Storefront Notes

Grow your ecommerce store · Email marketing · 3 min read

What Is Klaviyo? Why Email Marketing Isn't Dead

By the Storefront Notes Editorial Team · Updated

Short answer

Klaviyo is a marketing platform for email, SMS and customer data, built mainly for ecommerce. It syncs with stores like Shopify to track purchases and browsing, then lets you send targeted campaigns and automated flows. Email remains valuable because you own the list, it costs little per message and it drives repeat purchases.

Every few years someone declares email marketing dead. Meanwhile, online stores keep using it to drive a large share of repeat revenue. Klaviyo is one of the main reasons email has become so effective for ecommerce: it ties messages directly to what customers do in your store.

What Klaviyo is

Klaviyo is a customer data and marketing platform. Its core idea is simple: collect detailed data about each customer's behavior, then use it to send relevant messages by email and SMS.

When connected to Shopify, Klaviyo syncs:

  • Orders and order value
  • Products viewed and added to cart
  • Customer profiles and properties
  • Checkout starts
  • Email and SMS engagement

That data powers segmentation, automation and reporting.

Key features

Flows (automations)

Prebuilt and custom automations triggered by behavior:

  • Welcome series
  • Abandoned checkout and cart
  • Browse abandonment
  • Post-purchase and review requests
  • Replenishment
  • Winback
  • Back in stock and price drop alerts

Campaigns

One-time sends to lists or segments, with drag-and-drop templates and dynamic product blocks.

Segmentation

Combine conditions like purchase history, location, predicted lifetime value and engagement. For example: "bought twice, not in the last 90 days, opened an email recently."

Predictive analytics

Klaviyo estimates metrics like expected next order date and predicted customer lifetime value, which can drive timing and targeting.

SMS

Text messaging in the same platform, sharing profiles and data with email.

Signup forms

Popups, flyouts and embedded forms for list growth.

Reporting

Attribution of revenue to flows and campaigns, plus benchmarks against similar companies.

Pricing basics

Klaviyo bills based on active profiles. As of 2026:

  • Free plan: up to 250 active profiles and 500 email sends per month
  • Paid email plans: start in the low tens of dollars per month and rise with list size
  • SMS: billed separately through credits

Check Klaviyo's pricing page for current rates; pricing can change.

Why email isn't dead

You own the channel

Social platforms change algorithms and ad costs rise. Your email list stays yours.

Low cost per message

Once you have subscribers, sending another message costs very little compared with paid ads.

Automation compounds

Flows keep working without daily effort, recovering carts and bringing customers back.

Personalization

Data-driven segmentation makes messages relevant, which keeps engagement high.

Retention

Repeat customers are often a store's most profitable segment, and email is a natural channel for reaching them.

Who Klaviyo suits

  • Shopify and other ecommerce stores that want email and SMS as major channels
  • Brands ready to use segmentation and automation
  • Stores that value attribution and reporting

When to consider alternatives

  • Very small stores that want the simplest option might start with Shopify Messaging (formerly Shopify Email)
  • Businesses outside ecommerce may prefer general platforms
  • Budget-sensitive stores may compare costs at their projected list size

See Klaviyo vs Mailchimp, Privy vs Klaviyo and the best Klaviyo alternatives.

Common Klaviyo setup mistakes

  • Skipping domain authentication, which hurts inbox placement
  • Importing old or purchased lists, which leads to bounces and spam complaints
  • Sending every campaign to everyone, instead of engaged segments
  • Running overlapping flows that send several emails in one day
  • Ignoring flow filters, so recent buyers still get abandoned cart emails
  • Never reviewing reports, missing flows that underperform

Fixing these basics often improves results more than building new campaigns.

Getting started

  1. Connect Klaviyo to your store.
  2. Authenticate your sending domain.
  3. Add a signup form.
  4. Turn on welcome, abandoned checkout and post-purchase flows.
  5. Send a regular campaign to engaged subscribers.

For more tips, read 10 tips for Klaviyo email marketing success.

Frequently asked questions

Is Klaviyo free?

Klaviyo has a free plan. As of 2026 it covers up to 250 active profiles and 500 email sends per month. Paid plans scale with active profiles.

Is Klaviyo only for Shopify?

No. Shopify is its most popular integration, but Klaviyo also works with WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Magento (Adobe Commerce) and many other platforms.

Is email marketing still effective?

Yes. Email gives you direct access to customers without paying per click, and automated flows like abandoned cart and post-purchase continue to drive revenue for online stores.

Sources and further reading

Platform features, prices and policies change. Check the official help pages linked above before you act on a detail that matters to your store.

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