Mailchimp review

What Mailchimp is

Mailchimp is an email and marketing platform for designing campaigns, managing contact lists and running automated email flows Mailchimp pricing ↗. It is owned by Intuit, the company behind QuickBooks Mailchimp pricing ↗.

It has four marketing plans: Free, Essentials, Standard and Premium Mailchimp pricing ↗. AI features are limited to the upper plans. Standard and Premium include generative AI at no additional cost, and Intuit Assist, its AI assistant, is in beta on those plans Mailchimp pricing ↗.

Hands on testing is in progress, and we will update this review with results.

What it does well

AI comes included on Standard. Generative AI and Intuit Assist are listed at no additional cost on Standard and Premium Mailchimp pricing ↗. You do not pay a separate AI add on like some rivals charge.

Standard covers a lot for a growing team. It includes 5 seats, 5 audiences, up to 200 automation flows, custom reports, dynamic content, branded templates and one personalized onboarding session Mailchimp pricing ↗. It allows sends of up to 12 times your contact count each month Mailchimp pricing ↗.

It scales a long way. Premium offers unlimited seats and audiences, role based access, enterprise SSO, phone and priority support and sends of up to 15 times your contact count Mailchimp pricing ↗. You are unlikely to outgrow it.

Support is available around the clock. Essentials and Standard include 24/7 email and chat support Mailchimp pricing ↗.

Overages do not stop your campaigns. On paid plans, Mailchimp bills overages automatically and keeps sending, rather than pausing a campaign mid send Mailchimp pricing ↗.

Where it falls short

There is no AI on the cheaper plans. Essentials and Free do not include generative AI Mailchimp pricing ↗. If AI is why you are choosing Mailchimp, you need Standard or higher.

Intuit Assist is still beta. Mailchimp labels it beta on Standard, so features may change and may not be available to every account Mailchimp pricing ↗.

The trial needs payment details. You must give valid payment information when you start the 14 day trial on Essentials or Standard Mailchimp pricing ↗.

The free plan is small. It allows up to 250 contacts and 500 emails a month, with a cap of 250 a day, one seat, no automation flows and Mailchimp branding Mailchimp pricing ↗. Email support on Free lasts only 30 days Mailchimp pricing ↗.

Prices after the first year are unclear. The page shows promo prices for 12 months, and it does not list exact overage rates Mailchimp pricing ↗.

Pricing and plans

Free costs nothing for up to 250 contacts, with 500 emails a month, 1 seat, 1 audience and no automations or AI Mailchimp pricing ↗. Sending pauses when you hit a limit Mailchimp pricing ↗.

Essentials starts at $13 a month for 12 months, with 3 seats, 3 audiences, automations of up to 4 steps and sends of 10 times your contact count, but no generative AI Mailchimp pricing ↗.

Standard starts at $20 a month for 12 months, with 5 seats, 5 audiences, up to 200 flows, generative AI and Intuit Assist Mailchimp pricing ↗. Premium starts at $350 a month for 12 months, with unlimited seats, SSO and phone support Mailchimp pricing ↗. Prices rise with your contact count, and lists over 10,000 contacts get 15 percent off Mailchimp pricing ↗.

Essentials and Standard come with a 14 day free trial that requires payment details at signup Mailchimp pricing ↗. Premium has a 1 month trial for qualified new customers through sales Mailchimp pricing ↗. Paid plans bill overages if you exceed your contact or send limit Mailchimp pricing ↗.

Who should (and shouldn't) use it

• Good fit: growing businesses that want AI help and room to scale Mailchimp pricing ↗.
• Good fit: teams that need several seats and audiences on one account Mailchimp pricing ↗.
• Good fit: QuickBooks users who like staying with Intuit products Mailchimp pricing ↗.
• Skip it if: you want AI on a tight budget; MailerLite starts at $12 a month MailerLite pricing ↗.
• Skip it if: you need a large free list; Kit is free up to 10,000 subscribers Kit pricing ↗.
• Skip it if: you run an online store and want email tied to purchase data; look at Klaviyo Klaviyo pricing ↗.

Alternatives worth a look

• MailerLite: our pick for most small businesses, with useful AI help in a simple tool from $12 a month MailerLite pricing ↗.
• Brevo: priced by emails sent rather than contacts, good for large lists that send rarely Brevo pricing ↗.
• Kit: free for up to 10,000 subscribers with unlimited broadcasts, for newsletters Kit pricing ↗.
• Klaviyo: email tied to store purchase data, with a free plan Klaviyo pricing ↗.
• Constant Contact: an AI copy generator on every plan from $12 a month Constant Contact pricing ↗.
• ActiveCampaign: the deepest AI automation tools, with a 14 day no card trial ActiveCampaign pricing ↗.