Brevo vs Mailchimp
We give Brevo a 2.6 GPA and Mailchimp a 2.8, out of 4.0. Brevo grades higher on value for money. Mailchimp grades higher on ease of use. They get the same grade on the free plan, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Brevo
Email, SMS and WhatsApp marketing priced by emails sent, with a CRM
Mailchimp
Email and SMS marketing with automations, priced by contact count
How we grade them
| 2.6GPABrevoGood | 2.8GPAMailchimpGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BStarter is $9 a month for 5,000 emails, inside the cheaper quarter of email tools, and from 20,000 emails the contact cap jumps to 500,000. Automations and A/B tests need Standard at $18, and taking the Brevo logo off Starter is $12 a month more. | 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 good with no card: 300 emails a day, campaigns and transactional email by API. Once your list passes 300 people, though, a single newsletter can't all go out on the same day. | 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 | BCampaigns, transactional email, automations, SMS, segments, forms, AI writing and a sales CRM, all from one contact list. That covers the whole job and then some. WhatsApp, popups and push wait for the $499 Professional plan. | 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. It's a big web app with campaigns, automations, a CRM and SMS in it, so you'll be setting things up before it earns its keep. | 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, Stripe, Zapier, ChatGPT and Claude connections and 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 | big lists you only email now and then | 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: Brevo and Mailchimp. How we grade
Price against what you get
Brevo starts at $9 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 $4 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, none scores higher than Brevo 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
- Brevo starts at $9 per month for 5,000 emails and up to 500 contacts, billed monthly. Mailchimp starts at $13 per month for up to 500 contacts, billed monthly.
- Only Mailchimp lists iOS and Android apps.
- Brevo also covers sales pipeline and live chat.
- Mailchimp also covers reports.
At a glance
| Brevo | Mailchimp | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $9 per month for 5,000 emails and up to 500 contacts, billed monthly | $13 per month for up to 500 contacts, billed monthly |
| Free plan | Up to 300 emails a day (campaigns and transactional), 1 marketing seat and transactional email by API and SMTP. No credit card needed. | 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 | None listed | 14-day free trial of the Essentials or Standard plan |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Brevo | Intuit Mailchimp |
| Price read from | brevo.com | mailchimp.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Brevo
- Senders with a large list who email it only now and then
- Businesses that want marketing and transactional email in one account
- Small teams adding SMS or WhatsApp to email campaigns
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
Brevo
- Starter and Standard cap contacts by email volume: 500 contacts at 5,000 emails a month, 2,500 at 15,000, and 500,000 from 20,000.
- The Free plan is limited to 300 emails a day.
- Starter has a single seat and shows the Brevo logo unless you pay $12 a month; extra seats on Standard cost $12 a month each, up to 3.
- SMS credits are bought separately and priced by volume and destination; WhatsApp campaigns start at the $499 Professional plan.
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
Brevo
- Email campaigns and transactional email
- A drag-and-drop editor and templates for campaigns, plus transactional email over an API and SMTP relay on every plan, Free included.
- Marketing automation
- Standard and above allow unlimited multi-step workflows triggered by sign-ups, website activity and custom events.
- SMS and WhatsApp
- SMS campaigns are sold as credits priced by volume and destination on every plan. WhatsApp, popups and web and mobile push come with Professional.
- Sales CRM
- Sales seats add pipelines, deals and sales automation to the same contact database, sold as a separate monthly charge per seat.
- Segments and forms
- Paid plans can save unlimited segments filtered by website activity, campaign engagement and custom events, and build branded sign-up forms.
- AI tools
- An AI writer drafts subject lines and copy from Starter, send-time optimization comes with Standard, and Aura AI segmentation and data questions come with Professional.
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
Brevo
Free$0
300 emails a day, 1 seat, campaigns and transactional email. Upgrading removes the daily sending limit.
Starter$9
per month for 5,000 emails and up to 500 contacts, billed monthly
1 seat, forms, segmentation and AI writing help; removing the Brevo logo costs $12 a month. Price rises with volume: $17 a month at 10,000 emails.
Standard$18
per month for 5,000 emails and up to 500 contacts, billed monthly
Automation workflows, A/B testing, send-time optimization, no Brevo logo, up to 3 seats. $69 a month at 20,000 emails, where the contact cap rises to 500,000.
Professional$499
per month for 150,000 emails, billed monthly
10 seats, WhatsApp, popups and push, contact scoring, AI segmentation, phone support and up to 2 million contacts.
EnterpriseCustom
For 1 million or more contacts: multiple brands under one account, dedicated IP, SSO and SAML, custom data integrations.
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
Brevo
- Annual discount
Save 10% with yearly billing
Brevo's pricing page takes 10% off Starter, Standard and Professional when billed yearly: Starter at 5,000 emails is $97 a year instead of $108.
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.
