Email marketing remains one of the highest-ROI channels for businesses, and choosing the right platform shapes how effectively you reach, engage, and convert your audience. Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) and Mailchimp are two of the most popular email marketing platforms, each offering a distinct approach. Brevo provides an affordable, all-in-one marketing platform with email, SMS, WhatsApp, and CRM included. Mailchimp offers a polished, marketing-first platform with strong analytics, content tools, and a massive integration ecosystem. This comparison covers pricing, features, automation, and deliverability to help you choose. For related options, see our Mailchimp vs ActiveCampaign comparison.

Quick Verdict

Mailchimp wins for businesses that want a polished, feature-rich email marketing platform with superior analytics, content tools, AI-powered optimization, and the broadest integration ecosystem. Brevo wins for budget-conscious businesses that need unlimited contacts, multi-channel marketing (email, SMS, WhatsApp), and a built-in CRM at a fraction of Mailchimp’s cost.

Overview of Both Platforms

Brevo

Brevo (rebranded from Sendinblue in 2023) is a Paris-based marketing platform serving over 500,000 businesses. It stands out by pricing based on email volume rather than contact count, making it dramatically cheaper for businesses with large contact lists. Brevo has expanded beyond email into SMS marketing, WhatsApp campaigns, CRM, live chat, and marketing automation, positioning itself as an affordable all-in-one marketing suite.

Brevo:  ★★★★☆ 4.2/5

Mailchimp

Mailchimp was founded in 2001 and acquired by Intuit in 2021 for $12 billion. It serves over 13 million active users and is the most recognized email marketing brand globally. Mailchimp has evolved from a simple email tool into a comprehensive marketing platform with email campaigns, automation, landing pages, social media ads, postcards, surveys, and AI-powered content optimization. Its ease of use and brand recognition make it the default choice for many small businesses.

Mailchimp:  ★★★★☆ 4.2/5

Pricing Comparison

Brevo Pricing

Brevo prices by email volume with unlimited contacts on all plans:

  • Free – 300 emails per day, unlimited contacts, email campaigns, and CRM.
  • Starter – from $9 per month for 5,000 emails per month, removing the daily sending limit and adding basic reporting.
  • Business – from $18 per month for 5,000 emails, adding marketing automation, A/B testing, advanced statistics, and send time optimization.
  • Enterprise – custom pricing with dedicated IP, advanced integrations, and priority support.

Mailchimp Pricing

Mailchimp prices by contact count:

  • Free – up to 500 contacts and 1,000 emails per month with basic templates, landing pages, and forms.
  • Essentials – from $13 per month for 500 contacts, adding email scheduling, A/B testing, and 24/7 support.
  • Standard – from $20 per month for 500 contacts, unlocking automation, send time optimization, behavioral targeting, and custom templates.
  • Premium – from $350 per month for 10,000 contacts with advanced segmentation, comparative reporting, and multivariate testing.

The Bottom Line on Pricing

Brevo is dramatically cheaper for businesses with large contact lists. A business with 10,000 contacts sending 20,000 emails per month pays approximately $25 on Brevo Business versus $100-plus on Mailchimp Standard. Brevo’s unlimited contacts model means your cost scales with sending volume, not list size. Mailchimp’s pricing escalates quickly as your contact list grows, which can be painful for businesses that maintain large but moderately engaged lists.

Features Head-to-Head

Email Editor and Templates

Mailchimp’s email editor is polished and intuitive. Its drag-and-drop builder, extensive template library, and AI-powered content suggestions make creating professional emails fast. Dynamic content blocks personalize emails based on subscriber data, and the Creative Assistant generates on-brand designs automatically.

Brevo’s email editor is functional with drag-and-drop building, templates, and responsive design. While the editor handles standard email creation well, it lacks the polish, template variety, and AI-powered design assistance that Mailchimp provides. For teams that create frequent, visually rich campaigns, Mailchimp’s editor is superior.

Marketing Automation

Both platforms provide visual automation builders for creating multi-step email sequences. Mailchimp’s Customer Journey Builder supports branching logic, behavioral triggers, and multi-channel touchpoints. Integration with Mailchimp’s analytics provides data-driven automation optimization.

Brevo’s automation builder supports email, SMS, and WhatsApp actions within a single workflow, which is unique at its price point. Triggers include email opens, clicks, website visits, and CRM events. For businesses that want multi-channel automated sequences without paying enterprise prices, Brevo delivers more channel flexibility.

Multi-Channel Marketing

Brevo’s strongest differentiator is multi-channel marketing at accessible prices. SMS campaigns, WhatsApp messaging, live chat, and push notifications are built into the platform alongside email. This allows businesses to create cohesive customer communication strategies across channels without managing multiple tools.

Mailchimp focuses primarily on email with some social media ad management and postcard capabilities. SMS marketing was added but is less developed than Brevo’s offering. For businesses that rely heavily on email, Mailchimp’s depth is sufficient. For those needing SMS or WhatsApp as key channels, Brevo is the better fit.

CRM and Contact Management

Brevo includes a free CRM with unlimited contacts, deal tracking, and pipeline management. While simpler than dedicated CRM platforms like HubSpot, it provides genuine value for businesses that want basic sales management alongside their marketing tool.

Mailchimp offers audience management with segmentation, tags, behavioral data, and predicted demographics. Its audience intelligence features analyze subscriber behavior and provide actionable insights. Mailchimp does not include a traditional CRM, but its audience management tools serve a similar purpose for marketing-focused teams.

