GetResponse vs. Mailchimp: Which Platform is Best for Email Marketing?

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Do you want to step up your email marketing game but can’t decide which email marketing tool to use?


Both Mailchimp and GetResponse are among the top online marketing services, but which one is best for your company?


In this post, we will be comparing these two email marketing platforms and choosing the better tool based on their features and pricing.


Let’s get started!

1. What is GetResponse?

GetResponse logo

GetResponse logo

GetResponse is a well-known email marketing platform that caters to medium and large online businesses.


With GetResponse’s email marketing and smart automation tools, you can reach out to more people and grow your mailing list.


GetResponse claims that their email marketing platform is a powerful yet simple and easy-to-use tool.


However, their users scored their user-friendliness a 3.9/5 and left reviews saying their platform is confusing and outdated.


Overall, GetResponse has a 4.1/5 rating and boasts a variety of useful features.


Will this, however, be enough to beat Mailchimp?

2. What is Mailchimp?

Mailchimp logo

Mailchimp logo

Mailchimp is a popular marketing tool created for businesses that use email to communicate with their target consumers.


With Mailchimp you can:

  • Manage subscribers
  • Customize email templates
  • Nurture and automate your marketing campaigns

Mailchimp currently has a 4.5/5 Capterra rating from their users, which automatically puts them above GetResponse.


However, will their user reviews be enough to keep them in the lead?


Let’s have a look at some of the pros and cons according to these two platforms’ users.

3. GetResponse vs. Mailchimp: Pros and cons

Source: Freepik.com

Source: Freepik.com

3.1. GetResponse’s pros and cons

Pros

  • Conversion funnel and landing page feature
  • Live chat feature that makes communication easier
  • Spambot feature for websites to avoid fake signups
  • Intelligent list automation

Cons

  • Emails end up in clients’ spam
  • Automations are only available to higher-tier plans subscribers
  • Complex drag-and-drop editor
  • Limited split testing
  • Webinar features are limited

3.2. Mailchimp’s pros and cons

Pros

  • Thorough reporting software
  • Forever-free plan
  • Great template editor
  • Offers loads of other useful non-marketing related features

Cons

  • User interface can be difficult to use
  • High-cost subscription plans
  • Pre-designed templates are extremely basic — forces you to create your own
  • No email scheduling on the Free plan

Thanks to Mailchimp's loyal users, it’s still in the top spot with one less con in the bag.

4. Email marketing tools

Source: Freepik.com

Source: Freepik.com

By the end of 2025, the global email marketing market is anticipated to be worth $22.16 billion.


As a result, email marketing is still a critical component of any digital marketing strategy.


Therefore, you’ll need the right marketing tools to create an effective email marketing campaign.

4.1. GetResponse’s email marketing tools

Examples of GetResponse’s email marketing tools

Examples of GetResponse’s email marketing tools

GetResponse has become more of an ‘all-in-one’ marketing solution over the past few years.


With GetResponse, you now have access to a wide range of email-related tools.


The complete email marketing package includes:

1. Email creator

It’s an easy-to-use email builder that helps you create attractive, responsive emails with a simple drag-and-drop builder.

2. Autoresponder

Conversion-oriented email sequences that are automated. Automated greetings, follow-ups, education, and nurturing.

3. Email analytics

Key metrics and automated reports that help you keep tabs on your performance.

4. Transactional emails

Send order confirmations, receipts, notifications, and other necessary information to your customers.

Example of GetResponse’s transactional emails

Example of GetResponse’s transactional emails

5. List management

With the email list builder, you can organize and classify your contacts for targeted emails to be sent.


GetResponse offers most of the major features you’d expect to see on an email marketing platform.


However, has it become a jack of all trades, but master of none?

4.2. Mailchimp’s email marketing tools

Examples of Mailchimp’s email marketing tools

Examples of Mailchimp’s email marketing tools

Mailchimp is one of the most well-known email marketing services.


Their key strength is email marketing, and their platform includes numerous valuable marketing features that assist small businesses with their digital marketing.


