Mailchimp vs MailerSend: Complete Comparison (2026)
An in-depth comparison of Mailchimp and MailerSend to help you choose the right tool for your business.
Last updated: November 2026
Mailchimp
6.6/10
Intuit-owned email marketing platform with automation flows, signup forms, segmentation and optional SMS, priced by contact count for small and growing businesses.
MailerSend
6.9/10
MailerSend is a transactional email and SMS API with SMTP relay and a template builder, aimed at developers and businesses sending app-triggered messages.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | | |
|---|---|---|
| Scores | ||
| Overall Rating | 6.6/10 | 6.9/10 |
| Scalability | 7/10 | 7/10 |
| Ease of Use | 8/10 | 8/10 |
| Customization | 7/10 | 6/10 |
| Security | 6/10 | 6/10 |
| Support | 5/10 | 8/10 |
| Cost | 4/10 | 7/10 |
| Integration | 8/10 | 7/10 |
| Analytics | 7/10 | 6/10 |
| Pricing | ||
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Cheapest paid plan | $13/mo Essentials | $7/mo Hobby |
| Estimated cost for 10 users | $350/mo Premium | $110/mo Professional |
| Features | ||
| Email Marketing | ||
| A/B Testing | Not listed | |
| E-commerce Features | Not listed | |
| Landing Pages | Not listed | |
| Segmentation | Not listed | |
| SMS Marketing | Not listed | |
Mailchimp vs MailerSend cost by team size
Mailchimp and MailerSend cost the same at 1 user; MailerSend costs less from 5 users.
| Team size | Mailchimp | MailerSend |
|---|---|---|
| 1 user | FreeFree | FreeFree |
| 5 users | $20/moStandard | $7/moHobby |
| 10 users | $350/moPremium | $110/moProfessional |
| 25 users | $350/moPremium | $110/moProfessional |
| 50 users | $350/moPremium | $110/moProfessional |
The plan that fits each team size, billed monthly, before add-ons and usage charges. Each cost opens that tool's pricing calculator for the team size.
Which One Should You Choose?
Why choose Mailchimp
- Higher Customization score (7/10 vs 6/10)
- Higher Integration score (8/10 vs 7/10)
- Better fit for marketing teams (7/10 vs 4/10)
Why choose MailerSend
- Lower estimated cost for 10 users: $110/mo vs $350/mo
- Higher Support score (8/10 vs 5/10)
- Higher Cost score (7/10 vs 4/10)
- Better fit for developers (9/10 vs 2/10)
- Better fit for agencies (7/10 vs 5/10)
Pros & Cons
Mailchimp
Pros
- Reviewers on G2 and Capterra often praise the template library and easy navigation, which help non-technical users send campaigns quickly.
- Large review base, with a 4.5 rating on Capterra from more than 17,000 reviews and 4.3 on G2.
- Standard includes up to 200 automation flows, predictive segments and generative AI tools at a low starting price.
- Premium adds enterprise SSO, unlimited seats and dedicated onboarding for larger teams.
Cons
- Costs rise steeply with list size. Premium starts at 350 USD a month, and reviewers rank pricing as the top complaint.
- New accounts are billed for unsubscribed and unconfirmed contacts, and going over the plan limit triggers overage fees.
- In January 2026 the Free plan was cut to 250 contacts and 500 sends a month, and automations were removed from it.
- Reviewers on G2 and Capterra say support is slow or inconsistent, especially for integration troubleshooting.
- Essentials limits automation flows to four steps.
MailerSend
Pros
- Developers can send through a REST API or an SMTP relay, with SDKs and connectors for Laravel, Django, Rails, Symfony, Supabase and Firebase.
- A free tier of 500 emails and a $7 Hobby plan make it cheap to start.
- Capterra reviewers repeatedly praise its responsive support and clear documentation.
- Built-in blocklist and DMARC monitoring help teams protect deliverability.
- Starter and higher plans add an SMS API, and a WhatsApp add-on is available.
Cons
- It is built for transactional email, not full marketing campaign management.
- Reviewers report sudden throttling or account suspensions after bounce or complaint thresholds are crossed.
- Free and Hobby plans keep only one day of activity history.
- SMS is limited to the USA and Canada.
Not sold on either?
Frequently Asked Questions
MailerSend scores higher on our Marketing criteria: 6.9/10 against 6.6/10 for Mailchimp. The largest gap is in Cost: 4/10 for Mailchimp and 7/10 for MailerSend.
MailerSend costs less for 10 users: about $110/mo on its Professional plan, against about $350/mo on its Premium plan for Mailchimp, billed monthly.
Yes, both Mailchimp and MailerSend have a free plan.
MailerSend is the better fit for developers: we rate it 9/10 for them, against 2/10 for Mailchimp.
