The complete guide to better mail merge for Outlook
Traditional mail merge using Microsoft Word is cumbersome and error prone. Thankfully there are many newer options for sending mass personalized email even including advanced features like individual attachments, cc and bcc using a number of additional tools and plugins. We have compiled a list of the most popular ones.
Feature comparison
Feature | Advanced but easy to use mail merge for Outlook that keeps your data safe | Personalized mass email and can track opens, clicks and has unsubscribe features. | HR tool for internal communication with two way mail merge tool. | Cold email automation suite with mail sequences and deliverability tools. | Extends the traditional Microsoft Word mail merge with extra features. | Team template manager with built-in mail merge functionality. | Mail merge is part of the Topalt Outlook suite of add-ins. | Converts an email with many recipients into single email copies to send. | Task based automations for Outlook to perform a wide range of tasks. | Mail Merge with Attachments, CC, BCC and custom Subject and personalized charts. | Free version of ReliefJets automations for Outlook. |
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Outlook Add-In available | Windows, macOS, Web | Windows, macOS, Web | Windows, macOS, Web | No | None, only Word Add-In | Windows, macOS, Web | Windows | Windows | Windows | Windows | Windows |
Free Plan or Trial Period | Unlimited Free Plan | 100 emails | No | 200 emails | 50 emails per run | 60 days trial | 14 days trial | 100 emails | Limited trial | 20 runs | Unlimited Free Plan |
Cost for 1 user (for <10000 emails) | Free / $10 per month | $180 per year | $15 per month | $34+ per month | $30-$99 per year | $16 per month | $20 one time | $70 one time | $20 one time | $30 one time | Free |
Cost for 1 user (for >10000 emails) | Free / $10 per month | $180 per year | Contact sales | $94+ per month | $30-$99 per year | $16 per month | $20 one time | $70 one time | $20 one time | $30 one time | Free |
Mail merge directly from Outlook | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Available on Office Add-In Store | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Data is processed locally | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Sending capabilities
Feature | SecureMailMerge | MailMerge365 | ContactMonkey | SalesHandy | Mail Merge Toolkit | Ablebits Mail Merge | Topalt Mail Merge | Sperry Send Indivually | ReliefJet Essentials | Doug Robbins Add-In | Outlook Freeware |
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From personal Microsoft 365 mailbox | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
From shared Microsoft 365 mailbox | No | No | No | No | Professional version only | No | Only default account | Only default account | Only default account | No | Only default account |
Use email alias | No | No | No | No | Professional version only | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Offline sending | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Send via SMTP | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Other email providers | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Recipients selection
Feature | SecureMailMerge | MailMerge365 | ContactMonkey | SalesHandy | Mail Merge Toolkit | Ablebits Mail Merge | Topalt Mail Merge | Sperry Send Indivually | ReliefJet Essentials | Doug Robbins Add-In | Outlook Freeware |
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Spreadsheet | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | 6 columns max. | No | No | No |
Address book (contacts) | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Text file | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Use email addresses from "To" field | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Sharepoint lists | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Campaign features
Feature | SecureMailMerge | MailMerge365 | ContactMonkey | SalesHandy | Mail Merge Toolkit | Ablebits Mail Merge | Topalt Mail Merge | Sperry Send Indivually | ReliefJet Essentials | Doug Robbins Add-In | Outlook Freeware |
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Send attachments | No | Up to 3MB total email size | Up to 4MB total email size | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Send individual attachments | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Send images | No | Up to 3MB total email size | No | Up to 4MB total email size | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
So which mail merge plugin for Microsoft 365 should you choose?
SecureMailMerge is a great free option for all operating systems (Windows, Web and macOS) if you don't want to download and run a setup program.
MailMerge365 is great if you need to provide recipients with an option to unsubscribe and you want to track clicks to your links.
Doug Robbins Merge Tools Add-In has a learning curve and is not as easy to use as other options, but has the most number of features and a simple one-time license fee.