Both bill on contacts stored, so the pricing models are directly comparable — unusual in this category. The real split is orientation: Omnisend treats SMS and web push as core, Mailchimp is a general-purpose email platform with 300+ integrations. Neither headline price is what you’ll pay ongoing. Both captured in USD on 4 August 2026.
Both vendors’ pricing pages were captured on 4 August 2026 in the USD view, at their 250–500 contact tiers. Neither product was tested hands-on. This comparison contains no performance benchmarks, no deliverability figures, and declares no overall winner. Mailchimp’s page defaults to non-USD by region and its pricing is JavaScript-rendered; figures here were taken after forcing USD and confirming a complete render.
Same Billing Unit, Different Product
Unlike our Brevo vs Mailchimp comparison — where one bills on emails sent and the other on contacts stored — Omnisend and Mailchimp both charge by contacts stored. Their prices are genuinely comparable.
That makes the decision about what the product is for rather than how it meters usage.
Omnisend is built for ecommerce. Email, SMS and web push are treated as one product. Web push is included on every tier including Free; SMS is priced per message from $0.007.
Mailchimp is a general-purpose marketing platform. Its differentiator is breadth — 300+ integrations included on every tier, a clear seat and role ladder, and generative AI at no extra cost on Standard and above. Its marketing pricing page does not present SMS or web push as included.
Neither Headline Price Is the Real One
Both vendors advertise discounted rates, in different shapes, and this is where most comparisons of the two go wrong.
Mailchimp discounts 50% for 12 months. Standard advertises at $5.99/month; the ongoing rate is $11.98. Mailchimp publishes both figures clearly.
Omnisend discounts 30% for a 3-month prepayment. Standard advertises at $11.20/month. After three months you are billed monthly — but Omnisend does not publish that ongoing monthly rate anywhere. Its undiscounted 3-month total is $48.00, which works out to about $16.00/month. We’re stating that as arithmetic on Omnisend’s own bundle total, not as a price it quotes.
So the honest ongoing comparison at this list size is roughly $16.00 (Omnisend Standard, derived) against $11.98 (Mailchimp Standard, published). Comparing the advertised $11.20 against $5.99 compares two promotions with different durations and different mechanics.
Free Plans Are Closer Than Expected
Both free tiers cap sending at 500 emails per month. The differences are narrow and specific.
| Free plan | Omnisend | Mailchimp |
|---|---|---|
| Contacts | 250 | Under 500 |
| Monthly emails | 500 | 500 (max 250/day) |
| Web push | 500 included | Not listed |
| Automation | Not stated | Not included |
| Seats | Not stated | 1 |
| Behaviour at limit | Not stated | Sending is paused |
| Credit card required | No | No |
Paid Pricing at ~500 Contacts
Both captured in USD on 4 August 2026. Advertised rates are promotional on both sides — Mailchimp for 12 months, Omnisend for a 3-month prepayment — so they are shown separately from what you pay afterwards.
| Omnisend | Mailchimp | |
|---|---|---|
| Billing unit | Contacts stored | Contacts stored |
| Entry paid — advertised | $11.20/mo (Standard)† | $4.01/mo (Essentials)‡ |
| Entry paid — ongoing | Not published by vendor | $8.02/mo (published) |
| Mid tier — advertised | — | $5.99/mo (Standard)‡ |
| Mid tier — ongoing | — | $11.98/mo (published) |
| Top published tier | $41.30/mo advertised (Pro)† | $239.69/mo ongoing (Premium) |
| Discount structure | 30% off, 3-month prepay | 50% off, first 12 months |
| Ongoing rate published? | No | Yes |
| SMS | From $0.007/message | Not on this pricing page |
| Web push | All tiers | Not listed |
| Integrations | Not stated | 300+ all tiers |
| Free migration | 5 days, no charge | Not advertised |
† Omnisend’s advertised rates are a 30% discount for prepaying three months; the page states billing reverts to monthly afterwards but never prints that monthly rate, so the ongoing row is left blank rather than filled with our own arithmetic. ‡ Mailchimp’s advertised rates apply for 12 months, after which the published ongoing rate applies.
What Omnisend’s ongoing rate probably is. Omnisend publishes an undiscounted 3-month Standard bundle of $48.00, which works out to roughly $16.00 a month. That is our arithmetic, not a rate Omnisend quotes anywhere, so we keep it out of the table above — a number we calculated should not sit in the same column as a number a vendor published. Treat it as an estimate of what you’d pay from month four, and confirm it with Omnisend before budgeting on it. For reference, Mailchimp’s comparable Standard tier publishes $11.98 ongoing.
