Omnisend vs Mailchimp: Prices, Free Plans and Automation Compared
Omnisend is built for online stores and costs less than Mailchimp's Standard plan at every list size we checked. Mailchimp's Essentials plan is cheaper at most list sizes and its toolkit is broader, but automation and SMS work differently on each.
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Quick answer: is Omnisend or Mailchimp better?
As of October 2026, Omnisend is the stronger fit for online stores, and Mailchimp suits businesses that want a broad marketing toolkit. Omnisend Standard costs $16 a month for 500 contacts and $81 for 5,000, below Mailchimp Standard at $20 and $100. Mailchimp Essentials is cheaper at $13 and $75, but its automation flows stop at four steps. Omnisend's free plan includes automations and Mailchimp's doesn't. Mailchimp sells SMS from Essentials; Omnisend sells it on Pro, from $59 a month.
OmnisendOur rating: 4.5 / 5
Free plan, then from $16 a month
Choose Omnisend if
- Built for online stores, with automations on every plan, Free included
- Costs less than Mailchimp Standard at every list size we checked
- Free migration from Mailchimp, usually in 5 business days
MailchimpOur rating: 4.1 / 5
Free plan, then from $13 a month
Choose Mailchimp if
- Essentials is the cheapest paid plan at most list sizes
- A wide toolkit: surveys, websites with Wix and 300+ integrations
- SMS from the Essentials plan, in 37 countries
Omnisend vs Mailchimp at a glance
| Omnisend | Mailchimp | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | 250 contacts, 500 emails a month, automations included | 250 contacts, 500 sends a month (250 a day), no automation flows |
| Cheapest paid plan, 500 contacts | Standard, $16 a month | Essentials, $13 a month |
| Price at 5,000 contacts | $81 on Standard | $75 on Essentials, $100 on Standard |
| Emails a month | 12 per contact on Standard, unlimited on Pro | 10, 12 or 15 per contact, by plan |
| Automation | Pre-built store workflows on every plan | Up to 4 steps on Essentials, much larger flows on Standard |
| SMS | Pro only, credits from $10 a month | Add-on from Essentials, in 37 countries |
| Unsubscribed contacts | Not billed | Count toward your contact total |
| Free trial | None, the Free plan instead | 14 days on Essentials and Standard |
| Our review score | 4.5 | 4.1 |
Regular monthly prices in US dollars before tax, from omnisend.com/pricing and mailchimp.com/pricing, read at each list size on October 28, 2026. See every source
Both tools have a free plan for 250 contacts and both price their paid plans by list size, so on paper they look close. The differences show up in what each plan includes: automations, SMS, which contacts you pay for, and what you get beyond email.
We compared them round by round from both vendors' pricing pages and help centers, and from our own free accounts on each. Every round ends with the tool that has the edge, and for whom.
How we checked
- Sources
- Both pricing pages and help centers
- Date checked
- 28 October 2026
- Our account
- Our own free accounts on Omnisend and Mailchimp
- Not tested
- Paid plans on either tool, SMS sending and a migration
We read Omnisend's and Mailchimp's pricing pages on October 28, 2026 at each list size in this comparison, along with their help center pages on billing and SMS. The Mailchimp screenshots come from our own Mailchimp account on the Free plan, taken the same day. The Omnisend screenshots come from our own Omnisend account on the Free plan in August 2026 and from its pricing page.
We haven't paid for a plan on either tool, sent text messages or moved a list between them, so the price comparisons are our own math from published prices, not real invoices.
Omnisend vs Mailchimp Pricing at Your List Size
As of October 2026, both tools charge by the number of contacts you keep. Here are the regular monthly prices of the plans we compared.
| Contacts | Omnisend Standard | Mailchimp Essentials | Mailchimp Standard |
|---|---|---|---|
| 500 | $16 | $13 | $20 |
| 2,500 | $44 | $45 | $60 |
| 5,000 | $81 | $75 | $100 |
| 10,000 | $132 | $110 | $135 |
| 25,000 | $282 | $270 | $310 |
| 50,000 | $413 | $385 | $450 |
Swipe sideways to see every column.
Regular monthly prices in US dollars before tax, for the top of each list range, read from both pricing pages on October 28, 2026. Mailchimp offers 15% off for the first 12 months on 10,000 contacts or more. Omnisend offers 30% off the first three months when you pay them upfront on your first paid plan.
Omnisend Standard costs less than Mailchimp Standard at every list size we checked, by $3 to $37 a month (our math). Both send 12 emails per contact each month. Mailchimp Essentials is the cheapest of the three at most sizes, $6 a month below Omnisend Standard at 5,000 contacts and $22 below at 10,000 (our math). It sends 10 emails per contact, and its automation flows stop at four steps.
Which contacts you pay for differs too. Mailchimp counts subscribed, unsubscribed and non-subscribed contacts toward your total, and leaves out only archived, cleaned and deleted ones. Omnisend counts subscribers plus customers who bought or abandoned a cart without opting in, and doesn't bill unsubscribed contacts.
