What is the best free alternative to Mailchimp?

MailerLite and Brevo both have genuinely usable free plans. MailerLite's free plan covers 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails per month, including automation and landing pages. Brevo's free plan covers 300 emails per day with unlimited stored contacts, which suits a large list that sends occasionally rather than a small list that sends often.

What is the cheapest Mailchimp alternative?

Moosend and Brevo both have entry paid plans starting around $9/month. Moosend's Pro plan starts at $9/month for 500 contacts with unlimited sends, while Brevo's Starter plan starts at $9/month for 5,000 emails with unlimited contacts. Which is cheaper for you depends on whether your costs are driven more by list size or sending volume.

Which Mailchimp alternative is best for ecommerce?

Omnisend is built specifically for ecommerce, with native Shopify, WooCommerce, and BigCommerce integrations, abandoned cart flows, and bundled email, SMS, and push notifications in one workflow. Its free plan covers 250 contacts and 500 emails a month.

Why are people switching away from Mailchimp?

The most common reasons are pricing and automation limits. Mailchimp's free plan was reduced to 250 contacts and 500 emails per month in January 2026, and legacy paid-plan users saw an 11-13% price increase in April 2026. Mailchimp's automation flow steps are also more limited on lower tiers than several competitors.

Is switching email platforms hard?

Most competitors, including MailerLite, Moosend, and Brevo, offer built-in import tools that bring over your contact lists, tags, and often your existing templates. Automations and integrations usually need to be rebuilt manually, so budget time for that step rather than expecting a fully automatic migration.

Does any Mailchimp alternative offer a built-in CRM?

Brevo includes a built-in CRM on its plans, alongside email, SMS, and WhatsApp marketing. ActiveCampaign also blends email marketing with CRM and sales automation, though its CRM features are positioned more toward sales pipeline management than Brevo's lighter contact-management approach.

Is Mailchimp ever still the right choice?

Yes, for some users. Mailchimp still has the largest brand recognition, a wide integration library, and an all-in-one marketing suite that includes social posting and paid ad tools. If your team already knows Mailchimp well or needs that broader marketing toolkit in one place, switching may not be worth the disruption.

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Mailchimp Alternatives

Last Updated: August 2026

5 Best Mailchimp Alternatives in 2026 (Compared & Reviewed)

Already using Mailchimp and thinking about a switch? Here's how MailerLite, Moosend, Brevo, ActiveCampaign, and Omnisend compare on pricing, automation, and ease of use — so you can find the best Mailchimp alternative for your business. Read our full Mailchimp review if you haven't already.

Quick Recommendation

Most beginners MailerLite

Tightest budget Moosend

Ecommerce stores Omnisend

Heavy automation ActiveCampaign

See the Comparison Find My Platform

5 platforms compared

Why People Switch From Mailchimp

Mailchimp remains one of the most recognized names in email marketing, and our own Mailchimp review covers where it still holds up well. But if you're already using it and searching for alternatives, you're probably running into one of a few common frustrations.

Pricing. Mailchimp's free plan was cut to 250 contacts and 500 emails per month in January 2026, and legacy paid users saw an 11-13% price increase in April 2026.
Automation limits. Lower-tier plans cap the number of automation flow steps you can build, which pushes automation-heavy users toward a higher plan sooner than expected.
Ecommerce depth. Dedicated ecommerce platforms like Omnisend offer deeper native store integrations and abandoned cart flows than Mailchimp's general-purpose approach.
Ease of use. Some users find Mailchimp's interface more cluttered than simpler platforms like MailerLite, especially once you factor in its wider marketing-suite features they don't need.

Top 5 Mailchimp Alternatives at a Glance

A quick snapshot before the detailed breakdowns below.

Platform	Best For	Free Plan	Starting Price
MailerLite	Beginners	Yes — 250 subscribers	$12/mo
Moosend	Best Value	No — 30-day trial	$9/mo
Brevo	Email + CRM	Yes — 300 emails/day	$9/mo
ActiveCampaign	Advanced Automation	No — 14-day trial	$15/mo
Omnisend	Ecommerce	Yes — 250 contacts	$16/mo

Starting price: Free (250 contacts, 500 emails/month), then Standard from $16/month.

