email-marketing suite. It offers customizable portfolio themes, drag-and-drop Flex Blocks, branded galleries, proofing, file transfers, contracts and a commission-free store. Its SEO controls include page titles, meta descriptions and image alt text. Storage and publishing limits differ by plan: Basic has 70 high-resolution images and no hosted video; Pro lists 100 GB storage and 15 hosted video minutes; Pro Plus lists 1 TB and 120 minutes. Choose based on the job: audience campaigns point to Constant Contact; portfolio presentation and client delivery point to Format.
04Ease of use and learning curve
The published reviews favor Format for ease of use, scoring it 7.5, compared with 4.5 for Constant Contact. That is a signal, not a guarantee: Format’s customizable themes and portfolio tools are aimed at creative professionals, while Constant Contact spans several marketing channels and has tier-specific limits to track.
The Constant Contact review flags reported editor problems and gives user sentiment 2.5; Format’s review describes useful portfolio and client tools but says its pricing and caps deserve scrutiny. Neither source establishes how long setup takes or how much training a team needs. If your priority is a straightforward creative portfolio, Format appears to have the easier learning curve on the available ratings. If you need email, SMS, social and events together, Constant Contact covers more channels, but expect to compare plan limits before choosing.
Questions people ask
How hard is Constant Contact to use?
Our review scores Constant Contact 4.5 for ease of use and flags reported editor problems. Its feature set spans email, SMS, social and events, with different automation and segment limits by plan. The available information does not specify setup time or training needs.
What are the four types of email marketing?
There is no single four-type classification in the published product information. Constant Contact lists campaign emails and automated messages, including welcome, birthday, anniversary, re-engagement and abandoned-cart flows. The sources do not define a standard set of four types.
What is the 60/40 rule in email?
The published information does not explain a 60/40 rule for email marketing, so we can’t verify a definition or recommend applying one here. Constant Contact’s listed email features include responsive campaigns, AI-assisted copy, subject-line testing and scheduling.
What size should a Constant Contact email header be?
The published Constant Contact information does not publish a recommended email-header size. It says the platform supports mobile-responsive emails, but gives no pixel dimensions or image specifications. Check Constant Contact’s current documentation for its recommended dimensions before preparing artwork.