Some marketing features include:

1. Email Builder

Mailchimp offers an email editor for creating personalized and professional emails.


With their drag-and-drop tool, you can easily design emails from scratch or use pre-designed email templates.


Mailchimp also has a built-in HTML editor.

2. Performance analytics

Mailchimp has tools for tracking performance, improving deliverability, and providing actionable information to help you build your business.


Mailchimp keeps track of the following performance data:

  • Open rate
  • Click-through rate
  • Number of successfully delivered emails
  • Top links clicked within your email
  • Subscribers with the most opens
  • Social media performance (tweets, Facebook likes, etc.)
  • Geographical regions with the most opens
Example of Mailchimp’s analytics report

Example of Mailchimp’s analytics report

3. Customer relationship management

Allows you to better manage your expanding list of contacts by capturing data from your interactions with them and then storing it in a single database.

4. Automated email responders

Mailchimp lets you create a drip campaign that sends a series of automated messages to customers.

5. A/B split testing

You can use Mailchimp’s A/B testing tool to improve your emails and subject lines.


Multivariate testing is available with Mailchimp’s Premium subscription.


You can’t, however, test a series of emails in your automation workflows.


We’ve decided that in this section both GetResponse and Mailchimp have exceptional email marketing features, however, both also have a lot to improve as seen in the pros and cons section - it’s a draw.

5. Marketing automation

Automated marketing refers to the use of technology to streamline and improve marketing efforts.


It uses one automation platform to manage all aspects of every campaign, including email and social media marketing.

5.1. GetResponse’s marketing automation

GetResponse’s automated marketing possibilities

GetResponse’s automated marketing possibilities

Autoresponders are emails sent to your subscribers at predetermined intervals.


GetResponse’s autoresponder functionality is a major selling point; if you’re on a paid plan, you’ll have access to some of the most comprehensive autoresponder features available.


Some of these features are:

  • Tags and scores — Build custom segments based on your customers’ behavior
  • Automated workflows — Save time with predesigned workflow templates
  • Abandoned cart emails — Recover lost sales with automated emails
  • Website visitor tracking — Send relevant communication based on page visits
  • Product recommendations — Sell more with automated product recommendations

While GetResponse’s automation tools are a little more advanced than other email marketing platforms, you only have access to a limited amount of workflows unless you upgrade to the Max plan.

5.2. Mailchimp’s marketing automation

Mailchimp’s automated marketing possibilities

Mailchimp’s automated marketing possibilities

Mailchimp offers a variety of automation features:

  • Customer journeys
  • Send time optimizations
  • Transactional emails
  • Behavior-based automation
  • Date-based automation

The Customer Journey is a new feature that allows you to set up drip campaigns, which send clients a series of automatic emails at certain times.


These campaigns are generally triggered by certain customer activities and may include branches that target specific client groups.


Your automated workflow is represented visually in the Customer Journey Map:

Example of Mailchimp’s Customer Journey Map

Example of Mailchimp’s Customer Journey Map

With Mailchimp’s sending time optimization, you can eliminate the guesswork and send emails at an optimal time each and every time.


Using Mailchimp’s API, you may send purchase and account activity-related trigger messages.


You can send out emails to clients on important days like birthdays or anniversaries, or trigger relevant messages based on their engagement.


However, autoresponders aren’t available in the Freemium or Essentials subscription plans.


With systeme.io’s Freemium plan, you get access to autoresponders.


Without a doubt, GetResponse wins this round.

6. Landing page

A landing page is a standalone web page designed exclusively for a marketing or advertising campaign in digital marketing.


It’s one of the most effective options to boost conversion rates and sales.

6.1. GetResponse’s landing pages

Examples of GetResponse’s landing page tools

Examples of GetResponse’s landing page tools

You can create sophisticated web pages with GetResponse’s landing page builder.


Landing pages are an important part of any sales funnel.