Try Omnisend Free

Still not sure which one fits?

See how these platforms compare against the cheapest options on the market too.

Cheapest Email Marketing Tools

Pricing Comparison: Mailchimp vs the Alternatives

Mailchimp's own plans, for reference: Free ($0, 250 contacts, 500 emails/mo), Essentials (from $13/mo), Standard (from $20/mo), and Premium (from $350/mo). Here's how the alternatives stack up.

MailerLite

Beginners

$12 /mo

Free up to 250 subscribers

Moosend

Best Value

$9 /mo

30-day trial, no free plan

Cheapest Entry

Brevo

Email + CRM

$9 /mo

Free: 300 emails/day, unlimited contacts

ActiveCampaign

Automation

$15 /mo

14-day trial, no free plan

Omnisend

Ecommerce

$16 /mo

Free: 250 contacts, 500 emails/mo

Starting prices shown at entry-level contact tiers. All platforms scale price with list size — run your own numbers before switching.

Feature Comparison

Feature	MailerLite	Moosend	Brevo	ActiveCampaign	Omnisend
Ease of Use	Excellent	Good	Good	Moderate	Good
Automation Depth	Good	Good	Good	Excellent	Good
Built-in CRM	No	No	Yes	Yes	No
Ecommerce Integrations	Good	Good	Basic	Good	Excellent
SMS / Multichannel	No	No	Yes	No	Yes
Free Plan	Yes	Trial only	Yes	Trial only	Yes

Ratings reflect our own research into pricing pages, documentation, and user feedback — not standardized test scores.

When Mailchimp Is Still the Better Choice

None of these alternatives make Mailchimp a bad platform — they're just better fits for specific situations. Mailchimp is still worth keeping if:

→ You need the widest possible brand recognition — clients and stakeholders already know and trust Mailchimp by name.
→ You want social media posting and paid ad management bundled into the same tool as your email marketing.
→ You rely on Mailchimp's large integration and template library and don't want to rebuild existing workflows.
→ Your team is already trained on Mailchimp and the cost of switching would outweigh the savings.

Final Recommendation

There's no single "best" Mailchimp alternative — the right pick depends on what's actually driving you to switch.

If you want the easiest transition with a real free plan, start with MailerLite. If cost per send matters most, Moosend or Brevo both start at $9/month. If you're outgrowing Mailchimp's automation limits, ActiveCampaign goes deeper. And if you run an online store, Omnisend is purpose-built for that job.

We're also building dedicated head-to-head comparisons — Mailchimp vs MailerLite, Mailchimp vs Brevo, and ActiveCampaign vs Mailchimp — for anyone who wants an even closer look at a specific matchup.

Bottom line: Every platform on this list has a genuine strength Mailchimp doesn't match at the same price. Match the strength to your actual problem, not the other way around.

Not sure which alternative fits your business?

Answer 6 quick questions and we'll recommend the best fit.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about switching from Mailchimp, answered.

Related Reviews & Guides

Review

Ready to leave Mailchimp behind?

Start with MailerLite's free plan, or take our 6-question quiz to find the platform that actually fits your business.

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5 Best Mailchimp Alternatives in 2026 (Compared & Reviewed)

Why People Switch From Mailchimp

Top 5 Mailchimp Alternatives at a Glance

The 5 Best Mailchimp Alternatives, Reviewed

MailerLite

Moosend

Brevo

ActiveCampaign

Omnisend

Still not sure which one fits?

Pricing Comparison: Mailchimp vs the Alternatives

MailerLite

Moosend

Brevo

ActiveCampaign

Omnisend

Feature Comparison

When Mailchimp Is Still the Better Choice

Final Recommendation

Not sure which alternative fits your business?

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Reviews & Guides

Mailchimp Review 2026

Best Email Tools for Shopify

Cheapest Email Marketing Software

Ready to leave Mailchimp behind?