If Mailchimp’s cost doesn’t match your email marketing needs, you should look for the best Mailchimp alternatives.
Email marketing doesn’t have to be costly and complex. Many email marketing software offers sophisticated email marketing solutions that are easy to use and affordable.
We have listed the top 8 and best free alternatives to Mailchimp, compared their features, and how affordable they are.
Use Retainful’s easy-to-setup email automation to send emails without the complexity and high costs.
Challenges of using Mailchimp
Even though Mailchimp is a popular and feature-rich email marketing software, it doesn’t satisfy every marketing demand.
Here are the challenges users have faced and why one need other services like Mailchimp:
- Not affordable for small businesses
- Unreliable customer support for free plan
- Charges for lapsed and unsubscribed customers
1. Not affordable for small businesses
Lower pricing tiers offer fewer features than before.
The lower-tier plans come with limited features. Essential tools like advanced segmentation, A/B testing, and priority support are only available on higher-tier plans, which are more expensive.
2. Less user friendly
While Mailchimp is simple to get started with, mastering its more advanced features like complex automations and A/B testing can have a steeper learning curve. The automation builder in particular is more complex compared to simpler platforms.
This means Mailchimp may not be the most intuitive choice for power users looking to set up sophisticated marketing workflows quickly.
3. Charges for lapsed and unsubscribed customers
Businesses are charged for every contact they have in their email list, regardless of whether those contacts are actively engaged or have opted out of receiving emails.
This can lead to inflated costs, especially for businesses with large lists that include many inactive or unsubscribed users.
How to choose an alternative to Mailchimp?
1. Transparent pricing with no hidden costs
Before exploring the , understand what specific features you need for your email marketing efforts. This can include email automation, segmentation, analytics, integrations, and customer support.
Determine which features are included in the basic plan versus higher-tier plans.
Essential tools like automation, segmentation, and analytics should ideally be part of the standard offerings.
2. Easy-to-setup automation and segmentation
While choosing Mailchimp alternatives, look for services that offer pre-built automation templates for common scenarios like welcome series, abandoned cart emails, and post-purchase follow-ups.
Make sure the Mailchimp competitor features a simple drag-and-drop automation builder and a variety of pre-designed workflows.
3. Type and scale of business you own
Choose a software like Mailchimp that best suits your business needs and scale.
If you own a small business, choose a Mailchimp like services essential email marketing features such as templates, basic automation, and analytics would be sufficient.
Large enterprises and ecommerce businesses should focus on comprehensive tools and integrations.
Best Mailchimp Alternatives Compaison Chart
| Klaviyo alternative | Key Features | Best for | Free plan |
| Retainful | Ecommerce email marketing and easy-to-setup email automation. | Small to medium ecommerce businesses | Available |
| Activecampaign | Advanced automation and triggers | Large businesses who need advanced marketing auomation | Available |
| Omnisend | Omnichannel capabilities and cross-channel workflows. | Ecommerce brands wanting multichannel marketing | Available |
| ConvertKit | Selling digital products and growing newsletter audience through thought leadership | Content Creators and solopreneurs | Available |
| Constant Contact | Event management tools | Local businesses and nonprofits needing built-in event management tools | Not available |
| Brevo | Personalized email newsletters and email deliverabiity | Best for businesses looking for multi-channel marketing and sending newsletters | Available |
| Hubspot | Lead scoring and tag-based segmentation | Best for large businesses looking for CRM and sales integaration | Available |
8 Best Mailchimp Alternatives
The best Mailchimp alternatives are
- Retainful – Best for ecommerce businesses
- Activecampaign – Best for large-scale businesses and advanced automation
- Omnisend – Best for ecommerce omni-channel marketing
- Convertkit – Best for content creators and bloggers
- Constant Contact – Best for event management and tracking
- Brevo – Best for multi-channel marketing and sending newsletters
- Klaviyo – Best for large-scale ecommerce businesses
- Hubspot – Best for CRM and businesses expanding marketing efforts
Let’s see these best Mailchimp alternatives in detail.