Our advice: if you're on Mailchimp, archive unsubscribed contacts before you compare prices. Your real total may sit in a lower tier on either tool. For every Omnisend plan, Pro included, see our Omnisend pricing guide.
Edge: split. Mailchimp Essentials has the lowest price at most sizes; Omnisend Standard costs less than Mailchimp Standard at every size we checked.
Omnisend vs Mailchimp Free Plans
Both free plans allow 250 contacts and 500 emails a month. Mailchimp adds a daily limit of 250 sends, one user seat and one audience, and its email support covers your first 30 days. If your list goes over 250 contacts, Mailchimp holds sending until you upgrade or trim the list.
The bigger gap is automation. Mailchimp's pricing page lists marketing automation flows as not included on Free, and in our free account the Welcome new contacts flow template asks for a paid plan before it can run.
Omnisend's FAQ says its Free plan includes automations, forms and segmentation, within the 500-email limit. You can upload more than 250 contacts, but each campaign goes to a segment of 250 or fewer. The Omnisend free plan also adds 500 web push notifications a month.
Edge: Omnisend. You can run a welcome series or a cart reminder for free, which Mailchimp keeps for paid plans.
Automation for an Online Store
Omnisend focuses on store automations: welcome, cart recovery and post-purchase flows that start from your shop's events. Its library offers them ready-made, filtered by channel, goal and type.
Mailchimp scales automation by plan. Essentials allows automation flows of up to four steps. Standard and Premium go much further: the pricing page says up to 200 flows, and the upgrade screen in our account says advanced flows of 200 steps. In our free account, the template gallery tags several store templates Paid, including Welcome email automation and a cart-recovery template.
Our read: for a store that wants cart and post-purchase flows from day one, Omnisend gets you there on any plan. Mailchimp Standard offers deeper flows, at a higher price than Omnisend Standard.
Edge: Omnisend. Store automations come on every plan, while Mailchimp's full flows start on Standard.
You can try Omnisend's store automations on its free plan with your own shop.
Start free on OmnisendEcommerce Features and Integrations
Omnisend lists the store platforms it connects to on its site: Shopify, Shopify Plus, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, WordPress, Wix, Shoplazza and Ecwid. Its Pro plan adds a product recommender, dynamic content and personalized sending time.
Mailchimp covers stores too. Its pricing page lists 300+ integrations on every plan, and its site menu names Shopify, WooCommerce, Square, Stripe, Wix and Squarespace among the most popular. Omnisend's pricing page counts 320+ pre-built integrations. Its email builder has Product and Product Rec blocks for adding items from your store.
Edge: even. Both connect to the main store platforms and both can add products to emails, so this round comes down to the platform you already use.
SMS, MMS and Web Push
Mailchimp sells SMS as an add-on from its Essentials plan, in 37 countries including the US, Canada, the UK, Australia and much of Europe. MMS needs Standard or higher and reaches US and Canadian numbers. A US text uses one credit and an MMS three, and unused credits expire at the end of each billing cycle.
Omnisend keeps SMS for its Pro plan, from $59 a month, with credits sold separately from $10 a month. US texts cost $0.009 to $0.007 each depending on your monthly credits, and unused credits roll over until 60 days after they were added. Web push notifications are included on every Omnisend plan.
Mailchimp's SMS credits help page and its pricing page don't list credit prices, so we can't compare the cost per text. Our advice: if SMS matters, check the credit price in your Mailchimp account before you compare it with Omnisend's published rates.
Edge: Mailchimp. SMS is available from its cheaper Essentials plan, while Omnisend needs Pro.
Beyond Email: Surveys, Websites and AI Tools
Mailchimp also covers more than email. In our account, Surveys sits under Audience with templates such as a post-purchase satisfaction survey, and the Website section now builds sites through a partnership with Wix. Its generative AI features come at no extra cost on Standard and Premium.
Omnisend keeps its extras close to the store. Its Standard plan lists two AI tools, Forms, which builds a form's design, copy and visuals from your prompt, and Chat, described as AI-powered insights from your data. Pro adds three more.
Edge: Mailchimp. Surveys, websites and a wider set of tools make it the more complete marketing suite.
Support, Onboarding and Switching from Mailchimp
Mailchimp's support depends on the plan: email support for the first 30 days on Free, 24/7 email and chat on Essentials and Standard, and phone and priority support on Premium. Standard includes one personalized onboarding session and Premium four. Essentials and Standard also come with a 14-day free trial.
Omnisend advertises 24/7 support on its pricing page, and assigns an Account Expert once you spend more than $400 a month on Standard or Pro. It doesn't offer a trial of its paid plans: the Free plan fills that role.
For stores moving from Mailchimp, Omnisend offers a free migration. Its Mailchimp migration page says setup usually takes five business days. It covers your contacts, up to four automations with three templates each, five segments, three forms or popups and one master template.
Edge: Omnisend for switching, Mailchimp for onboarding. Omnisend rebuilds part of your setup for free; Mailchimp includes onboarding sessions on Standard and Premium.
