Choosing the right email marketing platform is a crucial decision for any business owner. MailPoet and Mailchimp are two popular email marketing platforms, but they have key differences that entrepreneurs must weigh carefully.
In this comprehensive Mailpoet vs Mailchimp comparison, we will evaluate MailPoet and Mailchimp across several criteria to help you select the best platform for your needs.
We will look at market position, ease of use, design customization, features and functionality, website performance, customer support, pricing, and reviews/reputation so you can confidently pick the best email marketing solution to fuel your success.
1. Understanding the Basics
MailPoet was founded in 2011 by Kim Gjerstad. It quickly became a popular open-source WordPress plugin for sending newsletters. MailPoet claims to have over 1 million active installs worldwide.
Mailchimp got its start earlier in 2001 and was founded by Ben Chestnut and Mark Armstrong. It has become one of the most widely-used email marketing platforms globally, with over 15 million users.
In terms of market share, Mailchimp is significantly larger than MailPoet. Mailchimp owns about 50% of the email marketing industry, while MailPoet has less than 1%.
However, MailPoet has a very active user community on Facebook, with over 7,300 members in their Users Group.
Mailchimp also has an engaged following on Facebook, with over 400,000 likes.
So in summary, Mailchimp has been around longer and has a much larger market presence, but MailPoet is rapidly growing in popularity among WordPress users. Both have helpful Facebook communities for users.
2. Features and Functionality
Automation
MailPoet
MailPoet allows you to create automated email workflows with its Visual Editor. You can set up welcome emails, segmentation, RSS campaigns, and automatic follow-ups based on user actions. For example, you can send automatic emails when someone subscribes, makes a purchase, or abandons their cart.
The Visual Editor makes it easy to build your automation by dragging and dropping elements. You can create if/then conditional logic to send emails based on user behaviors. MailPoet also offers A/B testing right within campaigns to optimize performance.
Overall, MailPoet provides a straightforward way to create automated sequences without needing coding skills. The workflows are visually oriented for beginners but have powerful functionality for advanced users.
Mailchimp
Mailchimp has robust automation features with its Campaign Builder. You can set up complex workflows with multiple branches using drag-and-drop or code. For instance, you can create sequences like welcome campaigns, weekly digests, abandoned cart reminders, and more.
With Mailchimp, you have greater flexibility to customize triggers, conditions, wait steps, and email contents within your workflows. You can integrate automation with your online store, website, and other apps using Zapier or the Mailchimp API.
The platform makes it easy to A/B test different elements like subject lines, send times, content, and layouts. You can segment contacts based on user attributes and behavior to target campaigns.
Overall, Mailchimp provides extensive options for customizing multi-step automation with more advanced options compared to MailPoet. The learning curve may be steeper for beginners.
Winner: Mailchimp
Mailchimp is the winner when it comes to automation capabilities. It provides more advanced options for customization and supports complex multi-path workflows. The ability to tightly integrate with other apps also gives Mailchimp an edge. While MailPoet is easier for beginners, MailChimp offers the flexibility needed for sophisticated email campaigns at scale. Its breadth of automation features makes it our top pick.
Email Templates
MailPoet
MailPoet offers hundreds of professionally designed email templates that you can customize for your brand. The templates are organized by category, like Welcome Emails, Promotions, Newsletters, and more.
When you select a template, you can easily edit all the content and images right within MailPoet. You can modify colors, fonts, and layouts to match your branding. MailPoet uses a WYSIWYG editor for dragging, dropping, and resizing elements.
The template editor makes it simple to create responsive emails that look great on any device. You can also build templates from scratch using a blank canvas. Overall, MailPoet provides beautiful templates that are easy to customize without coding knowledge.
Mailchimp
Mailchimp gives you access to hundreds of mobile-optimized email templates to choose from. You can browse by types like Campaigns, Ecommerce, and Newsletters.
When you pick a template, you can edit the content in place and make design tweaks like colors, fonts, and images. Mailchimp uses a drag-and-drop builder to rearrange layouts.
For more customization, you can edit the underlying HTML and CSS code. Mailchimp also offers a code editor for building new templates from scratch. This gives advanced users more flexibility.
The template options focus on visually engaging designs for retail/ecommerce businesses. You have lots of templates suited for promotions and product launches.
Winner: Tie
Both MailPoet and Mailchimp provide ample professionally designed email templates to choose from across a wide variety of categories. They make it easy to customize the content and style of templates to match your brand.
For basic editing, MailPoet may have a slight edge with its simplicity. But Mailchimp gives more control for technical users to modify code. Ultimately, they both offer great options for templates, so this category is a tie.