1. Retainful – Best for Ecommerce Businesses
1.5X more affordable than Mailchimp
Retainful is the best Mailchimp alternative to automate every stage of your email marketing lifecycle – from acquiring to nurturing and retaining customers without a hefty price tag.
Grow your email list by capturing the email addresses of the visitors with targeted sign-up forms. You can increase conversion rate of your site by triggering popups at the most optimum time.
This cheaper alternative to Mailchimp features easy-to-setup email automation that sends automated emails after every customer action in ecommerce email marketing – signup, abandoned cart, first purchase, inactivity, and more.
Here is a feature-by-feature comparison between Retainful and Mailchimp.
You can segment your customers based on demographics, purchase history, email engagement, and life-cycle stages.
This best free alternative to Mailchimp integrates seamlessly with WooCommerce and Shopify.
Unlike Mailchimp, it doesn’t have website and landing page tools.
Why is Retainful easy to use than Mailchimp?
- Easy-to-setup email automation workflows that don’t need a 3-page manual to set it up.
- Pre-built segmentation templates.
- Beginner-friendly drag-and-drop email editor.
Here is a customer review about the Mailchimp alternative Retainful.
How affordable is Retainful than Mailchimp?
Sending 10,000 costs $9 in Retainful, while $19.40 in Mailchimp.
You can send unlimited email campaigns and segment email lists even in the basic plan.
Learn more: Compare Retainful vs Mailchimp and find out which one suits your pricing and email marketing needs: Retainful vs. Mailchimp – which is better?
Why is Retainful the best alternative to Mailchimp?
- Retainful is the best free Mailchimp alternative as it is one of the most affordable apps in the market that is tailor-made for e-commerce.
- Beginner-friendly automation workflows and email editor.
- Dedicated onboarding and technical support.
Use the beginner-friendly interface of Retainful to send email campaigns with minimum effort from your end.
2. Activecampaign – Best for large-scale businesses and advanced automation
Activecampaign includes a built-in CRM with sales automation, making it ideal for businesses looking to combine email marketing with customer relationship management.
This best Mailchimp competitor offers site and event tracking capabilities that allow you to monitor user behavior on websites and trigger automated workflows based on specific actions.
ActiveCampaign offers advanced conditional content features that allow you to tailor email content dynamically based on various conditions, such as user behavior, demographics, and preferences.
Activecampaign has more automation triggers than Mailchimp. Here are some of the triggers available in Activecampaign.
Compared to ActiveCampaign, Mailchimp’s automation features are more basic and less customizable.
Why is Activecampaign easy to use than Mailchimp?
The marketing automation software offers drag-and-drop email builders, pre-built automation workflows, and comprehensive onboarding resources to help users get up and running quickly.
How affordable is Activecampaign than Mailchimp?
Sending 10,000 emails costs $15, while Mailchimp costs $19.4.
Why is Activecampaign the best alternative to Mailchimp?
- Has omnichannel capability + CRM.
- Better suited for businesses that require advanced automation, detailed segmentation, and integrated CRM capabilities.
3. Omnisend – Best for ecommerce omnichannel marketing
Omnisend is the best free Maichimp alternative for omni-channel marketing supporting emails, SMS, and push notifications. While Mailchimp is primarily focused on email and social media, it does offer SMS and web push notifications as additional channels.
This best Mailchimp alternative for ecommerce allows you to create multi-channel automation workflows that combine email, SMS, and push notifications within a single campaign. The visual automation builder in this Mailchimp competitor is intuitive and easy-to-use.
In this cheaper alternative to Mailchimp, you can set up cross-channel triggers that activate different channels based on customer behavior, such as sending a push notification if a marketing email goes unopened.
The best thing about this best free alternative to Mailchimp pricing is that there is no cap on features in any of its basic plans. Only a limit on contacts and emails.
Why is Omnisend easy to use than Mailchimp?
- Has a visual automation workflow builder is particularly easy to use. Users can create complex automation sequences with a simple drag-and-drop interface.