They make it possible for online businesses to:

  • Establish a web presence
  • Build and grow a mailing list
  • Make their products known

Here are some landing page tools GetResponse offers:

  • Facebook pixel — One-click integration to run powerful retargeting campaigns on Facebook
  • Signup forms — Generate new leads and capture email addresses
  • Popups — Increase conversions with customizable popup forms
  • Countdown timer — Share time-sensitive deals and special offers
  • Ecommerce tools — Promote products and increase revenue with shoppable pages

However, there are a few issues with the landing page builder that should be addressed.


The user interface, for starters, isn't very user-friendly.


Secondly, after the addition of more mobile responsive templates, loading times have become slower.

6.2. Mailchimp’s landing pages

Examples of Mailchimp’s landing page templates

Examples of Mailchimp’s landing page templates

With Mailchimp’s landing page builder, you can create unlimited landing pages for free.


Other landing page features are:

  • Basic templates — Mailchimp gives you 2 landing page templates to choose from: A sign-up or product page
  • Automated contact tags — Set up your landing page to automatically tag contacts after a sign-up
  • Mobile landing page — Create landing pages that are mobile compatible
  • Facebook ads — Drive traffic to your landing pages by setting up Facebook ads

Even though Mailchimp offers pre-designed templates, users have complained that there aren’t enough templates, limited design capabilities, and some features aren’t mobile compatible.


GetResponse is a full marketing platform with features that Mailchimp can’t compete with. No surprises here.

7. Website Builder

The success of a company is heavily influenced by its online presence.


Websites are critical tools for companies to establish credibility and gain their customers’ trust.

7.1. GetResponse’s website builder

GetResponse’s website builder

GetResponse’s website builder

A website builder has the most recent addition to GetResponse’s feature set.


This allows you to build a website and link it to a domain you own.


The following components are available with the website builder:

  • AI-powered creator — Get a custom website template created based on your needs
  • Pre-designed templates — Find designer, mobile-friendly website templates you can customize to your liking
  • Drag-and-drop tool — Build and customize your websites with a powerful, no-code creator
  • Forms and popups — Increase conversions of your website with built-in forms and popups
  • Domain management — Publish websites under your domain or buy a new one via GetResponse

Because the website builder is such a new development for GetResponse, it’s still in beta and will hopefully be completely functional soon.

7.2. Mailchimp’s website builder

Mailchimp’s website builder

Mailchimp’s website builder

With a few clicks you can develop, edit, and promote a great website that is search engine ready all by yourself.


No prior design or coding knowledge is required to use the website builder.


All you need is a domain name and a concept to get started on your website.


Mailchimp makes it simple to create a website by providing the following features:

  • Creative assistant — Helps you create and resize designs to better market your brand
  • Pre-designed color palettes and themes — Find color schemes and themes to help you customize your website just as you like it
  • Pre-built layouts — Lets you quickly change the layout or structure of your site
  • Built-in stock photo library — Choose from over 2 million free, professional-quality photos
  • Drag-and-drop editor — Creator tool that simplifies the building process

The website building and hosting features are probably the most impressive addition to Mailchimp’s platform, making it appealing to a newcomer.


This will be a draw, as the website builder feature of both Mailchimp and GetResponse is relatively new and has some room for improvement.

8. Extra features

Both platforms offer a variety of extra features.


If any listed below are essential to your business’ succes, you might be swayed to choose one platform over the other.

8.1. GetResponse’s extra features

GetResponse has an unusually big feature set.


Let’s take a look at some of their other features.

8.1.1. Webinars

Examples of GetResponse’s webinar capabilities

Examples of GetResponse’s webinar capabilities

With GetResponse’s webinar software you can produce a professional-looking webinar.


Higher conversions and a better connection to your business are ensured by easy access, engaging features, and built-in email marketing.


With the webinar feature, you can:

  • Host unlimited webinars
  • Get room for up to 1,000 live attendees
  • Share the stage with 2 other presenters
  • Store up to 20 hours of webinar recordings

GetResponse’s webinar software might sound simple and comprehensive but if you need access to more webinar functionality you need to be prepared to pay.


Your access to vital features is very dependent on the plan you choose.

8.1.2. Conversion funnels

Examples of GetResponse’s funnel capabilities

Examples of GetResponse’s funnel capabilities

Conversion funnels are another new feature that has recently been added to the GetResponse platform.


