Kit and Mailchimp both send newsletters and automated emails, but they are built for different businesses. Kit is made for creators and coaches who sell from their list. Mailchimp grew up serving small businesses and online shops. We compared them on price, free plans, automation, selling and support, using each official pricing page in October 2026, so you can pick the right one.
Kit is better for most coaches and creators: its free plan holds up to 10,000 subscribers, it has no sending limits, and the Creator plan ($39 a month, or $33 billed yearly) includes unlimited sequences and automations. Mailchimp is better for online shops and very small lists, with a free plan for 250 contacts and paid plans from $13 a month.
Who this is for: Coaches, consultants and creators choosing between Kit and Mailchimp for their email list.
Choose Kit (formerly ConvertKit) if you are a coach, creator or course seller who wants a big free plan, no sending limits and simple automations that tag people by what they are interested in. Choose Mailchimp if you run an online shop, lean on ecommerce integrations and reports, or want more team seats and audiences on an entry plan.
For most coaches we work with, Kit is the better fit. Its Free plan holds up to 10,000 subscribers, and the Creator plan gives you unlimited sequences and visual automations, which is what a lead magnet, a welcome series and a launch need. Mailchimp is cheaper to start on a very small list, but its Free plan stops at 250 contacts and has no automation flows.
If you already have a working setup on either tool, read the section on what neither tool fixes before you move anything.
Independent comparison, last reviewed 29 October 2026. Product names are trademarks of their owners. Unbury is not affiliated with, sponsored by or paid by any company compared here. Features and prices change, so check each vendor before you decide.
Both tools charge more as your list grows, so compare them at your real list size. We checked Kit's official pricing page and Mailchimp's official pricing page for this comparison, and all prices are in US dollars.
Kit has three plans. Free covers up to 10,000 subscribers with unlimited landing pages, forms and broadcasts, tagging and segmentation, and the ability to sell digital products and subscriptions. Creator is $39 a month for 1,000 subscribers, or $33 a month when billed yearly ($390 a year), and adds unlimited visual automations and email sequences, A/B tests on subject lines, two users, 24/7 email and chat support and free migration.
Pro is $79 a month for 1,000 subscribers, or $66 a month billed yearly, with a first-year discount on offer when we checked. It adds unlimited users, deliverability reporting, engagement scoring, a referral system and priority support. Kit says there are no sending limits on any plan, and it only counts unique, active subscribers. Paid plans come with a 14-day free trial with no card needed.
Mailchimp has four main plans. Free covers 250 contacts and 500 emails a month, with a daily limit of 250, one user and no marketing automation flows. Essentials starts at $13 a month and Standard at $20 a month, both for up to 500 contacts. Premium is aimed at larger teams.
When we checked, Mailchimp was offering 50% off for the first 12 months, so budget for the full price from year two. Sends are capped at 10 times your contact limit on Essentials and 12 times on Standard. There is also a Pay As You Go option that suits people who email only now and then.
Say you have 800 subscribers and want a five-email welcome series. On Kit you can hold the list for free, but the sequence needs Creator at $39 a month ($33 billed yearly). On Mailchimp the list is too big for Free, and Essentials limits flows to 4 steps, so a full sequence realistically means Standard. Use Mailchimp's calculator at your exact list size, because its price steps up with each contact tier.
Kit's Free plan holds up to 10,000 subscribers against Mailchimp's 250. For a coach building a list from a free guide or a podcast, that is the difference between paying in month two and paying when the list is already earning.
On Creator you get unlimited visual automations and sequences. You can tag people by the freebie they downloaded, send them a matching series and move them to a sales sequence when they click. Kit's tagging model is easy to understand, and a coach can set up a lead magnet funnel without help. Our guide to a high-converting welcome email sequence shows what to put in it.
Every Kit plan, including Free, lets you sell digital products, paid newsletters, recurring subscriptions and tip jars, with a 3.5% plus 30 cent fee per sale. A coach can sell a $47 workshop without adding a separate checkout tool.
Kit says you can send as many emails as you like on any plan. If you email daily or run launches with several emails a day, you never have to think about a monthly send cap.
Kit's Recommendations feature lets other Kit creators suggest your newsletter when someone signs up to theirs, and it is included on the Free plan. For a coach in a niche with active newsletter writers, that is a simple way to add subscribers without paying for ads. Paid plans also come with free migration, so Kit's team can rebuild your forms, templates and automations for you.
Under 250 contacts, Mailchimp's Free plan costs nothing and sends basic newsletters. Up to 500 contacts, Essentials starts at $13 a month, well below Kit's Creator plan at $39 a month ($33 billed yearly). If you only need a monthly newsletter and no automation, Mailchimp is the cheaper tool.
Mailchimp lists more than 300 integrations, and its Standard and Premium plans add predictive segments, dynamic content and custom reports. If you sell physical products through an online store, those features can do more for you than Kit's creator tools. Our Klaviyo vs Mailchimp comparison covers the ecommerce side in more depth.
