Sender vs. Mailchimp vs. Constant Contact
Three popular tools. Very different costs. Compare the pricing, free plans, and features that matter before you commit.
Same list size. Different monthly bill.
Standard plans・monthly billing・USD
Sender is $61/month less than Mailchimp at this tier. Plan names match, feature bundles differ.
Best for value
The lowest Standard-plan price at all six list sizes in this comparison.
Trade-off: no phone support; a smaller integration library.
Best for integrations
A broader ecosystem when your existing tools determine your choice.
Trade-off: higher prices and a smaller free-plan allowance.
Best for events & phone help
Event tools and phone support for teams that value a more hands-on setup.
Trade-off: a trial, rather than a permanent free plan.
Subscribers
How contacts are counted
Only active unique subscribers
All contacts, including unsubscribed
Subscribed, unsubscribed, and non-subscribed contacts all count toward your plan limit until you archive them. A contact who appears in two audiences counts twice.Active contacts only
Unsubscribed contacts don't count toward billing. Bounced addresses still do until you remove them. Email and SMS are separate subscriptions — a contact subscribed to either counts as active.If you exceed your limit
Sending pauses until you upgrade or renew
Extra charge added
Auto-upgraded to next tier + overage fees may apply
Monthly send limit
12x contacts
12x contacts
10x contacts
1,000
$15
$45
$55
2,500
$27
$60
$75
5,000
$39
$100
$110
10,000
$69
$135
$160
25,000
$149
$310
$310
50,000
$259
$450
$460
Annual discount
30% (first-time users, first year only)
None
15%
Standard plans, monthly billing, USD. Mailchimp has no 1,000-contact tier — 1,000 contacts falls into its 1,500 tier ($45); its 500-contact tier is $20. Prices pulled in September 2026.
Features
Contact limit
2,500
250
No free plan
Campaigns
Drag & drop editor
✓
✓
✗
Email template library
Unlimited
Limited
✗
AI features
MCP server for AI assistants
✗
✗
Landing pages
✓ (10 pages)
✓
✗
Signup forms & popups
✓
✓
✗
Segmentation
Saved segments
✓ Unlimited
Basic only
✗
Behavioural segmentation
✓
✗
✗
Multi-condition segments
✓
✗
✗
Automation
Automation workflows
✓
✗
✗
Custom automations
✓
✗
✗
Abandoned cart trigger
✓
✗
✗
Auto resend to non-openers
✗
✗ (manual only)
✗
Testing & Reporting
Email campaign A/B testing
✗
-
✗
Email automation A/B testing
✓
✗
✗
Comparative reporting
✗
✗
✗
Channels & Account
SMS campaigns
✗
✗
✗
Transactional emails
✓
✗
✗
24/7 live chat support
✓
✗ (email, 30 days)
✗
Shopify & WooCommerce integration
✓
✓
✗
Phone support
✗
✗
✗
Dedicated IP
✗
✗
✗
Webhooks / API access
API only
✓
✗
Team seats
1 user
1 user
✗
✓ included · ✗ not available · Add-on = costs extra · Tier names in tab tooltip
Features
Price at 5,000
$39
$100
$110
Campaigns
Drag & drop editor
Unlimited
✓ Full library
✓
Email template library
Unlimited
Limited
✓
AI features
✓ AI assistant (MCP)
✓
✓ AI copy
Landing pages
✓ Unlimited
✓
✓
Signup forms & popups
✓
✓
✓
Segmentation
Saved segments
✓ Unlimited
✓ Advanced
✓ (10 segments)
Behavioural segmentation
✓
✓
✓
Multi-condition segments
✓
✓
Limited
Automation
Automation workflows
✓
✓ (200 journey points)
✓ (3 templates)
Custom automations
✓
✓
✗
Abandoned cart trigger
✓
✓
✗
Auto resend to non-openers
✓
✓
✓
Testing & Reporting
Email campaign A/B testing
✓ + multivariate
✓ (A/B only)
Subject line only
Email automation A/B testing
✓
✗
✗
Comparative reporting
✗
✗
✗
Channels & Account
SMS campaigns
✓ (credits)
Add-on
Add-on (US only)
Transactional emails
✓
Add-on
✗
24/7 live chat support
✓
✓
✗ (Mon–Fri chat)
Shopify & WooCommerce integration
✓
✓
✓
Phone support
✗
✗
✓
Dedicated IP
✗
✗
✗
Webhooks / API access
✓
✓
✓
Team seats
3 users
5 users
3 users
✓ included · ✗ not available · Add-on = costs extra · Tier names in tab tooltip
Features
Price at 5,000
$79
$350
$200
Campaigns
