Mailchimp vs ActiveCampaign
Quick verdict
As of 2026-07-05, Mailchimp is the cheaper email marketing tool, starting at $13/mo versus ActiveCampaign at $19/mo. That's $6/mo less on the entry option. Mailchimp has a free plan; ActiveCampaign does not. Mailchimp has 3 priced options; ActiveCampaign has 4 priced options.
Mailchimp starts at $13/mo and has a free plan. ActiveCampaign starts at $19/mo and has no free plan.
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Against the $15.50/mo median entry price across the 12 tools we track, Mailchimp's $13/mo is 16% below and ActiveCampaign's $19/mo is 23% above. 7 of 12 email marketing tools include a free plan.
| Mailchimp | ActiveCampaign | |
|---|---|---|
| Starts at | $13/mo | $19/mo |
| Free plan | ✓ | ✗ |
| Priced options | 3 | 4 |
| Pricing model | per contacts | per contacts |
| Automation | ✓ | ✓ |
| CRM | ✓ | Sales CRM/pipeline is a paid add-on (~$68/mo) |
| SMS | Add-on (Essentials/Standard); included on Premium (US/CA/UK) | Paid add-on (SMS credits) |
| Ecommerce | Shopify/WooCommerce integrations, product retargeting, abandoned cart, purchase segmentation | Deep: abandoned cart, catalogs, revenue attribution; Shopify/Square/WooCommerce/BigCommerce |
| Entry plan limit | from 500 contacts (max 50k) | from 1,000 contacts (caps 25k) |
| Integrations | 300+ | 1,000+ |
| Visit site | Visit site → | Visit site → |
Sources: mailchimp.com/pricing/marketing, verified · activecampaign.com/pricing, verified
Mailchimp — pros & cons
Pros
- Best-known brand, easiest on-ramp
- Huge template/integration library (300+)
- Genuine (reduced) free tier
- Strong Intuit/QuickBooks ties
Cons
- Price jumps steeply with contacts (top reason for churn)
- Bills for unsubscribed/non-subscribed unless archived
- Free plan gutted Jan 2026
- Multi-step automation locked behind Standard
ActiveCampaign — pros & cons
Pros
- Most powerful automation & segmentation here
- Predictive AI ahead of peers
- Optional integrated sales CRM
- Largest integration ecosystem
Cons
- No free plan (14-day trial)
- Real cost balloons with add-ons (CRM, SMS, reporting, users)
- Steeper learning curve
- Starter heavily limited
ToolFit Score: Mailchimp
Mailchimp scores 67/100 on the ToolFit Score, computed from our maintained pricing, feature, and fit dataset.
| What we scored | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Price competitiveness | 19.84/24 | entry $13/mo is 16% below the $15.5/mo category median. |
| Feature breadth | 18.06/20 | supports 5 of the 9 feature flags the ToolFit Score tracks natively (3 more on a higher tier). |
| Best-for coverage | 10/16 | tagged as a best fit for 2 use cases. |
| Integrations | 9/12 | lists 300+ integrations. |
| Free-tier availability | 10/8 | includes a free plan. |
| Review sentiment | — | no published review-sentiment data yet. |
Computed deterministically from our gold dataset — pricing, features, fit, integrations, and a count-weighted third-party review-sentiment aggregate. Weights v2.0.0 — how we score.
ToolFit Score: ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign scores 55/100 on the ToolFit Score, computed from our maintained pricing, feature, and fit dataset.
| What we scored | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Price competitiveness | 8.23/24 | entry $19/mo is 23% above the $15.5/mo category median. |
| Feature breadth | 16.67/20 | supports 4 of the 9 feature flags the ToolFit Score tracks natively (4 more on a higher tier). |
| Best-for coverage | 15/16 | tagged as a best fit for 3 use cases. |
| Integrations | 15/12 | lists 1,000+ integrations. |
| Free-tier availability | 0/8 | has no free plan. |
| Review sentiment | — | no published review-sentiment data yet. |
Computed deterministically from our gold dataset — pricing, features, fit, integrations, and a count-weighted third-party review-sentiment aggregate. Weights v2.0.0 — how we score.
Frequently asked questions
Is Mailchimp or ActiveCampaign cheaper?
Mailchimp is cheaper to start. Mailchimp begins at $13/mo and ActiveCampaign at $19/mo, a gap of $6/mo. Both usually bill less on an annual plan, so weigh yearly pricing before deciding. Every figure comes straight from our maintained, dated dataset, verified on 2026-07-05.
Does Mailchimp or ActiveCampaign have a free plan?
Mailchimp has a free plan and ActiveCampaign has no free plan. So Mailchimp is the one to try first if a free plan is a must-have for you. Every figure comes straight from our maintained, dated dataset, verified on 2026-07-05.
Which has more features, Mailchimp or ActiveCampaign?
Mailchimp supports 3 of the 5 features we compare on this page and ActiveCampaign supports 2, so Mailchimp covers more out of the box. Choose on the specific capabilities — automation, CRM, SMS, ecommerce, or landing pages — that matter most for how you plan to send.
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