We searched forever for reviews comparing Flodesk and Kit (formerly ConvertKit) and didn’t find many. Well, if you have been doing the same, you have landed in the right place. We have experienced both and are ready to share our review on comparing the two email marketing platforms.
Remember when we shared our excitement about switching from Mailchimp to Flodesk? Yeah, we are wiping the egg off our faces. After hearing our marketing mentors rave about Kit for the longest time, we tried their free trial and, inevitably, made the switch. Don’t worry, we are going to tell you why!
We’re spilling the beans on why we transitioned from Flodesk to ConvertKit (sorry, even though they changed their name to Kit, it slips out sometimes) and what makes it our new go-to for connecting with you. Get ready for the inside scoop on our email marketing journey to Kit. Whether you are a content creator, blogger, small business owner, entrepreneur, or solopreneur, Kit is the better option as your email service provider and email marketing software.
Flodesk vs Kit- The Basic Pros and Cons
Look, we aren’t going to string you along on this long rant when you are more than likely trying to do some comparisons. We’ll get right to our basic pros and cons list of Flodesk and Kit, then talk about our experience and why we made the switch, leaving Flodesk. Then, we will wrap up with our favorite things about Kit during this first year.
Flodesk Pros
Great Looking Email Templates: Flodesk is known for its visually appealing and customizable email templates that can make your emails pop. Not gonna lie, they are pretty. You know when you get Flodesk emails.
User-Friendly: It’s designed with simplicity in mind, making it user-friendly, especially for those who are new to email marketing. It is very “drag and drop”, making it quick to get an email out that looks fab!
Flat Pricing: With a flat rate pricing model, you don’t have to worry about your costs skyrocketing as your email list grows. This was one of the reasons we made the switch from Mailchimp to Flodesk in the beginning. Unlimited subscribers without the extra cost.
Flodesk Cons
Limited Automation: As aesthetically pleasing as Flodesk is, it has limitations when it comes to advanced automation features compared to other platforms. We will get more into that in a bit.
Learning Curve: For Flodesk, we mean. Flodesk seems to need a period to learn that you are sending legitimate emails. When you import your subscribers from another platform, Flodesk doesn’t trust that you got the email addresses in a legit way, even when you include that information in the spreadsheet (opt-in routes, etc.) So, the first few emails you send out, usually land in the spam boxes of the recipients. Not good.
Lack of Timely Support: Flodesk operates strangely. They want you to immediately get back to them when they think something is odd, but when you need customer support, it often takes days, and for us, once it took two weeks to get our emails working.
The first time we had an important launch, Flodesk shut our workflow down because it was an “odd activity”. Yeah, it was a new launch. We’re convinced the Flodesk team doesn’t exist.
Basic: As we mentioned in the pros… you know when you are getting a Flodesk email. It seems like everyone uses the same beautiful templates, so there is no great way to stand out.
Kit Pros
Advanced Automation: Kit has amazing superpowers in providing visual automation, and specific actions through their features, allowing you to create intricate email sequences and workflows. No more having to integrate Zapier or another automation tool with your email marketing platform. Kit has all of this built-in.
Subscriber Management: The platform makes it easy to manage and tag email subscribers, providing more targeted and personalized communication. You can do this when you are creating segments, or you can do this from your website where the subscriber prompt lives. We will get into that a bit more later, too.
Flexibility for Creators: Kit is tailored for creators, making it ideal for bloggers, podcasters, and other content creators. They have a community supporting creators and this is evident when you begin working your way through the platform.
Better Collaboration: Immediately, you will find that Kit plays well with others. Meaning, that if you have a WordPress site, you will find that there is a plug-in making creating lead magnets and newsletter entry doors much easier than anything else.
Kit is also better for those with shops and who sell digital products. You’ll find Kit has lots of native integrations making it an all-around cohesive team player, especially for online business owners.
Top Notch Support: After sign-up and ongoing as we have been with Kit, we get emails from real people asking about our user experience. They have often suggested great options for things that the Kit team notices could be better or smoother in our processes. Their email support is lightning fast and they have a live chat. Support is an important thing for us.
