Joonas Rotko · Founder, That Marketing Buddy
I assess marketing software through 10+ years of agency work, current product research, buyer needs, competing tools and total cost.
How this review was prepared
This review combines my hands-on experience with Mailchimp with its current pricing pages, documentation, product announcements and terms. Where a price or limit could not be confirmed on the official page, the text says so.
This page may include affiliate links, meaning I may earn a commission if you sign up (at no extra cost to you).
The Verdict
Is Mailchimp right for you?
Mailchimp, owned by Intuit, is the email platform most small businesses have heard of. It sells a Free plan and three paid plans (Essentials, Standard, Premium) priced by contact count, with AI tools, SMS in selected countries and integrations on top.
Free covers 250 contacts and 500 emails a month, with a cap of 250 a day. Paid prices start at about $13/month (Essentials) and $20 (Standard) at 500 contacts per third-party trackers, and Premium starts around $350/month for 10,000 contacts. AI features and long automation flows sit on Standard and Premium.
It fits a business that needs a familiar tool with many integrations. It fits poorly when cost at scale matters, since Moosend, Brevo and MailerLite often cost less for similar email work.
Who It's For
Who Mailchimp is for (and who it isn't)
✓ Best for
- +Small lists that want a known tool and a free start. The free plan covers 250 contacts and 500 emails a month with one seat and one audience. Email support on Free lasts 30 days.
- +Teams that want AI help inside the email editor. Mailchimp lists Write with AI in the editor, send-time optimisation, predicted attributes and pre-built flows, with Analytics AI available on Standard and Premium.
- +Teams that want Claude or an AI assistant tied to their account. Mailchimp has an official Claude connector announced in May 2026 that reads and writes campaign and audience data, plus a separate MCP for Mailchimp Transactional.
× Consider something else if
- −You want a lower price at the same list size. Mailchimp prices by contacts and Standard reaches $100 a month around 5,000 contacts per trackers. Moosend and Brevo publish lower entry prices and are worth pricing at your list size.Try Moosend →
- −You want a bigger free plan or simpler tiers. Mailchimp's free plan is capped at 250 contacts and 500 sends, and it has no automation on Free. A tool with a larger free allowance gives a small list more room.Try MailerLite →
- −You want email, SMS and transactional under one platform. Mailchimp sells transactional email as a separate product, and SMS only in selected countries. Brevo puts marketing and transactional email in one account.Try Brevo →
What You Can Do
What can Mailchimp do?
Send campaigns and automations
Essentials allows automation flows of up to 4 steps. Standard and Premium allow flows of up to 200 steps, with more seats and audiences, and Premium adds unlimited seats and audiences.
Draft copy and timing with AI
Use Write with AI in the editor and send-time optimisation. Analytics AI gives a plain-language reason why a campaign drove revenue.
Send occasional campaigns without a subscription
Mailchimp offers a pay-as-you-go option for infrequent senders, plus a 15% discount for nonprofits and charities.
Send transactional email through Mailchimp Transactional
The Transactional product is a separate account with its own API and an official MCP server at mandrillapp.com/mcp.
AI, API & MCP
Does Mailchimp Have an MCP Server, API and AI Features?
Mailchimp is reachable by agents through an official Claude connector, a Transactional MCP and its APIs.
AI agent workflow
A safe agent workflow
Use the Claude connector to review a campaign's copy and audience, and draft changes, then send from Mailchimp yourself.
Approval boundary: Keep sends, audience changes and unsubscribes behind a human click. The connector can write to campaign and audience data.
MCP
officialOfficial connector and Transactional MCP
The marketing connector is listed as Intuit Mailchimp in Anthropic's connector directory. The Transactional MCP uses a bearer API key with an AI Agents permission group.
Mailchimp Transactional MCP guide →API
officialMarketing and Transactional APIs
Documented on Mailchimp's developer site.
Mailchimp developer docs →Pricing
How much does Mailchimp cost?
