Quick signals
Complexity
Low
Easiest platform to learn; drag-and-drop everything, but automation ceiling reached quickly by growing teams.
Common upgrade trigger
Need real automation beyond basic drip—requires Standard ($13.99/mo) or Premium ($299/mo)
When it gets expensive
Free tier reduced from 2,000 to 500 contacts after Intuit acquisition—legacy grandfathered accounts expire
What this product actually is
Most widely adopted email marketing platform with drag-and-drop builder, basic automation, and 300+ integrations. Free for 500 contacts; Standard $13.99/mo.
Pricing behavior (not a price list)
These points describe when users typically pay more, what actions trigger upgrades, and the mechanics of how costs escalate.
Actions that trigger upgrades
- Need real automation beyond basic drip—requires Standard ($13.99/mo) or Premium ($299/mo)
- Need advanced segmentation and comparative reporting—Premium tier only ($299/mo)
- Contact count exceeds free tier (500)—forced to Standard plan
- Need to remove Mailchimp branding from emails—requires Essentials ($13/mo minimum)
- Need multivariate testing (4+ variants)—Premium tier only
When costs usually spike
- Free tier reduced from 2,000 to 500 contacts after Intuit acquisition—legacy grandfathered accounts expire
- Audience management: contacts in multiple audiences count multiple times toward billing
- Unsubscribed contacts still count toward your contact limit unless archived
- API rate limits: 10 concurrent connections; batch operations limited to 500 per request
- Transactional email is a separate add-on (Mandrill)—not included in any marketing plan
- Content restrictions: affiliate marketing, cryptocurrency, and some health claims prohibited
Plans and variants (structural only)
Grouped by type to show structure, not to rank or recommend specific SKUs.
Free
- Free - $0 for 500 contacts - 1,000 sends/mo, basic automation, HubSpot branding
Plans
- Essentials - $13/mo for 500 contacts - Remove branding, A/B testing, 24/7 support
- Standard - $13.99/mo for 500 contacts - Automation, send time optimization, retargeting
Premium
- Premium - $299/mo for 10,000 contacts - Advanced segmentation, multivariate testing
Costs and limitations
Common limits
- Contact-based pricing escalates rapidly: 10,000 contacts on Standard is $100/mo; 50,000 contacts is $299/mo
- Automation depth is limited compared to ActiveCampaign—no conditional branching, limited triggers
- Premium tier ($299/mo) required for advanced segmentation, comparative reporting, and multivariate testing
- Affiliate marketing content restricted—Mailchimp's terms prohibit many affiliate-heavy use cases
- No built-in CRM for sales pipeline management—separate tool needed for lead scoring
- E-commerce integration exists but revenue attribution is basic compared to Klaviyo's per-email ROI
What breaks first
- Contact-based pricing at 25,000+: $220/mo on Standard vs Brevo at $25/mo (send-based) for same list
- Automation limitations: teams outgrow basic sequences and need conditional workflows within 6–12 months
- No lead scoring or CRM forces reliance on separate tools, creating data silos
- E-commerce teams hit attribution ceiling—Mailchimp shows opens and clicks but not per-email revenue
- Advanced segmentation locked behind $299/mo Premium—most mid-size teams can't justify it
Decision checklist
Use these checks to validate fit for Mailchimp before you commit to an architecture or contract.
- Email Simplicity vs Automation Depth: Map your current automation needs: simple drip sequences vs multi-branch conditional flows
- Contact-Based vs Send-Based Pricing: Calculate total contacts vs average monthly sends to model cost on both pricing models
- E-commerce Native vs General Purpose: Determine if revenue-per-email and order-level attribution are must-have metrics
- Upgrade trigger: Need real automation beyond basic drip—requires Standard ($13.99/mo) or Premium ($299/mo)
- What breaks first: Contact-based pricing at 25,000+: $220/mo on Standard vs Brevo at $25/mo (send-based) for same list
Implementation & evaluation notes
These are the practical "gotchas" and questions that usually decide whether Mailchimp fits your team and workflow.
Implementation timeline
1–3 days for basic campaigns; 1–2 weeks to configure automation and integrate with existing tools.
Switching cost
Low — contact lists export easily; automation workflows are simple enough to rebuild; no deep CRM lock-in.
Implementation gotchas
- API rate limits: 10 concurrent connections; batch operations limited to 500 per request
- Broadest integration ecosystem → No native CRM or lead scoring
- E-commerce integration exists but revenue attribution is basic compared to Klaviyo's per-email ROI
Questions to ask before you buy
- Which actions or usage metrics trigger an upgrade (e.g., Need real automation beyond basic drip—requires Standard ($13.99/mo) or Premium ($299/mo))?
- Under what usage shape do costs or limits show up first (e.g., Free tier reduced from 2,000 to 500 contacts after Intuit acquisition—legacy grandfathered accounts expire)?
- What breaks first in production (e.g., Contact-based pricing at 25,000+: $220/mo on Standard vs Brevo at $25/mo (send-based) for same list) — and what is the workaround?
- Validate: Email Simplicity vs Automation Depth: Map your current automation needs: simple drip sequences vs multi-branch conditional flows
- Validate: Contact-Based vs Send-Based Pricing: Calculate total contacts vs average monthly sends to model cost on both pricing models
Fit assessment
Good fit if…
- Small businesses and solopreneurs launching their first email marketing program
- Content creators and bloggers needing beautiful newsletters with minimal technical setup
- Teams prioritizing email template design quality and visual brand consistency
- Local businesses with simple segmentation needs and occasional campaigns
- Marketing teams wanting the broadest integration ecosystem with plug-and-play connectors
- Non-profits and organizations leveraging Mailchimp's 15% discount on paid plans
Poor fit if…
- Need advanced conditional automation workflows—ActiveCampaign or HubSpot are far more capable
- List over 10,000 contacts with moderate engagement—contact-based pricing wastes money on dormant contacts
- E-commerce brand needing revenue-per-email attribution and cart abandonment precision—Klaviyo is better
- B2B team needing lead scoring and CRM integration—Mailchimp has no native scoring or pipeline
- Affiliate marketing is core to your business—Mailchimp's TOS restrict affiliate content
- Need send-based pricing for a large list—Brevo is 3-10x cheaper at 50,000+ contacts
Trade-offs
Every design choice has a cost. Here are the explicit trade-offs:
- Best email template builder → Shallowest automation depth among competitors
- Broadest integration ecosystem → No native CRM or lead scoring
- Brand recognition and trust → Higher pricing than newer competitors at equivalent features
- Easiest onboarding experience → Limited customization for power users
- Strong for simple campaigns → Inadequate for complex multi-channel orchestration
Common alternatives people evaluate next
These are common “next shortlists” — same tier, step-down, step-sideways, or step-up — with a quick reason why.
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ActiveCampaign — step-upWhen you outgrow Mailchimp's automation and need conditional workflows, CRM, and lead scoring.
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Brevo — step-sidewaysSend-based pricing saves 50–80% on large lists; similar feature set for basic email + automation.
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Klaviyo — step-sidewaysWhen you're on Shopify and need revenue-per-email attribution that Mailchimp can't provide.
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Omnisend — step-sidewaysE-commerce automation with pre-built Shopify flows and SMS+push in one plan—more focused than Mailchimp.
Sources & verification
Pricing and behavioral information comes from public documentation and structured research. When information is incomplete or volatile, we prefer to say so rather than guess.