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E-Commerce · head to head

Mailchimp vs Sendy

Mailchimp logo

Mailchimp

E-Commerce

Turn emails into revenue

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Sendy logo

Sendy

Email Marketing

Self-hosted newsletter app bought once for $69 that sends through your own Amazon SES account

From
$69/one-time
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Mailchimp has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Mailchimp the free plan allows 250 contacts and 500 sends a month, with a 250 daily cap; Sendy free updates run only to the next major version, so the one-time purchase is really one purchase per major release and the long-term cost is not zero.
  • They diverge on capability: Mailchimp covers Email campaigns, Sendy covers One-time licence.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Mailchimp and Sendy actually diverge.

Attributes where Mailchimp and Sendy differ
AttributeMailchimpSendy
Starting priceFree$69/one-time
Pricing modelUnknownOne-time purchase
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb, Linux
CategoryE-CommerceEmail Marketing
Founded2001Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Mailchimp

  • Email campaigns
  • Marketing automation
  • Landing pages
  • Forms & popups
  • Audience management
  • Content studio
  • Analytics
  • Social media

Only in Sendy

  • One-time licence
  • Amazon SES delivery
  • Multiple brands
  • Autoresponders
  • Segmentation
  • Bounce and complaint handling
  • Reporting
  • Client access

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Mailchimp

  • Email newslettersnot Sendy
  • E-commerce marketingnot Sendy
  • Lead generationnot Sendy
  • Customer engagementnot Sendy
  • Marketing automationnot Sendy

Sendy

  • A publisher with a large list sending frequently, where a hosted platform bills by subscriber count month after monthnot Mailchimp
  • An agency managing newsletters for several clients who each get their own brand and login under one licencenot Mailchimp
  • A business that must keep subscriber data on its own infrastructure for privacy or contractual reasonsnot Mailchimp
  • A developer wiring signups from a custom application into a mailing list without paying platform API feesnot Mailchimp

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Mailchimp

  • The free plan allows 250 contacts and 500 sends a month, with a 250 daily cap
  • Price is driven by contact count, so the list growing raises the bill regardless of how much you send
  • Send allowances are a multiple of contacts, 10x on Essentials and 12x on Standard, so a large list with heavy sending forces a tier change
  • Essentials allows 3 seats and Standard 5; unlimited seats need Premium at $350 a month
  • The headline $13 and $20 prices are for 500 contacts, not a flat rate

Sendy

  • Free updates run only to the next major version, so the one-time purchase is really one purchase per major release and the long-term cost is not zero.
  • Deliverability becomes entirely your problem: SES gives you a raw sending pipe and no warm-up guidance, reputation dashboards or deliverability consultants when a campaign starts landing in spam.
  • Amazon SES requires production access approval and will suspend accounts on high bounce or complaint rates, which can take a list offline mid-campaign with little warning.
  • The template editor and design tooling are basic next to Mailchimp or Klaviyo, so anything visually ambitious means hand-written HTML email.
  • You own the server: PHP upgrades, database backups and patching are yours, and an unmaintained Sendy install holding a subscriber list is a data breach waiting to happen.

Pricing, plan by plan

Mailchimp

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 250 contacts
    • 500 sends per month
    • Basic email campaigns
  • Essentials$13/month
    • 500+ contacts
    • Email campaigns
    • Basic automation
  • Standard$20/month
    • Advanced automation
    • Segmentation
    • Landing pages

Sendy

$69/one-time
  • Sendy licence$69/one-time
    • One-time purchase, no subscription
    • Free updates only up to the next major version
    • Unlimited lists, subscribers and campaigns
  • AI Assistant bundle$39/one-time
    • Optional add-on, listed at a discount from $49
    • AI writing assistance inside the campaign editor
  • Installation service$79/one-time
    • Optional one-off setup by the vendor
    • For buyers who do not want to configure hosting and SES themselves

Which should you pick?

Choose Mailchimp if

  • You need email campaigns.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want marketing automation.
Mailchimp review

Choose Sendy if

  • You need one-time licence.
  • You work on Web, Linux.
  • You also want amazon ses delivery.
Sendy review

Questions people ask

Is Mailchimp or Sendy better?
Neither clearly leads. Mailchimp starts at Free and Sendy at $69/one-time, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Mailchimp or Sendy?
Mailchimp has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Mailchimp and $69/one-time for Sendy.
Does Mailchimp or Sendy run on more platforms?
Mailchimp runs on Web, iOS, Android. Sendy runs on Web, Linux.
Can I use Mailchimp for free?
Yes. Mailchimp has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Sendy starts at $69/one-time.
What is Mailchimp best used for?
Mailchimp is most often used for email newsletters, e-commerce marketing, lead generation, customer engagement. Of those, email newsletters and e-commerce marketing are not what Sendy is typically brought in for.
What can Mailchimp do that Sendy cannot?
Mailchimp covers Email campaigns, Marketing automation, Landing pages, Forms & popups. Sendy covers One-time licence, Amazon SES delivery, Multiple brands, Autoresponders.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Mailchimp: Does Mailchimp offer a free plan?

Yes, Mailchimp's free plan supports up to 250 contacts and 500 sends per month with a 250-per-day cap.

Source
Sendy: What does it actually cost to send?

The licence is $69 once. Delivery is Amazon SES at roughly $1 per 10,000 emails, plus your own hosting, so a 50,000-contact weekly newsletter costs a few dollars a month to send.

Mailchimp: What email features does Mailchimp include?

Mailchimp provides email campaign builder, automation sequences, segmentation, contact management, and A/B testing for email marketing.

Source
Sendy: Are updates free forever?

No. Updates are free up to the next major version, for example within 7.x. Moving from 7.x to 8.x is a paid upgrade.

Mailchimp: Can Mailchimp integrate with e-commerce platforms?

Yes, Mailchimp integrates with Shopify, WooCommerce, Squarespace, and other e-commerce platforms for customer sync and abandoned cart automation.

Source
Sendy: Do I need to know how to set up a server?

Standard PHP and MySQL hosting is enough and the vendor compares it to installing WordPress, but the SES side needs AWS configuration. An $79 installation service is offered if you would rather not.

Sendy: What happens if Amazon suspends my SES account?

Your sending stops until you resolve it with AWS. There is no alternative delivery route built in, and this is the single biggest operational risk of the model.

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