Growing an email list is essential if you want to develop a successful email marketing strategy.
Do you want to get the best WordPress plugin for this? Or just need something to help you create opt-in forms, or maybe you want a full-featured email list building plugin offering features like split-testing, lead magnet delivery, multi-step, and so on?
There are so many plugins in the market today that can satisfy your needs, but choosing one might be confusing.
You will discover in this article eight of the best WordPress email list building plugins and how to choose the right one.
Are you ready? Let’s go.
Thrive Leads
One of the most feature-rich WordPress email subscription plugins on the market is Thrive Leads.
This plugin offers a drag & drop editor that allows you to design and deploy opt-in forms. It comes with 60+ customizable templates that can be used to create the perfect opt-in form from scratch.
You can then choose the way you want your forms to be displayed and set certain form types to appear based on triggers like exit intent, time on page, or other triggers.
Forms can be displayed on specific posts and pages or through categories, tags, etc. Also, you can create dedicated forms for mobile and desktop.
On Thrive Leads, you can run A/B tests to determine what will convert for your audience, duplicate a form to test copy and design changes, or test different forms against each other to get maximum conversions.
Also, Thrive Leads provides you with in-depth reporting and analytical insights to enable you to better understand what forms are performing and where your most converting traffic will come from.
Key Features:
- Supports virtually all types of opt-in forms: It includes forms specific for mobile, 2-step forms, in-content forms, popovers, slide-ins, after post forms, content lockers, widgets, ribbons, and more.
- API integrations and Custom HTML forms: It supports most email providers. However, with Custom HTML forms, you can connect anyone that isn’t supported.
- Uses SmartLinks to boost conversions: You can display different content to people who have signed up to your email list. This is great to boost product sales after people have joined your mailing list.
Pricing:
Thrive leads plans start from $67 for a year of support and lifetime updates. They also have a membership plan which unlocks additional plugins like quizzes, landing pages, and more).
ConvertPro
Created by Brainstorm Force, the company that created the Astra Theme and Schema Pro plugin.
ConvertPro is a popular WordPress opt-in form plugin that allows you to deploy a wide variety of opt-in form types through its drag and drop editor. You can also leverage many behavioral and targeting trigger options.
You can use some of the common form types such as popovers, slide-ins, widgets, etc. And even the advanced types like the yes/no forms, multi-state, and content locking.
A host of email service providers are supported, which include Mailerlite, ActiveCampaign, ConvertKit, Aweber, SendinBlue, MailChimp, and more.
ConvertPro is a modular plugin, which means while it comes with many features, you can disable the ones that are not useful to you.
With this, you can improve your website performance. Some of the modules that can be disabled include things like reporting, A/B testing, email integrations, etc.
With its advanced targeting functionality, you can create forms that target specific countries like EU countries, or non-EU countries, for example. You will also need to target particular devices such as phones and desktop PCs.
Key Features:
- Advanced Display Triggers: the plugins come with the widest selection of display triggers, which include inactivity, time on page, scroll to CSS class, exit intent, and more.
- Advanced Targeting Functionality: This ensures the right forms are displayed to the right people when they visit your website. Target forms to particular pages, posts, or taxonomies. There is also geographical targeting available.
- Modular plugin design: This enables you to boost website performance by turning off features you don’t need.
Pricing:
ConvertPro for unlimited websites is $99. However, there is the agency plan which comes with access to all of their products, which include Astra Pro, Schema Pro, and more priced at $249.
ConvertBox
When it comes to lead generation tools, there are some hidden gems you will find if you look well. One of them is ConvertBox. It is a SaaS platform that connects directly to WordPress.
ConvertBox has one of the simplest interfaces of the tools on the market for creating email sign up forms.
Within minutes, you can open the editor, create a form, and publish it. Although it doesn’t provide many templates to choose from, the ones it has worked great.
You can create several form types, such as sticky bars, slide-ins, popovers, and full-page forms. The creators continue to update it with new features from time to time, and in-content forms are part of their road map for the development of the plugin.