Analytics and Reporting

Mailchimp provides superior analytics with campaign performance dashboards, comparative reports, revenue attribution, audience insights, and benchmarking against industry averages. The reporting helps marketers understand what works and optimize future campaigns with data-driven decisions.

Brevo’s reporting covers essential metrics including open rates, click rates, and deliverability. The Business plan adds advanced statistics and heat maps. While the reporting handles basic performance analysis, it lacks the depth, benchmarking, and predictive analytics that Mailchimp offers.

Deliverability

Both platforms maintain good deliverability reputations, but Mailchimp’s longer track record and established sending infrastructure give it a slight edge in average deliverability rates. Mailchimp’s authentication tools, compliance features, and inbox preview help ensure emails reach their destination.

Brevo provides dedicated IP addresses on higher plans, which allows businesses to build their own sending reputation. For high-volume senders, a dedicated IP can improve deliverability. Brevo’s deliverability is solid and has improved significantly since its Sendinblue days.

Integrations

Mailchimp integrates with over 300 apps covering ecommerce, CRM, social media, content management, and analytics. Key integrations include Shopify, WooCommerce, WordPress, Salesforce, and virtually every major marketing tool. The breadth of integrations is the largest in the email marketing space.

Brevo integrates with over 60 tools natively, including Shopify, WordPress, Salesforce, and popular CMS platforms. Zapier extends connectivity. The integration library covers essential needs but is significantly smaller than Mailchimp’s ecosystem.

Pros

  • Pricing is based on email volume (not contact count), so you can store 100,000 contacts on the free plan and only pay when you send more than 300 emails/day
  • Built-in SMS campaigns reach 60+ countries and WhatsApp Business messaging is available natively, unlike Mailchimp which requires a third-party SMS add-on
  • Transactional email API handles order confirmations, password resets, and shipping notifications with dedicated IP starting at the Business plan ($18/month)
  • GDPR compliance features include EU-hosted servers, double opt-in forms, consent tracking, and automatic unsubscribe list management
  • Starter plan at $9/month for 5,000 emails/month undercuts Mailchimp Essentials ($13/month for 500 contacts) for shops with large contact lists but low send frequency

Cons

  • Drag-and-drop email editor offers fewer design blocks and template variety than Mailchimp's builder, which includes 100+ pre-styled layouts
  • Free plan adds a Brevo logo to the footer of every email, and removing it requires the Starter plan at $9/month
  • Deliverability rates on the free and Starter plans use shared IP addresses; dedicated IP requires the $18/month Business plan
  • Reporting is limited to opens, clicks, and unsubscribes; click heatmaps, device analytics, and revenue attribution require the Business plan

Pros

  • Drag-and-drop Content Studio stores and edits images, auto-generates backgrounds, and provides 100+ pre-designed email templates
  • Customer Journey Builder maps multi-step automations visually — e.g., send welcome email, wait 3 days, check open, branch to re-engage
  • Built-in Websites and Landing Pages builder lets you launch pages without a separate CMS or domain setup
  • Content Optimizer scores your email draft in real-time against industry benchmarks for subject line length, link count, and CTA placement
  • Send Time Optimization uses per-contact engagement data to deliver emails when each individual subscriber is most likely to open

Cons

  • Charges for unsubscribed and inactive contacts that remain in your audience — you must manually archive or delete them to stop paying
  • Standard plan at $20/mo caps at 500 contacts; scaling to 10,000 contacts jumps to $100/mo, and 50,000 contacts hits $350/mo
  • A/B testing on the free plan only tests subject lines — testing content, send times, or from names requires Standard ($20/mo+)
  • Customer Journey Builder with branching logic requires Standard plan; Free and Essentials only get single-path automations

Who Should Choose Brevo?

Brevo is the right choice for budget-conscious businesses with large contact lists, companies that need multi-channel marketing (email, SMS, WhatsApp) at accessible prices, and businesses that want a basic CRM included with their marketing platform. Startups, ecommerce businesses focused on transactional communications, and international businesses reaching customers through SMS or WhatsApp will find Brevo’s combination of affordability and channel breadth compelling.

Who Should Choose Mailchimp?

Mailchimp is the better choice for businesses that prioritize email marketing quality, sophisticated analytics, and a broad integration ecosystem. If you value polished email design tools, AI-powered optimization, detailed performance reporting, and seamless connections with your existing tool stack, Mailchimp delivers a premium experience. Marketing teams that invest heavily in email as their primary channel will benefit from Mailchimp’s depth.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Brevo really cheaper than Mailchimp?

Yes, Brevo is significantly cheaper for most businesses. Its unlimited contacts model means you only pay for emails sent, not contacts stored. A business with 20,000 contacts sending 30,000 emails per month pays roughly $35 on Brevo versus $200-plus on Mailchimp. The savings become more dramatic as contact lists grow.

Which platform has better email deliverability?

Both platforms have good deliverability, but Mailchimp has a slight advantage due to its established infrastructure and longer track record. Brevo’s deliverability is solid and offers dedicated IPs on higher plans for businesses that want maximum control over their sending reputation.

Can Brevo replace Mailchimp for small businesses?

Brevo can replace Mailchimp for small businesses that prioritize affordability and multi-channel marketing. However, businesses that rely on Mailchimp’s template library, analytics depth, or specific integrations may find the transition involves trade-offs in email design and reporting quality.

Do both platforms support ecommerce email marketing?

Yes, both platforms integrate with major ecommerce platforms like Shopify and WooCommerce. Mailchimp offers more advanced ecommerce features including product recommendations, revenue attribution, and abandoned cart automations. Brevo covers basic ecommerce email needs at a lower cost.