Listed whether or not they pay us. Prices from each tool's own pricing page, checked Oct 16, 2026.

Mailchimp

Popular all round email marketing platform with templates, automations and Intuit Assist generative AI on higher plans.

Best for Small businesses wanting a familiar all in one email tool

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What it does

Mailchimp is an email and SMS marketing platform designed to help businesses communicate with their audiences. Users supply their audience data, content, and branding to generate targeted campaigns, marketing automations, and transactional messages. It is built for organizations of all sizes, including ecommerce retailers, small businesses, non profits, and professional services.

Read more: 3 features and how people use themShow less

  1. Drag and drop builder

    Lets you assemble and customize marketing emails using predesigned layouts, styling adjustments, colors, and buttons.

    Use caseA marketer chooses a two column layout and adjusts colors and buttons before sending a promotional email.

    From mailchimp.com/solutions/ai-tools
  2. Mailchimp: Intuit Assist

    Intuit Assist

    Generates draft email copy, rewrites text blocks, and suggests content improvements directly within the campaign editor.

    Use caseA business owner drafts email copy quickly when short on time by asking the assistant to shorten or rewrite text.

    From mailchimp.com/solutions/ai-tools · image from Mailchimp
  3. Mailchimp: Send time optimization

    Send time optimization

    Evaluates historical engagement patterns to recommend the specific hours and days most likely to produce clicks.

    Use caseAn email sender schedules a newsletter based on recommended hours derived from past year click trends.

    From mailchimp.com/solutions/ai-tools · image from Mailchimp

Written from Mailchimp's own website, checked . Each feature links to the page it comes from; images are Mailchimp's own.

Every plan

PlanMonthlyBilled yearlyPerWhat it includes
FreeFreeNot listedper accountUnder 250 contacts, 500 sends/mo, 250/day, Mailchimp branding
Essentials$13Not listedper account (priced by contacts)At 500 contacts; 10x contacts sends (5,000/mo); no generative AI
Standard$20Not listedper account (priced by contacts)At 500 contacts; 12x sends (6,000/mo); generative AI + Intuit Assist included
Premium$350Not listedper account (priced by contacts)Starts at 10,000 contacts; 15x sends; generative AI; annual plans via sales for 10k+ contacts

From Mailchimp's own pricing page, checked . Prices are in US dollars per month; "billed yearly" is the monthly price when you pay for a year up front. A few figures (often the yearly price) are derived rather than printed on the page.

Before you pay

Unused credits roll over
No
What Mailchimp saysSMS credits don’t roll over month to month which means that all credits must be used throughout the billing cycle in which you purchase them. Source page
Support
Email, live chat, phone
What Mailchimp saysPriority email and chat support 24/7. Phone support available during business hours. Source page

Only what Mailchimp's own pages state, with the quote behind each answer. Anything they don't publish is left out rather than guessed.

Getting started with Mailchimp

  1. Set up your account and view or change the primary email address you use for billing, compliance, and important notices.
  2. Create your Mailchimp audience to import and collect new contacts for your campaigns.
  3. Use the import tool to add or update contacts in Mailchimp.
  4. Label and organize your contacts with tags.
  5. Make a hosted signup form to share across all your online channels.
  6. Sync Mailchimp with 300+ apps and services using integrations.
  7. Use Customer Journeys to automatically send targeted emails, tag contacts, and accomplish other important tasks.

Tips

  • Schedule a call in your first 90 days to meet 1:1 with an Onboarding Specialist included with Standard or Premium plans.
  • Use A/B Testing to test different subject lines, design, content, and send times to learn what works best for your audience.
  • Build behavioral segments based on how your audience has engaged with your Mailchimp website, app, campaigns, or prior purchase behavior.

Written from Mailchimp's own help pages: mailchimp.com/services/onboarding/

Mailchimp video tutorials

MAILCHIMP TUTORIAL 2024 (For Beginners) - Step by Step Email Marketing GuideSantrel Media · 44 min
Mailchimp Tutorial for BeginnersKevin Stratvert · 14 min
The Only Mailchimp Tutorial You Will Ever Need (FOR BEGINNERS)Metics Media · 41 min

Independent creators on YouTube, not Mailchimp or us. The video loads from YouTube only when you press play.

What the free plan includes

Under 250 contacts, 500 sends/mo (max 250/day), 1 seat, 1 audience, no automation flows or scheduling

Questions people ask about Mailchimp

How much does Mailchimp cost?

Paid plans start at $13 a month (Essentials). 4 plans are listed above, from Mailchimp's own pricing page.

Is Mailchimp free?

Yes, there is a free plan: Under 250 contacts, 500 sends/mo (max 250/day), 1 seat, 1 audience, no automation flows or scheduling.

Do unused Mailchimp credits roll over?

No, unused credits do not carry over to the next month. Source

Does Mailchimp have an API?

Yes.

Do SMS credits roll over from month to month?

No, SMS credits expire at the end of each billing cycle and must be used within the cycle they were purchased. Source

What happens if you purchase an SMS credit subscription in the middle of a billing cycle?

You will be charged a prorated amount for the remaining days of your current billing cycle. Source

Works with

AI models
Claude

Where this came from

Plans, prices and limits were copied from Mailchimp's own pages and the other sources listed, then checked .

How we collect prices and rank tools · Is something wrong? Correct this listing

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Visit Mailchimp Mailchimp (opens the tool's site)