Mailchimp Pricing: Plans, Costs & Cheaper Alternatives [2026]

Mailchimp offers four pricing plans in 2026: Free (up to 250 contacts, 500 emails/mo), Essentials starting at $13/mo, Standard starting at $20/mo, and Premium starting at $350/mo. All plans are priced by contact count. Since Intuit acquired Mailchimp in 2021 for $12 billion, pricing has increased roughly 5-10% annually. The free plan has been cut significantly — from 2,000 contacts in 2022 to just 250 today. And Mailchimp charges for all contacts on your list, including unsubscribed ones, unless you manually archive them.

This guide breaks down every Mailchimp plan, contact tier pricing, email send limits, overage costs, and hidden fees — plus how Mailchimp compares to more affordable alternatives like SendX.

How Much Does Mailchimp Cost?

Mailchimp pricing is based on the number of contacts you store. Each plan has a starting price at 500 contacts (except Free at 250), and costs increase as your list grows. Here is the full pricing table:

Hidden cost warning: Mailchimp counts ALL contacts toward your billing — including unsubscribed and non-subscribed contacts. The only contacts that don't count are cleaned, pending, deleted, and archived. If someone unsubscribes, you must manually archive them or you keep paying for them. This billing change was introduced in 2023 and catches many users off guard.

Email Send Limits by Plan

Each Mailchimp plan has a monthly email send limit based on a multiplier of your contact count:

If you exceed your send limit, Mailchimp charges overage fees via add-on contact blocks rather than stopping your service. The cost depends on your plan and tier.

Mailchimp Pricing by Plan

Free Plan — $0/mo

Mailchimp's free plan has been significantly reduced over the past few years. As of 2026, it includes up to 250 contacts (down from 2,000 in 2022), 500 emails per month (down from 10,000), and a daily cap of 250 sends. You get 1 audience, 1 user seat, basic templates, basic segmentation, and email support for the first 30 days only.

The free plan does not include email scheduling, A/B testing, multi-step automations, custom-coded templates, or the ability to remove Mailchimp branding from your emails. It is only useful for very small lists or testing the platform.

Essentials Plan — Starting at $13/mo

The Essentials plan starts at $13/mo for 500 contacts and scales to $385/mo for 50,000 contacts. Mailchimp offers a 14-day free trial on Essentials (no credit card required) — after the trial, you pay the listed price. You get 3 user seats, 3 audiences, 10x contact email sends, A/B testing, basic automations, all email templates, 24/7 email and chat support, and the ability to remove Mailchimp branding.

Essentials does not include advanced segmentation, send time optimization, multivariate testing, comparative reporting, or phone support.

Standard Plan — Starting at $20/mo

The Standard plan starts at $20/mo for 500 contacts and scales to $450/mo for 50,000 contacts. Like Essentials, it includes a 14-day free trial with no credit card required. It adds 5 user seats, 5 audiences, 12x contact email sends, advanced segmentation, send time optimization, multivariate testing, custom-coded templates, automated customer journeys, retargeting ads, and campaign manager.

Standard also includes 18 months of engagement tracking (vs 1 month on Essentials) and the ability to download creative designs. This is the most popular plan for growing businesses.

Premium Plan — Starting at $350/mo

The Premium plan starts at $350/mo for 10,000 contacts (note: it doesn't start at 500 contacts like other plans). It includes unlimited user seats, unlimited audiences, 15x contact email sends, phone support, personalized onboarding (4 sessions), and every feature Mailchimp offers.

Premium is designed for large teams and enterprise use cases. At $815/mo for 50,000 contacts, it is one of the most expensive email marketing platforms on the market.

Does Mailchimp Charge for Unsubscribed Contacts?

Yes — and this is one of Mailchimp's most criticized billing practices. Since 2023, Mailchimp counts all contacts toward your plan limit, including unsubscribed and non-subscribed contacts. The only contacts excluded from billing are cleaned, pending, deleted, and archived contacts.

This means when someone unsubscribes from your list, you must manually archive them to stop paying for them. If you don't, they keep counting toward your contact tier — and can push you into a higher pricing bracket. This is a significant hidden cost that many users discover only after their bill increases.

Does Mailchimp Offer Discounts?

Mailchimp offers two types of discounts:

• Annual billing: 15% discount when you pay annually instead of monthly.

• Nonprofits: 15% discount for nonprofits and charities. Sign up for a free account and contact their Billing team with your username and a link to your organization website.

Pay As You Go Credits

Mailchimp offers a Pay As You Go option as an alternative to monthly billing. Instead of a recurring fee, you purchase email credits — each email sent costs one credit. Credit blocks start at $150 for 5,000 credits. Credits expire after 12 months, cannot be refunded, and cannot be combined with other plans. This option includes the same features as the Essentials plan. It's best suited for seasonal businesses or those who send infrequently.

Mailchimp vs SendX: Pricing Comparison

Mailchimp's pricing has increased significantly since Intuit's acquisition. For many small and mid-size businesses, the cost no longer matches the value — especially when alternatives offer more features at lower prices. Here is how Mailchimp compares to SendX:

At 10,000 contacts, Mailchimp Essentials costs $110/mo with a 10x send cap. SendX costs $44.99/mo for the same list size with unlimited sends, advanced segmentation, and dedicated IPs included — that is 59% cheaper. Try SendX free for 14 days — no credit card required.

FAQs

1. How much does Mailchimp cost?

Mailchimp has four plans: Free ($0 for 250 contacts), Essentials (from $13/mo for 500 contacts), Standard (from $20/mo for 500 contacts), and Premium (from $350/mo for 10,000 contacts). Prices increase with your contact count.

2. Is Mailchimp free?

Mailchimp has a free plan, but it is very limited — only 250 contacts, 500 emails per month, 1 audience, no A/B testing, no multi-step automation, and Mailchimp branding on every email. The free plan has been cut significantly from 2,000 contacts and 10,000 emails in 2022.

3. Does Mailchimp charge for unsubscribed contacts?

Yes. Since 2023, Mailchimp bills you for all contacts including unsubscribed and non-subscribed contacts. You must manually archive unsubscribed contacts to stop paying for them. Only cleaned, pending, deleted, and archived contacts are excluded from billing.

4. How much does Mailchimp cost for 10,000 contacts?

For 10,000 contacts, Mailchimp Essentials costs $110/mo, Standard costs $135/mo, and Premium costs $350/mo. By comparison, SendX costs $44.99/mo (billed annually) for 10,000 subscribers with unlimited emails.

5. What is a cheaper alternative to Mailchimp?

SendX starts at $7.49/mo for 1,000 subscribers with unlimited emails, advanced segmentation, and dedicated IPs on every plan. Unlike Mailchimp, SendX does not charge for unsubscribed contacts and has no email send caps. For 10,000 contacts, SendX is 59% cheaper than Mailchimp Essentials.

6. Does Mailchimp offer annual billing discounts?

Yes. Mailchimp offers a 15% discount when you choose annual billing instead of monthly. They also offer a 15% discount for nonprofits and charities.