With ConvertBox, you can run A/B split tests quickly by duplicating an already existing form, display your forms, the URL you have chosen or exclude.
Some of the targeting rules you need to know include device type, location, website, URL strings, referring, and more.
However, what stands out uniquely when compared to all other plugins is the ease of setting up multiple forms where each answer can assign subscribers to a different tag, group, or list.
When used for email segmentation funnels, this can be extremely powerful.
Key Features:
- API integrations and custom HTML forms: it supports most email service providers, but if yours isn’t, then there is the custom HTML form option.
- Advanced display and targeting options: this display forms as the users are about to leave, on a timer, link click, etc. Then select the exact page and the targeting options to use, such as location, referring website, etc.
- Real-time analytics: With real-time analytics, you can see just how your forms and split-tests are performing. You can see anything from leads to views, and conversion rates, as well as interactions.
Pricing:
You can get a lifetime plan of $395available for a limited time. It supports more than 500,000 monthly impressions and over 50 websites.
Besides this plan, there is also a pro account upgrade of $95 for a combined total one-time fee of $490.
Bloom
Created by the team at Elegant Themes, Bloom is one of the full-featured list building plugins for WordPress.
You can use this plugin to add up to six unique types of opt-in forms which include popovers, fly-ins, widgets, inline forms, below post forms, and content lockers.
It doesn’t come with a visual editor or even a live preview like what ConvertPro and Thrive Leads offer but the edit is not difficult to use.
You can access templates from their large template library, but most of them look quite similar.
You can connect unlimited email accounts, and there’s a custom HTML form option for providers that do not have direct API integration. Also included are good analytics functionality and targeting features.
Key Features:
- Simple editor with many templates: although the editor is not a drag & drop editor, however, it’s easy to use.
- Built-in form analytics: provides all you need to monitor performance.
- Advanced targeting: display opt-in forms on specific pages, posts, and categories. Exclude from specific pages when needed.
Pricing:
Bloom costs $89/year for an unlimited number of websites and access to all other Elegant Themes products, which include the popular Divi theme, a social sharing plugin and more.
WP Subscribe
WP Subscribe is a free, extremely lightweight opt-in form plugin for WordPress that is designed to be as simple as possible.
To use this plugin, just install it and activate it, then go to your widgets page and add the widget to the widget area you like.
It’s fairly limited, so if all you are looking to do is add basic opt-in forms to widget areas, it could just be all you need.
The plugin also has a pro version that provides the option of changing colors, displaying exit-intent popovers, and much more.
Key Features:
- Support for several email providers: Currently supported email providers are MailChimp, AWeber, and Feedburner.
- Simple opt-in forms: you can easily add an opt-in form to widget areas on your WordPress website.
- Pro version adds extra features and integrations: The pro version includes additional integrations for MailRelay, MailPoet, Mailerlite, Mad Mimi, GetResponse, and more.
Pricing:
Bloom is free to try, but the pro version goes for $29 for one website and $59 for unlimited websites.
WP Notification Bar Pro
With WP Notification Bar Pro, you can easily add notification bars to the top or bottom of your WordPress website.
You can have your opt-in form displayed within notification bars, or display a text and a button that links to one of your landing pages. Also, you can display text to social media profiles, or even a timer.
With this plugin, you can choose where on your website you’d like your notification bars to be displayed, and who to display to.
For example, you can decide to have certain bars display on mobile, but hidden on the desktop, or you could have specific bars created for specific search engine visitors.
You can also set a priority in instances of multiple bars appearing on a single page. This ensures visitors don’t see multiple bars.
This plugin has a free version that can be used to link to landing pages or display custom content but it has no opt-in form functionality.
Key Features:
- A/B split testing: Use this to discover what will convert best for your audience.
- Basic analytics: Helps you track the notification bars that are being clicked on the most.
- Supports most of the popular email providers: supported email providers include MailChimp, AWeber, GetResponse, Campaign Monitor, Constant Contact, Benchmark, ActiveCampaign, Sendinblue, Drip, ConvertKit, Mad Mimi, and more.
