8 Best Mailchimp Alternatives in 2026, Compared by Use Case
The 8 best Mailchimp alternatives in 2026, from Brevo and MailerLite to Klaviyo and Loops, with verified pricing, free plans, and a pick for each use case.
Andrew Kim
The best Mailchimp alternatives in 2026 are Brevo (closest like-for-like and cheaper for big lists), MailerLite (simple newsletters on a budget), Constant Contact (phone support and events), Klaviyo (online stores), ActiveCampaign (deep automation), Kit (creators), and Loops or Customer.io (SaaS product email). The right pick depends on what's pushing you off Mailchimp: price, automation, ecommerce, or product email.
Last validated: September 2026. Prices are US list prices on monthly billing unless noted, from the official pricing pages and docs in References.
Why do people look for Mailchimp alternatives?
Contact-based pricing grows with your list. Mailchimp charges by contact, and subscribed, unsubscribed, and non-subscribed contacts all count unless you archive them. At 5,000 contacts you pay $75/month on Essentials or $100/month on Standard, even if half those people never open.
Big jumps between tiers. Premium starts at $350/month for 10,000 contacts. At the same list size Standard costs $135, so moving up for phone support or unlimited seats costs 2.6 times as much.
Transactional email is a separate product. Mailchimp's marketing plans can send some order notifications for a connected store, but password resets and other app-triggered email need Mailchimp Transactional (formerly Mandrill). It's a paid add-on for Standard, Premium, or legacy Monthly plans, billed from $20 per block of 25,000 emails on top of your marketing plan.
Automation sits on higher plans. Essentials allows automation flows of up to 4 steps. Branching flows need Standard.
Mailchimp cost climbs with list size
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| 5K Essentials | $75 |
| 5K Standard | $100 |
| 10K Standard | $135 |
| 10K Premium | $350 |
The best Mailchimp alternatives compared
| Tool | Best for | Free plan | Paid from | Pricing basis | App-triggered transactional email |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brevo | Small businesses, email + SMS | 300 emails/day | $9/month | Mainly emails sent | Included |
| MailerLite | Simple newsletters | 250 subscribers, 2,500 emails/month | $12/month | Subscribers | Via MailerSend (separate) |
| Constant Contact | Beginners, events, nonprofits | No (free trial) | $12/month | Contacts | No |
| Klaviyo | Online stores | 250 profiles, 500 emails/month | $20/month | Active profiles | Yes |
| ActiveCampaign | Automation and B2B nurture | No (free trial) | $15/month billed annually | Contacts | Add-on |
| Kit | Creators and newsletters | Up to 10,000 subscribers | $39/month | Subscribers | No |
| Loops | SaaS founders | 1,000 contacts, 4,000 sends/30 days | $49/month | Contacts | Included |
| Customer.io | Product-led SaaS lifecycle | No | $100/month | Profiles | Included |
| Mailchimp (for reference) | General small business | 250 contacts, 500 emails/month | $13/month | Contacts | Paid add-on |
Mailchimp alternatives: starting price
| Item | Price/mo |
|---|---|
| Brevo | $9 |
| MailerLite | $12 |
| Constant Contact | $12 |
| ActiveCampaign | $15 |
| Klaviyo | $20 |
| Kit | $39 |
| Loops | $49 |
| Customer.io | $100 |
1. Brevo: closest like-for-like replacement
Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) covers email campaigns, SMS, WhatsApp, a light CRM, and a transactional email API in one account. Paid pricing is driven mainly by how many emails you send each month, although paid tiers also cap contacts. A large list you email a few times a month usually costs less than on Mailchimp.
The trade-offs: the interface is less polished than Mailchimp's, and the automation builder takes some learning. For a small business that wants campaigns plus basic transactional email from one tool, it's the safest switch. See our Mailchimp vs Brevo comparison and Brevo review.
Pricing: Free (300 emails/day), Starter from $9/month, Standard from $18/month, Professional from $499/month, Enterprise custom.
2. MailerLite: best for simple newsletters on a budget
MailerLite has a clean editor, landing pages, forms, and straightforward automations. For newsletter senders it's usually cheaper than Mailchimp and easier to learn.
Its free plan shrank on June 16, 2026, to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails a month, so it's no longer the free-plan standout older reviews describe. Advanced automation and transactional email are thin; transactional email lives in a separate product, MailerSend. See MailerLite vs Mailchimp.
Pricing: Free (250 subscribers), Comfort from $12/month, Power from $25/month, Enterprise custom.
3. Constant Contact: best for beginners who want phone support
Constant Contact is the other long-standing small-business email tool. It offers live phone and chat support on Lite, Standard, and Premium, built-in event registration and ticketing, and simple templates. Automation is basic until Premium, and it has no free plan, only a free trial.
Against Mailchimp, it's slightly pricier on entry and mid plans at most list sizes but far cheaper on the top tier: Premium costs $275/month at 10,000 contacts vs $350 for Mailchimp Premium. See Constant Contact vs Mailchimp.
Pricing: Lite from $12/month, Standard from $35/month, Premium from $80/month, each for up to 500 contacts.
4. Klaviyo: best for online stores
Klaviyo is the default for Shopify and other ecommerce stores. Its integrations bring in orders, products, and browsing behavior, so abandoned-cart, browse-abandonment, and post-purchase flows work with little setup, and reporting ties email to revenue.
If you don't sell online or have repeat-customer data, you're paying for features you won't use, and it gets expensive as your profile count grows. See our Klaviyo vs Mailchimp comparison and Klaviyo alternatives.
Pricing: Free up to 250 profiles and 500 emails/month, then Email from $20/month for 500 profiles.