Kit Cons
Template Design: While functional, Kit’s email template designs are not as visually striking as those in Flodesk. If you have a little creativity skills, though, you can create a beautiful template by making some blocks in Canva or Adobe, and then moving them into Kit.
Pricing Structure: Kit’s pricing is based on the number of subscribers, which may lead to higher costs as your list grows. This is unlike the pricing Flodesk offers which is flat and supports growth.
Motivation to Make the Switch to Kit
The driving force behind our decision to switch to Kit stemmed from our email open rates with Flodesk. As we touched upon in the cons section earlier, Flodesk requires a learning period to establish trust in your sender’s reputation.
Unfortunately, despite our efforts, it struggled to reach the open rates we desired and had achieved in the past. The click-through rates were also never as high as we wanted them to be.
While we appreciate the ease of use and aesthetic appeal of Flodesk, the paramount need to have our emails opened took precedence. The click rates were important to know that people were getting to our website for information we were sharing.
We often reached out asking for help with our email marketing efforts. We attended every seminar they offered with their Flodesk University, but it was evident that it was dated and not personal.
With all of this in mind, we began exploring alternative options for another email marketing service.
Companies that Offer Free Trials
Most email marketing platforms and marketing software offer a certain number of days of free trial. The issue we found is that many did not allow you to actually try it out with an email to your subscribers, or your whole list.
The companies that we tried out were those that offer a free trial or a free plan and allow an email to be created and sent. Just so you are aware, when you are making a switch to another email platform, the best option is to try out the different elements offered.
Even without a lot of time, you can work through their email builder, and see their welcome sequence, and automation. Get a good picture of your email marketing strategy functioning in their platform.
A free trial is the best way to do this!
ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign doesn’t offer a true free plan. This can be a disadvantage for individuals or small businesses looking for a cost-free option to get started with email marketing.
It does offer powerful automation features, but the complexity of setting up advanced automation workflows may be challenging for some users. We didn’t feel it was worth the time and effort without a free plan.
MailerLite
MailerLite did not offer the same breadth of integrations as many email marketing platforms. This may be useful for someone who doesn’t want any of that.
If you are looking for a basic, plain text email with no frills subject lines, this is your route There just didn’t seem to be the advanced features we want and need.
MooSend
We wanted to like this one. MooSend? Can this name be any more adorable?
At the end of the day, while Moosend offers segmentation features, we have more complex segmentation needs and found certain functionalities lacking when compared to more advanced solutions from other platforms.
Brevo (formerly Send in Blue)
We sent an important email out using Brevo and liked the open rate and almost made the switch to this platform. However, the customization options on the email templates are not as extensive or flexible as those of some other platforms. If highly customized designs are not a big deal to you, then Brevo may be your go-to platform!
Since we have used Constant Contact and Mailchimp in the past, we knew we did not want to work with those.
Our Favorite Things about Kit
Kit has become the unsung hero of our email marketing journey. We know it sounds cheesy but it is real! We feel like we finally found a platform that not only understands creators but understands us and our needs.
From an interface that feels like a breeze to navigate to automation wizardry that’s as powerful as it is intuitive—Kit has us hooked. We are going to go through our favorite features that turned Kit into one of our top recommended productivity platforms for our business.
1. Intuitive and User-Friendly Interface
One of the standout features for us is Kit’s user-friendly interface. Navigating through the platform is a breeze, making email marketing tasks a joy rather than a chore.
The main dashboard can seem a little overwhelming at first, especially after being with Flodesk, but you soon realize that the basic level of Flodesk wasn’t a good thing.
2. Creator-Centric Approach
Kit understands the needs of creators, and it shows in the platform’s features. From simplified subscriber management to tools tailored for content creators, Kit aligns seamlessly with our goals.
It is especially nice that when you are creating a landing page, you don’t have to re-create everything over again the way you do in Flodesk. Landing pages and pop-ups (Kit calls them modal forms) are easy to create and so are the workflows.
3. Advanced Automation Made Easy
Automation is a game-changer, and Kit nails it. The platform’s automation capabilities are robust yet remarkably easy to implement. Crafting intricate email sequences has never been more straightforward.
As we mentioned earlier, you don’t need Zapier when it comes to Kit. It is a feature that is built in. When this happens, do this. That is how it works.
