Email marketing · 2026
The 4 best
Mailchimp alternatives
List-based pricing double-charges duplicate contacts and deliverability has slipped versus modern competitors.
Reviewed by Switchpoint Editors ·
Our take
Mailchimp double-charges duplicate contacts and prices automation features as add-ons. For a publisher, Beehiiv is straightforwardly better. For a SaaS, Loops or Customer.io. For a creator coaching audience, ConvertKit. The honest reason to stay on Mailchimp in 2026 is inertia.
Switching cost
Contact export is clean (CSV). Re-creating segments and automations is the work. Most competitors will run a free white-glove migration if your list is big enough — ask.
What Mailchimp does
Email marketing platform popular with small businesses.
Ranked picks
Our shortlist
- 1
Brevo
Email and SMS with send-based pricing.
Top pickVisit- Lists where most contacts are inactive.
- Free 300/day. Starter $9/mo.
Best for
Pricing
Pros
- Pay for sends, not contacts
- Includes SMS
Trade-offs
- Editor less refined
- 2
Resend
Email for developers with great deliverability.
- Product teams sending transactional + lifecycle email.
- Free 3,000/mo. Pro $20/mo.
Best for
Pricing
Pros
- Excellent deliverability
- React Email support
Trade-offs
- Marketing features still maturing
- 3
Loops
Modern email tool built for SaaS lifecycle sends.
- SaaS founders running onboarding and trial sequences.
- Free 1,000 contacts. Pro from $49/mo.
Best for
Pricing
Pros
- Beautiful UX
- Strong defaults for SaaS
Trade-offs
- Less suited to ecommerce blasts
- 4
ConvertKit
Email tool built for creators.
- Newsletter writers, course creators.
- Free up to 10K. Creator from $15/mo.
Best for
Pricing
Pros
- Tag-based subscribers
- Strong automations
Trade-offs
- Templates feel dated
Section
At a glance
| Tool | Best for | Pricing |
|---|---|---|
| Brevo | Lists where most contacts are inactive. | Free 300/day. Starter $9/mo. |
| Resend | Product teams sending transactional + lifecycle email. | Free 3,000/mo. Pro $20/mo. |
| Loops | SaaS founders running onboarding and trial sequences. | Free 1,000 contacts. Pro from $49/mo. |
| ConvertKit | Newsletter writers, course creators. | Free up to 10K. Creator from $15/mo. |
Deep dives
More on Mailchimp
Themes from real users
What buyers actually say about Mailchimp
Paraphrased from public reviews on G2, Reddit, and Hacker News. Not vendor copy.
- Deliverability has gotten worse since the Intuit acquisition.
- Duplicate-contact billing is the most common complaint.
- Template editor lags behind Beehiiv and Substack.
- Customer support quality has dropped.
- Intuit cross-sell into QuickBooks irritates SMBs.
Some outbound links are affiliate links. They never change our rankings.