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THE SHORT ANSWER
If you have a large list but email infrequently → Brevo
If you want the lowest cost with a clean editor and a real free plan → MailerLite
If you need the deepest integration ecosystem and are willing to pay for it → Mailchimp
If you think you should compare these on their entry price, you will pick the wrong one. Brevo charges by emails sent and lets you store unlimited contacts. Mailchimp and MailerLite charge by contacts stored and care less about sends. So the correct question is not "which is cheaper" but "which way does my usage lean" — a big quiet list, or a small list I email constantly.
AT A GLANCE
| MailerLite | Brevo | Mailchimp | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Per contact | Per email sent | Per contact |
| Entry paid plan | ~$10–12/mo | $9/mo (5,000 emails) | $13/mo (500 contacts) |
| Cost at 5,000 contacts | ~$39/mo | ~$18/mo (low send volume) | ~$100/mo (Standard) |
| Free plan | 500 subs, 12,000 emails/mo | Unlimited contacts, 300/day | 250 contacts, 500 emails/mo |
| Automation on free | Yes | Yes | No |
| Best for | Creators, small businesses | Large lists, low send frequency | Ecosystem and integrations |
| OperDrive deal | Standard pricing | Standard pricing | Standard pricing |
MailerLite — for the best value at small to mid scale (~$10–12/month)
If you want the lowest real cost without giving up a clean editor or automation, MailerLite is the strongest default. Paid plans start around $10–12 per month, and at 5,000 contacts it costs roughly $39 per month — against Mailchimp's $100 at the same list size. The free plan is one of the best in the category: 500 subscribers and 12,000 emails per month, with automation included, which most competitors gate behind payment. You also get landing pages, forms, and pop-ups without a separate tool. Where it falls short: automation depth is lighter than ActiveCampaign or Klaviyo, and reporting is functional rather than deep. For most small businesses and creators, that ceiling is a long way off.
Brevo — for large lists that you email infrequently ($9/month)
If you have tens of thousands of contacts but send a newsletter twice a month, Brevo's pricing model saves you real money. It bills by emails sent rather than contacts stored, and every plan — including free — allows unlimited contacts. Starter begins at $9 per month for 5,000 emails, and at 5,000 contacts with low send frequency it lands around $18 per month, which can be 80% cheaper than Mailchimp's contact-based tier at the same list size. Brevo is also genuinely multi-channel, covering email, SMS, WhatsApp, and chat from one platform. The catch is the mirror image of the benefit: if you send often, the model turns against you. Ten thousand contacts at eight sends a month is 80,000 emails, which pushes you into higher volume bands while contact-priced competitors do not move at all.
Mailchimp — for ecosystem breadth ($13/month)
If you need an integration for something obscure, Mailchimp almost certainly has it. That ecosystem is its remaining moat, along with a genuinely beginner-friendly interface. Essentials starts at $13 per month for 500 contacts, and Standard reaches roughly $100 per month at 5,000 contacts. The honest problem is the trajectory. Since the Intuit acquisition, the free plan has been cut three times, and as of early 2026 covers 250 contacts and 500 emails per month with no automation after the first thirty days. Mailchimp also charges for every contact including unsubscribes, and a contact on multiple lists can be billed more than once. It remains a reasonable choice below roughly 5,000 contacts where the interface and integrations save real hours. Above that, paying the premium becomes a deliberate decision rather than a default.
When it actually pays off
| Scenario | Cheapest fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 5,000 contacts, 2 sends per month | Brevo | ~$18/mo — send volume is low, contacts are free |
| 5,000 contacts, 8+ sends per month | MailerLite | ~$39/mo flat — send frequency does not raise the bill |
| 500 contacts, just starting | MailerLite | Free plan covers 500 subs and 12,000 emails with automation |
| Needs a specific niche integration | Mailchimp | Widest integration catalogue in the category |
The crossover point is send frequency. Below roughly four sends per month on a large list, Brevo's per-email model is unbeatable. Above that, contact-based pricing wins because your bill stops moving no matter how often you email. Mailchimp only makes sense on a specific integration requirement or a genuine preference for its interface — at 5,000 contacts it costs roughly two and a half times MailerLite for a comparable job.
What nobody else mentions
Mailchimp bills for contacts you are not emailing. Unsubscribed and inactive contacts still count toward your tier, and the same person on two audiences can be billed twice. Most platforms stopped doing this years ago. Audit your list before comparing quotes, because your Mailchimp bill is calculated on a number that is larger than your actual reachable audience.
Brevo's advantage inverts silently. Teams pick Brevo for the unlimited-contacts promise, then add automation, then add abandoned-cart flows, and discover their send volume tripled without their list growing at all. The model is excellent for broadcast newsletters and poor for high-frequency automation. Decide based on your send pattern in twelve months, not today.
The free plans are not comparable. Brevo's free tier allows unlimited contacts but caps you at 300 emails per day. MailerLite's allows 500 subscribers and 12,000 monthly emails with automation. Mailchimp's covers 250 contacts and 500 emails with automation excluded after thirty days. These are three completely different products wearing the same word, and picking on "has a free plan" tells you nothing.
Migration is easier than the switching cost you imagine. All three import a contact CSV, and rebuilding core automations is typically an afternoon of work, not a project. The real friction is re-verifying your sending domain and rebuilding deliverability reputation, which takes a few weeks of consistent sending. Plan for the warm-up, not the import.
FAQ
Which is genuinely cheapest?
It depends entirely on send frequency. At 5,000 contacts with low send volume, Brevo is cheapest at roughly $18 per month. At the same list size with frequent sends, MailerLite's flat ~$39 per month wins because it does not scale with sends. Mailchimp is the most expensive of the three at that list size in both scenarios.
Is Mailchimp still worth using?
For lists under about 5,000 contacts where its integrations and interface save you meaningful time, it is defensible. Above that, the premium is substantial and hard to justify on features alone. The repeated free-plan reductions since 2023 are also a fair signal about where its pricing is heading.
Does MailerLite have automation on the free plan?
Yes — that is one of its strongest advantages. The free tier covers 500 subscribers and 12,000 emails per month and includes automation, which Mailchimp restricts after the first thirty days. For someone starting a list from zero, this makes MailerLite the most capable free option of the three.
Should I choose Brevo if I have a huge list?
Only if you email it infrequently. Brevo allows unlimited contacts on every plan including free, which is genuinely valuable for large dormant lists. But it bills by emails sent, so a large list emailed often produces a large bill. Multiply your list size by your monthly sends before deciding — that number, not your contact count, is what Brevo prices.
Your email platform is the one channel you own outright.
If you want to know which email and marketing stack belongs in your specific business — that is what OperDrive does. Your Stack. Precisely.
What remains is not a suggestion.