AWeber vs Mailchimp
We give AWeber 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.
AWeber
Email marketing for small businesses, with landing pages and a store
Mailchimp
Email and SMS marketing with automations, priced by contact count
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAAWeberFair | 2.8GPAMailchimpGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CLite is $12.50 a month for 500 subscribers on yearly billing, or $15 monthly, a little under the middle of what email tools charge. Unlimited lists, automations and pages need Plus at $20, and Lite reaches $100 a month at 10,000 subscribers. | 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 | CFree for up to 500 subscribers and 3,000 emails a month, with no card and no time limit. You get 1 landing page and 1 automation, and every email carries AWeber's branding. 500 people is a cap you'll reach. | 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 | BA drag-and-drop editor with Canva and AI built in, a Newsletter Assistant that drafts your weekly issue, automated and RSS emails, landing pages, forms, web push and pages that sell through Stripe. That's the whole job. | 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 there's only a web app. You build the sign-up form, templates and sequences yourself, though AWeber will do it for a $79 setup fee. | 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, with Shopify, WordPress, WooCommerce, PayPal, Stripe, Canva and Zapier, and an API. On a phone you use the browser. No desktop or phone app keeps it at a B. | 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 | newsletters and sequences with a free start | 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: AWeber and Mailchimp. How we grade
Price against what you get
AWeber starts at $12.50 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 $0.50 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other email marketing and newsletter tools on the chart, 2 score higher than AWeber 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
- AWeber starts at $12.50 per month for up to 500 subscribers, billed annually. Mailchimp starts at $13 per month for up to 500 contacts, billed monthly.
- Only Mailchimp lists iOS and Android apps.
- Mailchimp also covers reports.
At a glance
| AWeber | Mailchimp | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $12.50 per month for up to 500 subscribers, billed annually | $13 per month for up to 500 contacts, billed monthly |
| Free plan | Up to 500 subscribers and 3,000 emails a month, with 1 landing page and 1 automation. No time limit or card, but emails carry AWeber branding. | 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 of Lite or Plus; the paid subscription starts automatically when it ends | 14-day free trial of the Essentials or Standard plan |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | AWeber | Intuit Mailchimp |
| Price read from | aweber.com | mailchimp.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
AWeber
- Small businesses and creators with a list under 500 who want to start free
- Bloggers and YouTubers who want new posts and videos emailed automatically
- Owners who would rather pay for the setup to be done for them
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
AWeber
- Lite allows 1 list, 3 landing pages, 3 automations and 1 saved segment; unlimited use of each needs Plus.
- Monthly sends are capped at 10 times the subscriber tier on Lite and 12 times on Plus.
- Only a web app is offered; the mobile editor works in a phone's browser.
- Lists of more than 100,000 subscribers are priced by contacting AWeber.
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
AWeber
- Email editor with Canva and AI
- A drag-and-drop editor with Canva built in, a theme panel, an AI writing assistant and a subject line generator. HTML and AMP emails are also supported.
- Newsletter Assistant
- Generates a weekly newsletter draft written in your voice, ready to edit and send.
- Email automation
- Welcome and sales sequences, behavioral automations triggered by subscriber actions, tagging, and RSS emails for new blog posts, podcasts or YouTube videos.
- Landing pages and sign-up forms
- An AI page builder, templates, sign-up forms, a WordPress plugin and a link-in-bio page. Lite allows 3 landing pages; Plus has no cap.
- Ecommerce pages
- Sell products, subscriptions and payment plans through Stripe in over 100 currencies, with a fee of 1.0% per sale on Lite and 0.6% on Plus.
- Web push notifications
- Collect browser push subscribers and send them messages alongside email: up to 50,000 on Lite and unlimited on Plus.
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
AWeber
Free$0
500 subscribers, 3,000 emails a month, 1 landing page and 1 automation, with AWeber branding on emails.
Lite$12.50
per month for up to 500 subscribers, billed annually ($15 monthly)
Sends up to 10 times the tier a month, 1 list, 3 landing pages, 3 automations, 3 users. Price rises with the list: $100 a month at 10,000 subscribers.
Plus$20
per month for up to 500 subscribers, billed annually ($30 monthly)
Sends 12 times the tier, unlimited lists, pages, automations and users, no AWeber branding, priority support. $135 a month at 10,000 subscribers.
Done For You$20
per month for up to 500 subscribers, billed annually
Plus, with a one-time $79 setup fee (shown cut from $599): AWeber staff build a template, landing page and sign-up form and draft weekly newsletters.
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
AWeber
- Annual discount
Up to 4 months free with yearly billing
At 500 subscribers, Plus costs $240 a year billed yearly against $30 a month billed monthly, and Lite $150 a year against $15 a month.
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.