5. ActiveCampaign: best for deep automation and B2B nurture
ActiveCampaign sits between email and CRM. Its automation builder handles conditional branching, goals, and lead scoring, and teams running long B2B nurture sequences often land here after outgrowing Mailchimp.
Expect a real learning curve. Pricing is contact-based like Mailchimp's, so the scaling problem doesn't go away. See ActiveCampaign alternatives.
Pricing (1,000 contacts, billed annually): Starter $15/month, Plus $49/month, Pro $79/month, Enterprise $145/month.
6. Kit: best for creators
Kit (formerly ConvertKit) is built for writers, creators, and course sellers. Tag-based subscribers, simple forms, and paid newsletter tools fit a business where the audience is the product.
For ecommerce, SaaS, or anything driven by app events, it's the wrong shape. Reporting and segmentation assume a content-first workflow.
Pricing: Free up to 10,000 subscribers. Creator from $39/month and Pro from $79/month for 1,000 subscribers ($33 and $66 a month billed annually).
7. Loops: best simple option for SaaS
Loops is built for SaaS companies. The interface is clean, the API is simple, and marketing broadcasts, automated loops, and transactional email run from one account. Paid plans include unlimited sends.
It has fewer integrations than Mailchimp and a smaller template ecosystem. Workflows start from a template or from scratch, and developers can also build them through the API or an AI coding agent. For a SaaS team that wants something simpler than Customer.io and more developer-friendly than Mailchimp, it's a good fit. See Loops alternatives.
Pricing: Free for 1,000 contacts and 4,000 sends every 30 days. Paid from $49/month for up to 5,000 contacts.
8. Customer.io: best for complex product-led messaging
Customer.io is built for product teams that send behavior-triggered messages across email, SMS, push, and in-app. Your backend sends events and user data, and Customer.io uses them to segment people and trigger journeys.
Setup needs developer time, and it costs more than Mailchimp for small lists. See Customer.io alternatives.
Pricing: Essentials from $100/month for 5,000 profiles, Premium from $1,000/month billed annually, Enterprise custom.
Which Mailchimp alternative should you choose?
Match the tool to the reason you're leaving:
- The bill is too high and you send newsletters: MailerLite, or Brevo if your list is large and you email it infrequently.
- You want Mailchimp's breadth for less: Brevo.
- You want a human on the phone: Constant Contact.
- You run an online store: Klaviyo.
- You need branching B2B nurture and a CRM: ActiveCampaign, or HubSpot if sales runs on it (see HubSpot vs Mailchimp).
- You're a creator: Kit.
- You're a SaaS team sending product email: Loops for simplicity, Customer.io for complex journeys.
Mailchimp still has real strengths: a polished editor, a large template library, and integrations with almost everything. If those matter most and the bill is manageable, archiving old contacts may save you more than switching. Our Mailchimp review covers where it holds up.
Where Dreamlit fits
Dreamlit, the company behind this blog, isn't a Mailchimp replacement, so it's not ranked above. It does the activation work for you. Our experts pinpoint where users drop off and send the emails that turn them into paying customers, and own the program through measurement. The best fit is 500+ signups a month. If you need a newsletter or store email tool, pick from the list above.
If your signups aren't turning into paying users, get a free activation audit.
References
- Mailchimp pricing
- Mailchimp pricing plans
- Mailchimp: About your contacts
- Mailchimp Transactional pricing and eligibility
- Mailchimp: About transactional email
- Brevo pricing plans
- MailerLite pricing
- MailerLite free plan update
- Constant Contact pricing
- Klaviyo pricing
- ActiveCampaign pricing
- Kit pricing
- Loops pricing
- Loops workflows
- Customer.io pricing
Frequently asked questions
What is the best alternative to Mailchimp?
For most small businesses, Brevo is the closest like-for-like replacement and costs less for large lists you email rarely. MailerLite is the pick for simple newsletters on a budget, Klaviyo for online stores, and Constant Contact if you want phone support on every main plan.
Is there a free Mailchimp alternative with more generous limits?
Yes. Brevo's free plan sends 300 emails a day and stores up to 100,000 contacts. Kit's free plan covers up to 10,000 subscribers, and Loops' free plan covers 1,000 contacts and 4,000 sends every 30 days. Mailchimp's free plan stops at 250 contacts and 500 emails a month.
What is the cheapest Mailchimp alternative?
Brevo has the lowest paid starting price here at $9 a month, and its price is driven mainly by how many emails you send. MailerLite and Constant Contact both start at $12 a month for 500 contacts. Prices checked September 2026.
Why is Mailchimp so expensive at scale?
Mailchimp prices on contacts, and subscribed, unsubscribed, and non-subscribed contacts all count unless you archive them. Standard costs $100/month at 5,000 contacts and $135 at 10,000, and Premium starts at $350/month for 10,000 contacts.
Can I replace both Mailchimp and Mandrill with one tool?
Yes. Brevo and Loops send marketing and transactional email from one account and one bill. Mailchimp's transactional product, formerly Mandrill, is a separate paid add-on that requires a Standard, Premium, or legacy Monthly plan.
Is Klaviyo worth it if I'm not on Shopify?
Usually not, unless you have repeat customers and useful behavior data to send it. Klaviyo's value comes from ecommerce data and flows. Without that data, Brevo or ActiveCampaign will usually serve you better for less.
How hard is it to migrate off Mailchimp?
Moving contacts is easy: export a CSV and import it. Templates can usually move as exported HTML. The real work is rebuilding automations, because each tool uses its own trigger and condition model. Clean and archive old contacts before you export so you don't pay to move them.
About the Author
Co-Founder & CTO
Andrew is Co-Founder and CTO of Dreamlit AI, which runs user activation for software companies. He previously built partner integrations at Netflix and led engineering at fintech startup Bonside. Full bio →
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