GetResponse vs Kit (ConvertKit): Marketing Suite vs Creator Platform
Our Pick
Split — GetResponse for marketing automation, Kit for creators
If you’re choosing between GetResponse and Kit (formerly ConvertKit), here’s the short answer: GetResponse is the Swiss Army knife. Kit is the scalpel. GetResponse does more things. Kit does fewer things better.
We’ve been monitoring both platforms for three years and actively using them for different projects. GetResponse powers marketing campaigns with complex automation sequences. Kit powers newsletters with clean, creator-focused workflows. They overlap on email, but their philosophies diverge everywhere else.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | GetResponse | Kit (ConvertKit) |
|---|---|---|
| Free Tier | Up to 500 subs (limited) | Up to 10,000 subs |
| Starting Paid | $19/month (1,000 subs) | $29/month (1,000 subs) |
| Email Templates | 200+ designed templates | Minimal — text-focused design |
| Automation | Advanced visual builder | Good, tag-based |
| Landing Pages | Yes, drag-and-drop builder | Yes, simpler builder |
| Webinars | Built-in (paid plans) | No |
| E-commerce | Conversion funnels, stores | Creator commerce (courses, downloads) |
| Newsletter Monetization | No native | Paid newsletter subscriptions |
| SMS Marketing | Yes | No |
| AI Features | AI email generator, subject lines | AI subject line suggestions |
| Deliverability | 95%+ | 96%+ |
| Best For | Marketing teams, e-commerce | Creators, bloggers, course sellers |
ELI5: Email Automation — Setting up a chain of emails that send themselves based on what people do. Someone signs up? They get a welcome email. They click a link? They get a follow-up. They don’t open anything for 30 days? They get a re-engagement email. You build it once, it runs forever.
Pricing at Scale
This matters more than features for most businesses. Here’s what you’ll actually pay:
| Subscribers | GetResponse (Email) | GetResponse (Automation) | Kit (free) | Kit (Creator) | Kit (Creator Pro) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | $19/mo | $59/mo | Free | $29/mo | $59/mo |
| 5,000 | $54/mo | $95/mo | Free | $79/mo | $111/mo |
| 10,000 | $79/mo | $114/mo | Free | $100/mo | $140/mo |
| 25,000 | $174/mo | $209/mo | — | $166/mo | $227/mo |
| 50,000 | $299/mo | $369/mo | — | $259/mo | $379/mo |
Kit’s free tier (up to 10,000 subscribers) is the elephant in the room. If you’re a creator starting out, you can run a newsletter to 10,000 people for free. GetResponse can’t match that.
Where GetResponse Wins
Marketing Automation That Goes Deep
GetResponse’s automation builder is genuinely powerful. Multi-step workflows with conditions, triggers, filters, scoring, tagging, and branching logic. “If subscriber opened email A AND clicked link B but did NOT visit pricing page in the last 7 days, send email C and add to segment D.” Kit has automation, but GetResponse’s visual builder handles more complex scenarios with less workaround.
Built-In Webinars
No other email platform at this price point includes webinar hosting. GetResponse lets you run live and on-demand webinars, with registration pages, reminders, and follow-up sequences all integrated. If webinars are part of your marketing strategy, this feature alone could justify choosing GetResponse over Kit plus a separate webinar tool at $50+/month.
More Visual Email Design
GetResponse offers 200+ email templates with a proper drag-and-drop editor. Image blocks, countdown timers, product showcases, video embeds. For e-commerce brands and marketing teams that need designed emails (not plain-text newsletters), GetResponse gives you more visual options without needing HTML skills.
SMS Marketing
GetResponse includes SMS as a channel alongside email. Trigger SMS messages within automation workflows, send promotions, appointment reminders. Kit doesn’t offer SMS. If your audience responds to text messages (and statistically, they open 98% of them), this is a significant advantage.
ELI5: Email Deliverability — The percentage of your emails that actually reach people’s inboxes instead of getting caught by spam filters. Think of it like postal mail — deliverability is your success rate at getting letters into mailboxes instead of having them returned to sender.
