Mailchimp vs. Klaviyo — Which Email Platform Is the Best for Business?

We know every moment is precious, so we’ve saved you the effort and scoured hundreds of reviews about these 2 platforms.

Here are some Mailchimp pros and cons, according to real users:

Now, let’s compare those to the best (and worst) that Klaviyo has to offer, according to their customers:

If none of the cons is a dealbreaker for you, we can move forward to the main topic of this post — comparing their features.

Now, let’s take a deep dive into Mailchimp's and Klaviyo’s main features to see if they have what you’re looking for in your future email marketing software.

Below, we’ll cover:

Independently of what email marketing platform you choose, it must (at minimum) allow you to build, design, and launch fully-functional email marketing campaigns for your contact list.

Klaviyo and Mailchimp can do all of this and more for you, with a few differences.

Also, Mailchimp recently launched 2 new tools to help their users create better content for their emails:

If email design is your top priority, you might want to check out those tools.

Now, let’s see what features Klaviyo has for you.

As an email marketing solution, Klaviyo gives you all the necessary tools to craft effective email campaigns that’ll reach and convert your contacts, but it lacks some of the advanced features Mailchimp offers.

Winner: Mailchimp — for offering more advanced design tools and for being simpler to use

Mailchimp: 1 - Klaviyo: 0

To launch a successful email marketing campaign, you’ll need a platform that offers advanced segmentation tools — that way you can ensure that you’ll always send content your contacts want to click on.

Both Klaviyo and Mailchimp offer good segmentation tools to divide your contacts based on their unique attributes.

Many users don’t know how to use these features, so we’ll give you an example:

Let’s say that you’re offering a coaching service.

However, Mailchimp has 3 crucial limitations:

Now, let’s see how Klaviyo stands against Mailchimp.

Klaviyo’s customer profiles feature allows you to see all the past interactions your customers had with your store — which helps you make possible predictions of future engagement.

Also, Klaviyo’s segmentation tools are far more advanced than Mailchimp’s, as they let you create 7 different types of segments to optimize your email marketing campaigns:

When importing contacts, just like Mailchimp, you only have the option to do it through CSV files.

Winner: Klaviyo — for offering more segmentation opportunities to personalize your content and give value to your leads

Mailchimp: 1 - Klaviyo: 1

To level up your ecommerce store, you’ll need your future email marketing platform to have advanced email automation capabilities to create automated workflows that will run parts of your business for you.

Both Mailchimp and Klaviyo have great email marketing automation tools, but the former is far more limited.

You’ll also get a series of premade workflows that you can choose based on your marketing goals:

However, your automated workflow is limited to “and” conditions — which only allows you to set up a single path for your customer journey and forces buyers to meet all requirements to move to the next stage.

You’ll also need to be on a paid plan to get most of these features or you’ll be stuck with single-trigger welcome emails and order notifications.

Let’s see how Klaviyo does against Mailchimp.

And more!

Klaviyo gives you access to all these features in their Free plan, so you don’t need to upgrade to try them out.

Winner: Kaviyo — for offering more automation tools and giving access to them from the start

Mailchimp 1 - Klaviyo 2

To have a successful online business you’ll need a to keep track of your customers’ data, that way you can:

Next in this Klaviyo vs.

Mailchimp comparison, we’ll show you how these platforms can help you collect and manage data from your campaigns and contacts.

All the data is presented in your campaign page in a way that’s easier for beginners to understand, but, once again, most of these features are only available if you have a Premium account.

Moving on to Klaviyo.

With these tools, you’ll be able to:

To collect even more data, Klaviyo integrates seamlessly with various well-known digital tools and ecommerce platforms, like Shopify or BigCommerce.

Winner: Klaviyo — for offering more actionable metrics to help you predict customer behavior and improve your marketing campaigns

Mailchimp 1 - Klaviyo 3

Despite offering email marketing services for ecommerce companies, Klaviyo and Mailchimp have some extra features that are worth mentioning.

For example:

Now, let’s see which of these platforms will be lighter on your budget.

Both Mailchimp and Klaviyo have a similar pricing method — pay as your audience grows, so you can start with a free account and, after reaching a certain number of contacts, you’ll be upgraded to a paid account.

However, there are some important differences you should consider before making your pick.

Mailchimp has 4 pricing plans:

You’ll get different prices and features depending on the plan you choose.

To receive phone support, you’ll need to be on the Premium plan — other plans only offer email support.

If you’re in the Premium plan and you surpass the limit of 200,000 contacts, you can get in touch with Mailchimp’s sales team to build a personalized plan for you.

You can also choose the Pay As You Go plan, where you buy credits and use them every time you send emails, instead of paying a monthly fee, and you get access to the features of the Standard plan.

Klaviyo’s pricing is more straightforward than Mailchimp’s.

You can start for free for up to 250 emails and 50 SMSes and get access to all its features, plus email and chat support.

Once you pass 500 contacts, your total emails and SMS sends will increase accordingly.

Winner: Tie — Mailchimp has lower prices and offers another payment option, but its advanced features are in its most expensive plan, while Klaviyo gives you access to its entire arsenal from the get-go, but at a higher price

Mailchimp 2 - Klaviyo 4

You should choose Mailchimp if:

You should choose Klaviyo if:

If these 2 platforms don’t have the features and price you’re looking for, then we can present you with a powerful free alternative that has everything you need to set up and launch automated email campaigns.

Our other tools will let you:

You might think that a platform that offers so much would surely be really expensive, but unlike Mailchimp and Klaviyo — systeme.io has a fixed price for all its pricing plans.

Speaking of pricing plans. . .

We offer 4 pricing plans:

If you have any questions our world-class, 24/7 email support will answer them in approximately 2 hours.

You don’t need to pay to get started, you can sign up for our Free plan, set up your entire online business, and upgrade after you get results!

Here we have some frequently asked questions (and their answers) about both platforms.

During this Klaviyo vs. Mailchimp comparison, we’ve analyzed their features and pricing to determine which platform better suits your marketing needs and budget.

Mailchimp is more accessible and simpler to get started with, while Klaviyo is more sophisticated and data-driven.

However, both platforms have great tools you can take advantage of if you can afford them.

Systeme.io is a powerful alternative that’s just as effective and no way near as expensive — making it a more sustainable option with more room to grow thanks to all of our additional features.

You can get started with our Free plan, get a taste of our features, and then upgrade once you’re ready!

We’ll be waiting for you.