# Klaviyo vs Mailchimp — ecommerce engine or email app

> Klaviyo for a Shopify store that treats email as a revenue channel: native order sync, revenue attribution, and SMS plus push credits in the free plan. Mailchimp for email-first small businesses that want the simplest start and the familiar name. The gap is automation on the free plans: Klaviyo's free tier runs flows, Mailchimp's free tier runs none, and that single row decides most comparisons at the bottom end.

Human page: https://testedactually.com/marketing-automation/klaviyo-vs-mailchimp/
Mirror: https://testedactually.com/marketing-automation/klaviyo-vs-mailchimp.md
Updated: 2026-09-30

## Klaviyo vs Mailchimp: the short version

**Klaviyo vs Mailchimp**

|  | Klaviyo | Mailchimp |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Best for | ecommerce stores on Shopify that want predictive analytics and revenue attribution behind every campaign | small businesses that want the familiar name for email-first campaigns and accept plan-gated depth |
| Free tier | Free plan, 250 profiles, 500 emails/mo, $5 mobile messages | Permanently free under 250 contacts, 500 sends/mo, no automation flows |
| Paid from | $20/mo | $20/mo |
| Ecommerce native | Yes | Native Shopify sync (contacts, orders, behaviour), generalist build, predictive segments on Standard and Premium only |
| Built-in SMS | Yes | Paid add-on only, application required, select countries |
| Built-in push | Yes | No |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| AI crawler policy | open | open |

## Don't use it if

- **klaviyo**: your list is small and pure email, the calculator's contact-based pricing buys depth an email-only sender will not use.
- **mailchimp**: you need automation on a free plan or advanced segmentation without paying, the free tier has no automation flows and predictive segments gate at Standard.

## The actual difference

Klaviyo is an ecommerce engine that happens to send email: its data model
is orders, products, and predicted lifetime value, and every campaign
reports against revenue. Mailchimp is an email app that grew marketing
features: audiences, campaigns, and forms first, with ecommerce sync
attached. A Shopify store feeding on flows and attribution feels the
difference in week one. A newsletter-and-promotions sender never will,
which is why both keep winning different buyers.

## The free-plan row that decides it

Both brands advertise free plans, and the fine print splits them. Klaviyo's
free tier includes flows, the automation backbone of ecommerce email.
Mailchimp's free tier explicitly excludes automation flows, and its support
window is 30 days of email. If you are choosing on the free plan, you are
really choosing whether automation is part of your definition of email
marketing. The category's answer is yes, which is the argument Mailchimp is
losing inside its own comparison table.

## The pricing-model trap

Both bill by contact count, so the honest comparison is at your real list
size next year, not today's. Mailchimp's send allowance is a multiple of
contacts (12x on Standard), so growth changes two numbers at once, and its
promotional framing (15% off, intro pricing) resets against the list price.
Klaviyo's calculator bundles module add-ons (Composer, mobile messaging)
that are easy to leave unpriced until the invoice arrives. Get both
calculators to your actual contact bands and compare rendered totals, not
the starting prices on the marketing page.

## FAQ

### Is Klaviyo better than Mailchimp for Shopify?

For a Shopify store running lifecycle flows, yes. Klaviyo is the self-described preferred Shopify email platform partner, syncing customer, product, and order data in real time with revenue attribution per campaign. Mailchimp syncs Shopify contacts and orders natively too, but its predictive segments and revenue analytics gate at Standard or Premium. Klaviyo's depth is built for the storefront; Mailchimp's is borrowed from a generalist email app.

### Which is cheaper, Klaviyo or Mailchimp?

At the entry band they tie. Klaviyo's calculator rendered $20/mo at 500 profiles and Mailchimp Standard starts at $20/mo for 500 contacts. They diverge with list growth, because both price by contact count and the bands escalate (Mailchimp Standard reaches $800/mo at 100,000 contacts, with a $17/mo promo for year one). Mailchimp's own homepage advertises savings of up to 42 percent versus Klaviyo, which is the vendor telling you where it bleeds.

### Do both have a free plan?

Yes. Klaviyo's free plan covers 250 profiles, 500 emails/month, and $5 of mobile messages. Mailchimp's covers 250 contacts and 500 sends with one seat and one audience. The difference is inside the plan. Klaviyo's free tier runs core flows, Mailchimp's free tier includes no automation flows at all.

### Which has built-in SMS?

Klaviyo, natively. SMS is a unified channel in Klaviyo's profile model with a per-send rate card, and even the free plan carries $5 of mobile messages. Mailchimp sells SMS only as an application-and-approval add-on on paid plans, with MMS limited to Standard and Premium sending to US and Canada. For an SMS-led ecommerce motion, this row is the comparison.


## Sources

- https://www.klaviyo.com/pricing — checked 2026-09-30, confidence: documented
- https://www.klaviyo.com/ecommerce-integrations/shopify — checked 2026-09-30, confidence: documented
- https://www.klaviyo.com/ — checked 2026-09-30, confidence: documented
- https://www.klaviyo.com/partners — checked 2026-09-30, confidence: documented
- https://mailchimp.com/pricing/ — checked 2026-09-30, confidence: documented
- https://mailchimp.com/pricing/ — checked 2026-09-30, confidence: unconfirmed
- https://mailchimp.com/solutions/ecommerce-marketing-tools/ — checked 2026-09-30, confidence: documented
- https://mailchimp.com/pricing/marketing/compare-plans/ — checked 2026-09-30, confidence: documented
- https://mailchimp.com/partners/ — checked 2026-09-30, confidence: documented