Mailchimp alternatives for small business: 4 options and how to switch safely
⏱ In about 12 minutes
Affiliate disclosure: Some links on this page may become affiliate links. If you buy, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Commissions may influence which products we choose to cover, but not our assessment of them. Read the full disclosure.
In this article
The short answer
Short answer
- Our top pick for most small businesses: Kit. A free plan for up to 10,000 subscribers, and migration is included with every paid plan.
- If you also want a CRM: HubSpot. Free tools for up to 2 users, with contacts, deals and email in one place.
- Budget option: Brevo. Free plan with no card needed, and a low-cost Starter plan priced by emails sent. Read the September 2026 security note below first.
- If automation is the whole point: ActiveCampaign. Built for multi-step automations, but no free plan.
Staying on Mailchimp is fine if it works for you. Switch only if you've hit a real limit: contacts, automation, users or price.
Why small businesses look for a Mailchimp alternative
Mailchimp's free plan is small. Its compare-plans page (checked 19 Oct 2026) lists a limit of 250 contacts, 500 email sends a month, 1 user seat and no marketing automation flows. (Mailchimp compare plans)
Paid plans start at US$13/month (Essentials) and US$20/month (Standard) for the smallest contact tier, and rise as your list grows. (Mailchimp pricing)
So owners usually shop around when the list passes 250, they want a welcome email that sends itself, or more than one person needs to log in.
At a glance: 4 Mailchimp alternatives
From each vendor's official pages, checked 19 October 2026. Prices in US dollars as shown. Not hands-on tested. No ratings. Each vendor prices on a different basis (subscribers, contacts, emails or seats), so "from" prices are not like-for-like. Confirm at checkout.
| Factor | Kit | HubSpot | Brevo | ActiveCampaign |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Most small businesses that mainly need newsletters; creators selling content or products | Email plus a free CRM | Budget newsletters | Serious automation |
| Free option | Free plan, up to 10,000 subscribers | Free tools, free for up to 2 users | Free plan, no credit card; up to 300 emails a day | Free trial only |
| Paid from | Creator: US$33/month billed yearly (US$390/year) at 1,000 subscribers | Starter: from US$7 per seat/month (new-customer offer; US$20 otherwise shown) | Starter: US$9/month (5,000 emails/month, 500 contacts) | Starter: from US$15/month billed annually |
| Automation | Unlimited visual automations on Creator | "Simple marketing automation" on Starter | Marketing automation on Standard (US$18/month) | All plans; Starter limited to 5 actions per automation |
| Help moving | Migration included with every paid plan | Not checked | Not checked | Not checked |
| Watch out for | Built for creators | Costs rise fast on higher tiers | Two security incidents in Sept 2026 (see below) | No free plan; Starter limits |
The 4 alternatives in detail
Kit: our top pick for most small businesses
- Best for: owners who mainly need a newsletter, sign-up forms and a welcome sequence, plus course creators, coaches and anyone selling digital products.
- Price from: Free plan up to 10,000 subscribers. Creator US$33/month billed yearly at 1,000 subscribers (checked 19 Oct 2026). Pro was shown at a first-year discount (US$50 a month instead of US$66), and Kit says it "will renew at the standard rate". (Kit pricing)
- Pros:
- Generous free plan with unlimited landing pages, forms and broadcasts.
- Creator adds unlimited visual automations and sequences.
- "Migration is included with every paid Kit plan." (Kit migrations)
- Cons:
- Kit describes itself as built for creators, and it is not a sales CRM. A service business that tracks deals may prefer HubSpot.
- Kit says there's "no reliable way to move subscribers mid-sequence", so let current automations finish first.
HubSpot: best if you want email and a CRM together
- Best for: service businesses that need to track enquiries and deals as well as send email.
- Price from: Free tools, "free for up to 2 users. No credit card required." Starter from US$7 per seat/month on a new-customer offer (US$20 per seat otherwise shown), including Marketing Hub Starter with 1,000 marketing contacts (checked 19 Oct 2026). (HubSpot pricing)
- Pros:
- Contacts, deals and email in one place.
- HubSpot calls its free CRM "100% free with no expiration date". (HubSpot CRM)
- Cons:
- The low Starter price is a limited-time new-customer offer.
- Professional tiers cost much more. Check you won't need them soon.
Want a CRM-first view? See our HubSpot vs Zoho CRM vs Pipedrive comparison.
Brevo: the budget option
- Best for: small businesses that send a regular newsletter and want low cost.
- Price from: Free plan, "no credit card needed", sending up to 300 emails per day once your account is approved. Starter US$9/month for 5,000 emails and 500 contacts. Standard US$18/month adds marketing automation (checked 19 Oct 2026). (Brevo pricing)
- Pros:
- Prices are based mainly on emails sent, which can suit a big list you email rarely.
- Forms can trigger a follow-up email as soon as someone signs up.
- Cons:
- Multi-step automation needs Standard, not Starter.
- Removing the Brevo logo is a paid extra on Starter.
