A Knak alternative that keeps your own HTML.
Modular Mail is a CMS for email. Your developer marks the editable parts of the HTML templates you already have with one attribute, data-mm, your marketers build each campaign by filling in fields, and the finished HTML is pasted into Marketo, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Braze or whichever ESP sends it.
Send us one of your Knak emails when you book and we'll rebuild it before the call.
The autumn edit is here
Waxed jackets, wool layers and trail boots for the wet months.
Why teams look for a Knak alternative
Knak is a well-built platform, and most teams on it stay. Litmus found that 78% of teams now produce and deploy an email in three days or less, so a production tool has to earn its place against a process that's already quick. These are the reasons we hear when a team starts looking.
We used to wait three to five days for dev to update our email templates. Now my team builds campaigns in an afternoon. Same custom designs, zero technical dependency.
Modular Mail and Knak at a glance
| What | Knak | Modular Mail |
|---|---|---|
| Where templates live | Knak's no-code builder, built from its modular design system | Your own HTML, with one data-mm attribute on each editable part |
| Bringing in existing HTML | An AI import that creates a draft in the Knak builder; Knak says the result isn't exact | The HTML is used as written and never rewritten |
| Building a campaign | Marketers assemble from pre-approved modules in the builder | Marketers add modules, drag them into order and fill in fields |
| Brand control | Built-in brand guardrails | Styles stay in the template's HTML; fields carry limits and approved options |
| Review and sign-off | Comment, review and approve in one place | Comments on the email or one part of it, review requests and approval on record |
| Getting it to your ESP | Direct sync to Marketo, Eloqua, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Pardot, Braze, HubSpot and more | Copy or download the HTML, for any ESP |
| Translation and landing pages | Both built in | Neither |
| Who it's built for | Enterprises with 500 or more people, in Knak's words | Marketing teams and agencies of any size |
| Pricing | On request | Published on our pricing page |
Knak's details are from knak.com and help.knak.io, checked on 3 November 2026. Modular Mail isn't affiliated with Knak. Updated 3 November 2026.
What moving from Knak looks like
Template conversion is part of onboarding on every plan. If you still have the HTML your templates were built from, the job is marking it up; if not, we rebuild from an exported Knak email.
When to stay with Knak, and when to switch
Modular Mail has no direct connector to Marketo or any other ESP, no translation and no landing pages. If those are the reasons you bought Knak, it's still the right tool.
Knak is the better fit if
- You push emails into Marketo, Eloqua or SFMC through a connector and don't want to paste HTML
- You send the same campaign in several languages
- You build landing pages in the same tool as email
- You're a large enterprise with regional teams and a central brand function
Modular Mail is the better fit if
- Your templates are HTML a developer or agency built, and you want them kept that way
- One team sends from one or two ESPs and pastes HTML in already
- You want the price before the first call
- You'd like template setup done with you as part of onboarding
Is Modular Mail cheaper than Knak?
Knak doesn't publish prices, so we can't put the two side by side. Ours are public: Starter is sized for one team with 2 editors, Team for 10, and Enterprise for agencies and larger companies. Reviewers are free on every plan. See pricing
Can you convert our Knak templates?
Yes. Template conversion is part of onboarding. If you have the original HTML, we or your developer mark the editable parts with data-mm. If the templates only exist in Knak, we rebuild them from an exported email, module by module, and scope the work with you at kickoff.
Does Modular Mail push emails into Marketo the way Knak does?
No. You copy or download the HTML and paste it into Marketo, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Braze or any platform that accepts HTML. There's no connector, which also means there's nothing to break when the ESP changes its API.
Will our emails look different after switching?
No. The template is your HTML with the editable parts marked, so the design stays as it was coded. The only thing that changes is who can edit it.
What about brand guardrails?
The guardrails are in the template. Fonts, colours and spacing are written into the HTML and can't be edited in a campaign. Where a marketer needs a choice, the developer sets it up as a field with approved options, such as three button colours or a 40-character headline limit.
Can clients and stakeholders approve emails?
Yes. Reviewers comment on the email or on one module, and approve it, and the campaign records who approved what and when.
Is Modular Mail also an alternative to Stensul?
Yes, for the same kind of team. The differences on this page apply to Stensul too, and the Stensul page covers it in its own terms. Modular Mail as a Stensul alternative
What other ways are there to let marketers edit our HTML?
Four, broadly: your ESP's own editable regions, importing the HTML into a visual builder such as Stripo or RGE Studio, a developer on every change, or an email CMS. They're compared on one page. How to let marketers edit HTML email templates
Can we try it without an account?
Yes. Every template in the library opens in the editor with no sign-up, so you can fill in fields, reorder modules and export the HTML before you talk to anyone. Open a template
See one of your Knak emails in Modular Mail.
Send us a recent campaign and we'll rebuild it as a Modular Mail template before the call, so you can judge the editor on your own design.