Mailchimp is built for shops and small businesses. If you are a coach or creator selling courses, coaching or a membership, you mostly need three things: email people when they buy, welcome people who sign up for a freebie, and send a newsletter. WithMe does all three inside the creator hub where you sell, so the people who buy are already on your list. If you need Mailchimp's templates, integrations or detailed reports, MailerLite or Kit are closer like-for-like swaps.
WithMe is $25 per month billed annually (UK £25), with a 14-day trial and 0% WithMe commission. Stripe and PayPal fees still apply. More than 8,000 creators use it. All other prices on this page were checked on each vendor's own pricing page on 11 November 2026, in US dollars.
Why do creators leave Mailchimp?
- The free plan is small. Mailchimp Free covers 250 contacts and up to 500 sends a month, or 250 a day, and has no automation flows.
- Automations cost more. Essentials, from $13 a month for up to 500 contacts, allows flows of up to 4 steps. For longer flows you need Standard, from $20 a month for up to 500 contacts.
- It does not know what you sell. Your courses and coaching are on another platform, so buyers have to be synced or imported before you can email them.
Mailchimp alternatives compared
| Platform | Starting price | Free plan | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mailchimp | Essentials $13/month, Standard $20/month, for up to 500 contacts | 250 contacts, 500 sends a month, no flows | Small businesses that want templates and many integrations |
| WithMe | $25/month billed annually (UK £25) | 14-day trial | Coaches and creators who sell courses, coaching, community or memberships |
| Kit | Creator $390/year (about $33/month) or $39 monthly, for 1,000 subscribers | Up to 10,000 subscribers, no sequences | Newsletter-first creators who want tags and visual automations |
| MailerLite | Comfort $10.80/month billed yearly ($12 monthly), for 500 subscribers | 250 subscribers, 2,500 emails a month | The closest low-cost swap for Mailchimp |
| Flodesk | Email $38/month billed yearly ($46 monthly), any list size | Forms and pages only, no email sending | Designed emails and a flat price for a big list |
| beehiiv | Lite $49/month billed yearly, for 1,000 subscribers | Up to 2,500 subscribers | Newsletters with paid subscriptions and ads |
| Systeme.io | Startup $17/month | 2,000 contacts | Funnels and email on a budget |
1. WithMe: email where you already sell
WithMe is an all-in-one creator hub: courses, coaching bookings, community, memberships, digital products, checkout and email in one place. Everyone who buys a product or fills in a lead capture is a contact you can email. You pick the audience by product or lead capture, or send to all customers.
- Broadcasts: one send, now or scheduled, to the products and lead captures you choose.
- Sequences: ordered emails that start after a purchase, an abandoned checkout, a lead capture, a coaching application or at a set time, each with a delay in minutes, hours or days.
- Your own sending domain, with the DKIM and SPF records shown on the Delivery tab, plus bounce and complaint rates over 14 days.
- A Recipients tab that shows who was sent each email and whether they opened or clicked.
- Price: $25 per month billed annually (UK £25), 0% WithMe commission on your sales.
2. MailerLite: the closest like-for-like swap
MailerLite looks and works much like Mailchimp, for less. Free has 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails a month. For 500 subscribers, Comfort is $12 a month, or $10.80 billed yearly, with 50 automations; Power is $25 a month, or $22.50 billed yearly, with unlimited automations and emails.
3. Kit: for newsletter-first creators
Kit (formerly ConvertKit) is built for creators. Free covers up to 10,000 subscribers but has no sequences or visual automations. Creator is $390 a year, about $33 a month, or $39 billed monthly, for 1,000 subscribers, with unlimited visual automations and sequences. Kit charges 3.5% + 30c on digital product sales, card processing included.
4. Flodesk: a flat price and designed emails
Flodesk does not charge more as your list grows. Email is $38 a month billed yearly or $46 monthly. Everything, at $79 a month billed yearly or $99 monthly, adds checkout, sales pages, upsells and payment plans with no Flodesk transaction fee. The Free plan does not send email.
5. beehiiv: for a newsletter business
beehiiv suits creators whose newsletter is the product. Free covers up to 2,500 subscribers. Lite is $49 a month billed yearly, with paid subscriptions, automations and ads, and Pro is $95 a month billed yearly. It takes 0% of paid subscription and digital product revenue.
6. Systeme.io: funnels, courses and email
Systeme.io combines funnels, courses and email. Free has 2,000 contacts, Startup is $17 a month with 5,000 contacts and Unlimited is $97 a month, with 0% transaction fees on all plans.
How do you move your Mailchimp list to WithMe?
- Export your audience from Mailchimp as a CSV. Include only people who agreed to hear from you.
- In WithMe, create a lead capture for them, then upload the CSV on the customers page. The importer recognises a Mailchimp Email column. Up to 5,000 contacts can go into a lead capture per upload, and the import does not email them.
- Connect your sending domain on the Delivery tab and add the DKIM and SPF records it shows you.
- Rebuild your welcome and purchase emails as sequences. Mailchimp flows are not copied across.
- Send a test to yourself before your first broadcast.
What is not included?
WithMe's email is not a full Mailchimp replacement for every business. There is no template gallery or drag-and-drop email designer, no visual journey builder with branching, no contact tags, no saved segments and no subject-line A/B test. There is no double opt-in on lead capture forms. Each person gets at most one broadcast or timed sequence email from you a day. If those tools are why you pay for Mailchimp, keep it or move to MailerLite.
Who should stay on Mailchimp?
Stay on Mailchimp if you run a shop that depends on its integrations, templates and reports, or if your list is under 250 and the Free plan does the job. Move to WithMe if you are a coach or creator who sells courses, coaching, a community or memberships and wants email and checkout in one place.
How much does WithMe cost?
WithMe is $25 per month billed annually (UK £25), with a 14-day trial and 0% WithMe commission. Stripe and PayPal fees still apply. Email is on the same plan as courses, memberships, community, coaching, webinars and digital products. There is no separate email tier on the public price.
Mailchimp alternative questions
What is the best Mailchimp alternative for coaches?
If you sell coaching or courses, a creator hub with email built in, such as WithMe, lets you email buyers and leads without syncing a second tool. If you only need a cheaper email tool, MailerLite is the closest swap.
How much does Mailchimp cost in 2026?
On 11 November 2026, Mailchimp Free covered 250 contacts and 500 sends a month. Essentials started at $13 a month and Standard at $20 a month for up to 500 contacts, rising with each contact band.
Can I import my Mailchimp list into WithMe?
Yes. Export a CSV from Mailchimp and upload it on the customers page into a lead capture. The Email column is recognised, and people added to a lead capture are not emailed by the import.
Does WithMe have email templates like Mailchimp?
No. Each email starts blank in a rich-text editor where you can add images, links to your products and personal tokens such as the customer's name. There is no template gallery.
Is email included in the WithMe price?
Yes. Broadcasts and sequences come with the plan at $25 per month billed annually (UK £25), with a 14-day trial and 0% WithMe commission. Stripe and PayPal fees still apply.
Start your 14-day trial at https://www.withme.so/become-a-creator.
Related reading
- Start your 14-day trial
- Creator platform with email marketing built in
- Kit (ConvertKit) alternatives for creators
- How to write a welcome email sequence
- How to create a lead magnet
- How to take coaching bookings without Calendly
- How to run a 1:1 coaching programme
- Best all-in-one creator platforms
- Own your audience with a custom domain
- Creator platform comparisons
