Choosing the right email marketing platform can have a significant impact on your business. Whether you’re a small business owner trying to grow your customer base, an ecommerce store looking to recover abandoned carts, or a marketer managing campaigns for multiple clients, your email marketing software plays a crucial role in your success.

Two platforms that consistently appear on almost every “best email marketing software” list are Mailchimp and Brevo (formerly Sendinblue). Both have earned strong reputations over the years, but they take slightly different approaches to email marketing.

Mailchimp is widely recognized for its intuitive interface, extensive integrations, and beginner-friendly experience. Brevo, on the other hand, has built its reputation around affordability, powerful automation, built-in CRM functionality, SMS marketing, and excellent value for money.

So, which platform is actually better?

After evaluating both platforms based on features, pricing, ease of use, automation, AI capabilities, deliverability, customer support, and overall performance, we’ve put together this in-depth comparison to help you make an informed decision.

Whether you’re launching your first newsletter or managing sophisticated marketing campaigns, this guide will show you exactly where each platform shines—and where it falls short.

Mailchimp vs Brevo: Quick Comparison

Quick Verdict: If you’re looking for the easiest platform to learn, Mailchimp is hard to beat. If you want better automation, integrated CRM features, and stronger value for your money, Brevo has the edge.

Mailchimp Overview

What Is Mailchimp?

Mailchimp is one of the world’s most recognized email marketing platforms. Originally launched in 2001 as an email newsletter service, it has evolved into an all-in-one marketing platform that offers email campaigns, marketing automation, landing pages, AI-powered content tools, social media management, ecommerce integrations, and customer journey automation.

One reason Mailchimp has remained popular for over two decades is its focus on simplicity. Even users with little or no marketing experience can build professional-looking campaigns using its drag-and-drop editor and extensive library of templates.

Today, millions of businesses use Mailchimp, from freelancers and startups to large enterprises, to engage customers, grow audiences, and increase sales.

Key Features

Mailchimp includes a wide range of marketing tools designed to help businesses communicate more effectively with their customers.

Some of its standout features include:

• Drag-and-drop email builder
• AI-powered content generation
• Customer Journey Builder
• Marketing automation
• Audience segmentation
• Landing pages
• Signup forms
• Website builder
• Social media scheduling
• Ecommerce integrations
• Reporting and analytics
• Mobile app

These features make Mailchimp more than just an email marketing platform—it’s a complete digital marketing solution for businesses looking to centralize their marketing efforts.

Mailchimp Pros and Cons

Pros

• Very easy to use
• Modern and intuitive interface
• Large library of email templates
• Powerful ecommerce integrations
• Excellent reporting dashboard
• Extensive third-party integrations
• AI-powered content assistance
• Reliable email deliverability

Cons

• Pricing increases quickly as your subscriber list grows
• Automation features on lower-tier plans are limited
• Customer support varies depending on your subscription
• Can become expensive for growing businesses

Best For

Mailchimp is particularly well suited for:

• Bloggers
• Freelancers
• Small businesses
• Content creators
• Ecommerce stores
• Marketing agencies
• Online educators
• Businesses that rely heavily on third-party integrations

Brevo Overview

What Is Brevo?

Brevo, formerly known as Sendinblue, has transformed itself from a simple email marketing service into a comprehensive customer relationship and marketing platform.

Unlike many competitors that charge based primarily on the number of contacts stored, Brevo focuses more on the number of emails you send. This pricing model makes it especially attractive for businesses with large subscriber lists that don’t send emails every day.

In addition to email marketing, Brevo offers SMS marketing, WhatsApp campaigns, live chat, transactional emails, automation workflows, CRM tools, landing pages, and customer management—all within a single platform.

For businesses seeking an affordable yet feature-rich solution, Brevo has become one of the strongest alternatives to Mailchimp.

Key Features

Brevo offers an impressive feature set, including:

• Email marketing
• Marketing automation
• Built-in CRM
• SMS marketing
• WhatsApp campaigns
• Transactional emails
• Landing pages
• Signup forms
• Live chat
• AI email writing
• Audience segmentation
• Workflow automation
• Reporting and analytics

One of Brevo’s biggest advantages is that many of these features are available even on lower-tier plans.

Brevo Pros and Cons

Pros

• Excellent value for money
• Powerful automation workflows
• Built-in CRM
• SMS and WhatsApp marketing
• Transactional email support
• Flexible pricing
• Easy-to-use dashboard
• Strong email deliverability

Cons

• Smaller template library than Mailchimp
• Fewer native integrations
• Learning curve for advanced automation
• AI features are still evolving

Best For

Brevo is ideal for:

• Small businesses
• Growing startups
• Ecommerce stores
• SaaS companies
• Marketing agencies
• Businesses needing CRM functionality
• Companies using SMS marketing
• Budget-conscious organizations

Mailchimp vs Brevo Feature Comparison

Choosing between Mailchimp and Brevo isn’t simply about selecting the platform with the most features. It’s about understanding how those features perform in real-world marketing scenarios.

Let’s compare them category by category.

Email Marketing

Both platforms excel at email marketing, but they approach it differently.

