Email platforms advertise a headline number and bill something else. Contact tiers that count the people who left. Plans that change price the moment your list crosses a line. Add-ons priced separately at checkout. We model the full bill at your subscriber count — 500, 2,500, 10,000 — on both billing cycles, and spell out exactly where the traps are.
Every number on this site comes from the vendor's own pricing page and plan documentation, checked on both monthly and annual billing. When a vendor changes its prices, we re-check and date every figure we publish. When sources disagree, we print the range — never a guess.
Subscribers who unsubscribed but still count toward your tier. SMS credits billed apart from your plan. The discount that only appears on annual prepay. The free plan that ends the day you need automation. We name each trap, which tools charge it, and which don't.
Every guide ends with the part vendor comparison pages skip: who should not switch, and which cheap-looking plan quietly costs more once your list grows. We have no stake in which tool you pick beyond the disclosure on our affiliate links.
The Best Mailchimp Alternatives, Priced at Your List Size — five real alternatives priced from official pages: Kit's free plan runs to 10,000 subscribers where Mailchimp's stops at 250; Brevo from $9/month; ActiveCampaign from $15/month billed annually; MailerLite from $12/month; GetResponse from $19/month at 1,000 subscribers. Every billing trap named.
Coming next: deep dives on each platform's hidden fees — overage mechanics, regional price gaps and checkout-only rates — plus our list-size bill calculator covering 500, 2,500 and 10,000 subscribers. Read who we are and how this site makes money.