Best Mailchimp alternatives and automations with IFTTT

If you are thinking of expanding your business to new heights, you'll have to consider the best way to reach new customers and keep existing ones engaged. A classic and proven strategy to do just this is with email marketing.

Email marketing is a powerful tool for businesses, helping you find new customers and drive sales. But unless you want to manually send out thousands of emails, you'll need an email marketing software to do it for you.

Mailchimp is a household name and popular choice for many; however, it isn’t the only option out there. While it offers a robust set of tools, its free plan is limited, and costs can add up as your list grows. That’s why many businesses are exploring alternative platforms that offer more flexibility, better pricing, or deeper integrations.

In this guide, we’ll explore the best Mailchimp alternatives available today. You’ll learn what makes each platform stand out, from automation and analytics to ease of use and pricing. We’ll also look at how you can supercharge these tools with IFTTT, our powerful automation platform that connects over 1000 of your favorite apps and helps you save time by automating repetitive tasks.

Whether you’re just starting your email marketing journey or looking to switch to a more efficient system, this guide will help you find the right solution.

What is Mailchimp? Key features overview

Mailchimp is an email marketing platform that helps businesses automate their marketing campaigns. It provides a wide range of tools, including email marketing, landing pages, social media ads, and Google remarketing ads.

Since its founding in 2001, Mailchimp has evolved from a simple email service into a comprehensive marketing solution. It allows businesses to design and send newsletters, promotional emails, and automated campaigns from one intuitive dashboard.

Mailchimp includes several key features to enhance marketing strategies:

• Audience segmentation for creating targeted, personalized campaigns.
• A/B testing to compare versions of emails and optimize performance.
• Pre-built templates for quick, professional email design.
• Analytics and reporting to track engagement, conversions, and ROI.

If this sounds like the package you need, then by all means, choose Mailchimp. You’ll be joining thousands of other businesses automating their email campaigns with IFTTT and Mailchimp for smarter marketing.

For other cases, Mailchimp isn’t without its drawbacks. Its free plan offers only limited monthly sends and subscriber counts. As your list grows, pricing increases quickly, and advanced features such as custom automations and comparative reporting are locked behind paid plans. Additionally, some users find the interface overwhelming and the learning curve steep for more advanced automations.

For businesses seeking more flexibility, affordability, or greater ease of use, exploring Mailchimp alternatives may be the better move.

Is Mailchimp free?

Mailchimp does offer a free plan, but it comes with limitations that can restrict growth. The free tier is designed for beginners who are just starting to build an audience, but it caps the number of contacts and emails you can send per month. As your list grows or your automation needs expand, you’ll need to upgrade to a paid plan.

The Mailchimp free plan includes:

• - Up to 500 contacts
• - 1,000 monthly email sends
• - Basic email templates and reporting
• - Limited automation and audience segmentation

While the free plan is useful for testing the waters, it’s not ideal for scaling. Key features like advanced automation, A/B testing, and comparative reporting are only available on paid tiers. Some of the tools discussed below will be a better fit for those looking to scale up or searching for lower long-term costs.

Top Mailchimp alternatives: Overview and comparison

The world of email marketing is vast. There are many options beyond Mailchimp. Key alternatives offer varied features and pricing.

From powerful integrations to unique tools, these platforms cater to different needs. They can suit both small and large businesses. Choose wisely to enhance your email campaigns.

Considering different platforms can be beneficial. Each offers distinct advantages over Mailchimp. Explore to find the best fit for your goals.

1. Constant Contact

Pricing: "Lite" starts at $12/month for up to 500 contacts. Standard starts at $35/month, Premium begins at $80/month.

Constant Contact is a very strong contender in the world of email marketing. It shines with excellent customer support and event-marketing capabilities.

Tailored for small businesses, it helps drive engagement exactly how you want it. Features include easy-to-use templates and reporting, robust customer support, and event-marketing tools.

With simple template designs and an easy-to-use interface, Constant Contact is a reliable choice.

2. HubSpot

Pricing: Free plan offered. The Starter tier for Marketing Hub begins at $15/month per user for basic features.

HubSpot is a complete marketing and CRM platform designed to grow with your business. It blends email marketing, automation, and customer-relationship management into one powerful solution.

Ideal for teams that want seamless coordination between marketing and sales, HubSpot offers deep data insights and customizable workflows.

Key features include a fully integrated CRM, advanced analytics tools, and more professional template options. HubSpot is perfect for medium to larger businesses looking to centralize their marketing efforts and gain a full view of customer interactions.

