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Shopify Email vs Mailchimp: cost and features compared (2026)
Last verified against official pricing pages · USD, monthly billing, excluding tax
Prices change often. Every price here was checked against the platform's official pricing page on the date shown, but plans, promos and taxes vary. Always confirm on the official site before you buy or switch. Not financial advice.
Quick answer
- Basic newsletter: Shopify Email is cheaper at 5,000, 10,000 and 25,000 subscribers; Mailchimp is cheaper at 1,000 subscribers.
- With automations: Shopify Email is cheaper at 5,000, 10,000 and 25,000 subscribers; Mailchimp is cheaper at 1,000 subscribers.
- Paid newsletter: neither platform has a verified option for this in our data.
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Cost at 1k, 5k, 10k and 25k subscribers
Basic newsletter (no automations)
| Subscribers | Shopify Email | Mailchimp | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | $39 (Basic plan + email usage) | $26.50 (Essentials) | Mailchimp by $12.50/mo |
| 5,000 | $49 (Basic plan + email usage) | $75 (Essentials) | Shopify Email by $26/mo |
| 10,000 | $69 (Basic plan + email usage) | $110 (Essentials) | Shopify Email by $41/mo |
| 25,000 | $129 (Basic plan + email usage) | $270 (Essentials) | Shopify Email by $141/mo |
With automations (welcome sequences, drips)
| Subscribers | Shopify Email | Mailchimp | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | $39 (Basic plan + email usage) | $26.50 (Essentials, limited) | Mailchimp by $12.50/mo |
| 5,000 | $49 (Basic plan + email usage) | $75 (Essentials, limited) | Shopify Email by $26/mo |
| 10,000 | $69 (Basic plan + email usage) | $110 (Essentials, limited) | Shopify Email by $41/mo |
| 25,000 | $129 (Basic plan + email usage) | $270 (Essentials, limited) | Shopify Email by $141/mo |
Paid newsletter (5% of subscribers pay $8/mo)
| Subscribers | Shopify Email | Mailchimp | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | n/a | n/a | neither |
| 5,000 | n/a | n/a | neither |
| 10,000 | n/a | n/a | neither |
| 25,000 | n/a | n/a | neither |
Switching? Shopify Email → Mailchimp cost · Mailchimp → Shopify Email cost · Best platform for your needs
Cheapest plan on each platform that covers the list size and required features. Paid totals = plan + platform cut + Stripe card fees (2.9% + $0.30 per payment, estimate) + Stripe's 0.7% Billing fee on recurring payments where confirmed (beehiiv, MailerLite, Ghost, Buttondown, Substack, AWeber and Flodesk); not added for GetResponse (not confirmed); Kit's 3.5% + $0.30 is all-in. How we model fees. "limited" = feature is capped on that plan. Run your exact numbers →
Key differences
| Shopify Email | Mailchimp | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | no free plan | free up to 250 subscribers |
| Fee on paid subscriptions | not verified (not listed on the official pricing pages) | not verified (not listed on the official pricing pages) |
| Cheapest plan with automations | Basic plan + email usage (from $39/mo) | Standard (from $20/mo) |
| Cheapest plan with own domain | Basic plan + email usage (from $39/mo) | not verified |
| Cheapest plan without platform branding | not verified | Essentials (from $13/mo) |
| Plans | Basic plan + email usage | Free, Essentials, Standard, Premium |
| Prices verified | 2026-10-20 | 2026-10-20 |
Who each is best for
Shopify Email is best for
Shopify merchants who want simple campaigns and automations inside Shopify and send under about 10,000 emails a month, where the email part costs nothing extra.
- Billed per email on top of a paid Shopify plan: 10,000 free emails a month, then $1 per 1,000 (cheaper above 300,000). Abandoned-checkout emails are free. source
- Sending to subscribers needs an active paid Shopify plan, so our totals include Basic ($39/month, $29 paid yearly). If you already run a Shopify store, only the email usage is extra. source
- Marketing automations and templates are built in and use your store data directly; SMS is charged separately. source
Mailchimp is best for
Small businesses that want an all-round email marketing tool with automation flows (Standard and up) and are fine with contact-based pricing and overage billing.
- Priced by stored contacts (the peak in each billing period); each tier includes a monthly send limit of 10× (Essentials), 12× (Standard) or 15× (Premium) your contacts. source
- Going over the contact or send limit on a paid plan adds overage charges rather than pausing sending. source
- Free plan: 250 contacts and 500 emails/month (250/day), no automation flows, Mailchimp branding stays. source
- Annual billing is only available through sales (Standard and Premium, 10,000+ contacts). On 2026-10-20 the page offered 15% off the first 12 months at 10,000+ contacts. source
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FAQ
Is Shopify Email cheaper than Mailchimp?
It depends on your list and needs. In our data (monthly billing, 1,000 / 5,000 / 10,000 / 25,000 subscribers): basic newsletter — Shopify Email is cheaper at 5,000, 10,000 and 25,000 subscribers; Mailchimp is cheaper at 1,000 subscribers. With automations — Shopify Email is cheaper at 5,000, 10,000 and 25,000 subscribers; Mailchimp is cheaper at 1,000 subscribers. Paid newsletter — neither platform has a verified option for this in our data. Prices verified 2026-10-20.
Which has the bigger free plan, Shopify Email or Mailchimp?
Shopify Email: no free plan. Mailchimp: free up to 250 subscribers. Free plans have feature limits — see the comparison table.
Do Shopify Email and Mailchimp take a cut of paid subscriptions?
Shopify Email: not verified (not listed on the official pricing pages). Mailchimp: not verified (not listed on the official pricing pages).
What do Shopify Email and Mailchimp cost at 10,000 subscribers?
On monthly billing, a basic newsletter costs $69/mo on Shopify Email Basic plan + email usage and $110/mo on Mailchimp Essentials. With automations: $69/mo (Shopify Email Basic plan + email usage) vs $110/mo (Mailchimp Essentials).
Sources
- Shopify Email pricing (checked 2026-10-20)
- Shopify Email: help.shopify.com/en/manual/promoting-marketing/create-marketing/shopify-messaging/email/pricing
- Shopify Email: help.shopify.com/en/manual/promoting-marketing/create-marketing/shopify-messaging/requirements
- Mailchimp pricing (checked 2026-10-20)
- Mailchimp: mailchimp.com/pricing/marketing/compare-plans/
- Mailchimp: mailchimp.com/help/about-additional-charges/
- Stripe pricing (card-fee estimate)
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Guides: AWeber Free plan (2026) · Mailchimp to MailerLite migration · Mailchimp to beehiiv migration · How much does Mailchimp cost
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