Beehiiv is purpose-built for newsletter creators with better monetization features and 50% lower starting costs, while Mailchimp is a general email marketing platform with more advanced automation workflows and 8x larger feature set for multi-channel campaigns.
Beehiiv vs Mailchimp — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Choose Beehiiv if you're a newsletter creator focused on building an independent audience with monetization—its free unlimited subscribers, lower pricing, and native sponsorship/premium features make it ideal for writers and media creators. Choose Mailchimp if you need comprehensive email marketing automation, multi-channel campaigns (SMS, social, ads), or integration with e-commerce—it's better for established businesses managing complex customer journeys.
Email newsletter platform designed for independent creators with built-in monetization.
Industry-leading email marketing platform with 12+ million users and extensive integration ecosystem
Structured comparison data for Beehiiv vs Mailchimp with 221 attributes.
Contact List Size Limit (Standard Pricing)
Price Scaling Factor at 5,000 Subscribers
Starter Tier Monthly Cost (50k contacts)
Automation Workflow Steps (Free/Starter Tier)
Beehiiv vs Mailchimp — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Beehiiv vs Mailchimp.
Which platform is better for a newsletter writer starting out?
Beehiiv is the clear choice for new newsletter creators. You get unlimited free subscribers (no artificial caps), a creator-focused interface that takes minutes to learn, and native monetization tools (ads, sponsorships, premium tiers) to earn revenue as you grow. Mailchimp limits free accounts to 500 contacts and doesn't offer built-in revenue features, making it inefficient for solo creators.
Can I use Beehiiv if I need SMS marketing?
No. Beehiiv is email-only at its core tier. If SMS, social ads, or multi-channel campaigns are essential, Mailchimp is the better choice—it includes SMS, landing pages, and social media ads in its plans. Some Beehiiv users supplement with Twilio or other SMS tools via IFTTT, but this requires manual setup.
Which platform has better automation for complex customer journeys?
Mailchimp dominates here with 100+ automation triggers, unlimited workflow branching, and conditional logic that supports sophisticated customer journeys. Beehiiv's automation is basic—ideal for welcome sequences and simple triggers but not suitable for multi-step, conditional business workflows. If your automation needs are complex, Mailchimp's advanced features justify the higher cost.
How much will it cost to scale to 10,000 subscribers?
Beehiiv: $25/month for 10,001-25,000 subscribers. Mailchimp: $350+/month for the same list size (Pro plan at $300/mo + SMS fees). Beehiiv's pricing scales linearly and is dramatically cheaper for creators, while Mailchimp's per-contact pricing hits harder at scale. For large creator audiences, Beehiiv saves 90% in costs.
Can I integrate Mailchimp with my Shopify store?
Yes. Mailchimp has a native Shopify app with automatic syncing of customer data, abandoned cart recovery, and product recommendation emails. Beehiiv has basic Shopify integration via Zapier but lacks native tools for e-commerce automation. If running an e-commerce store is core to your business, Mailchimp is significantly better equipped.