How to Send an HTML Email Campaign with Brevo (ex Sendinblue)

Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) is a very popular email platform, especially in Europe. Their free plan allows sending 300 emails per day with unlimited contacts — making it an excellent choice for startups and SMBs.

Brevo has a built-in drag & drop editor, but its templates are limited in terms of design. If you want to use a custom HTML template — created with MailBuildr, for example — here's exactly how to do it.

1. The recommended workflow: MailBuildr → Brevo

1. Create your email in MailBuildr — visual design or AI generation
2. Export the HTML — "Export HTML" button in the editor
3. Import into Brevo — as a template or directly in a campaign
4. Send — after defining your list, subject, and sender

2. Creating a reusable HTML template in Brevo

1. Log in to Brevo and go to Emails → Templates
2. Click "New template"
3. Choose a name for the template
4. In the design selection, choose "Code your own design"
5. You'll have access to an HTML code editor

3. Importing your HTML code into Brevo

1. Copy the complete HTML exported from MailBuildr
2. Paste it into the Brevo editor
3. Click Preview to verify desktop and mobile rendering
4. Click Save

4. Mandatory elements in a Brevo email

• Unsubscribe link — use the Brevo variable: {{ unsubscribe_url }}
• Physical address — your company's postal address (legal requirement)
• Clear sender name — "MailBuildr" rather than "noreply@…"

5. Creating and sending the campaign

1. Go to Emails → Campaigns → Create a campaign
2. Give an internal name to your campaign
3. Design step → choose "My templates" and select the imported template
4. Recipients step → select your contact list
5. Settings step → define the subject, preheader, and sender address
6. Confirmation step → send a test email to yourself to validate
7. Schedule or send immediately

6. Best practices for your Brevo campaigns

• Text/image ratio: aim for 60% text, 40% images max.
• Subject line 35–50 characters: beyond that, it'll be truncated on mobile.
• Preheader: the first ~140 characters shown in the inbox preview after the subject.
• Image size: keep images under 200 KB.
• A/B testing: Brevo allows testing two versions of the same email.

7. FAQ

How do I personalize content in Brevo (first name, etc.)?

Brevo uses Jinja2 syntax for personalization: {{ contact.FIRSTNAME }} will be replaced by the recipient's first name. These variables can be inserted in your template HTML.

What is Brevo's free plan?

The Brevo free plan allows sending 300 emails per day (about 9,000 per month) with unlimited contacts. Emails include the Brevo logo in the footer. Paid plans start at around $25/month for 20,000 emails without branding.