Mailchimp emphasizes simplicity and polished campaign creation. The email editor feels modern, responsive, and intuitive, making it an excellent choice for beginners.

Brevo also offers a user-friendly editor but places more emphasis on flexibility and integration with broader customer communication tools such as SMS and CRM.

Winner: Tie ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Both platforms provide excellent email marketing capabilities.

Email Templates

Creating professional emails quickly often starts with a good template.

Mailchimp offers one of the industry’s largest collections of professionally designed email templates. They’re visually appealing, highly customizable, and suitable for almost every industry.

Brevo also includes quality templates, though the overall selection isn’t as extensive as Mailchimp’s.

Winner: Mailchimp

Drag-and-Drop Email Editor

Both platforms feature drag-and-drop builders, allowing users to create emails without coding.

Mailchimp’s editor feels slightly more polished, with smoother navigation and more intuitive controls.

Brevo’s editor is also easy to use, though some advanced design customizations require a bit more exploration.

Winner: Mailchimp

Marketing Automation

Automation is where the differences become more noticeable.

Mailchimp includes customer journey automation, abandoned cart emails, welcome sequences, and behavioral triggers.

Brevo, however, provides more advanced workflow automation—even on affordable plans. Users can build sophisticated customer journeys based on multiple conditions and triggers.

For businesses looking to automate lead nurturing or customer engagement, Brevo offers more flexibility.

Winner: Brevo

AI Features

Artificial intelligence is becoming a standard feature in modern marketing software.

Mailchimp offers AI-powered tools for:

• Writing email copy
• Generating subject lines
• Product recommendations
• Campaign suggestions

Brevo also includes AI assistance for content creation and email generation, though its AI ecosystem isn’t quite as extensive.

Both platforms continue to expand their AI capabilities.

Winner: Mailchimp (Slight Edge)

Contact Management

Managing contacts efficiently is essential for successful email marketing.

Mailchimp allows users to:

• Import contacts
• Create tags
• Build audience segments
• Track engagement
• Organize customer information

Brevo goes a step further by integrating contact management into its built-in CRM. This allows businesses to manage customer relationships more comprehensively without relying on additional software.

Winner: Brevo

Audience Segmentation

Personalized marketing begins with effective audience segmentation.

Both platforms let users create targeted segments based on:

• Purchase history
• Email engagement
• Geographic location
• Customer behavior
• Tags
• Custom fields

However, Brevo’s automation and CRM integration enable more advanced segmentation workflows, making it easier to deliver highly personalized campaigns.

Winner: Brevo

Mailchimp vs Brevo Pricing

Pricing is often the deciding factor when choosing an email marketing platform. While both Mailchimp and Brevo offer free plans, their pricing models differ significantly.

Mailchimp charges primarily based on the number of contacts in your audience, while Brevo mainly charges based on the number of emails you send each month. This distinction can make a substantial difference depending on how your business operates.

For example, imagine an online retailer with 25,000 subscribers who only sends one newsletter each month. With Mailchimp, you’d pay for storing all those contacts. With Brevo, you’d mainly pay based on the relatively low email volume, potentially resulting in lower costs.

Pricing Comparison

Winner: Brevo

Brevo offers better value for businesses with growing subscriber lists, while Mailchimp may become more expensive as your audience expands.

Ease of Use

Mailchimp

Mailchimp has built its reputation on being beginner-friendly.

Its clean dashboard, intuitive navigation, and drag-and-drop email builder make it one of the easiest email marketing platforms to learn. Most users can create their first campaign within minutes.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Brevo

Brevo is also user-friendly but offers more advanced features such as CRM, SMS marketing, and automation workflows. While these capabilities add flexibility, they also introduce a slightly steeper learning curve.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆

Winner: Mailchimp

If you’ve never used email marketing software before, Mailchimp is generally easier to master.

Email Deliverability

Even the most beautifully designed email won’t generate results if it lands in the spam folder.

Both platforms have established strong reputations for deliverability and follow industry best practices.

Mailchimp has consistently maintained excellent inbox placement, thanks to its reputation management and infrastructure.

Brevo also performs exceptionally well, particularly for transactional emails and businesses with properly maintained email lists.

Deliverability Comparison

Winner: Tie

Both platforms perform exceptionally well in terms of email deliverability.

Marketing Automation Comparison

Automation has become one of the most valuable features in email marketing.

Mailchimp

Mailchimp supports:

• Welcome sequences
• Abandoned cart emails
• Customer journeys
• Behavioral triggers
• Follow-up emails

Its visual automation builder is straightforward and suitable for most small to medium-sized businesses.

Brevo

Brevo offers more advanced workflow customization, allowing users to automate communications across email, SMS, and CRM activities.

Its automation engine is particularly appealing for businesses that require sophisticated customer journeys without paying enterprise-level prices.

Winner: Brevo

AI Features Comparison

Artificial intelligence is reshaping how businesses create marketing campaigns.

Mailchimp AI

Mailchimp includes AI tools that help users:

• Generate email content
• Write subject lines
• Improve campaign messaging
• Recommend products
• Optimize marketing efforts

Brevo AI

Brevo also offers AI-powered writing assistance for email campaigns, though its AI capabilities are currently more focused on content generation than predictive marketing.