With GetResponse’s Autofunnel feature, you can:

  • Build landing pages
  • Automate emails
  • Sell products
  • Recover abandoned orders
  • Convert customers

You can choose from over 30 professionally designed and conversion-optimized scenarios.


The conversion funnel feature is accessible on all paid-for plans, but you should be aware that the Basic plan’s version only allows you to create one sales funnel.

8.1.3. Live chat

Example of GetResponse’s live chat feature

Example of GetResponse’s live chat feature

In an effort to be an all-in-one marketing solution, GetResponse has included a chat option that adds live chat functionality to your website.


This feature allows you to communicate with your audience directly from your web page.


With live chat you can:

  • Provide real-time, instant support
  • Create segments based on chat history
  • Chat from landing pages and emails
  • Be there when they need you most

Allowing your visitors to communicate with you directly creates deeper connections, and helps them convert faster.

8.1.4. Paid ads creator

Examples of GetResponse’s paid ads feature

Examples of GetResponse’s paid ads feature

GetResponse’s built-in paid ads creator allows you to find new customers and build your email list.


With targeted paid ad campaigns you can:

  • Engage with existing contacts
  • Find and attract new audiences
  • Bring back landing page visitors
  • Sell more products

You can use Facebook, Instagram, and Google Ads to build your mailing list and retarget subscribers.

8.2. Mailchimp’s extra features

Mailchimp not only delivers excellent email marketing for a small business but also contains a number of other essential online marketing tools.


Let’s have a quick look.

8.2.1. Content Optimizer

Example of Mailchimp’s content optimizer capabilities

Example of Mailchimp’s Content Optimizer capabilities

Mailchimp’s Content Optimizer helps you enhance your email content by comparing your campaigns to email best practices and providing recommendations for improving your copy, images, and layout.


We can totally see how this is a cool new addition, however, it’s still in its early phase and currently only supports English email campaigns.

8.2.2. Digital ads and social media marketing

You can reach the right users for your online business with Mailchimp’s digital advertising software from Facebook, Instagram, and the Google Ads Network.


With this feature you can:

  • Find new people by finding those with similar interests as your contacts across advertising platforms
  • Reach your contacts by targeting them with ads they’re sure to act on
  • Bring back site visitors by retargeting them while they’re browsing on social channels or the web

8.2.3. Postcards

You can manually create and upload your business postcards and Mailchimp will print, stamp, and deliver them to individuals all over the world.


The following tools are offered to simplify the process:

  • Audience finder
  • Address finder

Send postcards on any budget:

Mailchimp’s postcard feature prices

Mailchimp’s postcard feature prices

Campaigns are printed and sent from the U.S., so postage costs and delivery times vary by country.

8.2.4. Creative Assistant

Mailchimp’s creative assistant feature

Mailchimp’s Creative Assistant feature

Mailchimp’s Creative Assistant is a fairly new addition to its feature set.


With Creative Assistant, you can:

  • Generate designs — Choose from designs that were created specifically for your business
  • Edit with ease — Edit the design to your taste, if needed
  • Resize and publish like a pro — Choose between a variety of sizing and publishing options

The winner of this round is GetResponse.


It might have fewer features than what you’d get with a Mailchimp account, but as you will see in the pricing section, with GetResponse you get access to more features for a less brutal cost.

9. GetResponse’s pricing

GetResponse’s primary pricing options

GetResponse has 6 different pricing options:

  • Free plan — For $0/month, you can use a trimmed-down version of GetResponse indefinitely as long as your list is under 500 contacts
  • Basic — For $19 /month, you have access to all the Free option’s features and more
  • Plus — For $59 /month, you have access to all the Basic option’s features and more
  • Professional — For $119 /month, you have access to all the Plus option’s features and more
  • Max — Custom pricing
  • Max2 — Custom pricing
GetResponse’s Max pricing options

GetResponse’s Max pricing options

Your costs rise as you add more subscribers to your list.


