Mailchimp

The most recognisable email marketing brand, easy to start with and broadly capable, with steeper pricing as your list grows.

Entry price
£9.71/mo (Essentials)
Free plan
Yes (250 contacts, 500 sends /mo)
Integrations
300+
UK SMS
Yes (UK SMS, paid add-on)

Best for

Beginners and small senders who want a familiar interface. Cost scales sharply once your list grows past a few thousand contacts.

Pricing breakdown

All prices in GBPLast verified 17 June 2026

Every fee we track, grouped by where it applies.

Strengths and trade-offs

Pros

  • Most familiar interface for non-marketers
  • Large template library (100+)
  • Free plan to get started
  • Native UK SMS as a paid add-on

Cons

  • Bills for all contacts including unsubscribed
  • Costs climb sharply at 5,000+ contacts
  • Advanced automation needs the Standard plan or above
  • Free plan cut from 2,000 to 250 contacts

About Mailchimp

Mailchimp is the default first email marketing platform for many UK businesses. The interface is familiar, the template library is one of the largest in the category, and the free plan lets small senders trial the product on up to 250 contacts and 500 monthly sends. It bills UK customers in pounds.

The trade-off is cost as the list grows. Mailchimp bills for all contacts including unsubscribed ones, raised prices repeatedly since 2022, and cut the free plan from 2,000 to 250 contacts. SMS is a paid add-on on Essentials and above, sent to UK mobiles natively. Many growing businesses comparison-shop alternatives once they pass a few thousand contacts.

Mailchimp was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Atlanta, USA.

How Mailchimp compares

Side-by-side with the closest alternatives by estimated cost.

Tier pricing based on 1,000 subscribers and 5,000 emails per month, using each free plan where it fits.

Mailchimp

£22/mo est.

Entry price
£9.71/mo (Essentials)
Free plan
Yes (250 contacts, 500 sends /mo)
Automation
Basic (Essentials), Advanced (Standard+)
UK SMS
Yes (UK SMS, paid add-on)
E-commerce
Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Magento
Est. monthly cost
£22/mo

Klaviyo

£22/mo est.

Entry price
£15/mo (Email)
Free plan
Yes (250 profiles, 500 emails /mo)
Automation
Advanced (flows, triggers, predictive on every paid plan)
UK SMS
Yes (UK supported, 5 credits/SMS)
E-commerce
Shopify (deep native), WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Magento
Est. monthly cost
£22/mo

Campaign Monitor

£24/mo est.

Entry price
£8/mo (Lite)
Free plan
No (free trial)
Automation
Basic (Lite), Advanced (Essentials+)
UK SMS
Add-on
E-commerce
Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, Salesforce
Est. monthly cost
£24/mo

Drip

£29/mo est.

Entry price
£29/mo
Free plan
No (14-day trial)
Automation
Advanced (visual workflow builder on every plan)
UK SMS
No (US only)
E-commerce
Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Magento
Est. monthly cost
£29/mo

Common questions about Mailchimp

The same questions UK merchants ask before signing up.

  • Mailchimp starts at £9.71/mo (Essentials) on the Essentials plan for a small contact list. A free tier is also available. Pricing scales by total contact count, and Mailchimp bills for all contacts including unsubscribed ones, so lists that are not regularly cleaned can become expensive.

  • Mailchimp bills UK customers in pounds (GBP), so there is no exchange-rate fluctuation on your invoice. The prices you see on the UK pricing page are the prices you pay.

  • The free plan supports up to 250 contacts and includes basic campaign sending and the drag-and-drop email builder. Automation, A/B testing, scheduling, and custom templates require a paid plan. The free tier was cut from a much higher limit in prior years, so older guides may show outdated figures.

  • Yes. Mailchimp counts subscribed, unsubscribed, and non-subscribed contacts toward your billed total. If you do not regularly archive or delete unsubscribed contacts, your bill rises even though those contacts no longer receive emails. This is one of the main cost complaints from long-term Mailchimp users.

  • Yes. Mailchimp offers SMS marketing to UK mobile numbers as a paid add-on on the Essentials plan and above. SMS credits are billed separately from the email subscription.

  • Yes. Mailchimp provides consent management, one-click unsubscribe, and sender identification tools that help you meet UK GDPR and PECR requirements for marketing emails.

  • MailerLite is generally less expensive at comparable contact counts and charges only for active subscribers, while Mailchimp bills for all contacts including unsubscribed ones and has a larger template and integration ecosystem. Compare both at your subscriber count using the table above to see the real difference at your list size.

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