Who Should Pick Omnisend
Ecommerce sellers. The clearest fit. SMS and web push as first-class channels rather than bolt-ons, and the whole product is oriented around online selling.
Anyone migrating from another platform. Omnisend offers a free five-day migration covering lists, flows, segments and templates. Switching cost is a real friction in this category and Mailchimp’s pricing page advertises nothing equivalent — though Mailchimp does list personalised onboarding on Standard and Premium.
High-volume senders. Omnisend Pro lists unlimited monthly emails. Mailchimp meters sends as a multiple of contacts (10×/12×/15× by tier), so heavy sending against a small list hits ceilings sooner.
Who Should Pick Mailchimp
Anyone who wants to know what they’ll pay. Mailchimp publishes its ongoing rates alongside its promotional ones. Omnisend does not. That is a transparency difference, not a price difference, and it matters for budgeting.
Businesses with an existing tool stack. 300+ integrations on every tier including Free. Omnisend’s pricing page states no integration count at all.
Teams needing seats and roles. Mailchimp publishes a clear ladder: 1 to unlimited seats, 2 to 5 roles across tiers. Omnisend’s pricing page doesn’t detail seat allowances.
Non-ecommerce businesses. A consultancy, agency or newsletter publisher is paying for ecommerce orientation it won’t use.
What Neither Page Tells You
Both vendors leave gaps we won’t fill with assumptions.
Omnisend doesn’t state an integration count, doesn’t detail seat allowances below Pro, and doesn’t publish an ongoing monthly rate. It also claims “save up to 35% vs. Klaviyo” with no stated methodology — no list sizes, no plan pairings, no date.
Mailchimp publishes two headline marketing claims with self-defined bases: “#1 email marketing and automation platform,” resting on December 2023 competitor customer-count data, and a “27X ROI” figure attributed to its own Standard-plan users’ campaigns between December 2024 and November 2025. Neither is an independent study.
Neither vendor publishes deliverability figures, and we have not tested either, so this comparison makes no claim about which actually lands in inboxes.
Omnisend vs Mailchimp FAQ
Is Omnisend cheaper than Mailchimp?
At around 500 contacts, no. Mailchimp Standard’s published ongoing rate is $11.98/month. Omnisend Standard advertises $11.20/month but that is a 30% discount for prepaying three months; its undiscounted 3-month bundle of $48.00 works out to roughly $16.00/month ongoing — a figure Omnisend does not publish directly.
Do Omnisend and Mailchimp charge the same way?
Yes. Both bill on contacts stored, which makes their prices directly comparable — unlike Brevo, which bills on emails sent. Mailchimp additionally meters your monthly send allowance as a multiple of contacts: 10× on Essentials, 12× on Standard, 15× on Premium.
Which has the better free plan?
They are close. Both cap sending at 500 emails per month. Mailchimp allows up to 500 contacts against Omnisend’s 250, but Omnisend includes 500 web push notifications. Neither includes automation on its free tier.
Does Omnisend or Mailchimp include SMS?
Omnisend includes SMS, priced per message from $0.007, with a US example of $50 for 5,882 messages. Mailchimp’s marketing pricing page does not present SMS as an included capability.
Which is better for a Shopify or ecommerce store?
Omnisend is explicitly built for ecommerce and treats SMS and web push as core channels, which is the closer fit on paper. We have not tested either product, so we make no claim about which performs better in practice.
Does either offer free migration?
Omnisend states it will migrate lists, flows, segments and templates at no charge with a five-day turnaround. Mailchimp’s pricing page advertises no equivalent free migration, though it does include personalised onboarding sessions on Standard and Premium.
Verdict
We are not declaring a winner. We have not used either product.
Choose Omnisend if you sell online and want email, SMS and web push in one tool, if you’re migrating and value the free migration service, or if you send high volume against a modest list.
Choose Mailchimp if you’re not an ecommerce business, if you need broad integrations or structured team permissions, or if knowing your ongoing price upfront matters to how you budget.
On price alone at 500 contacts, Mailchimp’s published $11.98 ongoing is below Omnisend’s derived ~$16.00. But that gap is small enough that product fit should decide this, not the number.
Full Reviews
For complete breakdowns see our Omnisend review and Mailchimp review, or the best email marketing software guide for how both compare against the rest.
Disclosure
RightToolHQ has no active affiliate relationship with Omnisend or Mailchimp at the time of writing, and this page contains no affiliate links. If that changes, this notice will be updated and any affiliate link clearly disclosed. See our editorial policy and affiliate disclosure.