Essentials includes 3 user seats and 3 audiences, and Standard includes 5 of each, while Kit's Creator plan has 2 users. Every paid Mailchimp plan has 24/7 email and chat support, Standard adds a personalised onboarding session, and Premium adds phone support. Mailchimp also offers a 15% discount for nonprofits and charities.
Mailchimp includes popup forms even on Free. Kit also has unlimited forms, including modal and slide-in styles, so this one is closer than it looks.
Mailchimp's Pay As You Go option lets you buy email credits instead of paying a monthly fee. If you email your list a handful of times a year, for example before an annual retreat, that can cost less than any monthly plan on either tool.
This table uses each vendor's own pricing page at the time of writing (October 2026). "From" means the cheapest plan that includes the feature.
| What you need | Kit | Mailchimp |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free, then $39 a month or $33 billed yearly (Creator) | Free, then $13 a month (Essentials) |
| Free plan | Up to 10,000 subscribers | 250 contacts, 500 emails a month |
| Contacts on cheapest paid plan | 1,000 at $39 ($33 yearly) | 500 at $13 |
| Email sends | No sending limits on any plan | 10 times contacts on Essentials, 12 times on Standard |
| Automation | Unlimited sequences and visual automations from Creator | Up to 4 flow steps on Essentials, 200 flows from Standard |
| Landing pages and forms | Unlimited, even on Free | Popup forms on every plan |
| Selling products | Digital products and subscriptions on every plan, 3.5% plus 30 cents a sale | Through ecommerce integrations |
| Users | 1 on Free, 2 on Creator, unlimited on Pro | 1 on Free, 3 on Essentials, 5 on Standard |
| Deliverability help | Deliverability reporting on Pro | Not listed on pricing page |
| Support | 24/7 email and chat from Creator | 24/7 email and chat on paid plans, phone on Premium |
| Best for | Coaches, creators and course sellers | Online shops and small newsletters |
Want to see how Kit does against a heavier automation tool? Read Kit vs ActiveCampaign.
Do not switch just because a comparison says one tool is better. If your current setup sends on time, your list is growing and your emails get replies, the cost of moving (rebuilding forms, rewriting automations, re-testing every link) can outweigh the savings. Moving in the middle of a launch is almost always a mistake.
Neither tool will fix inbox placement on its own. Kit emails can land in Promotions, and Mailchimp emails can land in spam, and in both cases the cause is usually your domain records, your list quality or how people engage with what you send. If that is your problem, read why Kit emails go to Promotions or why Mailchimp emails go to spam before you blame the platform.
Neither tool will write a lead magnet people want, an offer that is clear, or a follow-up that reaches a new lead within minutes. A coach with a vague freebie and a welcome email that arrives the next day will lose leads on either platform. Fix the leakiest step first, then decide if the tool is really holding you back.
A quick way to check: look at how many people visit your opt-in page, how many sign up, how many open the first email and how many book or buy. If the biggest drop is before anyone reaches your inbox, a new email tool will not change it. If people open but never click, the words need work, not the platform.
1. How big is your list? Under 250 people and no plans for automation: Mailchimp Free is enough. Anywhere up to 10,000 and you want to stay free while you grow: Kit.
2. What do you sell? Coaching, courses, workshops or a paid newsletter: Kit, because selling and tagging are built in. Physical products through an online shop: Mailchimp, or a specialist ecommerce tool.
3. Will you use automation? If you want a welcome series, a nurture sequence and a launch sequence, price Kit Creator against Mailchimp Standard at your list size, because those are the plans that do the job. If you only send a monthly newsletter, the cheapest plan on either tool will do. Our guide to the best email marketing platform for coaches covers more options.
A done-for-you studio fits when you know email should be bringing in clients but you do not have the time to write the sequences, build the automations and check the numbers every week. That is what we do at Unbury: we find where your marketing loses people, build the fix on the tool that suits you, Kit or Mailchimp, and run it week to week. You can start with a free marketing audit.
For coaches, creators and course sellers, usually yes. Kit has a much bigger free plan, no sending limits and automations that are simple to build around lead magnets and launches. Mailchimp is often the better choice for online shops and for very small lists that only need a monthly newsletter.
Yes. ConvertKit renamed itself Kit, and the product, accounts and features carried over. If you see an older guide about ConvertKit, it is talking about the same tool, though prices and plans may have changed since.
It depends on your list size and what you need. Kit is free for up to 10,000 subscribers, which beats Mailchimp's 250-contact Free plan by a long way. Once you need automated sequences, Kit Creator starts at $39 a month for 1,000 subscribers ($33 billed yearly), while Mailchimp Standard starts at $20 a month for 500 contacts, so price both at your real list size.
Yes, but the Free plan is small: 250 contacts, 500 emails a month, a daily limit of 250, one user and no marketing automation flows. Email support on the Free plan only lasts for your first 30 days. Sending pauses if you go over the limits.
Yes. Export your Mailchimp audience as a CSV, import it into Kit and turn your groups into tags. Kit offers free migration on its paid plans, and its team can rebuild your forms, templates and automations. Test every sign-up form before you close your Mailchimp account.
Send us your setup and we will tell you honestly where it is leaking customers and what to fix first. Free, no pitch.