Segmentation
MailPoet
MailPoet lets you segment your subscribers based on categories like location, interests, purchase history, email activity, and more. You can create unlimited segments and target emails to specific groups.
For instance, you could send one promo email to subscribers who opened your last newsletter, and a different email to those who didn’t open it. This helps increase relevancy.
MailPoet has basic segmentation logic for filtering your list. You can target groups based on subscriber fields, email activity, or combine multiple conditions. Overall, it provides a simple way to divide your audience without complex configurations.
Mailchimp
Mailchimp offers extensive options for segmenting your email list with filters and groups. You can target based on profile attributes, behaviors like clicks/opens, purchase activity, survey responses, and other data points.
Advanced users can build complex segments with “if this, then that” logic and combine multiple criteria to hyper-target campaigns. You can dynamically update segments as subscriber data changes.
Mailchimp provides greater flexibility to slice and dice your audience. It’s easy to create highly customized segments to deliver personalized content that resonates.
Winner: Mailchimp
Mailchimp is the winner for segmentation capabilities. MailPoet has basic options for dividing your list into groups, but Mailchimp allows for more advanced targeting configurations. With Mailchimp, you can get extremely granular with crafting segments based on detailed subscriber attributes and actions. This helps drive more relevant, higher-converting email campaigns.
Analytics
MailPoet
MailPoet provides basic email analytics to help you track campaign performance. You can view opens, clicks, unsubscribes, bounce rates, and top links for each campaign.
The platform generates easy-to-read charts and graphs for at-a-glance insights. You can segment data by campaign type and date range to compare results.
MailPoet also integrates with Google Analytics to track additional metrics like page views, goal conversions, revenue, and more.
While the reporting covers key email metrics, advanced users may want more customization options. But overall, MailPoet analytics offer a straightforward way to monitor your campaigns.
Mailchimp
Mailchimp delivers in-depth analytics using over 70 reports on opens, clicks, conversions, ROI, list growth, and more. You can filter data by date ranges, campaigns, segments, and other parameters.
The platform provides clear charts and visualizations for understanding your email program. Features like A/B testing and multi-variant campaigns help further optimize based on insights.
Mailchimp integrates with Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, and other tools to collect data. You can customize dashboards with key metrics to fit your business goals.
For advanced users, the breadth and depth of reporting in Mailchimp provides excellent visibility into the impact of your email efforts.
Winner: Mailchimp
When it comes to analytics, Mailchimp is the winner. MailPoet offers a basic email reporting dashboard. But Mailchimp provides significantly richer data and customization for optimizing your email marketing performance. With 70+ reports, deep integrations, and custom dashboards, Mailchimp is a clear leader in analytics.
Unique Features
MailPoet
One standout capability MailPoet has is sending WordPress newsletters. The platform is designed specifically for WordPress sites to send post notifications, WooCommerce emails, and regular newsletters.
This deep integration with WordPress makes it easy to manage all your email marketing directly in your WordPress dashboard. You don’t need a separate account on another platform.
MailPoet also provides tools for building landing pages and forms to capture emails. These help expand your marketing without additional costs.
Overall, the WordPress-centric nature of MailPoet and its bundled tools for lead capture is useful for users fully immersed in the WordPress ecosystem.
Mailchimp
Mailchimp offers several unique features like automation with e-commerce apps, Facebook and Instagram ad management, and more.
The platform has built-in CRM tools for storing contact details when users purchase or sign up. You can track customer data to personalize marketing.
Mailchimp also provides team accounts and advanced permission controls to collaborate with others on email campaigns and content.
The breadth of capabilities beyond just email gives Mailchimp an edge for integrated marketing. And the CRM component helps strengthen customer relationships.
Winner: Mailchimp
For unique features, Mailchimp emerges as the winner. While MailPoet is tailored specifically for WordPress users’ needs, Mailchimp offers a wider array of capabilities for multi-channel marketing and CRM. Its e-commerce automation, ad management, and collaboration features give Mailchimp the advantage here.
3. Ease of Use
MailPoet
MailPoet provides an intuitive drag-and-drop editor for designing email campaigns. The interface is clean and organized into three main tabs – Design, Content, and Settings.
For beginners, MailPoet is very easy to start using right away. You don’t need any coding skills. Adding content blocks, customizing templates, and sending campaigns can be picked up quickly.
The editor layout and workflow for building emails make the process straightforward. Options are simplified to only the necessary settings for simplicity.
The learning curve is minimal for those without email marketing experience. MailPoet’s visual approach and simplified options lower barriers for new users.
