Side by side
| Mailchimp | ActiveCampaign | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes. Free for up to 250 contacts with a maximum of 500 sends a month or 250 a day, 1 seat and 1 audience. Mailchimp branding stays on and generative AI is not included. | No. There is a 14-day free trial with no credit card required. |
| How it charges | By contact tier. Paid plans bill monthly or annually at the rate for your tier, and overages are billed automatically when limits are passed. Pay-as-you-go email credits are an alternative for infrequent senders. | By number of contacts, in bands from under 500 to over 250,000. Plans are billed annually. |
| Works with | Shopify, WooCommerce, Canva, Zapier, Square, Stripe, Salesforce, WordPress and QuickBooks, among 300+ integrations. | Shopify, WooCommerce, Stripe, Zapier, Typeform and Webflow, among more than 1,000 apps. |
| AI features | Generative AI features are on the Standard and Premium plans, not on Free or Essentials. Intuit Intelligence is in beta with limited availability and can make mistakes. | Active Intelligence includes an AI campaign builder, AI content and image generation, an AI automation builder and predictive sending. Access is unlimited on Pro and Enterprise and limited on Starter and Plus. |
Prices and plans change. We checked these figures on October 10, 2026, so confirm them before you buy.
What Mailchimp is
Mailchimp is an email and SMS marketing platform with automations, analytics and AI tools. Example users include restaurants, non-profits, ecommerce, small businesses and professional services.
A newsletter operator can use it for email campaigns, templates, popup forms, audience tools and reporting. SMS is an add-on in select countries and needs approval.
It connects with 300+ apps.
What ActiveCampaign is
ActiveCampaign is a marketing platform that covers email marketing, SMS marketing and WhatsApp messaging. It connects to more than 1,000 apps and serves more than 180,000 businesses.
A newsletter operator would use it to send newsletters and set up automated email flows. Its Campaign Reference tool lets a user start a new campaign from past top performers instead of a blank page.
Its AI agents can draft the next campaign and run recurring tasks. AI limits depend on the plan.
Which one fits
The first difference is the start. Mailchimp has a free plan for up to 250 contacts and 500 sends a month. ActiveCampaign has no free plan, only a 14-day trial with no credit card required.
Both price by contacts. ActiveCampaign uses bands from under 500 to over 250,000, billed annually. Mailchimp uses contact tiers and bills overages automatically. ActiveCampaign has automation, segmentation and AI tools across email, SMS and WhatsApp, and AI access is limited on Starter and Plus. If you want to test at no cost, Mailchimp's free plan allows that. If WhatsApp matters, ActiveCampaign offers it.
Does Mailchimp have a free plan?
Yes. It allows up to 250 contacts, 500 sends a month or 250 a day, 1 seat and 1 audience. Sending pauses if a limit is exceeded.
Is there a free trial of paid plans?
Yes. There is a 14-day free trial that needs valid payment information at sign-up. Canceling during the trial incurs no charge.
Is there a free plan?
There is no free plan. ActiveCampaign offers a 14-day free trial with no credit card required.
How is pricing set?
Pricing depends on the number of contacts. You can move to the next contact band or plan without penalties or losing features.