ActiveCampaign vs Mailchimp
We give ActiveCampaign a 2.4 GPA and Mailchimp a 2.8, out of 4.0. Mailchimp grades higher on ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
ActiveCampaign
Email marketing and multi-step automation priced by contacts
Mailchimp
Email and SMS marketing with automations, priced by contact count
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAActiveCampaignFair | 2.8GPAMailchimpGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C$15 a month for 1,000 contacts on yearly billing, or $19 monthly, a little above the middle of what email tools charge. Starter has 1 user and 5 actions per automation, though. Unlimited steps and landing pages need Plus at $49, and Starter is $149 a month at 10,000 contacts. | CEssentials is $13 a month for up to 500 contacts, right at the middle of what email tools charge. It climbs with the list, though, to $110 a month at 10,000 contacts, and flows longer than 4 steps need Standard at $20. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan at all, but there's a 14-day trial with no credit card needed. Long enough to build an automation or two and see if it clicks. | CFree for 250 contacts and 500 sends a month, with 1 seat and limited templates. You'll pass 250 contacts quickly, and then sending pauses until you upgrade or trim the list. Paid plans have a 14-day trial. |
| Features | BMulti-step automations, a drag-and-drop designer with 250+ templates and A/B tests, segmentation, forms, reports and AI drafting. It covers the whole job. SMS, WhatsApp, transactional email and sales pipelines cost extra on top. | BCampaigns, templates, popup forms, landing pages, up to 200 automated flows, segmentation, dynamic content, multivariate testing on Premium and an SMS add-on. That's the whole email marketing job. |
| Ease of use | CNo App Store rating on record, and this is a web app where the work is building automations and segments. Powerful, but expect a learning curve before it pays off. | A4.85 from 51,677 App Store ratings, the top band by a long way. The phone app can even build and send an email or scan a business card into your contacts. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, but it connects to Shopify, WooCommerce, WordPress, Salesforce, Stripe, Slack, Zapier and Calendly, and has an API. No desktop or phone app is listed. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Shopify, WooCommerce, Canva, Zapier, Square, Wix, Squarespace and Stripe, and an API. No desktop app, which keeps it off an A. |
| Best for | long automated email sequences | newsletters and promo emails for small businesses |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: ActiveCampaign and Mailchimp. How we grade
Price against what you get
ActiveCampaign starts at $15 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Mailchimp starts at $13 a month and scores 3.3.
Mailchimp scores higher and starts $2 a month lower. Of the other email marketing and newsletter tools on the chart, 3 score higher than ActiveCampaign for less, and none scores higher than Mailchimp for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- ActiveCampaign starts at $15 per month for up to 1,000 contacts, billed annually ($19 monthly). Mailchimp starts at $13 per month for up to 500 contacts, billed monthly.
- Mailchimp has a free plan. ActiveCampaign does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Mailchimp lists iOS and Android apps.
- ActiveCampaign also covers sales pipeline.
At a glance
| ActiveCampaign | Mailchimp | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $15 per month for up to 1,000 contacts, billed annually ($19 monthly) | $13 per month for up to 500 contacts, billed monthly |
| Free plan | None | 1 seat, 1 audience, up to 250 contacts and 500 sends a month (250 a day), limited templates and email support for the first 30 days. |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial, no credit card needed | 14-day free trial of the Essentials or Standard plan |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | ActiveCampaign | Intuit Mailchimp |
| Price read from | activecampaign.com | mailchimp.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
ActiveCampaign
- Businesses that run long automated sequences rather than one-off newsletters
- Teams that want email marketing tied to a sales CRM
- Online stores on Shopify, WooCommerce or Square that tie orders to email
Mailchimp
- Small businesses sending regular newsletters and promotions
- Online shops on Shopify, WooCommerce or Square that want automated emails
- Teams that want email and SMS campaigns in one account
Worth knowing
ActiveCampaign
- There is no free plan; after the 14-day trial every plan is paid.
- Monthly email sends are capped at 10 times your contact limit on Starter and Plus, 12 times on Pro and 15 times on Enterprise.
- SMS, WhatsApp, transactional email, sales pipelines and extra users are paid add-ons on top of the plan price.
- Starter has one user and stops at 25,000 contacts; landing pages need Plus and conditional content needs Pro.
Mailchimp
- The Free plan stops at 250 contacts and 500 sends a month, and sending pauses until you upgrade or trim the list.
- Paid plans bill overages automatically when you pass your contact or monthly send limit.
