Should I use Brevo or Mailchimp?

Use Brevo if you have a large, mostly-inactive contact list and want to pay by email volume; use Mailchimp if you run e-commerce and want AI tools and abandoned-cart automation.

Is Brevo cheaper than Mailchimp?

It depends on your list size — Brevo is cheaper for large, mostly-inactive contact lists because it charges by email volume, while Mailchimp's contact-based pricing climbs steeply from $13 to $350/month as lists grow.

Does Brevo have a free tier?

Yes — Brevo's free plan allows up to 300 emails per day with unlimited stored contacts and one user seat.

Which has AI content tools, Brevo or Mailchimp?

Mailchimp does — it includes AI-assisted content tools starting on its $20/month Standard tier, a feature not described in Brevo's data.

Brevo vs Mailchimp (2026)

By Noahlast updated September 14, 2026

Verdict: Choose Brevo if you have a large, mostly-inactive contact list and want to be billed by emails sent rather than contacts stored. Choose Mailchimp if you run e-commerce and want AI content tools, abandoned-cart automation, and 300+ integrations bundled into a mid-tier plan. The deciding factor is the billing metric: every Brevo paid plan includes unlimited contacts because it charges by monthly email volume, while Mailchimp's pricing scales directly with contacts stored, climbing from $13 to $20 to $350/month as lists grow.

Brevo

An email marketing and CRM platform (formerly Sendinblue) that prices by emails sent per month rather than contacts stored, starting free at 300 emails/day.

Pricing: Free tier · paid from $9/mo
License: Paid
Best for: small businesses and marketers with large but mostly-inactive contact lists who want to be billed by emails sent rather than penalized for contacts stored

4.6/5 on Capterra (3,512 reviews)

Details brevo.com

Mailchimp

Email and SMS marketing platform with automation, AI content tools, and a free tier for up to 250 contacts.

Pricing: Free tier · paid from $13/mo
License: Freemium
Best for: small businesses and e-commerce brands that want to run email and SMS campaigns with built-in automation and AI content tools without a separate marketing stack

4.5/5 on Capterra (17,674 reviews)

Details mailchimp.com

Choose Brevo if…

You have a large contact list but send relatively few campaigns, so paying by email volume beats paying by contacts stored
You want SMS, live chat, and a lightweight CRM bundled with email in one account
You want transactional email and SMS APIs on the same account as your marketing campaigns
You want a free plan with unlimited stored contacts, not just a small contact cap

Choose Mailchimp if…

You run an e-commerce store and want abandoned-cart and order-follow-up automation via Shopify or WooCommerce
You want AI content generation tools bundled with marketing automation from a mid-tier plan
You want native iOS and Android apps for managing campaigns, not just a web dashboard
You want the larger integration marketplace (300+ tools) for connecting your existing stack

Brevo vs Mailchimp: feature comparison

Feature	Brevo	Mailchimp
Starting price	Yesfrom $9/mo (Starter, 5,000 emails)	Yesfrom $13/mo (Essentials)
Free tier	Yesup to 300 emails/day, unlimited contacts	Yesup to 250 contacts, 500 sends/mo
Platforms	Noweb only	Yesweb, iOS, Android
Pricing metric	Yesbilled by email volume, unlimited contacts on every paid plan	Nobilled by contact-list size
Hosting / license	Noclosed-source, proprietary	Noclosed-source, proprietary
Marketing automation	Yesfrom $18/mo (Business)	Yesfrom $20/mo (Standard), up to 200 flows
Landing pages	Yesfrom $18/mo (Business)	Unknownnot described in the data
AI content tools	Unknownnot described in the data	Yesfrom $20/mo (Standard)
E-commerce automation triggers (abandoned cart, etc.)	Unknownnot described in the data	Yesvia Shopify and WooCommerce integrations
Built-in CRM	Yeslightweight CRM bundled	Yeslightweight CRM for tracking contacts
Third-party integrations	Unknownnot quantified in the data	Yes300+ integrations
Top listed tier price	Yesfrom $499/mo (Enterprise)	Yes$350/mo (Premium)
Free-plan support	Unknownnot described in the data	Noemail support only, ends after the first 30 days
External rating (Capterra)	Yes4.6/5 from 3,512 reviews	Yes4.5/5 from 17,674 reviews

Brevo vs Mailchimp pricing: which costs less?

It depends on your contact-list size relative to email volume: Brevo charges by emails sent so a large, mostly-inactive list stays cheap, while Mailchimp charges by contacts stored, climbing from $13 to $20 to $350/month as lists grow.

