Updated March 2026

Mailchimp vs Kit (ConvertKit)

Mailchimp vs Kit comes down to one question: are you a creator or a business? Kit's 10,000-subscriber free plan, tag-based management, and built-in monetisation (paid newsletters, digital products) make it the obvious choice for solo creators. Mailchimp's 300+ integrations, 260+ templates, and brand recognition make it better for traditional small businesses. But both have raised prices significantly — Mailchimp post-Intuit and Kit in September 2025. Neither is the deal it used to be.

Our pick: Kit (ConvertKit) (7.2/10 vs 6.5/10)

Kit (ConvertKit) wins 2 out of 6 categories. Mailchimp is better for: complete beginners who want the easiest interface and maximum third-party integrations.

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Mailchimp

6.5/10

Kit (ConvertKit)

7.2/10

2/5

Automation

4/5

3/5

Deliverability

3/5

5/5

Ease of Use

5/5

Templates & Design

2/5

3/5

Analytics

2/5

Customer Support

3/5

Pricing Comparison

Mailchimp

Free Plan

Paid plans from $13/mo

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Kit (ConvertKit)

Free Plan

Paid plans from $33/mo

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Pros & Cons

Mailchimp

Genuinely intuitive interface — G2 rates ease of use 4.3/5, Capterra 4.4/5. The drag-and-drop builder has a shallow learning curve for basic campaigns

300+ third-party integrations — the largest ecosystem of any email tool. Nearly every SaaS product connects to Mailchimp natively

260+ professional templates on paid plans. The email builder produces clean, responsive emails that look good on mobile

Free plan has been systematically gutted: 2,000 contacts (pre-2021) → 500 (2023) → 250 (Jan 2026). Automations removed June 2025. A/B testing removed. Email scheduling removed. It is now effectively a demo, not a free plan

Charges for ALL contacts including unsubscribed and bounced — you pay for contacts who will never receive an email unless you manually archive each one. Most competitors only bill for active subscribers

Trustpilot: 2.8/5 with 67% one-star reviews. Support is widely despised — phone support only available on the $350+/month Premium plan. Below that, users report chatbots and generic responses

Full Mailchimp review →

Kit (ConvertKit)

Best free plan in the industry — 10,000 subscribers with unlimited broadcasts, landing pages, and forms. No other major platform comes close

Creator Network for mutual cross-promotion is genuinely unique — no other email platform offers built-in list growth through creator recommendations

Built-in monetisation: sell digital products, paid newsletters, subscriptions, and tip jars directly from Kit without third-party tools

September 2025 price hike was brutal — first increase in 12 years. Creator plan jumped from $15/mo to $33/mo starting price. Some legacy users saw 100-400% increases. Trustpilot users report prices 'tripling mid-contract'

Analytics rated just 2/5 by EmailVendorSelection — only basic open rates and click rates. No heatmaps, no geo-tracking, no bot-click filtering, no advanced funnel insights

Only 15-23 email templates (vs Mailchimp's 260+ or Omnisend's 250+). Premium templates cost $19-$39 each from the marketplace. Email builder described as 'clunky'

Full Kit (ConvertKit) review →

The Bottom Line

Choose Mailchimp if: you want a tool that is best for complete beginners who want the easiest interface and maximum third-party integrations. It scores highest in ease of use, templates & design.

Choose Kit (ConvertKit) if: you want a tool that is best for solo creators, bloggers, and podcasters who value simplicity and built-in monetisation. It scores highest in automation, ease of use.

Transparency note: We earn affiliate commissions from some tools on this page. This never influences our scores. Our methodology