Klaviyo Pricing 2025: Updated Plans, Cost Breakdown & Alternatives

Klaviyo pricing in 2025 has increased again, thus making e-commerce email and SMS marketing more expensive than ever, especially for SMBs already operating on thin margins. 

The new Klaviyo pricing tiers are complex, confusing, and can quickly eat into your budget if not understood properly.

So, is Klaviyo worth the cost in 2025? Which plan fits your business needs without draining profits?

In this guide, we’ll break down everything you need to know about:

• Klaviyo pricing changes & recent hikes
• Explain pricing plans and tiers
• Assess if Klaviyo is viable for small businesses
• Best Klaviyo alternatives to cut costs

Klaviyo Pricing Changes & Increases (2023–2025 Timeline)

The existing Klaviyo pricing 2025 tiers as of August are:

Contacts	Pricing per month (Email Plan)
2000 Contacts 25,000 emails/month	$60/month
20,000 Contacts 200,000 emails/month	$375/month
50,000 Contacts 500,000 emails/month	$720/month
100,000 Contacts 1,000,000 emails/month	$1380/month

March 2023 Klaviyo Pricing Update:

Klaviyo implemented further price increases for top-tier customers. The company also reinforced the policy of capping email sends at 10 times the number of active profiles.

February 2025 Klaviyo Pricing Update:

Three changes in the Klaviyo pricing structure after the hike are:

1. Billing based on active profiles and email sends
2. Auto-upgrades and downgrades
3. 90-day suppression jail

Let’s see how these new Klaviyo pricing changes affect you.

1. Billing based on active profiles and email sends

As of the recent Klaviyo pricing update 2025, the pricing will now include all active profiles in your list, even if you don’t email or SMS them regularly.

For example, if you have 5000 active profiles and send only 30,000 emails in a month, you have to pay for 50,000 emails.

Another drawback of the updated Klaviyo pricing model is that there is limited flexibility for low-volume email senders. Brands with low send volumes but large lists are penalized under this model since they pay for active profiles regardless of how many emails they send.

Also, Klaviyo billing’s ‘Active Profiles’ include all email addresses that are not unsubscribed, such as unconfirmed newsletter sign-ups, spam contacts, and inactive recipients who no longer read your emails.

2. Auto-upgrades and downgrades

According to the new Klaviyo pricing hike, your plan will automatically upgrade or downgrade to match your active profile count each billing cycle.

Auto upgrades for existing customers will be capped at a 25% increase – unless you downgrade your plan.

3. 90-day suppression jail

If you have manually suppresses a profile, you can’t suppress the same profile again for next 90 days.

Klaviyo Pricing Plans & Tiers Explained

The Klaviyo pricing structure has 3 primary plans and 2 additional plans for Reviews and CDP.

Here is a breakdown of each Klaviyo cost per month plan and tiers.

1. Klaviyo Free Plan (Limitations & Who It Suits)

In the Klaviyo free plan details, email sends are limited to 500 emails/month and you can import 250 contacts. You also get free 150 SMS credits and unlimited push notifications.

In Klaviyo Free plan, you get only email support for the first 60 days.

2. Klaviyo Email Pricing Plan

Klaviyo email pricing 2025 plan starts at $20/month for 251-500 active profiles, and you get 150 free monthly SMS/MMS credits and unlimited push notifications.

Here is an overview of the Klaviyo cost by number of contacts plan.

3. Klaviyo Email + SMS Pricing

1250 SMS credits cost an additional $15 than the Email plan – bringing the total Klaviyo Email + SMS plan cost to $60.

Here is why Klaviyo SMS pricing 2025 is tricky:

SMS credits	Email + SMS plan Pricing/ month
10,000 SMS credits + 15,000 emails	$135
20,000 SMS credits + 100,000 emails	$330
50,000 SMS credits + 20,000 credits	$825

Here is why Klaviyo SMS pricing is tricky:

Klaviyo SMS pricing uses a credit-based system for SMS marketing, where each SMS message consumes a certain number of credits.

• Overpaying for Low-Volume SMS Users
  Since Klaviyo SMS pricing is based on credits rather than contact size, businesses that send fewer SMS messages may still be forced to pay per message rather than having their costs scaled according to their contact list or volume.
• Charges a fixed cost per SMS message
  Klaviyo uses a credit-based system for SMS marketing, where each SMS message consumes a certain number of credits. You cannot customize or change how credits are applied – every message sent is simply deducted from the available credits.
• No refunds or carry-overs for unused email/SMS credits to the next billing cycle

4. Klaviyo Reviews Pricing

By using this Klaviyo Reviews pricing plan, you can collect, display, and manage your product reviews.

Klaviyo Reviews pricing is based on how many orders are placed in your store each month. It costs $25 for 250 orders.

Here is how Klaviyo Reviews pricing tier scales:

Monthly orders	Pricing
1000	$90
10,000	$500
25,000	$1000
100,000	$2000

5. Klaviyo CDP & Advanced Data Platform Pricing

Klaviyo’s advanced features cost includes advanced analytics features, including RFM analysis, funnel analysis, and customizable customer lifetime value (CLV) reports.