Security note (September 2026): Brevo disclosed two incidents. On 10 September, an attacker "exploited a flaw in the way Brevo handles SAML SSO to gain access to 138 Brevo accounts". Six were used to send phishing emails, and contacts were exported from 43. (Brevo write-up) On 14 September, a compromised Cloudflare API key let an attacker inject a fake "verify you are human" malware prompt into brevo.com, sibforms.com and three scripts customers embed, for about five and a half hours. Brevo says app.brevo.com, its API, email sending and customer account data were not affected. (Brevo post-mortem) Brevo says both issues are fixed. Whatever tool you use, turn on two-step login and review who has access.
ActiveCampaign: best when automation is the point
- Best for: businesses that want branching automations ("if they clicked this, send that").
- Price from: Starter from US$15/month billed annually. Plus from US$49/month adds unlimited automation actions and landing pages (checked 19 Oct 2026). (ActiveCampaign pricing)
- Pros:
- Marketing automation on every plan.
- Plus and above list unlimited automation actions.
- Cons:
- No free plan, only a trial.
- Starter allows 5 actions per automation, and ActiveCampaign's help centre lists "Wait" as an action, so email, wait, email, wait, email uses all five. (ActiveCampaign help)
How to switch without losing subscribers: 6 steps
Step 1: Export everything from Mailchimp (15 minutes)
Use Mailchimp's account export. It creates a ZIP file with separate files for subscribed, unsubscribed, cleaned and transactional contacts. You can run one account export every 24 hours. Reports can't be re-imported, so save them for your records. (Mailchimp: export and back up account data)
Step 2: Keep your consent records (10 minutes)
Keep the sign-up dates and sources for each contact. Australia's ACMA says "it's up to you to prove that you have a person's consent." (ACMA)
Step 3: Import only people who opted in (20 minutes)
Import subscribed contacts as subscribers. Import unsubscribed and cleaned contacts only as suppressed or blocked, if the new tool allows it, so you never email them by mistake. Never add bought lists.
Step 4: Set up your domain in the new tool (30 minutes)
Authenticate your sending domain (SPF, DKIM and DMARC) before you send. Gmail says unauthenticated mail "might be marked as spam or rejected". (Gmail sender guidelines) Our emails going to spam guide explains it in plain words.
Step 5: Rebuild your sign-up form and welcome email (1 hour)
Swap the old form on your website for the new one, with an unticked consent box. Then rebuild your welcome email. Our automated welcome emails guide has a 3-email template.
Step 6: Send a test, then cancel the old plan (15 minutes)
Send to yourself and one colleague. Check the unsubscribe link works in one click. Then downgrade or cancel Mailchimp.
Quick pick
Quick pick: Mailchimp alternatives (from official vendor pages, checked 19 Oct 2026. Not hands-on tested. No ratings. Confirm prices on the vendor's site.)
Our top pick for most small businesses: Kit. Free up to 10,000 subscribers; paid plans include migration. → Visit Kit - If you want a CRM too: HubSpot. Free tools for up to 2 users, with a free CRM. → Visit HubSpot
- Budget option: Brevo. Free plan; Starter from US$9/month. Read the security note above. → Visit Brevo
If you want powerful automation: ActiveCampaign. Automation on every plan. Free trial. → Visit ActiveCampaign
New to email marketing? Start with our beginner's guide.
What we'd avoid: honest limits
Free: the Small Business Password & Access Checklist
A 1–2 page checklist that turns this article into a to-do list: which accounts to protect first, how to set up shared access, and what to do when someone joins or leaves.
You only get emails if you tick the consent box. Unsubscribe any time. See our privacy policy.
Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest Mailchimp alternative?
Kit, Brevo and HubSpot all list free plans with limits. Brevo's paid Starter plan was the lowest paid price we saw (US$9/month for 5,000 emails), checked 19 October 2026.
Will I lose subscribers if I switch?
Not if you export everything first and import carefully. Keep unsubscribed contacts suppressed, and keep your consent records.
Is Mailchimp's free plan enough for a small business?
It can be for a very small list. Its compare-plans page lists 250 contacts and 500 sends a month, with no automation flows.
How long does switching take?
Most small lists can move in an afternoon using the 6 steps above. Domain setup can take longer if you need help with DNS.
Related guides
- Which email tool is easiest when I have no time?
- How to start email marketing for a small business
- Why are my business emails going to spam?
- HubSpot vs Zoho CRM vs Pipedrive · Email marketing hub · All quick picks
Sources
Government bodies first. All links checked and loading on 19 Oct 2026.
- Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA): Avoid sending spam
- US Federal Trade Commission: CAN-SPAM Act: a compliance guide for business
- UK Information Commissioner's Office: Guide to PECR
- Google: Email sender guidelines
- Vendor pages (checked 19 Oct 2026): Mailchimp pricing · Mailchimp compare plans · Mailchimp: export and back up account data · Kit pricing · Kit migrations · Brevo pricing · Brevo pricing reference · Brevo SSO incident write-up · Brevo ClickFix post-mortem · ActiveCampaign pricing · ActiveCampaign: automation actions explained · HubSpot pricing · HubSpot free CRM
About our review process
Methodology: we pick products from our shortlist using official vendor information, checked on the date shown. We say clearly when we haven't tested something hands-on. We give no star ratings because we haven't run documented tests. We disclose known security incidents for products we list. Commissions may influence which products we choose to cover, but not our assessment of them. See how we work.