DDitchly

Last checked October 15, 2026

Best Free Alternatives to Mailchimp (2026)

Mailchimp sends newsletters and automations, and the price climbs with your list. The free plan is real and narrow. Essentials and Standard are the plans small lists outgrow.

MarketersSmall teamsStartupsPrice unverified

What Mailchimp costs

Mailchimp prices paid plans from the contact count and the feature tier. A single dollar figure would be misleading, so none is locked in this check.

Look up the live quote on mailchimp.com/pricing for your contact count. Third-party trackers disagree by a few dollars depending on taxes and currency.

Mailchimp website·Pricing source

Ranked by Drop-in score

How we rank

#1 is the highest-scoring alternative that is not sponsored. A featured listing, when one is sold, is labeled and sits after #1.

  1. 96
    #1Open source

    Mautic

    Open-source marketing automation, closer to Mailchimp than a newsletter script.

    Last checked October 15, 2026 · GPL-3.0

    WebSelf-host
    Cost and detailsMigration guideWebsite
  2. 69
    #2Open source

    Listmonk

    A small AGPL newsletter manager.

    Last checked October 15, 2026 · AGPL-3.0

    WebSelf-host
    Cost and detailsWebsite
  3. 63
    #3Open source

    Keila

    A smaller open-source newsletter tool.

    Last checked October 15, 2026 · AGPL-3.0

    WebSelf-host
    Cost and detailsWebsite

Feature by feature

Full is the whole job. Partial is a real version with a gap. Missing means it does not do this. Not checked counts as zero in the score.

FeatureMautic#1 · 96Listmonk#2 · 69Keila#3 · 63
Email campaignsWeight 10FullFullFull
Subscriber listsWeight 8FullFullFull
TemplatesWeight 6FullPartialPartial
Automation and drip journeysWeight 8FullMissingMissing
Signup formsWeight 6FullPartialPartial
Opens, clicks, and campaign statsWeight 7FullFullPartial
SegmentsWeight 6FullPartialPartial
Self-hostingWeight 7FullFullFull
Managed deliverabilityWeight 5PartialYou bring SMTP. Mautic does not include Mailchimp's sending reputation.PartialDepends entirely on the SMTP provider you connect.Partial

Real cost

Mautic

Free tier
The software is free. Mail sending is a separate bill.
Hosted plan
No hosted price recorded.
Self-hosting
Hard. PHP, a database, workers, and cron. Heavier than Listmonk, and the upgrades need attention. Approximate server cost: $15–40/mo plus your email provider. Unverified estimate.

Listmonk

Free tier
Free to self-host. There is no official hosted plan.
Hosted plan
No hosted price recorded.
Self-hosting
Easy. One binary or container and Postgres. You still need an SMTP service. Approximate server cost: $4–10/mo plus SMTP. Unverified estimate.

Keila

Free tier
Free to self-host.
Hosted plan
No hosted price recorded.
Self-hosting
Moderate. Docker is documented. SMTP is still your problem. Approximate server cost: $5–12/mo plus SMTP. Unverified estimate.

Top pair

Migrate from Mailchimp to Mautic

Export the audience as CSV, import contacts into Mautic, and plan to rebuild every automation. You also need an SMTP provider. Mautic does not send mail on its own.

Read the migration guide

Questions