Where Kit Wins
The Free Tier Is Absurd
Ten thousand subscribers for free. That’s not a trial — that’s a complete email platform for most small creators. You get email broadcasts, landing pages, basic automation, and subscriber management. The paid features (automated sequences, integrations, premium support) matter, but many creators never need them.
Built for Creators, Not Marketers
Kit’s entire UX is designed for one person sending a newsletter. No overwhelming dashboards, no feature bloat, no certification courses needed. Write an email, pick who gets it, send it. The tag-based subscriber management is intuitive — add tags for interests, segment by tags, done. GetResponse’s interface assumes marketing knowledge that many creators don’t have.
Newsletter Monetization
Kit lets you charge for newsletter subscriptions directly. Set up a paid tier, paywall certain content, manage subscribers’ payment status — all within the platform. If your newsletter IS your business (like Substack competitors), Kit is one of the few email platforms that treats paid subscriptions as a first-class feature.
Plain-Text Emails Convert Better
This is counterintuitive but well-documented: plain-text emails often outperform designed emails for engagement and deliverability. Kit’s text-first design philosophy isn’t a limitation — it’s a feature. Kit emails look like personal messages, not marketing blasts. For solo creators building a personal brand, that distinction drives higher open rates and fewer spam flags.
ELI5: Subscriber Tags — Labels you stick on your email subscribers to remember things about them. Like putting colored stickers on folders: green for “bought my course,” blue for “interested in cooking,” red for “VIP.” Then you can send emails to just the “green sticker” people.
Pick GetResponse If…
- You’re a marketing team running multi-channel campaigns (email + SMS + webinars)
- Complex automation sequences are central to your strategy
- You need designed email templates with visual elements
- E-commerce integrations and conversion funnels are important
- You want one platform instead of stitching together multiple tools
- Your list is between 5,000-25,000 subscribers (pricing sweet spot)
Pick Kit If…
- You’re a solo creator, blogger, or course seller
- You want the simplest possible email platform
- You’re starting out and need a generous free tier
- Plain-text, personal-feeling newsletters are your style
- You want to monetize your newsletter with paid subscriptions
- You value clean UX over feature count
The Bottom Line
GetResponse is for marketers. Kit is for creators. GetResponse gives you more tools. Kit gives you more focus. GetResponse has better automation. Kit has a better free tier.
In our testing, we found that the “right” platform depends entirely on who’s using it. A marketing agency would be frustrated by Kit’s simplicity. A solo newsletter writer would be overwhelmed by GetResponse’s complexity. Neither platform is objectively better — they’re built for different humans.
Our recommendation: If you’re one person writing a newsletter, start with Kit’s free tier. You might never need to leave it. If you’re running a business that needs marketing automation, lead scoring, webinars, and SMS — GetResponse is the better value compared to cobbling together separate tools for each function.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GetResponse better than Kit (ConvertKit)? ▼
GetResponse offers more features — landing pages, webinars, e-commerce tools, and advanced automation. Kit (formerly ConvertKit) is a simpler, more focused platform built specifically for newsletter creators and course sellers. GetResponse is better for marketers who need a complete suite. Kit is better for creators who want simplicity.
How does pricing compare at different list sizes? ▼
At 1,000 subscribers, GetResponse starts at $19/month and Kit is free. At 10,000 subscribers, GetResponse is $79/month and Kit is $100/month. At 50,000 subscribers, GetResponse is $299/month and Kit is $259/month. GetResponse is cheaper at mid-range, Kit is cheaper at the very small and very large ends.
Which platform has better email deliverability? ▼
Both platforms have strong deliverability rates above 95%. Kit has a slight edge for plain-text style newsletters because its emails look less like marketing blasts to spam filters. GetResponse performs well with both designed templates and plain-text formats.
Can I sell digital products with GetResponse and Kit? ▼
Yes, both platforms support digital product sales. Kit has a more streamlined commerce feature built specifically for selling newsletters, courses, and downloads. GetResponse offers broader e-commerce integrations and its own conversion funnel builder.