How We Calculated These Numbers
Every price below is the annual total based on the cheapest plan that supports the stated subscriber count with standard email marketing features (automations, segmentation, A/B testing). We used published pricing as of March 2026. Where annual billing offers a discount, we show both figures.
“Subscribers” means contacts in your list, whether or not they opened an email recently. Mailchimp, Kit, and ActiveCampaign charge by total contacts. beehiiv charges by subscribers. Brevo charges by emails sent, not contacts — a critical distinction we factor into the comparison.
Annual Cost by Subscriber Tier (Monthly Billing)
What you pay per year if you choose month-to-month billing. This is the most common scenario and the most expensive way to pay.
| Subscribers | Mailchimp | Kit | beehiiv | ActiveCampaign | Brevo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | $156/yr Standard | $348/yr Creator | $0/yr Launch (free) | $348/yr Starter | $0/yr Free (300 emails/day) |
| 2,500 | $468/yr Standard | $468/yr Creator | $0/yr Launch (free to 2.5K) | $468/yr Starter | $300/yr Starter (20K emails/mo) |
| 5,000 | $828/yr Standard | $588/yr Creator | $504/yr Scale | $588/yr Starter | $300/yr Starter (20K emails/mo) |
| 10,000 | $1,560/yr Standard | $1,068/yr Creator | $504/yr Scale | $1,068/yr Lite | $540/yr Business (no contact limit) |
| 25,000 | $3,060/yr Standard | $2,268/yr Creator | $1,188/yr Scale | $2,268/yr Plus | $540/yr Business |
| 50,000 | $4,860/yr Standard | $4,068/yr Creator Pro | $2,388/yr Scale | $3,828/yr Plus | $780/yr Business |
| 100,000 | $9,300/yr Standard | $7,668/yr Creator Pro | $4,788/yr Scale | $6,588/yr Pro | $1,380/yr Business |
All prices based on published rates as of March 2026. Brevo pricing is per emails sent (not contacts), so list size does not directly affect the bill — send volume does. The Brevo figures assume one email per contact per week.
Annual vs Monthly Billing: How Much You Save
Most platforms offer 15–20% off for annual billing. Here is the annual billing total at selected tiers alongside the monthly billing total so you can see the real dollar savings.
| Platform @ 10K | Monthly Billing (Annual Total) | Annual Billing (Annual Total) | You Save |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mailchimp Standard | $1,560/yr | $1,320/yr | $240 (15%) |
| Kit Creator | $1,068/yr | $828/yr | $240 (22%) |
| beehiiv Scale | $504/yr | $420/yr | $84 (17%) |
| ActiveCampaign Lite | $1,068/yr | $876/yr | $192 (18%) |
| Brevo Business | $540/yr | $468/yr | $72 (13%) |
Kit offers the largest discount for annual billing (roughly 22% off). Brevo's annual discount is modest, but its base price is already among the lowest.
Cheapest Platform at Each Tier
| Subscriber Tier | Cheapest (Monthly Billing) | Annual Cost | Runner-Up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | beehiiv Launch / Brevo Free | $0/yr | Mailchimp Standard ($156/yr) |
| 2,500 | beehiiv Launch | $0/yr | Brevo Starter ($300/yr) |
| 5,000 | Brevo Starter | $300/yr | beehiiv Scale ($504/yr) |
| 10,000 | beehiiv Scale | $504/yr | Brevo Business ($540/yr) |
| 25,000 | Brevo Business | $540/yr | beehiiv Scale ($1,188/yr) |
| 50,000 | Brevo Business | $780/yr | beehiiv Scale ($2,388/yr) |
| 100,000 | Brevo Business | $1,380/yr | beehiiv Scale ($4,788/yr) |
Brevo dominates on raw price at high volumes because it charges by emails sent, not contacts. If you have a large list but send infrequently, Brevo is dramatically cheaper. If you send daily to your entire list, the math shifts.
Hidden Costs: What the Pricing Page Doesn't Show
Mailchimp
- • Unsubscribed contacts still count. Mailchimp charges for contacts who unsubscribed but remain in your audience. You must manually archive them or pay for dead weight.
- • Send limits tighten above Standard. Standard gives 12x your contact limit in sends per month. Premium gives 15x. Exceed it and you cannot send until next billing cycle or upgrade.
- • Advanced automations require Standard or higher. The Essentials plan has limited automation triggers. Multi-step journeys require Standard ($20+/mo at 500 contacts).
- • SMS is an add-on. If you want SMS marketing alongside email, Mailchimp charges separately per credit pack. This can add $20–50/month for light usage.
Kit (ConvertKit)
- • Free plan has no automations. The Newsletter (free) plan does not include visual automation sequences. You need Creator ($29/mo at 1K) for automated email sequences.
- • Creator Pro features cost 50%+ more. Subscriber scoring, advanced reporting, and referral programs require Creator Pro, which is roughly 50% above Creator pricing at every tier.
- • No native A/B testing on broadcasts below Creator. Subject-line testing is available, but proper A/B content testing requires the Creator plan.
- • Commerce fees. Kit Commerce (digital product sales) takes 3.5% + Stripe fees on every transaction. This adds up fast for course creators.
beehiiv
- • Free plan caps at 2,500 subscribers. After that, you jump to Scale at $42/month. There is no intermediate plan between free and paid.
- • Custom domains require Scale or above. If you want to send from your own domain (not yourname.beehiiv.com), you need Scale.