Winner: Mailchimp

Mailchimp currently has a slight edge in AI-powered marketing assistance.

Ecommerce Features

Mailchimp

Mailchimp integrates with major ecommerce platforms and provides tools for:

• Product recommendations
• Customer segmentation
• Abandoned cart recovery
• Purchase tracking
• Personalized product emails

Brevo

Brevo also supports ecommerce businesses with transactional emails, automation, CRM, and SMS marketing.

Businesses that prioritize customer relationship management often appreciate Brevo’s integrated approach.

Winner: Tie

Mailchimp excels in ecommerce marketing, while Brevo shines in customer relationship management.

Integrations

Integrations help connect your marketing platform with the rest of your technology stack.

Mailchimp offers a larger ecosystem of native integrations, making it easier to connect with popular business applications.

Winner: Mailchimp

Customer Support

Reliable support becomes especially important when your marketing campaigns are time-sensitive.

Mailchimp

Support options include:

• Knowledge Base
• Email support
• Live chat (depending on plan)
• Tutorials

Brevo

Brevo offers:

• Help Center
• Email support
• Live chat
• Phone support on selected plans
• Documentation

Both companies provide comprehensive learning resources.

Winner: Tie

Security and Compliance

Both Mailchimp and Brevo prioritize protecting customer data.

Security features include:

• Data encryption
• Secure authentication
• GDPR compliance
• Privacy controls
• Spam prevention
• Account security

Neither platform has a meaningful advantage here.

Winner: Tie

Performance Comparison

Mailchimp Pros and Cons

Pros

• Extremely easy to use
• Large template library
• Excellent integrations
• Strong AI features
• Reliable reporting
• Great for beginners

Cons

• Pricing increases as contact lists grow
• Some advanced automation features require higher-tier plans
• CRM capabilities are relatively basic

Brevo Pros and Cons

Pros

• Outstanding value for money
• Built-in CRM
• Powerful automation
• SMS and WhatsApp marketing
• Flexible pricing
• Strong transactional email support

Cons

• Smaller integration library
• Fewer templates
• Slightly steeper learning curve

Side-by-Side Comparison

Which Platform Is Best for Different Users?

When Should You Choose Mailchimp?

Choose Mailchimp if you:

• Want the easiest platform to learn
• Need a wide selection of email templates
• Rely on numerous third-party integrations
• Run an ecommerce business with extensive marketing needs
• Value polished reporting and analytics

When Should You Choose Brevo?

Choose Brevo if you:

• Want better value for your money
• Need advanced automation workflows
• Require built-in CRM functionality
• Plan to use SMS marketing
• Have a large subscriber list but send emails less frequently

Alternatives to Mailchimp and Brevo

If neither platform is the perfect fit, consider these alternatives:

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Brevo better than Mailchimp?

Brevo generally offers better value, stronger automation, and a built-in CRM. Mailchimp, however, provides a more beginner-friendly experience, a larger integration ecosystem, and a more polished interface.

Which platform is cheaper?

Brevo is usually more affordable, particularly for businesses with large contact lists, because its pricing is based primarily on email volume rather than stored contacts.

Which platform has better email deliverability?

Both platforms have excellent deliverability records and consistently achieve strong inbox placement when users follow email marketing best practices.

Is Mailchimp easier to use?

Yes. Mailchimp is widely regarded as one of the easiest email marketing platforms for beginners.

Does Brevo have better automation?

Yes. Brevo offers more advanced workflow automation and CRM integration, making it a better choice for businesses with complex customer journeys.

Which platform is better for ecommerce?

Mailchimp has a slight advantage due to its extensive ecommerce integrations and marketing tools, though Brevo remains a strong option for stores prioritizing CRM and SMS marketing.

Which platform offers a better free plan?

Brevo’s free plan is generally considered more generous for businesses focused on email sending and automation, while Mailchimp’s free plan is excellent for learning the platform.

Can I migrate from Mailchimp to Brevo?

Yes. Brevo provides tools and documentation to help users import contacts and transition from other email marketing platforms, including Mailchimp.

Final Verdict

Overall Winner: Brevo

While both platforms are excellent choices, Brevo emerges as the stronger overall option for most small and medium-sized businesses. Its pricing model, built-in CRM, robust automation, SMS marketing, and value-packed feature set make it a compelling solution for companies looking to grow without overspending.

That said, Mailchimp remains an outstanding choice for beginners, content creators, and ecommerce businesses that value simplicity, a polished user experience, and a vast integration ecosystem.

Overall Ratings

Conclusion

The choice between Mailchimp and Brevo ultimately comes down to your priorities. If you want a platform that’s intuitive, feature-rich, and backed by a mature ecosystem, Mailchimp is a safe bet. If your focus is on maximizing value, leveraging advanced automation, and managing customer relationships from a single platform, Brevo is difficult to beat.

Whichever you choose, both platforms are capable of helping businesses build stronger customer relationships, improve engagement, and drive long-term growth through effective email marketing.