On the Basic, Plus, and Professional plans, you can anticipate paying $539, $599, or $699 per month with a list of up to 100,000 subscribers, respectively.


The Max and Max2 are higher-level enterprise plans with more advanced features.


The exact cost of these programs is determined by GetResponse personnel based on the needs and size of the list.


If you pay for 1 or 2 years of service in advance, you will receive 18% and 30% payment discounts, respectively.


If you’re just starting out, GetResponse’s forever-free plan includes:

  • Email marketing
  • Website builder + 5GB bandwidth
  • Connect a domain
  • List for up to 500 contacts
  • 1 landing page
  • Signup and contact forms

However, with the Free plan, your newsletters have GetResponse watermarks and you won’t be able to use automation responders.


The core features common to all paid-for GetResponse plans are as follows:

  • The ability to import and host a subscriber list
  • A range of newsletter templates
  • Autoresponder features
  • Sales funnels
  • Facebook and Google Ads management tools
  • A website builder tool

Overall, it seems, because of the costly plans available, GetResponse appears to be targeting larger businesses and neglecting the start-up market.

10. Mailchimp’s pricing

Mailchimp’s marketing platform pricing options

Mailchimp’s marketing platform pricing options

Mailchimp offers a variety of pricing options depending on which platform you need.


The following are the Mailchimp pricing options for the marketing platform:

  • The Free plan for up to 2,000 contacts and 10,000 emails per month
  • The Essentials plan starts at $11 per month for 500 contacts and 500,000 emails
  • The Standard plan adds advanced automation, starting at $17 per month
  • Premium gives you all-areas access from $299/month

The main features available in the Free plan are:

  • Marketing CRM
  • Creative assistant
  • Website builder
  • Mailchimp domain
  • Forms and landing pages

Mailchimp’s pricing, believe it or not, is one of the most expensive pricing for online marketing platforms.


This makes it all the more unattractive to companies, especially new, small businesses.


Here GetResponse wins for fair, transparent pricing with the most features.


For a true and affordable all-in-one solution that really cares about your business, big or small consider systeme.io.

11. Systeme.io: The best alternative

systeme.io logo

systeme.io logo

Systeme.io is an all-in-one online marketing tool that makes launching, growing, and scaling your business a breeze.


Let’s see how systeme.io can help you make a success of your email marketing!

11.1. Systeme.io’s features

The following are some of the email marketing features offered by systeme.io:

  • Manage your contacts and lists
  • Send unlimited emails
  • Use automated marketing
  • Add fields with our drag-and-drop editor
  • Create your own email marketing campaigns
  • Keep track of your emails with in-depth statistics
systeme.io’s email dashboard

systeme.io’s email dashboard

With systeme.io, you receive access to more complex tools, which aren’t confined to email marketing features.


Here are some of our main features:

systeme.io’s main features

systeme.io’s main features

If you think our features are impressive, wait until you see our pricing plans!

11.2. Systeme.io’s pricing

systeme.io’s pricing plans

systeme.io’s pricing plans

Our goal is to assist you in successfully growing your business without costing you a lot of money.


You can try out systeme.io's features for free with our Free plan, which comes with no strings attached.


When you sign up for our Free plan, you'll get access to the following features:

  • Send as many emails as you like to up to 2,000 contacts
  • 3 sales funnels to be created
  • With unlimited posts, you can create and manage your own blog
  • A/B split testing

When you need more, upgrade to one of our affordable premium plans for a :

  • Startup — $27/month
  • Webinar — $47/month
  • Unlimited — $97/month

As you can see, our plans' price is both flexible and inexpensive (an annual subscription comes with a 30% discount and free web migration).


Thousands of satisfied and profitable customers have joined our family — sign up for free and find out why.

12. Conclusion

In the comparison between Mailchimp and GetResponse, we established that Mailchimp didn’t stand a chance.


Unlike Mailchimp, GetResponse offers a ton more features for your money.


However, for the best all-in-one solution that combines both cost efficiency with comprehensive features — we recommend systeme.io.


The only tool you’ll ever need to get your online business started — sign up to systeme.io today!

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