- • Automation is basic. beehiiv's automation sequences are less sophisticated than ActiveCampaign or Kit. If you need complex conditional logic, beehiiv may not be sufficient.
- • Ad network revenue share. beehiiv Boost and ad network monetization takes a percentage. The platform is free or cheap because ad monetization is built in.
ActiveCampaign
- • CRM is a paid add-on. ActiveCampaign's email plans do not include CRM. The Plus plan (CRM included) starts at $49/mo for 1K contacts. Most people comparing it to HubSpot miss this.
- • Onboarding fees on higher plans. Enterprise and some Plus plans include mandatory onboarding fees of $500–$2,500. These are one-time but rarely shown on the pricing page.
- • Transactional email is separate. If you need order confirmations or password resets alongside marketing emails, you pay for Postmark (acquired by ActiveCampaign) separately.
- • Annual contracts are hard to exit. ActiveCampaign does not offer pro-rated refunds on annual plans. If you realize it is not right 3 months in, you eat the remaining 9 months.
Brevo (formerly Sendinblue)
- • Free plan has Brevo branding. Every email sent on the free plan includes a Brevo logo in the footer. Removing it requires the Starter plan ($25/mo).
- • Send-per-month model can spike. Brevo charges by emails sent. If you run a flash sale and send 3x your normal volume, that single month could cost 3x your usual bill.
- • Marketing automation limited on Starter. Advanced automation workflows (lead scoring, predictive sending) require Business at $65/mo. Starter only offers basic automation.
- • Dedicated IP is extra. Shared IP deliverability varies. A dedicated IP (recommended above 50K contacts) costs an additional $250+/year.
Best Value Verdict at Each Tier
Under 2,500 Subscribers
beehiiv Launchis the clear winner. You get a functional newsletter platform with subscriber management, analytics, and a referral system for $0. Brevo Free is also $0 but limits you to 300 emails/day and includes branding. If you need automations from day one, Kit Creator ($29/mo) is worth the premium — beehiiv's automation is too basic for complex sequences.
2,500 – 10,000 Subscribers
beehiiv Scaleat $42/month offers the best balance of features and price. Brevo is technically cheaper per dollar, but beehiiv's growth tools (Boosts, referral programs, ad network) can generate revenue that offsets the cost. ActiveCampaign wins if you need deep automation workflows, but expect to pay 2–3x more.
10,000 – 50,000 Subscribers
Brevo Businessbecomes the cost leader. At $65/month with unlimited contacts, it undercuts every competitor by $50–200/month at these sizes. The tradeoff: Brevo's template editor and automation builder are less polished than ActiveCampaign or Kit. If design quality and automation complexity matter more than raw cost, ActiveCampaign Plus is worth the premium.
50,000+ Subscribers
Brevo Businesscontinues to dominate on price. At 100K contacts, Mailchimp charges $9,300/year while Brevo charges $1,380/year — a $7,920 difference. The only reason to choose Mailchimp at this scale is if you are deeply integrated into its ecosystem (landing pages, social posting, Intuit accounting) and migration cost exceeds the annual savings. For most teams, it does not.
Overage Risks: What Happens When You Go Over
- •Mailchimp: Auto-upgrades you to the next contact tier. No warning, no confirmation. A viral lead magnet can push you from the 5K to the 10K tier overnight, doubling your bill.
- •Kit: Notifies you and gives a grace period, but auto-upgrades if you do not act. Less aggressive than Mailchimp, but the contact tiers jump in large increments ($29 to $49 to $79).
- •beehiiv: Does not auto-upgrade. When you hit your plan's subscriber limit, new subscribers are paused until you upgrade. Less financially risky but you can miss new signups.
- •ActiveCampaign: Auto-upgrades to the next contact tier and charges the pro-rated difference. On an annual plan, this mid-cycle upgrade can create a confusing invoice.
- •Brevo: Stops sending when you hit your monthly email limit. You must purchase additional credits or wait until next month. Predictable but can disrupt campaigns mid-flight.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is Brevo so much cheaper than Mailchimp?
Because Brevo charges by emails sent, not contacts stored. If you have 50,000 contacts but only email 10,000 of them per week, Brevo is dramatically cheaper. Mailchimp charges for all 50,000 regardless of activity. The billing model difference, not a quality difference, drives the price gap.
Is beehiiv really free up to 2,500 subscribers?
Yes. beehiiv's Launch plan is genuinely free with no credit card required. The limitations are no custom domain, limited automations, and beehiiv branding on your publication. For newsletter-focused creators who are just starting, these tradeoffs are very reasonable.
Which platform has the best automation for the price?
ActiveCampaign, by a wide margin. Its visual automation builder supports conditional branching, lead scoring, goal tracking, and CRM integration. The cost is 2–3x higher than beehiiv or Brevo, but if automation drives revenue for your business, the ROI is clear. Kit is a solid middle ground for creators who need sequences but not enterprise automation.
Should I switch from Mailchimp to save money?
If you have over 10,000 contacts and are on Mailchimp Standard or Premium, you are likely overpaying by $500–$5,000/year compared to beehiiv or Brevo. The migration cost (rebuilding automations, re-verifying your domain, potential short-term deliverability dip) is a one-time event. The savings recur every year. For most teams above 10K, switching pays for itself within 3–6 months.
Do these prices include transactional emails?
No. These are marketing email costs only. Transactional emails (order confirmations, password resets) are separate on every platform listed here. Brevo does bundle transactional email in its plans, which is an additional cost advantage if you need both marketing and transactional.