Brevo vs Mailchimp 2026: Which Email Platform Should Small Businesses Pick?
Fastlancer Team · Updated: Oct 27, 2026
Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) and Mailchimp both run newsletters for small businesses, but they bill differently: Mailchimp charges for every contact you store, Brevo for the emails you send. That one difference, plus transactional email and where your data lives, decides the choice.
Read individual reviews: Brevo Review · Mailchimp Review.
TL;DR — Quick Verdict
Choose Brevo if…
- You store a large list but email it only now and then
- You need order confirmations or password resets and newsletters in one account
- You want SMS in the same tool
- You want your data hosted in the EU
Choose Mailchimp if…
- You run a US Shopify store and want store-driven email flows
- You want the most polished drag-and-drop templates
- Your list is small and polish matters more than price
Both fall short if…
- You're a creator monetizing newsletters (use Kit)
- You need a full CRM with sales pipelines (use HubSpot or Pipedrive)
- You need complex lead scoring and automation (use ActiveCampaign)
The billing model is the real difference. Mailchimp counts every stored contact, so a big, quiet list costs money every month. Brevo counts sends, and its contact allowance grows with the email volume you buy — small on the cheapest tiers, large further up.
Browse all email marketing tools
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Category |  Brevo |
 Mailchimp |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Up to 100,000 contacts, 300 emails/ | 250 contacts, 500 sends/ |
| Entry paid plan | Starter — from $9/ | Essentials — from $13/ |
| Mid tier | Standard — from $18/ | Standard — from $20/ |
| Upper tier | Professional — from $499/ | Premium — from $350/ |
| Billed by | Email volume; the contact cap rises with the volume you buy | All stored contacts, unsubscribed included |
| Transactional email | Included in every plan (API and SMTP) | Mailchimp Transactional add-on for Standard and Premium, $20 per 25,000-email block |
| SMS marketing | All plans, SMS credits sold separately | Add-on on paid plans |
| WhatsApp campaigns | Professional plan and up | – |
| Live chat, sales pipeline | Included with the free Sales package | – |
| Automation | Free and Starter capped at 2,000 contacts; unlimited from Standard | Flows: up to 4 steps on Essentials, expanded on Standard |
| Landing pages | Standard 1 page, Professional 10 | Available from the Free plan |
| Team seats | Free and Starter 1 · Standard up to 3 (add-on) · Professional 10 | Free 1 · Essentials 3 · Standard 5 · Premium unlimited |
| Templates | Drag-and-drop editor with industry templates | Large, polished template library |
| E-commerce |  Shopify, WooCommerce and other plugins | Shopify integration with abandoned-cart and product-recommendation flows |
| Data hosting | Servers in the EU (French company) | Servers in the US; EU transfers under the EU-US Data Privacy Framework |
Monthly billing; prices scale with email volume (Brevo) or contacts (Mailchimp). Sources: brevo.com/pricing and its feature list (USD, 27 October 2026), mailchimp.com/pricing, Mailchimp's plan help page and transactional pricing (USD, 27 October 2026).
Brevo
- Priced by
- Monthly email volume
- Good for
- Newsletters, reminders and receipts from one account
- Watch out for
- Cheap paid tiers hold fewer contacts than Free
Fits a service business or SaaS mixing marketing and transactional email. Check your tier's contact cap before upgrading: it can force a bigger tier than your sending needs.
Mailchimp
- Priced by
- Contact count and plan
- Good for
- Stores driven by Shopify data
- Watch out for
- Unsubscribed contacts count toward your bill
Fits a store that wants polished campaigns built on shop data. For a large list you rarely mail, you pay for idle contacts.
Which one fits your situation
| Situation | Pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Local service business with a large customer file, monthly newsletter and order confirmations | Brevo | Pays for sends, not idle contacts; transactional email in the same account |
| US Shopify store with abandoned-cart and post-purchase flows | Mailchimp Standard | Store data drives the flows; templates are more refined |
| SaaS startup sending onboarding sequences and password resets | Brevo Standard | One account and API for marketing and product email |
Verdict
For most small businesses with a growing list, Brevo is the better value, especially when transactional email belongs in the same account. Pick Mailchimp if you run a Shopify store or your list is small enough that polish outweighs price.
Looking for adjacent comparisons? See Mailchimp vs Kit (ConvertKit) and the best email marketing tools for freelancers, or browse all marketing tools and all freelancer guides.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Brevo or Mailchimp better for small businesses?
Brevo, if you store a big list but email it rarely, or need marketing and transactional email in one account. Mailchimp, if you run a Shopify store or value polished templates over cost.
Which is cheaper, Brevo or Mailchimp?
At entry level they are close. Brevo pulls ahead for large lists you mail infrequently, because Mailchimp bills every stored contact, unsubscribed ones included, while Brevo bills the email volume you buy.
Does Brevo have a free plan?
Yes: up to 100,000 stored contacts and 300 emails per day, with the Brevo logo in every email and transactional email included. If the daily cap does not fit, our guide to Brevo alternatives 2026 compares the other options.
Brevo vs Mailchimp Transactional: which is better for order confirmations and password resets?
Brevo, for most small businesses: transactional email via API or SMTP is included in every plan, Free included. Mailchimp Transactional is a separately billed add-on that only Standard and Premium plans can use.
Which is better for GDPR and EU data residency?
Brevo is a French company and keeps its servers in the EU. Mailchimp stores data in the US and covers EU transfers through the EU-US Data Privacy Framework and standard contractual clauses.
Is Brevo the same as Sendinblue?
Yes. Sendinblue renamed itself Brevo in 2023; accounts, integrations and features carried over.