Mailchimp is free to 250 contacts, and paid plans start at about $13/month (Essentials) and $20/month (Standard) at 500 contacts, per third-party trackers.
| Plan | Reported USD prices, unconfirmed on the official page |
|---|---|
| Free, 250 contacts | Free |
| Essentials | $13/mo |
| StandardPopular | $20/mo |
| Premium | $350/mo |
Mailchimp prices Essentials, Standard and Premium by contact tier, from 0 to 500 through 1,000,000+, in many currencies. The pricing page I could read showed euros and summarised the tiers inconsistently, so USD figures here are third-party reports and unconfirmed. Send limits are set as multiples of your contact count, and Mailchimp says overage charges apply if you exceed contact or send limits.
What each plan gates
Essentials: 3 seats and audiences, sends of 10 times contacts, automation flows up to 4 steps, no AI features. Standard: 5 seats and audiences, sends of 12 times contacts, flows up to 200 steps, AI features. Premium: unlimited seats and audiences, sends of 15 times contacts, phone and priority support and four onboarding sessions. These are read from a summary of the pricing page.
Reported tier examples
Third-party trackers report Essentials at $75 and Standard at $100 a month at 5,000 contacts, and Premium from $350 at 10,000 contacts. I could not confirm these on Mailchimp's own page.
Trials
Essentials and Standard list a 14-day free trial, and Standard also lists a risk-free 100 emails without a credit card. Premium lists a one-month trial for qualified customers.
Currency and region
Mailchimp bills in 16 currencies, including USD, EUR and GBP, and SMS is available only in selected countries.
Alternatives
When I'd choose something else
Three different buying priorities, and what I'd pick instead for each one.
If you want a lower price with automation included
Moosend
Moosend's Pro plan includes unlimited sends, automation, landing pages and forms, priced by contacts.
Trade-off: It is now owned by Constant Contact and has a smaller integration catalog than Mailchimp.
Explore Moosend for this use case →If you want a larger free plan and simple tiers
MailerLite
MailerLite has a free plan and simple subscriber-based tiers for small senders.
Trade-off: Check its subscriber and send caps against Mailchimp's before you switch.
Explore MailerLite for this use case →If you want marketing and transactional email together
Brevo
Brevo covers marketing email, transactional email and other channels in one account.
Trade-off: It has more to configure and prices partly by sending volume.
Explore Brevo for this use case →Keep going
- Compare Mailchimp against the field: The Best All-in-One Marketing and Sales Platforms for Growing Businesses (2026)
- Compare Mailchimp against the field: 10 Best Email Marketing Tools for Ecommerce (2026)
- Put it to work: Affiliate Marketing for Beginners: How to Start and What to Expect
- Put it to work: How to Do Email Marketing: A Practical Guide for 2026
Downsides
Limitations to consider before subscribing
Free is small and short on support
250 contacts, 500 emails a month, a 250-a-day cap and 30 days of email support.
Cost rises quickly with contacts
Reported prices jump from about $13 to $75 (Essentials) between 500 and 5,000 contacts, and Premium starts near $350.
AI features start on Standard
Essentials lists no AI features, and Analytics AI and the AI connectors are on Standard and Premium.
Transactional email and SMS are separate
Transactional sending is its own product and SMS is available only in selected countries.
Official USD prices were not readable
The pricing page I could read showed euros and inconsistent summaries, so USD ladders need a human check.
My Recommendation
Should You Choose Mailchimp?
Shortlist Mailchimp if you already run on it, need its integrations, or want AI tools and a Claude connector on Standard or Premium.
Choose Moosend for a lower price with automation, MailerLite for a bigger free plan, or Brevo for marketing and transactional email together.
What to check during the trial
- –Price your exact contact count on Mailchimp's calculator in your own currency.
- –Check which plan you need: flows longer than 4 steps and AI features start on Standard.
- –Price the same list on Moosend, MailerLite and Brevo.
- –Confirm overage and send limits, which are set as multiples of contacts.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Mailchimp
Mailchimp is free to 250 contacts. Paid plans start at about $13/month (Essentials) and $20 (Standard) at 500 contacts, and Premium from about $350 at 10,000 contacts, per third-party trackers. Prices rise with contacts.
Yes. Free covers 250 contacts, 500 emails a month (250 a day), one seat and one audience, with email support for 30 days.
Yes. Intuit announced an official Claude connector for Mailchimp in May 2026, and Mailchimp Transactional has an official MCP server at mandrillapp.com/mcp.
Yes. Moosend, Brevo and MailerLite often cost less for similar email work, so price them at your list size.
Sources & References (4)
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