Mailchimp
Mailchimp offers a polished drag-and-drop builder and editor for crafting email campaigns. The design tab provides quick access to templates, content blocks, and customization tools.
For beginners, it may take slightly longer to get oriented and build your first campaign compared to MailPoet. There are more options and settings to navigate.
The interface can feel a bit dense at first glance. However, once you get used to where everything is located, ease of use is on par with MailPoet.
While the learning curve is a bit steeper, Mailchimp provides ample educational resources like step-by-step tutorials to help overcome the initial hurdle.
Winner: MailPoet
MailPoet wins for ease of use, especially for email marketing beginners. Its pared-down interface and simplified options lower the barrier to entry. Mailchimp has a more sophisticated editor with additional capabilities, which can be overwhelming at first. But for basic email design and sending, MailPoet offers greater simplicity upfront.
4. Email Deliverability
MailPoet
MailPoet leverages WordPress site data to ensure emails meet sender reputation requirements for major ISPs. This helps improve deliverability rates.
The platform automatically detects broken links, identifies spam trigger words, and checks other factors that could flag emails.
MailPoet sends through its own deliverability infrastructure instead of your host’s IP to maintain whitelist status. Their servers have strong sending reputations to reach the inbox.
Overall, MailPoet makes it easy to create emails aligned with best practices. The deliverability support is a bit hidden behind the scenes though.
Mailchimp
Mailchimp actively monitors your account and emails to maximize deliverability. The platform prevents issues that could flag your messages as spam.
Robust tools like link validation, spam filter checks, and blacklist monitoring help polish emails. Mailchimp also provides recommended subject lines and send times proven to boost open rates.
The platform sends at high volumes from dedicated IPs with strong sender reputations. Their deliverability experts offer customized guidance for improving campaigns.
Mailchimp gives you end-to-end visibility and control over optimizing deliverability for each campaign. Their hands-on approach ensures excellent inbox placement.
Winner: Mailchimp
For deliverability, Mailchimp is the winner. Both platforms have email infrastructure that aids delivery to the inbox. But Mailchimp provides greater transparency into optimizing and troubleshooting on a per-campaign basis. Their extensive deliverability toolkit and expertise give them the edge.
5. Customer Support and Community
MailPoet
MailPoet offers free customer support through email tickets. They also provide extensive written docs and tutorials in their Knowledge Base.
Response times are generally within 24 hours. Support is limited to MailPoet plugin issues though – they don’t assist with WordPress itself.
The MailPoet Users Facebook Group is very active in community support.
Mailchimp
Mailchimp provides 24/7 customer support via live chat, email, and phone. Priority support is given to paying users.
The support site is robust with step-by-step articles, guides, and troubleshooting. Response times are quick, and agents are knowledgeable.
Mailchimp also offers an active User Community forum to get help from over 400,000 members.
Winner: Mailchimp
For customer support, Mailchimp is the winner. MailPoet provides email tickets and community forums. But Mailchimp offers more channels like phone/chat, faster responses, and dedicated agents for paid accounts. Their extensive self-help resources and huge community also give them an advantage.
6. Integrations
MailPoet
MailPoet has built-in integration with WordPress for sending post notifications and WooCommerce emails from your website.
Beyond that, it offers connectors for a handful of apps like Google Analytics, MailerLite, Zapier, and Integromat.
The Zapier integration can connect MailPoet with over 1,000 other applications, but its ecosystem is more limited compared to other email providers.
Mailchimp
Mailchimp provides out-of-the-box integrations with an extensive suite of applications for email, e-commerce, CRM, marketing automation, and more.
Popular platforms like Shopify, Square, Zendesk, Eventbrite, and Salesforce integrate seamlessly.
Mailchimp also has Zapier and API connections to link with hundreds of other tools.
Overall, Mailchimp stands out with the breadth and depth of its integrated app ecosystem.
Winner: Mailchimp
For integrations, Mailchimp is the clear winner. MailPoet connects with WordPress and has Zapier, but Mailchimp offers native integration with a vast number of leading apps across diverse business use cases. Their extensive partner ecosystem enables seamless connections for advanced workflows.
7. Pricing
MailPoet
MailPoet is free for WordPress sites to send up to 5,000 emails per month. The free version of the email marketing plugin includes basic features like email design, signup forms, and templates.
Premium plans start at $10/month for up to 2,500 subscribers and you can send unlimited emails. This adds automation, additional forms, and detailed analytics. More expensive tiers provide features like social posting, more subscribers, and priority support.