- Unique bar types: These include opt-in form, text, timer, button, social profiles, and more.
Pricing:
WP Notification Bar Pro is $29 for one website. But for $59, you can unlock unlimited websites.
MailChimpForWordPress (MC4WP)
With Thrive Quiz Builder, you can easily create viral quizzes that generate traffic and email subscribers.
Many people underrate quizzes, but this content is capable of turning more than 5000 monthly visitors every month.
Quizzes are easy to create and social sharing built-in can make it viral. Then with the traffic coming in, you can build your email list.
To use Thrive Quiz Builder, simply choose a quiz template, customize the pages, then add your questions and answers.
With powerful analytics, you can see how well your quizzes have performed, and where people have dropped off.
Key Features:
- Show personalized offers to your readers: Don’t guess what your readers want, instead ask them. Then use their answers to deliver relevant content.
- Easily segment your email list: It is important to segment the email list to get the performance from the list.
- A/B test critical quiz stages to boost conversions: Boost performance by A/B testing your splash page, opt-in forms, opt-in gate, and results pages.
- Integrates with popular email providers: With Thrive, there are many API integrations for popular providers such as Mailerlite, ConvertKit, ActiveCampaign, Drip, and more.
Pricing:
Thrive Quiz Builder is $67 for unlimited updates and one year of support.
Thrive Quiz Builder
As you might have guessed already, MailChimp for WordPress helps in connecting your WordPress website with your MailChimp account.
MailChimp offers a free tool to easily add opt-in forms to your website. Although it doesn’t have a lot of big features, it, however, add small features you might not find on other plugins.
For example, a “tick to subscribe” box can be added to content forms, registration forms, checkout pages on WooCommerce, and more.
You can fully control every form field and easily customize colors to blend with your website branding.
Key Features:
- Easy way to add opt-in forms: It is easy to integrate with basic customization.
- Click to subscribe to tick box feature: You can add tick boxes to comments, registration forms, and more.
- Integrates with other popular plugins: MailChimpIntegrates nicely with other well-known plugins like WooCommerce, WPForms, Contact Form 7, Gravity Forms, MemberPress, BuddyPress, and more.
Pricing:
MailChimp for WordPress is entirely free.
Choosing The Best WordPress Mailing List Plugin That’s Right For You
Choosing the best WordPress mailing list plugin depends on what your needs are, what you want to accomplish, and how you want to accomplish them.
You should consider that you might save a fair bit of hassles in the future with a need that might arise by getting a plugin that offers a litany of features.
For the best opt-in form for WordPress, Thrive Leads is great as it balances costs, features, and usability, but if you are looking for an alternative to Thrive Leads, then go for ConvertPro.
Both are also affordable, with Thrive Leads being the cheapest for opt-in forms for a single website, but more expensive for more sites.
ConvertPro, on the other hand, offers a more affordable solution for unlimited sites at $99 a year, with other discount deals available.
While Thrive Leads offers the absolute biggest bang for your buck Bloom is not far behind.
While Thrive Leads offers the best A/B testing system and the most display options, Bloom provides great functionality and access to the Elegant Themes tools.
If you are looking to create opt-in forms and landing pages, Thrive Leads and Thrive Architect are great options as they have been built to work with each other.
As a matter of fact, they use the same editor, which makes it easier to learn compared to being two separate plugins. Other alternatives are ConvertPro and OptimizePress, which are both extremely lightweight.
If a free mailing list plugin is what you are looking for, one of the best is WP Subscribe from MyThemeShop. It supports MailChimp, AWeber, and Feedburner.
Conclusion
With the right plugins, it is easier to build an email list. The WordPress mailing lists we have discussed in this article will make it easy for you to collect emails, generate leads, building landing pages, and do much more.
You can take advantage of their unique features and strategies to improve sign up conversions and grow your list quickly.
Having said that, go right ahead and start picking your plugins and building your email list today.
