Brevo vs Mailchimp

Brevo's pricing model is fundamentally different — it charges by emails sent, not contacts stored. This means unlimited contacts on every plan, including free. Brevo Starter is $9/month for 5,000 emails. Mailchimp Essentials is $20/month but scales by contact count.

At 20,000 contacts, Mailchimp Standard costs over $200/month. Brevo Business (unlimited contacts, 20,000 emails/month) is just $18/month. For businesses with large lists who don't email daily, Brevo saves hundreds per month.

Brevo is a true multi-channel platform: email, SMS, WhatsApp, CRM, transactional email (SMTP relay), live chat, and landing pages — all under one roof. For transactional emails like order confirmations and password resets, Brevo is far superior to Mailchimp's separate Mandrill product.

Mailchimp focuses on marketing features: a polished website builder, social media scheduling, creative assistant, and a broader template library. Its integration ecosystem (300+) is much larger than Brevo's (60+). If you need extensive third-party connections, Mailchimp has the edge.

Mailchimp has the friendlier, more polished interface. Its drag-and-drop email editor is one of the most intuitive in the industry, and the overall user experience is refined and beginner-friendly.

Brevo's interface is functional but less polished. The email editor works well but doesn't feel as smooth as Mailchimp's, and navigating between tools (email, SMS, CRM, chat) can feel fragmented. That said, Brevo has improved significantly and most users adapt quickly.

Brevo's automation builder supports multi-channel workflows combining email, SMS, and WhatsApp in a single sequence — something Mailchimp can't match. You can trigger automations based on email opens, link clicks, website visits, purchase events, and contact attribute changes.

Mailchimp's Customer Journeys cover standard email-only workflows: welcome series, abandoned carts, and date-based triggers. For businesses that want to reach customers via SMS alongside email, Brevo is the clear winner.

Both platforms achieve solid deliverability rates around 85-90%. Brevo supports full authentication (DKIM, SPF, DMARC) and offers dedicated IP addresses on higher plans. Its transactional email infrastructure is enterprise-grade.

Mailchimp's deliverability has been inconsistent, partly due to its large free-tier user base. Both have adequate reporting, but Brevo's multi-channel analytics (email + SMS + WhatsApp) provide a broader view of customer engagement.

Choose Brevo if you want unlimited contacts on the free plan, need email + SMS + CRM in one tool, have a large list but don't email daily, or are budget-conscious. Brevo delivers more features at a lower price than Mailchimp.

Choose Mailchimp if you want the most polished email editor, need extensive third-party integrations (300+), or prefer the most recognized brand with the most online tutorials and documentation.

Brevo is the smarter choice for most businesses. Unlimited free contacts, email + SMS + CRM + live chat, and pricing by sends instead of contacts makes it dramatically better value. Mailchimp wins on brand recognition, design tools, and integrations.

Dollar-for-dollar, Brevo delivers more. If value is your priority, the choice is clear.