What is Retainful?
Retainful is an ecommerce marketing platform that combines email and WhatsApp messaging to recover lost sales and drive repeat purchases for online stores. It connects to Shopify and WooCommerce and runs automated flows such as abandoned cart reminders, welcome series, order follow-ups and win-back emails. The focus is on revenue from existing traffic rather than general newsletter sending.
Alongside automation, Retainful includes campaign newsletters, signup forms and popups, segmentation by purchase history, and unique coupon codes generated inside flows. Revenue is attributed to each flow, channel and campaign. Pricing is simple: a free plan for small lists and a paid plan that scales with contact count, with the same feature set on both. The founder named on the site is Ramesh Subramanian.
For store owners, the appeal of Retainful is that it covers the revenue-driving basics without a steep learning curve or a large monthly bill. Templates, prebuilt flows and onboarding help mean a small team can launch cart recovery and welcome emails in an afternoon, then layer in segmented campaigns and WhatsApp messages once the core automations are running.
Retainful at a glance
How does Retainful work?
- Connect your store
Install Retainful on Shopify or WooCommerce so it can read customers, carts and orders.
- Turn on core flows
Enable prebuilt automations such as abandoned cart recovery, browse abandonment, welcome emails and post-purchase follow-ups.
- Grow your list
Add popups and forms, including exit-intent and add-to-cart popups, to capture emails and phone numbers.
- Send and measure
Send campaigns to segments, add WhatsApp messages where useful, and review revenue by flow and campaign.
Retainful key features
Abandoned cart recovery
Automated email and WhatsApp reminders bring shoppers back to carts they left behind.
Email automation
Unlimited workflows cover welcome series, order follow-ups, thank-you messages and win-back flows.
WhatsApp marketing
Send cart reminders and order updates on WhatsApp, paying Meta directly for conversations with no Retainful markup.
Dynamic coupons
Generate unique discount codes inside flows to encourage the next purchase.
Popups and forms
Over 100 prebuilt designs for welcome, exit-intent, add-to-cart and embedded forms.
Segmentation
Group contacts by purchase history, order value and behavior to target campaigns.
Revenue analytics
Reports attribute revenue to each flow, channel and campaign so you can see what pays off.
Templates and onboarding
More than 200 email templates, personalized onboarding and a dedicated success manager help new users launch flows quickly.
Why use Retainful?
- Every feature is available on the free plan, so small stores can start without paying.
- Paid pricing scales gradually with contacts.
- WhatsApp messaging adds a channel many email tools lack.
- Onboarding help and live chat support are included.
- Migration paths are offered from tools such as Klaviyo and Mailchimp.
Who is Retainful best for?
A good fit for
- Small WooCommerce stores
- Shopify merchants on a tight budget
- Stores selling in WhatsApp-heavy markets
- Brands switching from pricier email tools
Less suited to
- Stores on platforms other than Shopify or WooCommerce
- Brands that rely heavily on SMS marketing, which the pricing page does not list
- Very large senders above 150,000 contacts who need self-serve pricing
Retainful pricing
| Pricing model | Freemium |
|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes |
| Free trial | Not confirmed |
| Starting price | $14/month (up to 1,000 contacts) |
The free plan includes 500 emails per month. The paid plan adds $4/month per extra 500 contacts with an email limit of ten times contacts, and lists above 150,000 contacts get custom pricing.
Prices checked October 2026. Vendors change plans often, so confirm on the official Retainful pricing page before you buy.
Retainful pros and cons
Pros
- Full feature set on the free plan
- Low, predictable contact-based pricing
- Email and WhatsApp in one dashboard
- Onboarding and support included
Cons
- Limited to Shopify and WooCommerce
- SMS is not part of the listed offer
- Fewer third-party integrations than larger platforms, beyond the two supported store builders
Retainful integrations and platforms
Works with
Available on
Retainful alternatives
See the full shortlist in Best Email Marketing for Shopify.
Retainful FAQ
Is Retainful free?
Yes. Retainful has a free plan that includes all features with a limit of 500 emails per month. The paid plan starts at $14 per month for up to 1,000 contacts and rises by $4 for each additional 500 contacts. WhatsApp messages are billed by Meta directly, without a Retainful markup.
What is Retainful used for?
Retainful is used by online stores to recover abandoned carts and win repeat sales through automated email and WhatsApp messages. Store owners also use it to send newsletters, collect emails with popups, segment customers by purchase behavior and generate unique coupon codes that encourage the next order.
Does Retainful work with Shopify?
Yes. Retainful works with both Shopify and WooCommerce. Once connected, it reads cart, customer and order data from the store so automations such as abandoned cart reminders and post-purchase follow-ups can trigger automatically and report the revenue they generate.
Retainful vs Klaviyo: what's the difference?
Klaviyo is a larger email and SMS platform with deep data tools and a wide integration library, aimed at brands of many sizes. Retainful is a simpler, lower-cost option for Shopify and WooCommerce stores, with all features on every plan and built-in WhatsApp messaging. Retainful also offers help migrating from Klaviyo.
Is Retainful good for beginners?
Retainful suits beginners because it offers prebuilt flows, more than 200 email templates and over 100 popup designs, plus personalized onboarding and live chat support. Store owners can switch on abandoned cart and welcome flows quickly, then add campaigns and segments as they learn.
Sources
This overview is based on Retainful's official website and documentation, checked October 2026.