Mailchimp vs Sendy
Mailchimp is a all-in-one marketing platform while Sendy is a email marketing platform. Mailchimp has been around since 2001, giving it a 11-year head start over Sendy (founded 2012). Mailchimp starts at $13/mo versus $69 one-time for Sendy. Mailchimp offers a free plan (250 contacts, 500 emails/month), while Sendy does not. Mailchimp has the edge with A/B testing, landing pages, SMS marketing.
Quick Verdict
Mailchimp wins on price, deliverability, rating, integrations, free tier.
Best for most users: Mailchimp (small businesses).
Mailchimp
Turn emails into revenue
Mailchimp is the most widely recognized email marketing platform, used by millions of businesses worldwide. Acquired by Intuit in 2021, it offers a full suite of marketing tools but has become increasingly expensive compared to alternatives.
Sendy
Self-hosted email marketing that sends via Amazon SES at 100x lower cost
Sendy is a self-hosted email newsletter application that connects to Amazon SES to deliver emails at a fraction of the cost of traditional email marketing platforms. With a one-time $69 license and SES sending costs of roughly $1 per 10,000 emails, it is ideal for high-volume senders who want to avoid recurring subscription fees. It requires technical setup but offers unlimited subscribers, autoresponders, segmentation, and full data ownership.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Mailchimp | Sendy |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.3/5 | 4.2/5 |
| Starting Price | $13/mo | $69 |
| Free Plan | 250 contacts, 500 emails/month | No free plan |
| Founded | 2001 | 2012 |
| Email Templates | 100 | 0 |
| Integrations | 300 | 20 |
| Deliverability Rate | 96% | 95% |
| Marketing Automation | ✓ | ✓ |
| A/B Testing | ✓ | ✕ |
| Landing Pages | ✓ | ✕ |
| Segmentation | ✓ | ✓ |
| Drag & Drop Editor | ✓ | ✕ |
| SMS Marketing | ✓ | ✕ |
| Ecommerce Features | ✓ | ✕ |
| API Access | ✓ | ✓ |
| Multi-Language | ✓ | ✕ |
| Web Push Notifications | ✕ | ✕ |
| Live Chat | ✕ | ✕ |
| Advanced Analytics | ✓ | ✕ |
Mailchimp: Pros & Cons
Pros
- +Most recognized brand in email marketing
- +Excellent drag-and-drop editor
- +300+ integrations with third-party tools
- +Strong analytics and reporting
- +Good for beginners with guided setup
Cons
- −Free plan severely limited (500 contacts, 1,000 sends)
- −Premium plan is expensive ($350/mo)
- −Charges for unsubscribed contacts
- −Affiliate marketing restricted
- −Deliverability has declined in recent years
Sendy: Pros & Cons
Pros
- +Extreme cost savings — one-time $69 license with Amazon SES sending at ~$1 per 10,000 emails
- +Unlimited subscribers with no tier-based pricing that punishes list growth
- +Full data ownership and privacy since everything is self-hosted on your own server
- +Clean, focused interface without bloated features — does exactly what it promises
- +White-label multi-brand support allows managing multiple client accounts from one install
Cons
- −Requires technical skills for server setup, installation, and ongoing maintenance
- −No built-in A/B testing, landing page builder, or advanced automation workflows
- −UI feels dated and lacks modern design polish compared to SaaS competitors
- −Limited customer support — solo developer product with slow response times reported
- −No drag-and-drop email editor; requires HTML knowledge for custom templates
The Verdict
Mailchimp and Sendy are closely matched — both score within 0.1 points of each other in our overall rating. Your decision should come down to specific needs rather than overall quality. On deliverability, Mailchimp reports 96% compared to 95% for Sendy — a meaningful difference if inbox placement is critical for your campaigns.
| Criterion | Weight | Mailchimp | Sendy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | 30% | $13/mo | $69/mo |
| Deliverability | 25% | 96% | 95% |
| Rating | 25% | 4.3/5 | 4.2/5 |
| Integrations | 10% | 300 | 20 |
| Free Tier | 10% | Yes | No |
Weights determine how much each criterion counts toward the final score. See full methodology
Choose Mailchimp if…
- + You want lower starting costs ($13/mo)
- + You need a free plan to get started
- + You need SMS marketing
- + You need ecommerce integrations
Choose Sendy if…
- + You're a cost conscious email marketers with large lists
- + You're a technical users comfortable with self hosting and server management
- + Extreme cost savings — one-time $69 license with Amazon SES sending at ~$1 per 10,000 emails