In this guide
What is the cost of your actual audience?
Mailchimp and Brevo can send a small business's newsletter, but the budget must start with the contacts actually counted and the sending schedule. An introductory price without a database size or sending volume is not enough to decide. Prepare these figures before opening the calculators.
Analysis of official documentation, with no testing on a paid account.
A useful comparison for preparation
| Item | Mailchimp | Brevo |
|---|---|---|
| Hearing | Examine the statutes included in the billable total | Check the storage allowance of the chosen tier |
| Email sends | Count campaigns and sequences | Control also the daily limit of free |
| Functions | Compare Free, Essentials, Standard and Premium | Compare Free, Starter, Standard and Options |
| Migration | Keep Articles of Association and Exclusions | Check targeting after import |
Mailchimp : distinguish base and recipients
In Mailchimp, unsubscribed and non-subscribed contacts can still participate in the commercial total. Archives and meter exclusions follow other rules. Start with a breakdown of the base, rather than the total recipients of the last newsletter.
An archive must match your conservation and monitoring policy. Do not reimport excluded contacts for the sole purpose of rebuilding a "clean" list. Successful migration retains the information that makes it difficult to solicit the wrong people again.
Brevo: do not separate volume and capacity
Brevo presents offers where capacity depends on the level. Check together the monthly volume, stored contacts and automation functions. An important capacity displayed for one offer does not automatically translate to another.
For a free start, watch the busiest day. If an advertisement is to start at the same time as an entire audience, the daily limit may be greater than the theoretical monthly total. If you add SMS or sales tools, review their terms separately from the email package.
Prepare a comparable calculation
Make a sheet with your current base, the preserved status, the number of campaigns and the automatic sequences. Add an explicit growth hypothesis. Use the same objectives in both simulations, even if the units or steps are not identical.
Keep the initial purchase cost and renewal cost in two columns. Distinguish users, additional features and external services. An annual payment divided by twelve does not offer the same flexibility as a monthly subscription you can cancel; the term is part of the decision.
Verify the resumption of a campaign
- Import Fictive Base
Prepare several statutes and an explicit source. Check the fields obtained and the total displayed.
- Build a segment
Set expected recipients before creating the rule. Compare the result line by line on this small sample.
- Prepare the message
Reread the mobile display, links, sender identity and unsubscribe on volunteer internal addresses.
- Forward Work
Ask another person to prepare the next edition from the instructions, without blindly copying the old hearing.
When tool change is premature
If you don't know why a person is listed, start with the data. If the problem is a lack of useful content, start with the editorial line. Migration is justified when the pilot reveals a concrete limit of cost, route or operation, not simply because a competitor appears cheaper at its first level.
Sources and methodology
Sources consulted on 27 September 2026. Mailchimp: Billing operation ; Mailchimp : offers ; Brevo : offers and capabilities ; Methodology Logicelio