Overall, MailPoet is very affordable for small WordPress sites that want to run basic email marketing campaigns. But costs scale rapidly for larger email lists and advanced capabilities.
Mailchimp
Mailchimp offers a free Forever Free plan for up to 6,000 emails per month. You get access to core features on this tier.
Paid plans start at $13/month for up to 500 subscribers, adding automation, segmentation, and e-commerce features. Price is based on number of subscribers and emails sent per month.
Higher tiers provide group access, priority support, and more sophisticated tools. Custom enterprise pricing is available for large-scale needs.
Overall, Mailchimp delivers excellent value across customer tiers with robust features included even at low prices.
Winner: Mailchimp
For pricing, Mailchimp emerges as the winner. Both platforms start free and have affordable entry-level paid plans. However, Mailchimp’s free allowance for subscribers and emails sent is higher than MailPoet’s. And Mailchimp packs more functionality into its lower-priced tiers.
8. Reviews and Reputation
MailPoet
MailPoet earns positive reviews for its simplicity and ease of use. Users like that it integrates directly with WordPress for sending newsletters and notifications.
Many reviewers praise the straightforward drag-and-drop editor and clean interface. The platform is rated as beginner-friendly for basic email needs.
Potential downsides mentioned include the lack of advanced features, limited analytics, and scaling pricing. Some users feel support could be faster.
On platforms like Capterra, MailPoet enjoys a 4.2/5 star average rating.
Mailchimp
Mailchimp receives outstanding reviews for its comprehensive email marketing automation capabilities. Users highlight the platform’s sophisticated targeting and segmentation tools.
Reviewers are impressed by the mobile-optimized templates in the email marketing tool, as well as the analytics, and integration ecosystem. Many compliment the quality of customer support.
Potential negatives include the steeper learning curve and busy interface. Some users feel the pricing is cost-prohibitive for larger lists.
On G2, Mailchimp is rated 4.5/5 stars overall.
Winner: Mailchimp
Based on reviews, Mailchimp emerges as the winner. Both platforms have satisfied users. But Mailchimp earns higher praise for its robust feature set, analytics, and customer support, despite some interface complexity. For full-featured email marketing, Mailchimp gets outstanding reviews.
9. FAQ’s
MailPoet FAQs
- How do I create an email newsletter campaign in MailPoet?
In your WordPress admin, go to MailPoet > Newsletters to design and send beautiful email newsletters with the drag-and-drop editor. Start with a template or custom design. - Is MailPoet free?
Yes, MailPoet has a free plan for sending email newsletters to up to 1,000 subscribers. Paid plans unlock more features starting at $10/month. - Does MailPoet work with WooCommerce?
Yes, MailPoet integrates with WooCommerce to send transactional emails like order confirmations, shipping notices, etc. - How do I add subscribers to MailPoet?
Use MailPoet forms to capture subscriber emails. You can also import contacts or integrate with other apps to build your mailing list.
Mailchimp FAQs
- What features does Mailchimp offer?
Mailchimp provides email marketing, automation, landing pages, CRM, Facebook ads, and more on its platform. - How much does Mailchimp cost?
Mailchimp starts free up to 2,000 contacts. Paid plans start at $9.99/month with tiered pricing based on number of subscribers. - Can I integrate Mailchimp with my ecommerce store?
Yes, Mailchimp offers direct integrations with platforms like Shopify and WooCommerce to sync store data. - Is there a mobile app for Mailchimp?
Yes, Mailchimp offers iOS and Android apps so you can manage your account on the go.
Final Thoughts
Choose MailPoet if…
MailPoet is a great choice if you want simple email marketing directly integrated with your WordPress website. The platform makes it easy for beginners to create and send basic newsletters, post notifications, and WooCommerce emails.
With its drag-and-drop editor and intuitive interface, MailPoet is ideal for small businesses focused on leveraging email to engage readers and customers from their WordPress site without a steep learning curve.
Choose Mailchimp if…
Mailchimp is the superior option for more advanced email marketing features, sophisticated automation, CRM, and cross-channel capabilities. With its immense suite of tools for segmentation, customization, integration, and insight, Mailchimp excels for ecommerce brands and companies wanting to scale.
The platform enables highly targeted, personalized messaging using subscriber data from online stores, social sites, and other touchpoints. Mailchimp is great for established businesses ready to optimize email performance.
You may also be interested in checking out some Mailchimp alternatives to help with the evaluation process.
Choosing the right email marketing platform is critical for the success of your campaigns and reaching business goals. We hope this comparison gives you clarity on which solution matches your needs.