A sender with 50,000 stored contacts but light sending volume pays Brevo based on emails sent (from $9/month for 5,000 emails, scaling to about $69/month for 100,000 emails) regardless of list size. The same list on Mailchimp would push the account well past Essentials ($13/month) and Standard ($20/month) tiers, since Mailchimp explicitly prices by contact count and its own listed weakness notes pricing climbs steeply and disproportionately at scale.

Which is easier to use, Brevo or Mailchimp?

Both carry a low learning-curve rating in the data, so ease of use is comparable for beginners getting started with either platform.

Which has better e-commerce integrations, Brevo or Mailchimp?

Mailchimp has more explicit e-commerce integrations, connecting to Shopify and WooCommerce to trigger automated abandoned-cart and order-confirmation emails, a capability not described in Brevo's data.

Can Mailchimp replace Brevo?

Yes for businesses without large, mostly-inactive contact lists, but Mailchimp's contact-based pricing would cost more than Brevo's email-volume pricing for exactly the accounts Brevo is built for.

Mailchimp covers campaign design, automation, and e-commerce triggers with a larger integration marketplace than Brevo's listed feature set. Businesses that specifically carry a large stored-contact list with relatively light sending activity will pay more on Mailchimp's contact-based tiers than on Brevo's email-volume tiers, since Brevo bundles unlimited contacts into every paid plan.

Strengths and weaknesses

Brevo

Pros

Every paid plan includes unlimited stored contacts, since pricing is based on email volume instead.
Free plan requires no credit card and includes core email marketing functionality.
Bundles SMS, live chat, and a lightweight CRM alongside email in one platform.
Transactional email and SMS APIs are available on the same account as marketing campaigns.

Cons

Free plan's 300 emails/day cap is restrictive for anything beyond very small lists.
Marketing automation and landing pages require the Business tier, a larger jump than Starter alone provides.
Some users report unclear account policy and compliance enforcement that can affect sending reliability.
Higher-volume Starter pricing (up to ~$69/month for 100,000 emails) scales quickly compared to flat-rate competitors.

Mailchimp

Pros

Free tier is genuinely usable for small lists up to 250 contacts.
Drag-and-drop builder and template library make campaign creation fast for beginners.
Deep e-commerce integrations (Shopify, WooCommerce) enable automated triggers like abandoned-cart emails.
AI content and automation tools are included starting at the Standard tier.

Cons

Pricing climbs steeply as contact count grows, with users calling the cost disproportionate at scale.
Advanced automation flows and predictive segmentation are gated behind Standard and Premium tiers.
Free plan email support ends after the first 30 days.
Premium tier jumps to $350/month, a large gap from Standard's $20/month.

Which fits your use case?

Use case	Pick	Why
Marketer with a large but mostly-inactive contact list	Brevo	Brevo bills by email volume with unlimited contacts on every paid plan; Mailchimp bills by contact count, which would cost more for the same list.
E-commerce store wanting abandoned-cart and order-follow-up automation	Mailchimp	Mailchimp integrates with Shopify and WooCommerce for these triggers; Brevo's data doesn't describe an equivalent.
Small business wanting AI content generation tools	Mailchimp	Mailchimp includes AI content tools from its Standard tier; Brevo's data doesn't mention AI content generation.
Budget-conscious sender who wants unlimited contacts on a free plan	Brevo	Brevo's free plan has no contact cap, just an email-volume cap of 300/day; Mailchimp's free plan caps out at 250 contacts.
Team that wants native mobile apps to manage campaigns	Mailchimp	Mailchimp ships iOS and Android apps; Brevo is web only.
Business needing SMS, live chat, and CRM bundled in one account	Brevo	Brevo explicitly bundles SMS, live chat, and a lightweight CRM alongside email in one platform.

Neither a match?

Both lists carry verified pricing and honest weaknesses for every option.

5 alternatives to Brevo 5 alternatives to Mailchimp

Popular comparisons

Brevo vs Mailchimp: migration FAQ

Should I use Brevo or Mailchimp?: Use Brevo if you have a large, mostly-inactive contact list and want to pay by email volume; use Mailchimp if you run e-commerce and want AI tools and abandoned-cart automation.
Is Brevo cheaper than Mailchimp?: It depends on your list size — Brevo is cheaper for large, mostly-inactive contact lists because it charges by email volume, while Mailchimp's contact-based pricing climbs steeply from $13 to $350/month as lists grow.
Can Mailchimp replace Brevo?: Yes for businesses without large, mostly-inactive contact lists, but Mailchimp's contact-based pricing would cost more than Brevo's email-volume pricing for the exact accounts Brevo is designed for.
Does Brevo have a free tier?: Yes — Brevo's free plan allows up to 300 emails per day with unlimited stored contacts and one user seat.
Which has AI content tools, Brevo or Mailchimp?: Mailchimp does — it includes AI-assisted content tools starting on its $20/month Standard tier, a feature not described in Brevo's data.