Mailchimp vs ConvertKit: Best Email Marketing Tool?

Two email marketing giants compared. Mailchimp wins on templates and ease of use. ConvertKit dominates in creator-focused automation.

Quick Answer

Choose Mailchimp if you need:

Beautiful email templates, A/B testing, and an easy learning curve. Best for small businesses and e-commerce stores.

Choose ConvertKit if you need:

Powerful creator-focused automations, subscriber scoring, and audience segmentation. Best for bloggers, podcasters, and course creators.

Feature Comparison

Feature	Mailchimp	ConvertKit
Overall Rating	8.6	9.0
Free Plan (Contacts)	500 contactsWinner	1,000 subscribers (limited)
Email Templates	100+ beautiful templatesWinner	Plain text focused
Automation Power	Basic customer journeys	Visual automation builderWinner
Creator Features	Limited	Tags, segments, landing pagesWinner
Landing Pages	Basic builder included	Beautiful, conversion-optimizedWinner
E-commerce Integrations	Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerceWinner	Shopify, Gumroad, Teachable
Pricing at 5K Contacts	~$39/mo	~$49/mo

Scores by Category

M
Mailchimp — 8.6/10

Ease of Use 9/10

Templates 10/10

E-commerce 9/10

Automation 7/10

Creator Features 6/10

C
ConvertKit — 9.0/10

Creator Tools 10/10

Automation 10/10

Audience Growth 9/10

Deliverability 9/10

E-commerce 6/10

Our Verdict

ConvertKit wins for creators. If you're a blogger, YouTuber, podcaster, or course creator, ConvertKit's tag-based segmentation and visual automations are purpose-built for your needs. The deliverability rates are consistently excellent.

Mailchimp wins for small businesses. The drag-and-drop editor and 100+ templates make creating professional emails effortless. If you need e-commerce features like abandoned cart recovery and product recommendations, Mailchimp is the clear choice.

Read Full Mailchimp Review

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which has better deliverability?

Both have good deliverability, but ConvertKit edges ahead for sender reputation management and content optimization. Mailchimp's strict compliance can sometimes flag legitimate emails. Both score 95%+ inbox placement when best practices are followed.

Can I switch from Mailchimp to ConvertKit easily?

Yes. ConvertKit offers a migration service for paid accounts. You can export your subscriber list from Mailchimp as a CSV and import to ConvertKit. However, you'll need to rebuild automations manually as they don't transfer directly.

Which is better for e-commerce abandoned cart emails?

Mailchimp has deeper native e-commerce integrations and better abandoned cart automation templates. ConvertKit works with Shopify via native integration but lacks the pre-built e-commerce automation library of Mailchimp.