The Klaviyo CDP pricing plan starts at $500 per month for managing up to 100,000 profiles.

Is Klaviyo Pricing Best for Small Businesses & Startups

As your contact list grows, Klaviyo cost for ecommerce startups can become expensive. The Klaviyo monthly pricing for small businesses starts at $20/month for 500-1,000 contacts, but it increases quickly as you add more contacts or send more emails.

If you’re just starting out and need basic email marketing features, some of the Klaviyo features may feel like overkill and you may not be able to fully utilize them.

The email automation capabilities in Klaviyo are top-tier, but small businesses should use it only if they plan to scale quickly and afford the fat bill to justify the Klaviyo pricing 2025.

Businesses with longer purchase cycles where frequent emailing is not needed will be affected by ‘active profile-based pricing where the price escalates even if the email frequency is low.

Related Reading: Explore more email marketing software and their detailed comparison in our blog: 10 Best Email Marketing Software Comparison and Review

How to Reduce Klaviyo Billing (Cost-Saving Tips)

Here are some workarounds you can do to reduce Klaviyo billing costs:

• Manually suppress inactive profiles
• Send a sunset flow
• Maintain list hygiene

Klaviyo Alternatives: Best Pricing Options in 2025

Our list of affordable Klaviyo alternatives for DTC and their comparison is:

Explore more: Read a detailed comparison of all the best Klaviyo alternatives and their pricing in our blog – 10 Best Klaviyo Alternatives for E-commerce (+Comparison)

Klaviyo vs Retainful Pricing

Retainful is an all-in-one omnichannal marketing software tailor-made for e-commerce.

Easy-to-setup SMS, WhatsaApp and email automation, segmentation, sign-up forms – it has everything you need to acquire, nurture, and retain customers.

In Retainful, simplicity is part of the package:

• Dead simple pricing
• Truly reliable customer support
• Billing based on active/suppressed profiles
• Free SMS and WhatsApp credits of $1 with Free and Starter pack, $49 recurring credit with Growth pack.
• No learning curve

How affordable Retainful is compared to Klaviyo?

Up to 57% more affordable than Klaviyo – sending 2,000 emails costs only $26, while Klaviyo costs $60.

Here is a comparison between Klaviyo pricing tiers and Retainful pricing:

Here are the reasons why Retainful is the best budget email marketing tool vs Klaviyo.

Compare and Decide: Read our detailed comparison on Retainful vs. Klaviyo: Klaviyo vs. Retainful – Which is better?

Klaviyo vs Mailchimp Pricing

Mailchimp pricing is a more budget-friendly option, especially suitable for small businesses or those just starting with email marketing.

Check out pricing and feature comparison between Klaviyo and Mailchimp: Klaviyo vs Mailchimp – Which One Offers More Value?

Is Klaviyo more expensive than Mailchimp?

Yes. Sending 10,000 emails in MailChimp costs $19.40, while Klaviyo costs $35.

Here is a comparison between Klaviyo pricing plans and MailChimp pricing.

Contacts and Email sends	Mailchimp (Standard plan)	Klaviyo (Email plan)
Free plan	500 contacts Max of 1,000/mo or 500/day	250 contacts 500 emails/month
5000 contacts	$33.30	$100
10,000 contacts	$43	$150
50,000 contacts	$132	$720

Is Klaviyo Worth the Price in 2025?

If you are looking for marketing automation software that handles everything – from advanced automation, segmentation, analytics, and data platforms without any budget constraints, choose Klaviyo.

Apart from the fact that Klaviyo’s advanced features cost more, frequent Klaviyo pricing changes, and complex Klaviyo pricing structure, specifically push many businesses towards affordable Klaviyo alternatives for SMBs that are cost-effective and suit their niche.

Additional Klaviyo fees and Klaviyo hidden costs include:

• SMS overage charges
• Advanced analytics features
• Klaviyo One enterprise pricing for large-scale operations
• Platform migration costs

Spend 64% less on email marketing with Retainful – simple pricing, easy-to-use, and tailor-made for ecommerce.

Final Verdict: Choosing the Right Klaviyo Alternative

Klaviyo 2025 pricing is overwhelming for small businesses that have a limited budget and need simple automation capabilities that don’t require a steep learning curve.

To reduce Klaviyo billing costs, you can either start cleaning your email list or look for a better budget email marketing tool vs Klaviyo.

For example, unlike Klaviyo pricing plans, Retainful doesn’t charge you for suppressed profiles. Affordable Klaviyo alternatives for SMBs like Retainful have a better offering for doing omni-channel marketing for ecommerce.

Also Read:

• 8 Best Mailchimp Alternatives in 2024
• 8 Best Email Capture Software Compared
• 9 Best WordPress Email Marketing Plugins (+ Comparison Chart)

Frequently Asked Questions