- Users have access to 24/7 customer service through live chat and email.
How affordable is Omnisend than Mailchimp?
Sending 10,000 emails costs $26.65, while Mailchimp costs $19.40.
Why is Omnisend the best alternative to Mailchimp?
- Has better omni-channel capability.
- Best for ecommerce businesses as some of the features are tailor-made for ecommerce.
4. ConvertKit – Best for content creators and bloggers
ConvertKit is the best Mailchimp alternative for bloggers, content creators, and small businesses. It is tailored to meet the specific needs of creators, offering tools like visual automations, tag-based segmentation, and the ability to sell digital products.
It has fewer email templates compared to Mailchimp, focusing more on plain-text emails, which might not appeal to all users.
This best Mailchimp competitor offers a more advanced and user-friendly visual workflow builder, making it easy to create complex email sequences.
Convertkit has customizable landing pages and sign-up forms, helping creators grow their audience.
Why is Convertkit easy to use than Mailchimp?
- Offers a cleaner, more intuitive interface, making it easier for users to navigate and set up campaigns.
- Uses a tag-based system for more flexible and detailed segmentation.
How affordable is Convertkit than Mailchimp?
In its free plan, you can have 10,000 subscribers, but you get access to one automation.
Why is it the better alternative to Mailchimp?
- Tailor-made for creators.
- Offers advanced automation workflows
5. Constant Contact – Best for event management and tracking
Constant Contact is an email marketing tool providing tools for email, SMS and social media marketing.
This best Mailchimp alternative provides tools for managing events, including RSVPs and invitations, which are not commonly found in other email marketing platforms.
While it offers email automation, but not as advanced as Mailchimp. Also, it provides more comprehensive social media ad tools than Mailchimp.
This best Mailchimp alternative offers extensive customer support options, including phone support, live chat, and email, which is highly praised by users.
Why is Constant Contact easy to use than Mailchimp?
- Offers a cleaner, more intuitive interface, making it easier for users to navigate and set up campaigns.
- Uses a tag-based system for more flexible and detailed email segmentation.
How affordable is Constant Contact than Mailchimp?
No free plan available. Sending 10,000 emails costs $55, while Mailchimp costs $19.40.
Why is Constant Contact the better alternative to Mailchimp?
- Excels in event management, social media integration, and customer support.
6. Brevo – Best for multi-channel marketing and sending newsletters
Brevo is the best Mailchimp alternative in providing a suite of marketing tools that include email marketing, SMS marketing, chat, CRM, and marketing automation.
Setting up automated workflows in this Mailchimp alternative is straightforward, with pre-built templates and a visual workflow editor that guides you through the process.
Brevo falls short when it comes to visual automation builder compared to Mailchimp. It uses developer-style language and shows six prompts before taking us to the visual workflow builder. The values and the email content are not pre-configured. You have to include them from scratch.
This cheaper alternative to Mailchimp provides comprehensive onboarding resources, including tutorials and documentation, to help users get up and running quickly.
It offers fewer native integrations compared to Mailchimp.
This best Mailchimp competitor is known for responsive customer support and comprehensive resources, including tutorials, webinars, and a knowledge base.
Why is Brevo easy to use than Mailchimp?
Setting up automation workflows is straightforward with Brevo’s visual workflow editor.
How affordable is Brevo than Mailchimp?
Sending 10,000 emails costs $17, while Mailchimp costs $19.40. You can do omni-channel marketing even in the free plan.
Why is Brevo the best Mailchimp alternative?
Brevo’s strength as a Mailchimp competitor lies in its all-in-one approach, integrating email, SMS, chat, CRM, and landing page tools.
Related Reading: Explore more about software to do life-cyle email marketing:
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7. Klaviyo – Best for large-scale ecommerce businesses
Klaviyo is the best alternative for large ecommerce businesses that offers ecommerce-specific advanced automation, detailed segmentation, and deep integration with ecommerce platforms.
This best Mailchimp alternative provides advanced automation workflows that are tailored for online retailers.