Omnisend or Mailchimp: Which Should You Choose?
-
An online store that wants automations from day one
OmnisendAutomations come on every plan, Free included, with a library of pre-built workflows, and Standard costs less than Mailchimp Standard at each list size we checked.
-
A small business on a tight budget that mainly sends newsletters
Mailchimp EssentialsAt most list sizes it's the cheapest paid plan of the three, as long as simple flows of up to four steps are enough.
-
A store that wants SMS without moving to a higher plan
MailchimpSMS is an add-on from Essentials in 37 countries. On Omnisend, plan on Pro from $59 a month plus credits.
-
A team that wants surveys, a website through Wix and email in one account
MailchimpIts wider toolkit and 300+ integrations suit businesses whose marketing goes well beyond a store.
-
A Mailchimp user with many unsubscribed contacts
OmnisendOmnisend doesn't bill unsubscribed contacts and offers a free migration, so price both with your real numbers.
Our advice: open the free plan on the tool you lean toward, connect your store, and check your real contact count. That number sets the price on both tools.
Omnisend vs Mailchimp: our verdict
As of October 2026, Omnisend is the better fit for online stores that want automation at a low price. Its free plan runs automations, its Standard plan costs less than Mailchimp Standard at every list size we checked, and it doesn't bill unsubscribed contacts. Mailchimp is the better fit for businesses that want a broad toolkit, SMS on a lower plan, or the cheapest paid plan in Essentials, at $13 a month for 500 contacts.
What we'd do. If you sell online, start on Omnisend's free plan and build a welcome and a cart flow. If your marketing goes beyond a store, Mailchimp's 14-day trial of Standard lets you test it before you pay.
Omnisend vs Mailchimp FAQ
Is Omnisend cheaper than Mailchimp?
Omnisend Standard is cheaper than Mailchimp's Standard plan at every list size we checked in October 2026, for example $81 against $100 a month at 5,000 contacts. Mailchimp's Essentials plan is cheaper than Omnisend Standard at most sizes, at $75 for 5,000 contacts, but it limits automation flows to four steps.
Mailchimp vs Omnisend for ecommerce: which is better?
Omnisend is usually the better fit for ecommerce, because store automations such as welcome and cart flows come on every plan. Its Standard plan also costs less than Mailchimp Standard at each list size we checked. Mailchimp suits stores that want SMS on a lower plan, surveys or a wider range of integrations.
Does Mailchimp's free plan include automations?
No, Mailchimp's free plan doesn't include marketing automation flows, according to its pricing page in October 2026. In our free account, the welcome flow template asked for a paid plan. Flows start on Essentials, with up to four steps, and Standard allows much larger flows.
Which is better for Shopify, Omnisend or Mailchimp?
Omnisend is a strong fit for Shopify stores that want automation on every plan, because it focuses on store automations and includes them on Free too. Mailchimp also connects to Shopify and has product blocks in its email builder, but its full automation flows start on the Standard plan.
Can I send SMS with Omnisend and Mailchimp?
Yes, both Omnisend and Mailchimp sell SMS, on different plans. Mailchimp offers SMS as an add-on from its Essentials plan in 37 countries, with MMS on Standard and up. Omnisend offers SMS only on its Pro plan, from $59 a month, with credits from $10 a month.
Does Mailchimp charge for unsubscribed contacts?
Yes, Mailchimp counts unsubscribed contacts toward your contact total, along with subscribed and non-subscribed ones, according to its help center. Archived, cleaned and deleted contacts don't count, so archiving unsubscribed contacts can lower your tier. Omnisend doesn't bill unsubscribed contacts.
Can Omnisend move my account from Mailchimp?
Yes, Omnisend offers a free migration from Mailchimp that usually takes five business days, according to its migration page. It covers your contacts, up to four automations with three templates each, five segments, three forms or popups and one master template.
Does Mailchimp have a free trial?
Yes, Mailchimp offers a 14-day free trial of its Essentials and Standard plans, according to its pricing page in October 2026. Omnisend has no trial of its paid plans; its Free plan, with no time limit, is the way to try it.
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About this comparison
Based on Omnisend's and Mailchimp's pricing pages and help centers, read on 28 October 2026, and on our own free accounts on both tools. First published 29 October 2026. Last updated 29 October 2026.
Sources checked
- Omnisend plans and prices. Omnisend's pricing page and Help Center articles Omnisend pricing plans 2026, Understand your Omnisend paid plan charges and Manage your Omnisend SMS Credits Subscription, checked 28 October 2026.
- Mailchimp plans and prices. Mailchimp's pricing page, read at each list size, and its help center pages About Mailchimp pricing plans and About SMS marketing credits, checked 28 October 2026.
- Migration. Omnisend's Mailchimp migration page, checked 28 October 2026.
- Hands-on. Our own free accounts: Mailchimp on 28 October 2026 and Omnisend in August 2026.
Update log
- 29 October 2026. First published.
Scores next to tool names are the overall ratings from our own reviews, on a 5-point scale.