Brevo vs Mailchimp — Pricing, Plans, and Verified Costs (2026)
Brevo starts at $9/mo. Mailchimp starts at $13/mo. Brevo is $4/mo cheaper on the entry tier than Mailchimp.
How pricing works
These two tools don't price the same way, so the headline numbers below aren't directly comparable until you plug in your own volume.
- Brevo (Per Usage) — Brevo bills purely on usage — Emails/month. There is no fixed per-seat fee, so the monthly cost depends entirely on how much you consume.
- Mailchimp (Per Usage) — Mailchimp bills purely on usage — contacts. There is no fixed per-seat fee, so the monthly cost depends entirely on how much you consume.
Per-minute, per-credit and per-token rates exclude any downstream model, speech or telephony costs unless the vendor states otherwise.
French all-in-one marketing platform (formerly Sendinblue), positioned as the alternative to Mailchimp with better transactional email and SMS built in. Distinctive for pricing per email sent (not per contact) — flips Mailchimp's model on its head and saves money for teams with large-but-inactive lists. Priced $9-$18/mo for entry tiers. Popular with European SMBs and e-commerce.
The original email marketing platform for SMBs, now owned by Intuit ($12B acquisition, 2021). Distinctive for pricing per subscriber rather than per email sent — which surprises teams with large-but-inactive lists. Free tier up to 500 contacts. Paid tiers get expensive fast as your list grows ($350/mo Premium at 10K+ contacts). Losing SMB share to Beehiiv (creators) and Klaviyo (e-commerce) but still the default for non-technical marketers.
All plans compared
| Tier role | Plan | Brevo monthly | Brevo annual | Mailchimp monthly | Mailchimp annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free / starter | — / Free | — | — | Free | — |
| Entry paid | — / Essentials | — | — | $13 | — |
| Mid tier | — / Standard | — | — | $20 | — |
| Pro / power | — / Premium | — | — | $350 | — |
Tier names differ across vendors. Rows are aligned by tier role, not name. Full tier structures on each tool's page.
What each is best for
Brevo is worth it if… Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) is worth it for SMBs that need email + SMS + WhatsApp + basic CRM — particularly if you're European and value GDPR-first tooling. Free tier is generous (unlimited contacts, 300 emails/day); Starter and Business scale by monthly emails, not contacts — unique among ESPs.
Mailchimp is worth it if… SMBs and solo creators who want email marketing + light e-commerce + landing pages — the household-name option with generous templates and easy setup. Free covers up to 500 contacts; Essentials adds automations; Standard adds journeys and A/B testing; Premium adds advanced segmentation.
Bottom line: Similar positioning, closer to a preference call than a strategic one.
Choose Brevo over Mailchimp if…
Choose Brevo if…
- You want to pay only for actual usage (per usage, from $9/mo).
- You match the profile Brevo is built for: Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) is worth it for SMBs that need email + SMS + WhatsApp + basic CRM — particularly if you're European and value GDPR-first tooling.
- You need a general-purpose marketing & email option rather than a vertical-specific one.
Choose Mailchimp if…
- You want to pay only for actual usage (per usage, from $13/mo).
- You match the profile Mailchimp is built for: SMBs and solo creators who want email marketing + light e-commerce + landing pages — the household-name option with generous templates and easy setup.
- You need a general-purpose marketing & email option rather than a vertical-specific one.
At a glance
| Brevo | Mailchimp | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Entry price | $9/mo | $13/mo |
| Enterprise available | Yes | Yes |
| Pricing model | Per Usage | Per Usage |
| Last verified | September 12, 2026 | September 17, 2026 |
| Full pricing | View full pricing | View full pricing |
Pricing last verified September 17, 2026. Tracked daily.