Guides · Updated 2026-10-17
beehiiv review for UK small businesses: free plan, prices and who it suits
beehiiv is a newsletter platform: you write an email, it sends it to your list and posts a copy on a simple website that it hosts for you. This review is for UK trades, salons, shops and other small businesses thinking of using it for a regular email to customers. Prices and features come from beehiiv's pricing page, read on 17 October 2026.
We use beehiiv ourselves. The AI Till's daily email is sent with beehiiv, and the past issues are also on this site in our issues archive. Our list is new and small, so we can tell you what it's like to set up and send with, not how it performs with tens of thousands of subscribers.
Affiliate note: the links to beehiiv's website marked "(affiliate link)" on this page are affiliate links. If you sign up through one, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. The free plan costs nothing either way, and we've set out the downsides below on the same terms as in our other reviews. See how we make money.
The short version
- Free plan: up to 2,500 subscribers, unlimited email sends, a hosted website with subscribe forms, and a welcome email. No card needed, beehiiv says.
- Paid plans start at $59 a month (Lite, up to 1,000 subscribers, paying monthly), or $49 a month billed yearly.
- Best for: a business that wants to send a regular newsletter, such as a monthly email to past customers, and have each issue online as well.
- Less good for: text messages, a shop's abandoned-basket emails or anything that needs lots of integrations. Look at Brevo or Mailchimp for those.
- Prices are in US dollars, so the cost in pounds moves with the exchange rate and your card may add a fee.
What the free plan includes
From beehiiv's plan comparison on 17 October 2026, the free plan includes:
- up to 2,500 subscribers and unlimited email sends
- 1 publication, 1 team seat and 1 sender address
- a website builder with templates, 1 custom page and subscribe forms
- a welcome email and email templates
- campaign analytics, with a 30-day lookback
- 3 segments, so you can, for example, split customers by area
What it doesn't include: email automations beyond the welcome email, A/B testing, polls and surveys, and removing beehiiv branding.
One thing to check: the pricing page lists custom domains among the free plan's features, but its comparison table marks custom domains as starting on Lite. If you want the newsletter's website on your own domain, confirm which applies before you build around it.
For most trades, 2,500 subscribers is plenty. A plumber or salon with a few hundred past customers could run on the free plan for years.
What the paid plans cost
Prices from beehiiv's pricing page, 17 October 2026, in US dollars. They rise with your number of subscribers.
| Subscribers | Lite, paying monthly | Lite, billed yearly | Pro, paying monthly | Pro, billed yearly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 1,000 | $59 a month | $49 a month ($588 a year) | $109 a month | $95 a month ($1,140 a year) |
| Up to 2,500 | $79 a month | $69 a month ($828 a year) | $149 a month | $129 a month ($1,548 a year) |
| Up to 5,000 | $109 a month | $95 a month ($1,140 a year) | $199 a month | $169 a month ($2,028 a year) |
| Up to 10,000 | $139 a month | $119 a month ($1,428 a year) | $239 a month | $199 a month ($2,388 a year) |
Larger lists and the custom-priced Enterprise plan are on beehiiv's pricing page. Check the price in pounds, and whether VAT is added, at checkout.
What Lite adds: email automations (up to 10 live), surveys and polls, A/B testing, publishing to segments, 2 team seats, 3 sender addresses, 12 months of analytics, human support and beehiiv's AI writing help in the editor. It also unlocks the ways beehiiv lets you earn from a newsletter (its ad network, paid subscriptions and recommendations), which most trades won't need.
What Pro adds: removing beehiiv branding, unlimited automations, up to 10 publications, 10 team seats, RSS to Send and priority support.
The catches
- US dollar pricing. A UK business pays in dollars on all paid plans.
- Branding stays unless you pay for Pro. Removing it means $109 a month paying monthly, or $95 a month billed yearly, at up to 1,000 subscribers.
- Automations start on Lite. The free plan sends a welcome email, but a sequence such as "thanks for the job, then a review request a week later" needs a paid plan.
- It's built for newsletters, not texts. If you want SMS reminders as well, Brevo does both emails and texts.
- Short analytics history on free. The free plan keeps 30 days of campaign analytics.
beehiiv against the alternatives
| Tool | Free plan | First paid plan, paying monthly |
|---|---|---|
| beehiiv | Up to 2,500 subscribers | Lite $59 a month (1,000 subscribers) |
| Kit | Up to 10,000 subscribers | Creator $39 a month (1,000 subscribers) |
| Brevo | Up to 300 emails a day | Starter $9 a month (5,000 emails a month) |
| Mailchimp | Basic Free plan, suggested for under 250 contacts | Essentials from $13 a month |
Kit, Brevo and Mailchimp prices were read on 15 October 2026; see our newsletter guide for the full comparison and sources. If you want the biggest free list, Kit wins. If you want cheap paid sending, Brevo. beehiiv's strengths are unlimited sends on every plan and a newsletter website that comes with it. Head to head: Kit vs beehiiv, beehiiv vs Mailchimp and Brevo vs beehiiv.
Who you can email
The tool doesn't change the UK rules. Under PECR you need consent to send marketing emails to individuals, unless the soft opt-in covers your own past customers, and sole traders count as individuals. Don't import a bought or scraped list. Our newsletter guide sets out the ICO's guidance in full.
Setting it up in an afternoon
- Sign up for the free plan at beehiiv (affiliate link) and name your publication after your business.
- Add only the contacts you're allowed to email: past customers covered by the soft opt-in, or people who signed up.
- Write a short welcome email saying what you'll send and how often.
- Put the subscribe link in your email signature, on your website and on your Google Business Profile.
- Send your first issue. One seasonal reminder, one recent job and your availability is enough.
An AI assistant can draft the issue from your notes. Try this in ChatGPT or Claude:
Write a short monthly email for my [trade] business in [town] to past customers. Include: [one seasonal reminder], [one recent job], [when I have availability]. Friendly and plain, British English, under 150 words, with a clear way to book. No hype.
Read it through and check every claim before you send it.
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FAQ
Is beehiiv free?
Yes. beehiiv's free plan covers up to 2,500 subscribers with unlimited email sends, and beehiiv says no card is needed. Paid plans start at $59 a month paying monthly, or $49 a month billed yearly, for up to 1,000 subscribers. Checked 17 October 2026.
Does beehiiv charge per email sent?
No. beehiiv's pricing page says every plan, including the free one, has unlimited email sends. You pay by number of subscribers on the paid plans.
Is beehiiv priced in pounds?
No. The pricing page shows US dollars, so check the price in pounds at checkout.
Can I remove beehiiv branding on the free plan?
No. Removing beehiiv branding needs the Pro plan, from $109 a month paying monthly or $95 a month billed yearly for up to 1,000 subscribers.
Is beehiiv good for a tradesperson?
It suits a regular newsletter to past customers, such as a monthly email with seasonal reminders and your availability, and the free plan is big enough for most trades. If you mainly want text messages or automated follow-ups straight away, Brevo or a paid plan elsewhere may suit you better.
Do you earn money if I sign up?
Possibly. We're in beehiiv's affiliate programme, and if you sign up through our link we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. We use beehiiv for our own daily email, which is why we joined. See how we make money.