Drag & drop editor
✓
✓
✓
Email template library
Unlimited
✓ Full library
✓
AI features
✓ AI assistant (MCP)
✓
✓ AI copy
Landing pages
✓ Unlimited
✓
✓
Signup forms & popups
✓
✓
✓
Segmentation
Saved segments
✓ Unlimited
✓ Advanced
✓ Unlimited
Behavioural segmentation
✓
✓
✓
Multi-condition segments
✓
✓
✓
Automation
Automation workflows
✓
✓ (200 flows)
✓ Unlimited
Custom automations
✓
✓
✓
Abandoned cart trigger
✓
✓
✓
Auto resend to non-openers
✓
✓
✓
Testing & Reporting
Email campaign A/B testing
✓
✓ + multivariate
Subject line only
Email automation A/B testing
✓
✗
✗
Comparative reporting
✓
✓
✗
Channels & Account
SMS campaigns
✓ + free credits
Add-on
✓ (500/mo, US)
Transactional emails
✓
Add-on
✗
24/7 live chat support
✓ Priority
✓ Priority
✗ (Mon–Fri chat)
Shopify & WooCommerce integration
✓
✓
✓
Phone support
✗
✓
✓
Dedicated IP
✓ (20k+ plans)
Add-on (Transactional)
✗
Webhooks / API access
✓
✓
✓
Team seats
10 users
Unlimited
Unlimited
✓ included · ✗ not available · Add-on = costs extra · Tier names in tab tooltip
Find the line that sounds like you.
Your stack depends on a specific integration
Mailchimp 300+ native integrations
You'd rather phone someone than open a chat window
Constant Contact Phone support
You run in-person events and sell tickets
Constant Contact Event tools
You're starting a list from scratch and don't want to pay yet
Sender Up to 2,500 subscribers free
You need welcome flows and abandoned cart on a small budget
Sender No upgrade needed
You want email and SMS in one bill
Sender SMS credits on Standard, free monthly credits on Pro
Of these three, Sender costs the least at every list size we checked, and it's the only one that includes automation workflows, segmentation, and automation split tests on its free plan. Campaign A/B testing starts on Standard for all three.
Mailchimp and Constant Contact both put those behind their Standard tiers, which is where most of the price gap comes from.
That doesn't make it the right pick for everyone. If your setup depends on a specific ecommerce integration, Mailchimp's library is deeper. If you want to phone someone when something breaks, Constant Contact is the only one of the three that offers it.
For most small teams sending regular campaigns, though, Sender's free plan is enough to test properly — 2,500 contacts is a real list, not a trial. Build a campaign, run an automation, and see whether the editor suits you before moving anything across.
Yes, all three export your list as a CSV, including custom fields and tags. On 20,000+ subscribers with an annual plan, Sender's migration is done for you: contacts, segments, automations, templates, and authentication.
Its free plan includes what the others sell as upgrades, and it bills active subscribers only, while Mailchimp charges for unsubscribed contacts until you archive them. The trade-off: no phone support, no built-in CRM, fewer integrations.
Deliverability depends mostly on your domain authentication and list hygiene, not the platform. Third-party tests put Mailchimp at 78% inbox placement and Constant Contact at 92% (Dec 2025); Sender's stated rate is 98%.
Sender pauses sending until you upgrade or renew; Mailchimp keeps sending and adds overage charges; Constant Contact auto-upgrades you to the next tier and bills $0.002 per email over your send allowance.
No — all prices shown are pre-tax monthly USD. VAT or sales tax is added at checkout based on your country, so check the total there before committing to annual billing.
Under 2,500 contacts: Sender's free plan, if you can live with its branding. Most small teams: a Standard plan on any of the three. Go Pro only for a specific reason — phone support and multivariate testing (Mailchimp Premium, $350/mo), custom automations plus 500 SMS (Constant Contact Premium), or priority support, free SMS credits and a dedicated IP on 20k+ plans (Sender Professional).