3. Brevo

Pricing: Free plan available; paid plans start at $9/month or $18/month for larger send volumes.

Brevo offers a versatile marketing suite. Beyond email, it supports SMS and chat, providing full multi-channel capabilities in one platform.

It’s a budget-friendly option for businesses seeking a balance of power and affordability. Advanced segmentation, automation workflows, and transactional messaging make it an appealing all-in-one solution.

Brevo is a good choice for teams that want to manage multiple communication channels efficiently while keeping costs low.

4. Zoho Mail

Pricing: Free for up to 5 users (5 GB per user) in select regions. Paid plans start at $1/user/month for Mail Lite (5 GB storage) and around $4/user/month for Mail Premium.

Zoho Mail is a clean, ad-free business email platform with productivity integrations and professional features. It’s especially suited for businesses that want secure, custom-domain email without distraction.

The interface is streamlined and user-friendly, making it simple to set up business email accounts, manage domains, share calendars and contacts, and collaborate. Zoho Mail supports key features like POS/IMAP support, email recall, folder sharing, and integrated tasks and notes.

5. GetResponse

Pricing: Entry plan starts at $19/month for up to 1,000 subscribers

GetResponse delivers powerful automation and advanced marketing tools that appeal to growing businesses. It stands out with features like webinar hosting, sales funnels, and strong e-commerce integrations.

This platform supports a range of digital marketing needs beyond email, helping businesses expand their online presence and reach wider audiences.

GetResponse is perfect for those who want to combine email, automation, and lead-generation tools under one roof.

6. Beehiiv

Pricing: Free plan available for up to ~2,500 subscribers; paid plans start at approximately $39/month.

Beehiiv is a newsletter-growth platform designed especially for creators and publishers, offering robust tools for building, growing, and monetizing email audiences. The platform supports unlimited email sends (on eligible plans), multilingual subscription monetization features, and powerful segmentation and analytics.

Beehiiv is an excellent choice for creators and smaller teams looking to launch a newsletter quickly, scale their audience, and keep costs predictable as they grow.

How to choose the right email marketing solution

While HubSpot might be the best choice for a certain business, Brevo might work better for another. Although all of these email tools function on the same key principles, their unique strengths and weaknesses make selecting the right one paramount.

Start by identifying your key needs and potential growth areas. This helps align features with your strategy. Consider factors such as budget, ease of use, and integration capabilities, and assess whether the platform supports your business's changing requirements over time.

Here at IFTTT, we love Constant Contact and HubSpot for their consistent performance and modern approach to marketing. Both pair effortlessly with IFTTT, helping you save time and stay organized. With that being said, you really can't go wrong with any of the top picks highlighted above.

How to build your own marketing automation

Once you’ve chosen your email marketing platform, the next step is to make it work for you as efficiently as possible. Here's where IFTTT comes in. IFTTT allows you to connect your favorite tools and automate workflows between them, helping you save precious time and stay consistent with your marketing efforts.

Whether you use Mailchimp, Constant Contact, HubSpot, or something else, IFTTT can help you trigger automated actions based on real-time events. For example, you can:

• - Add new leads to your email list automatically when they fill out a Google Form or submit a Typeform survey.
• - Send yourself a Slack or email notification every time a new subscriber joins your list.
• - Sync CRM contacts from HubSpot or Google Contacts directly to your chosen email platform.
• - Post new campaigns to social media automatically after an email is sent.
• - Log campaign results in Google Sheets to track performance over time.

These automations keep your marketing pipeline moving without too much manual labor. Plus, integrating with IFTTT gives you the flexibility to customize your marketing campaign to even greater levels.

Getting started is easy and requires no programming knowledge:

1. Visit IFTTT.com and create a free account.
2. Search for your email platform (like HubSpot or Constant Contact) in the services directory.
3. Browse pre-built Applets or create your own custom automation by selecting a trigger (“If This”) and an action (“Then That”).
4. Connect your accounts and give IFTTT the necessary permissions. We never share or sell your data with any third party, ever.

If you are looking for a more in-depth guide on everything you need to know about building an Applet, check out our article here.

Boosting your email marketing with the right tools

Choosing the right email marketing platform and automation tools can transform your marketing outcomes. The right tools offer personalized and efficient communication with your audience.

Integrating these platforms with IFTTT can take your marketing game to the next level. We hope this guide has helped you equip yourself with the best tools to watch your campaigns excel. And remember, no matter which tool you choose, IFTTT can help you squeeze every last bit of performance out of your campaign. Just click the button below to get started.