Mailchimp Alternative · 2026

Mailchimp alternatives, with real prices

Most comparison posts copy old pricing and never re-check. We pulled every number on May 19, 2026 from each vendor's official pricing page. Here's what they actually cost in 2026, what they're good at, and where Heatcord fits if your list is mostly webinar registrants.

By Heatcord, founder · 9 min read · Verified May 19, 2026
Methodology: Every price below was checked against the vendor's own pricing page on May 19, 2026. Pricing scales with contact count for most tools, so we cite each plan's starting price plus what triggers the next tier. Source links are at the bottom.

Mailchimp got expensive once it shifted to per-contact pricing in 2023. For a small list it's still fine. For a coach or course creator pushing past 2,500 contacts the bill climbs faster than the value. This page covers the seven tools most often searched as alternatives, with verified 2026 pricing.

A few honest things up front:

The Seven

Seven alternatives, ranked by what they're best at

Brevo (formerly Sendinblue)
Cheapest paid tier
Free$0 · 300 emails/day · unlimited contacts
Starter$9/mo · 5,000 emails/mo

Business is $18/mo for 5,000 emails/mo with landing pages, automation, and A/B testing. Pricing scales by email volume, not by contact count. Strong transactional features (SMS, WhatsApp, transactional API). Weaker on segmentation than ActiveCampaign or Kit.

Pick if: budget-first, you don't need deep automation, and your sending volume is moderate.
MailerLite
Cleanest UI
Free$0 · 500 subs · 12K emails/mo
Growing BusinessFrom $10/mo · unlimited emails

Growing Business and Advanced ($20/mo+) plans scale with subscriber count. At 5,000 subscribers on Growing Business expect roughly $30/mo, at 10,000 roughly $57/mo. Clean editor, decent automations, good deliverability. Light on advanced segmentation.

Pick if: you write a weekly newsletter and want it to look polished without hiring a designer.
Kit (formerly ConvertKit)
Creator-first
Newsletter (free)$0 · up to 10,000 subs · 1 automation
Creator$33/mo · 1,000 subs

Pro adds at $66/mo at 1,000 subs. Both tiers scale with subscriber count beyond the starting tier. Tag-based system instead of lists. Best in class for creators with multiple lead magnets. Built-in digital product checkout. Free tier is generous but caps you at one Visual Automation.

Pick if: you sell digital products to your list and want email plus checkout in one tool.
ActiveCampaign
Deepest automation
Starter$15/mo · 1,000 contacts (annual)
Plus$49/mo · 1,000 contacts (annual)

Pro $79/mo, Enterprise $145/mo at the same 1,000-contact starting tier. Most powerful automation in the category. CRM pipelines are a $68/mo add-on (not included on Starter). Extra users $12/seat. Steeper learning curve than MailerLite or Kit.

Pick if: you run multi-step nurture funnels with conditional logic and need branching automations.
Heatcord
Webinar-first
Starter$39/mo · live + evergreen webinars
Pro$129/mo · webinars + audience CRM

Webinar-specialized email engine: registration confirmation, reminders synced to event time, replay drip triggered by how much of the video they watched. Audience list with attendance + offer-click segmentation. Stripe Connect for paid registrations. Flat pricing, no per-contact scaling.

Pick if: 70%+ of your list activity is webinar-related and you're currently paying for Mailchimp plus a separate webinar tool.
Substack
Paid newsletters
Free publishing$0 if no paid subs
Paid newsletter10% of revenue + Stripe fees

Real cost on paid subs lands around 13–16% of gross (10% Substack + 2.9% + $0.30 Stripe + 0.7% recurring billing fee). At $5,000/mo in subscriptions you're paying roughly $650/mo in combined fees. Tiny on automation. Strong distribution surface (Substack network).

Pick if: you're moving toward paid newsletter as the business model, not webinars or courses.
Buttondown
Minimalist
Free$0 · 100 subs
PaidScales by subs + add-ons

Core paid plan scales with subscriber count beyond 100. Add-ons: +$9/mo for tagging, paid subs, comments, analytics. +$29/mo for custom domain archives, multiple newsletters, automations. +$79/mo for white-labeling and teams. Built by an indie developer; fast support; minimal UI.

Pick if: you write technical or essay-style content and want a tool that doesn't get in the way.
Honest Caveat

What this page doesn't tell you

Pricing at 5,000 contacts varies for every tool except Heatcord (flat) and Substack (revenue-share). For most tools you have to plug your contact count into their pricing calculator to get an exact number. The starting prices above are the floor. The number you actually pay scales upward.

The other thing that matters more than price: deliverability. Mailchimp's shared IPs took a hit in 2025 after sender authentication policy changes (DMARC enforcement). Kit and Brevo both offer dedicated-IP options on higher tiers. Heatcord supports your own sender domain on Pro+ and signs every send with SPF/DKIM/DMARC by default. Webinar emails tend to get inboxed better than general marketing because the recipient just opted in to a specific event.

FAQ

Common questions

What's the actual cheapest Mailchimp alternative?
Brevo Free if you can stay under 300 emails/day. Otherwise Brevo Starter at $9/mo for 5,000 emails/mo. MailerLite Growing Business at $10/mo with unlimited emails is the cheapest tier with no daily cap. Buttondown is free up to 100 subscribers.
Why is Brevo's "$9/mo for 5K" different from MailerLite's "$10/mo at 1K"?
They price two different things. Brevo prices by emails sent per month (5,000 sends regardless of contact count). MailerLite prices by subscriber count (1,000 subs unlimited sends). Pick by which dimension grows faster for you: send volume or list size.
Does Heatcord do general newsletters?
It can, but it's not what we optimized for. Heatcord shines on registration confirmation, event-time reminders, replay drips, and post-event sequences. For a weekly newsletter to your full list, pair Heatcord with MailerLite ($10/mo+) or Buttondown.
Can I migrate from Mailchimp without losing data?
Yes. Heatcord ports contacts, tags, segments, automation rules, and subscriber history for you during your first week. Included with every early-access plan, no extra charge.
What about deliverability after the 2025 sender-auth changes?
Mailchimp shared IPs degraded after DMARC enforcement rolled out. Brevo and Kit both offer dedicated-IP options on higher tiers. Heatcord supports your own sender domain on Pro+ and signs every send with SPF/DKIM/DMARC by default. Webinar emails get inboxed better than general marketing because the recipient just opted in to a specific event.

Sources (checked May 19, 2026)

Webinar emails that get inboxed. Stripe-paid registrations. One bill.

If most of your list activity is webinars, courses, or live events, Heatcord replaces Mailchimp plus your webinar tool. Heatcord migrates your list for you in your first week.

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