- Essentials caps automations at 4 flow steps; dynamic content and custom reports start at Standard.
- SMS is a paid add-on in select countries, needs an approved application, and its monthly credits expire unused.
Key features
ActiveCampaign
- Multi-step automations
- A visual builder links actions, waits and branches into automations. Starter allows 5 actions per automation; Plus and above have no limit.
- Email designer and AI tools
- Drag-and-drop and HTML designer, 250+ templates and A/B testing, plus an AI campaign builder and AI text and image generation.
- Segmentation and personalization
- Segmentation runs from limited on Starter to premium on Enterprise. Conditional content and predictive sending start at Pro.
- CRM and pipelines
- Every plan keeps contact profiles, tags and custom fields. Pipelines, deals, lead scoring and win probability come with the paid CRM add-ons.
- Forms, landing pages and site messages
- Starter has standard and inline forms only; Plus adds landing pages. Site messages and Google, Facebook and LinkedIn ad audiences are also available.
- Reporting and attribution
- Campaign, automation and contact reports on every plan. Attribution starts at Pro; custom reports are included on Enterprise and an add-on on Plus and Pro.
Mailchimp
- Automation flows
- Standard and Premium allow up to 200 automated flows, such as welcome series and abandoned-cart emails. Essentials is limited to 4 flow steps and Free has none.
- Templates and email builder
- Pre-built templates on every plan (a limited set on Free). Custom-coded templates can be built on any plan but only sent from Standard and Premium.
- Segmentation and dynamic content
- Standard adds advanced segmentation, pre-built segments and dynamic content; Premium adds predictive segmentation.
- Popup forms and landing pages
- Popup sign-up forms are included on every plan, and the Free plan can also build landing pages and forms.
- SMS and MMS add-on
- Paid plans can add SMS, with MMS on Standard and Premium in select countries, after an application is approved. Credits are bought in monthly blocks.
- Mobile app
- The iOS and Android app can build and send emails, scan business cards into contacts, make simple landing pages and show campaign reports.
Plans
ActiveCampaign
Starter$15
per month for up to 1,000 contacts, billed annually ($19 monthly)
1 user, limited segmentation, 5 actions per automation, up to 25,000 contacts. Price rises with the list: $149 a month at 10,000 contacts, billed annually.
Plus$49
per month for up to 1,000 contacts, billed annually ($59 monthly)
1 user, unlimited automation actions, standard segmentation and landing pages. $189 a month at 10,000 contacts, billed annually.
Pro$79
per month for up to 1,000 contacts, billed annually ($99 monthly)
3 users, advanced segmentation, conditional content, predictive sending and attribution. $375 a month at 10,000 contacts, billed annually.
Enterprise$145
per month for up to 1,000 contacts, billed annually ($179 monthly)
5 users, premium segmentation, custom objects, single sign-on and a dedicated account team. $589 a month at 10,000 contacts, billed annually.
Mailchimp
Free$0
1 seat, 1 audience, 250 contacts and 500 sends a month. Sending pauses when a limit is passed.
Essentials$13
per month for up to 500 contacts, billed monthly
3 seats, 3 audiences, sends of 10 times your contacts, scheduling and 4-step flows. Price rises with the list: $110 a month at 10,000 contacts.
Standard$20
per month for up to 500 contacts, billed monthly
5 seats, up to 200 automation flows, dynamic content and custom reports. Price rises with the list: $135 a month at 10,000 contacts.
Premium$350
per month for up to 10,000 contacts, billed monthly
Unlimited seats and audiences, phone and priority support, multivariate testing. Price rises with the list: $815 a month at 50,000 contacts.
Ways to pay less
ActiveCampaign
- Annual discount
About 20% off with annual billing
At 1,000 contacts, annual billing brings Starter to $15 a month from $19 monthly, Plus to $49 from $59 and Pro to $79 from $99.
- Nonprofit
20% off for nonprofits
ActiveCampaign's FAQ offers nonprofits a 20% discount on proof of nonprofit status, requested from the sales team or, for existing accounts, from support.
Mailchimp
- Nonprofit
15% off for nonprofits and charities
Mailchimp's pricing page offers nonprofits and charities 15% off. You sign up for a free account and then contact the Billing team with your username and website.
- Other savings
15% off the first 12 months at 10,000+ contacts
New customers on a monthly Essentials, Standard or Premium plan with 10,000 or more contacts get 15% off for the first 12 months, then the list price.
