Email marketing remains one of the most potent ways to connect with your audience, nurture leads, and build customer loyalty. When searching for the right email marketing software, one name consistently pops up: Mailchimp. Once purely an email tool, Mailchimp now positions itself as an all-in-one marketing platform. But what does that really mean? Is it still the top choice for SMBs, freelancers, and budding marketers in 2025?
In this comprehensive Mailchimp review, we’ll dive deep into the platform. We’ll explore what Mailchimp is, break down its key Mailchimp features, analyze the Mailchimp pricing (including recent changes), weigh the pros and cons, and help you determine if Mailchimp is the right tool for your specific needs.
What Exactly is Mailchimp?
Mailchimp is a cloud-based marketing platform primarily known for sending newsletters. Founded in 2001, it quickly became one of the most popular email marketing software solutions, thanks largely to its user-friendly interface and historically generous free plan.
However, in recent years, Mailchimp has significantly expanded its offerings. It now markets itself as an integrated marketing platform targeting small to medium-sized businesses. Beyond email marketing, it now includes tools for:
- Marketing automation
- Landing pages and websites
- Digital ads (via integrations)
- Social media posting
- A basic CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system
- Lead generation forms
While its core strength still lies in email, it’s crucial to understand that Mailchimp aims to be more than just a tool to create newsletters. Curious about more options? Discover more Email Marketing Tools on ToollyPro.
Key Mailchimp Features Explored
Let’s look at the core functionalities Mailchimp offers marketers and entrepreneurs:
1. Email Campaigns & Templates
This is Mailchimp’s bread and butter. You can easily create professional-looking email campaigns using the drag-and-drop editor. Mailchimp provides a wide array of pre-designed templates that you can customize to match your brand identity. You can create regular newsletters, A/B tests (to test subject lines or content), and RSS campaigns (automatically send emails for new blog posts). Learning how to create a newsletter with Mailchimp is relatively straightforward, even for beginners.
2. Marketing Automations
Mailchimp allows you to automate marketing tasks. Consider:
- Welcome Emails: Automatically send an email to new subscribers.
- Birthday Emails: Surprise customers on their special day.
- Behavior-Based Triggers: Send emails based on how contacts interact with your previous emails or website (requires site tracking).
- Abandoned Cart Emails: Remind online store visitors about items left in their carts (requires e-commerce integration).
While useful, Mailchimp’s automation capabilities are generally less advanced than those of specialized competitors like ActiveCampaign or ConvertKit, especially on the lower-tier plans.
Explore other tools within Marketing Tools on ToollyPro.
3. Landing Pages & Forms
To grow your email list, you need ways to capture leads. Mailchimp offers tools to:
- Landing Pages: Create simple landing pages for specific campaigns or offers.
- Signup Forms: Design forms that you can embed on your website or share via a link.
These tools are functional but sometimes lack the advanced customization and optimization features found in dedicated landing page builders.
4. Basic CRM Functionality
Mailchimp includes a built-in audience management system that acts as a lightweight CRM. You can manage contacts, segment them based on tags, groups, and behavior, and gain insights into your audience. However, for businesses with complex sales processes or needing in-depth relationship management, this CRM will likely fall short compared to full-fledged CRM systems.
Mailchimp Pricing and Plans (Update April 2025)
Mailchimp pricing is a critical consideration, especially given recent adjustments. Mailchimp uses a model based on both the number of contacts and, on some plans, the number of emails sent. There are roughly four main Mailchimp pricing plans:
- Free: Has become very limited. Suitable for absolute beginners with a small list (<500 contacts) and low send volumes (<1000 emails/month). Offers basic email templates, limited single-step automation, and minimal support. Important: The features and limits of the free plan have been significantly reduced in recent years. Always check the current terms on the Mailchimp website.
- Essentials: Aimed at frequent email senders needing more templates, A/B testing, and 24/7 support. The price increases rapidly as your contact list grows.
- Standard: Adds more advanced automations (customer journeys), behavioral targeting, and better segmentation. This is often the plan SMBs consider when getting serious about email marketing. The cost is significantly higher than Essentials.
- Premium: For large teams and advanced users needing maximum functionality, contacts, and support. This plan is considerably more expensive.
Key things to know about Mailchimp pricing:
- Contacts Count Uniquely per Audience: Mailchimp counts each contact in each ‘Audience’ (list) separately. If one person is on two lists, they count as two contacts towards your plan limit. It’s highly recommended to work with one main Audience and use segmentation (tags/groups).
- Prices Escalate: As your list grows, the monthly costs increase substantially, particularly on paid plans.
- Recent Changes: Mailchimp has adjusted its pricing structure and the features included within plans (especially the Free plan) recently. What was true yesterday might not be today.
Pricing is typically displayed in USD; users outside the US should account for exchange rates and potential taxes (like VAT).
Pros and Cons of Mailchimp
Like any tool, Mailchimp has its strengths and weaknesses:
Pros:
- User-Friendly: Especially for beginners, the interface is relatively intuitive, particularly the email editor.
- Good Templates: Offers a wide selection of professional-looking, customizable email templates.
- Integrations: Connects with many other tools and platforms (e-commerce stores, CRMs, social media).
- Brand Recognition & Community: Large user base means plenty of online tutorials and support resources are available.
- All-in-One (Potential): Provides a suite of marketing tools under one roof, which can be convenient for those seeking simplicity.
Cons:
- Price: Can become expensive quickly, especially as your list grows or you need more advanced features. The pricing structure can feel opaque.
- Free Plan Limitations: The free plan is heavily restricted and often insufficient for serious email marketing efforts now.
- Automation: Automation workflows are less powerful and flexible compared to some competitors.
- CRM Functionality: The built-in CRM is very basic and not suitable for complex sales or relationship management needs.
- Support: Support on lower-tier plans can be limited (especially on Free).
- Deliverability: While generally decent, some users report mixed experiences with deliverability (emails reaching the inbox).
Who is Mailchimp (Still) Suitable For in 2025?
Mailchimp can still be a solid choice for:
- Absolute Beginners: Who want to start with email marketing and appreciate a user-friendly interface (provided they stay within the limits of the Essentials plan or accept the Free plan’s limitations).
- Small Businesses (SMBs) and Freelancers: With relatively simple email marketing needs, a limited budget (especially initially), and who find the basic features like newsletters and simple automations sufficient.
- Bloggers: Seeking an easy way to create newsletters and keep their audience updated.
- Users Who Value an Integrated Platform: And want basic email, landing page, and form functionalities under one umbrella, without needing the most advanced options.
However, Mailchimp might be less suitable for:
- Businesses with Rapidly Growing Lists: Costs can escalate quickly.
- Marketers Needing Advanced Automation: Competitors often offer more depth and flexibility.
- Businesses Requiring a Robust CRM: The built-in CRM features are too limited.
- Highly Price-Conscious Users: Alternatives exist that may offer more features for a lower price, especially as lists grow.
Conclusion: Is Mailchimp the Right Choice For You?
Mailchimp is an established name in the email marketing software space, offering a user-friendly platform and a broad set of features. It’s a decent starting point for beginners and can meet the basic needs of many small businesses and freelancers.
However, the limitations of its free plan, the potentially high Mailchimp pricing, and less advanced automation and CRM features mean it’s essential to carefully consider if the platform is still the best fit for your situation in 2025. Analyze your needs regarding list size, budget, automation complexity, and CRM requirements before making a decision.