Its drag-and-drop email automation builder is very easy to use. Most of the values, such as triggers, time delays, and email content, are pre-configured.
Klaviyo outperforms Mailchimp in email automation due to its robust and highly customizable workflows, advanced event-driven triggers, and dynamic content capabilities.
Unlike Mailchimp, it is designed with ecommerce in mind, offering deep integrations with ecommerce platforms and tools tailored for online retailers.
How easy to use is Klaviyo than Mailchimp?
Due to its advanced features and customization options, Klaviyo has a steeper learning curve compared to Mailchimp.
Users may need to spend more time learning how to use the platform effectively.
How affordable is Klaviyo than Mailchimp?
Sending 10,000 emails costs $35, while Mailchimp costs $19.40.
Why is Klaviyo the best alternative to Mailchimp?
- Features tailored to ecommerce.
- Best for data-driven marketers, growth-focused companies, and brands that require personalized marketing strategies.
Related Reading: Explore the 10 best Klaviyo alternatives, their comparison on price and features: 10 Best Klaviyo Alternatives & Competitors for 2025
8. Hubspot – Best for CRM and businesses expanding marketing efforts
HubSpot provides an all-in-one marketing, sales, and customer service platform. It integrates email marketing, CRM, social media management, content management, SEO, and analytics.
HubSpot offers advanced marketing automation capabilities with highly customizable workflows. Users can create complex, multi-step workflows that include email, social media, and lead nurturing sequences.
This best Mailchimp alternative provides in-depth analytics and reporting tools that cover all aspects of marketing, from email performance to website traffic and social media engagement.
How easy to use Hubspot compared to Mailchimp?
- You need to spend some time learning how to utilize the full capabilities of the platform.
How affordable is Hubspot compared to Mailchimp?
You get unlimited marketing automation, and 20,000 email sends for $800/month.
Why is Hubspot the best alternative to Mailchimp?
- Choosing HubSpot over Mailchimp can provide a more integrated and scalable solution that supports a broader range of marketing and sales activities.
Which is the cheapest alternative to Mailchimp?
The best free Mailchimp alternative is Retainful – 49.6% more affordable and offers a more generous free plan. You get access to all core features in the free plan.
If you are a ecommerce business looking for cheapest omni-channel marketing alternative to Mailchimp, then Omnisend is the best choice.
Which is the best Mailchimp competitor in advanced automation?
Two Mailchimp like serives offers more advanced automation – Activecampaign and Klaviyo.
If your belong to ecommerce niche and requires advanced automation, choose Klaviyo. Belong to other niche, choose Activecampaign.
Switch to Retainful and experience easy-to-setup email automation and reliable technical support and get value for money.
Wrapping up!!
While Mailchimp is a powerful email marketing tool and feature-rich, it is not the perfect fit for all businesses.
Exploring the best free Mailchimp alternatives like Retainful can offer more affordability, ease of use, and reliable customer support.
Ultimately, the best alternative to Mailchimp will depend on your specific needs, budget, and the level of complexity you are comfortable with.
Also Read:
- Shopify Email vs. Mailchimp – A Detailed Comparison
- Shopify Email vs Klaviyo: A Detailed Review
- Klaviyo Pricing 2025: What’s New and How It Affects You?
No, Mailchimp is not only for email marketing. It offers additional tools like social media advertising, landing pages, postcards, and CRM features, providing a comprehensive marketing platform suitable for various promotional activities.
Disadvantages of using Mailchimp include limited advanced automation features, higher costs as contact lists grow, basic CRM capabilities, and restricted customer support for lower-tier plans.
Klaviyo offers advanced automation workflows, detailed segmentation, seamless ecommerce integrations, and in-depth analytics.
Some alternatives to Mailchimp include Retainful, Omnisend, ConvertKit, and Sendinblue.
Retainful is the cheapest alternative to Mailchimp, offering easy-to-setup email automation, segmentation, and sign-up forms at an affordable price.
The best alternative to Mailchimp is Retainful offering easy-to-setup email automation, segmentation, and sign-up forms at an affordable price.
