beehiiv vs Mailchimp: Which Email Platform Costs Less and Does More?

If you are comparing beehiiv vs Mailchimp, here is the thing most comparisons leave out: Mailchimp charges you for unsubscribed contacts. beehiiv does not. That single difference changes the math on everything else.

I use beehiiv for my newsletter because the free plan gives me 2,500 subscribers with unlimited sends and no branding restrictions. If you want to see what it looks like: beehiiv.

Affiliate note: if you use my beehiiv link, I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. The price is the same either way.

What this comparison covers:

• How each platform bills you.
• Pricing side by side.
• Where Mailchimp wins.
• Where beehiiv wins.
• Who should pick which.

Quick answer:

• How each platform bills you.
• Pricing side by side.
• Where Mailchimp wins.
• Where beehiiv wins.
• Who should pick which.

How each platform bills you

This matters more than features. Mailchimp counts all contacts, including people who unsubscribed, people who bounced, and duplicates across audiences. You pay for every one of them unless you manually clean your list. beehiiv only counts confirmed subscribers. Bounced and unsubscribed contacts do not count toward your tier.

That means a Mailchimp list of 5,000 contacts might include 1,500 people who will never open another email. You are paying for them anyway. On beehiiv, those contacts fall off your count automatically.

Pricing side by side

Feature	beehiiv Free	beehiiv Scale ($39/mo)	Mailchimp Free	Mailchimp Essentials ($45/mo at 2,500)
Subscribers/Contacts	2,500	Unlimited	250	2,500
Email sends	Unlimited	Unlimited	500/mo	25,000/mo
Automations	Limited	Full	None	Single-step only
A/B testing	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Landing pages	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Branding removal	Yes (on paid)	Yes	No	No (Essentials still shows Mailchimp)
Newsletter monetization	Yes (ads, boosts)	Yes	No	No
Referral program	No	Yes	No	No
Counts unsubs in billing	No	No	Yes	Yes

beehiiv’s free plan gives you 10 times the contacts and unlimited sends compared to Mailchimp Free. And at the paid tier, beehiiv’s Scale plan at $39/mo gives you unlimited subscribers with full automations. On Mailchimp, 2,500 contacts with single-step automations costs $45/mo, and multi-step automations require the Standard plan at $60/mo.

Where Mailchimp wins

Mailchimp has a deeper integration ecosystem. If you need to connect your email platform to Shopify, WooCommerce, QuickBooks, Salesforce, or hundreds of other tools, Mailchimp probably has a native integration. beehiiv’s integration list is growing but still much smaller.

Mailchimp also has more mature e-commerce features. Product recommendations, purchase tracking, abandoned cart emails, and transactional email are all built in. If you sell physical products and need your email platform to talk to your store, Mailchimp handles that better.

And if you are a team, Mailchimp supports multiple users on lower tiers. beehiiv’s free and lower plans are limited to one user.

Where beehiiv wins

beehiiv wins on everything that matters for newsletter creators and content-first businesses.

Built-in monetization. beehiiv has an ad network where you can earn money from your newsletter by running sponsored placements. It also has Boosts, where other newsletters pay you for recommending them to your subscribers. Mailchimp has no equivalent to either feature. Your newsletter is a cost center on Mailchimp. On beehiiv, it can be a revenue stream from day one.

The referral program on Scale lets your subscribers earn rewards for sharing your newsletter. This is the same growth mechanic that Morning Brew and The Hustle used to scale. Mailchimp does not offer anything like this.

Unlimited sends on every plan, including free. Mailchimp caps you at 500 sends per month on the free plan. If you email 250 subscribers twice, you have hit your limit. beehiiv lets you send as much as you want.

And the billing is honest. You only pay for real, confirmed subscribers. No hidden costs from contacts who will never read another email.

Who should pick which

Pick beehiiv if:

• You are building a newsletter as a content business.
• You want to monetize your list with ads and boosts, not just sell products.
• You want a referral system to grow your subscriber count organically.
• You do not want to pay for unsubscribed or bounced contacts.
• You need unlimited sends without watching a meter.

Pick Mailchimp if:

• You run an e-commerce store and need deep integration with Shopify or WooCommerce.
• You need transactional emails for order confirmations and shipping updates.
• You have a team that needs multi-user access on a lower tier.
• Your tech stack already revolves around Mailchimp integrations and switching costs are high.

The bottom line

For newsletter creators comparing beehiiv vs Mailchimp, the choice is straightforward. Mailchimp was built for e-commerce businesses that send email. beehiiv was built for creators whose email IS the business. If your newsletter is the product, not a marketing channel for something else, beehiiv is the better platform at a lower price.

Start free and see what 2,500 subscribers with unlimited sends actually feels like: Try beehiiv free.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Mailchimp charge for unsubscribed contacts?

Yes. Mailchimp counts all contacts toward your billing tier, including unsubscribed, bounced, and non-subscribed contacts. You must manually archive or delete them to reduce your bill. beehiiv only counts confirmed subscribers.

Is beehiiv better than Mailchimp for newsletters?

For newsletter creators, yes. beehiiv includes built-in monetization through ads and boosts, a referral program, and unlimited sends. Mailchimp is better for e-commerce businesses that need deep store integrations.

Can I make money with beehiiv?

Yes. beehiiv has a built-in ad network where you earn from sponsored placements, and a Boost network where other newsletters pay you for recommendations.

Related Comparisons

• beehiiv vs Kit (ConvertKit) — another newsletter platform comparison.
• beehiiv vs Substack
• beehiiv Review
• beehiiv Newsletter Monetization

About the author: Chris Myers builds AI-powered business systems and tests every tool in his own solopreneur stack before recommending it. He writes at Piscion Global.