One of the newest things we have been paying attention to lately is the new Kit MCP feature, especially as AI tools become more integrated into the way creators and bloggers actually run their businesses.
If you have heard people talking about MCP lately and thought, “Wait… what even is that?” you are not alone. MCP stands for Model Context Protocol, and Kit’s new MCP integration is basically designed to help creators connect their email marketing data and workflows with AI tools in a much smarter way.
What makes this interesting to us is that email marketing is no longer just about sending newsletters. Creators are now using AI to help organize content ideas, build workflows, manage audience segmentation, brainstorm lead magnets, and even streamline repetitive tasks that normally eat up hours of the week.
The fact that Kit is already leaning into this direction says a lot about where the platform is headed.
One thing we have always appreciated about Kit is that it tends to think ahead for creators instead of playing catch-up later. The launch of Kit MCP feels like another example of that. While many email marketing platforms still feel stuck in old-school automation, Kit seems focused on how creators actually work now.
If you run a blog, podcast, newsletter, online shop, or content business like us and are already experimenting with AI tools like ChatGPT or Claude, this is definitely worth paying attention to.
You can learn more about the new Kit MCP HERE.
Honestly, this is one of those updates that makes us feel even better about making the switch from Flodesk to Kit in the first place. The platform keeps evolving in ways that actually feel useful for creators instead of adding random features nobody asked for.
4. Transparent and Predictable Pricing
We appreciate Kit’s transparent pricing model. It’s based on the number of subscribers, providing clarity and predictability in our email marketing costs as our audience grows. We don’t love that part, but we do love the transparency. We should say that it is better than most platforms which increase when you grow.
5. Community Support and Resources:
Being part of the Kit community has been a valuable experience. The platform not only offers excellent customer service and support but also fosters a community where creators can connect, share insights, and grow together. That is one of our top favorites of Kit.
6. Seamless Migration Process
Transitioning from Flodesk to Kit was surprisingly smooth. The migration tools and support provided made the process hassle-free, allowing us to focus on what matters most—connecting with our audience. In fact, they brought over our subscriber list for us, for free. Yep!
7. Personalization and Targeted Communication
Kit empowers us to create personalized and targeted communication with our subscribers. The ability to tailor content based on subscriber preferences enhances the overall engagement and impact of our emails.
8. Amazing Analytics
You cannot get more robust analytics than what Kit offers. We can see how many times the pop-ups (modal forms) fire, how many times someone goes to our landing pages, how engaged our subscribers are, and just so much more. We sorta get lost in a rabbit hole as we maneuver through the available analytics. That is rare when it comes to an email marketing platform.
These are just a few of the reasons why Kit has become our go-to email marketing platform. Each feature aligns with our vision of connecting authentically with our audience, and we couldn’t be happier with our choice.
Kit is the Clear Winner!
Look, there are a lot of popular email marketing platforms out there. When it comes to the best choice, it really does depend on your priorities as a business. If some of the Kit Pros and our favorite things about Kit resonate with you, then the better choice is evident.
The proof is in the pudding, ahem, analytics, and we could not be happier with our decision to make the switch from Flodesk to Kit.
It took a little bit of work upfront to get our Flodesk forms re-created in the Kit landing page templates and modal forms (pop-ups). Once it was complete, we immediately gained new subscribers from hour one. Two days in, we sent our first email out, and our open rate, click rate, and conversion rates were all higher than they have ever been.
Give Kit a try. They have their free version, you can maneuver around, test out all the similar features, and new features, and make the decision for yourself. We think we know how it will go!
FAQs | Frequently Asked Questions
If we were to start over and understand what our needs would end up being, we wish we would go right into Kit. You don’t know what you don’t know. If you are new and have big goals for growth, go with Kit. If you aren’t sure and just want to send basic emails, no frills, maybe go with a month-to-month option with something simple like Flodesk. The process of switching is more difficult the more processes you have in place, but it was worth it to us.
Zapier’s automation is wonderful but we have found that we do not need it with Kit. With that being said, we use it for other automation in our business and life. If you were only using it for email marketing software, you won’t need it anymore.
Yes! There are easy-to-follow videos and step-by-step guides to introduce you to all that Kit has to offer.
