Comparison

ActiveCampaign vs Mailchimp

Overview

Marketing automation for any business

ActiveCampaign is a marketing automation platform for orchestrating customer journeys across email, SMS, and WhatsApp. It combines automation, CRM, content creation, and analytics to help teams personalize outreach and reduce repetitive marketing work.

Mailchimp

Turn emails into revenue

mailchimp.com →

Mailchimp is an email marketing and automation platform for growing businesses, combining email campaigns, landing pages, and audience management in one tool.

Which should you choose?

ActiveCampaign is subscription-only from $15/month with deeper automation, SMS, WhatsApp, and a built-in CRM. Mailchimp has a free tier and is simpler and more design-focused, with landing pages and surveys, but both stay in the startup/SMB range. Choose ActiveCampaign for more sophisticated multi-channel automation and CRM; choose Mailchimp if you want a free tier and a simpler, more visual campaign builder.

TLDR

—If you need sophisticated multi-channel automation with a built-in CRM, choose ActiveCampaign.
—If you want a free tier and a simpler, more visual campaign builder, choose Mailchimp.

Features

—Marketing automation
—Email marketing
—SMS marketing
—WhatsApp messaging
—CRM
—Content creation
—Analytics and reporting
—Landing pages

—Email campaigns
—Marketing automation
—Audience segmentation
—Landing pages
—A/B testing
—Surveys
—Social media ads
—Customer journey builder

Pricing

ActiveCampaign

subscription14-day free trial with no credit card needed.

Plan	Price	Notes
Starter	$15/mo	Starts at $15/month for 1,000 contacts.
Plus	$79/mo	Quoted on ActiveCampaign comparison page for 1,000 contacts.
Pro	$79/mo	Quoted on ActiveCampaign comparison page for 1,000 contacts.
Enterprise	$145/mo	Starts at $145/month for 1,000 contacts.

View pricing page →

Mailchimp

freemiumFree plan availableMailchimp promotes 14-day free trials on paid marketing plans.

Plan	Price	Notes
Free	Free	Up to 250 contacts and 500 sends/month.
Essentials	$13/mo	Starting price; scales with contact tier.
Standard	$20/mo	Starting price; scales with contact tier.
Premium	$350/mo	Starting price; scales with contact tier.