6 affordable Mailchimp alternatives for nonprofits

With the right email marketing platform, your nonprofit can send monthly newsletters, invite supporters to fundraising events, automate tax receipts for donations, retain new donors through an email welcome series, and so much more. 

While Mailchimp is a popular email marketing tool (and you could even get 15% off with Mailchimp’s nonprofit discount), that doesn’t mean it’s the right fit for your nonprofit organization’s budget, bandwidth, or technological needs. 

There are lots of lower cost options that your nonprofit should consider—some are even free! We’ve got the full scoop on why these six Mailchimp alternatives may be a better, more affordable fit for your nonprofit. 

1. Givebutter: For an all-in-one platform

💸 Nonprofit pricing: Givebutter is a free all-in-one fundraising solution with built-in email marketing tools and a nonprofit CRM. All of Givebutter’s features are completely free—regardless of the number of backend users you have or contacts you add to your email list.

🤩 Standout features: 

• Multi-channel marketing tools for email, text messaging, and social sharing
• User-friendly drag-and-drop editor and native Canva integration to create sleek graphics and branded emails
• Send right away, schedule for later, or set up automated campaigns to send notifications, reminders, and other updates to supporters
• Granular contact filtering options, list segmenting, and merge tags for personalized messages
• Built-in reporting dashboard with campaign ROI analysis and automatic reporting metrics that let you see which messages resonate most with your audience 
• Seamless integration with 100+ more fundraising, donor engagement, and event management tools

🤝 Integrations: Givebutter integrates with 1,000+ apps natively and through Zapier—from ThankView and Double the Donation to Venmo and social media platforms. For users who prefer to stick with Mailchimp (or another option on this list), Givebutter also integrates with Mailchimp and most other email platforms.

🧮 Mailchimp vs Givebutter: Like Mailchimp, building beautiful email campaigns is easy with Givebutter. But Givebutter allows you to connect with supporters across multiple channels—not just email. 

Organizations looking to replace their email automation platform to have all of their fundraising, events, and multi-channel engagement tools in one fun, user-friendly place will find this free platform a worthy option to consider. Create a free Givebutter account today to see why more and more nonprofits are making the switch. 

2. Constant Contact: For simplified email series

💸 Nonprofit pricing: Constant Contact offers a nonprofit discount on its tiered pricing plans of 20% for 6-month prepay and 30% for 12-month prepay. Constant Contact pricing is based on how many people are on your email list and what features you need. Basic email marketing pricing ranges from $9.99–$300+ per month and premium pricing ranges from $45–$410+ a month. The full marketing automation package starts at $449 per month.

🤩 Standout features: 

• Landing pages and websites
• Both drag-and-drop and HTML email editing 
• Hundreds of email templates
• Built-in autoresponders
• Real-time reporting
• Subject line testing 
• QR codes for forms 

🤝 Integrations: Constant Contact integrates 300+ sites like Shopify, WooCommerce, Canva, Etsy, and Givebutter through Zapier. 

🧮 Mailchimp vs Constant Contact: At face value, Mailchimp and Constant Contact have remarkably similar features and functionality for email marketing and e-commerce tools. But if you wade through the details, you'll notice that Mailchimp simply offers more within each of these larger buckets. 

For reporting, Constant Contact tracks opens and clicks and allows for a Google Analytics integration. Mailchimp, by contrast, tracks geographical location, e-commerce conversions, and device tracking (e.g., mobile vs. desktop opens).

For autoresponders, Constant Contact lets you create a welcome series and other sequences, but with Mailchimp, you can get a bit fancier with your triggers, segmenting your list by opens and even clicks (e.g., if person A opens the first email, send them the second email, etc.).

3. AWeber: For small teams with an even smaller budget

💸 Nonprofit pricing: If you're a small nonprofit with a tight marketing budget, AWeber is another strong Mailchimp alternative for nonprofits to consider. AWeber pricing offers a free email plan (0–500 subscribers) or a pro plan ($16.15–$149.99+ per month, depending on the number of contacts). Nonprofits can get 3 months of AWeber Pro for free with a 25% discount after that time.

🤩 Standout features: 

• Landing pages with e-commerce options
• Drag-and-drop email editor
• Email templates
• Built-in Canva integration
• Tagging, dynamic segmentation, and other list management features

‍🤝 Integrations: AWeber integrates with many third-party tools including, Facebook, PayPal, WordPress, Shopify, WooCommerce, and Givebutter via Zapier.

🧮 Mailchimp vs AWeber: While many email marketing platforms offer a free plan, it usually comes with bare-bones-only features, which can be frustrating as you scale your organization. If you have less than 500 email subscribers, you can use AWeber's free plan to create autoresponders (with more than one message), build dynamic list segmentation (to prevent unsubscribes), access all email templates, and even get free migration support. Unlike Mailchimp, even on AWeber’s free plan you get phone, email, and live chat support.

4. Drip: For complex automations

💸 Nonprofit pricing: Drip’s pay-as-you go plans depend on the number of contacts you have and the volume of emails you send. Plans range from $39–$1,899 per month for up to 170K contacts. For an enterprise plan with unlimited contacts, pricing will vary. Drip does not offer a nonprofit discount, but you can sign up for a free 14-day trial.

🤩 Standout features: 

• Advanced automations
• Customizable forms
• Lead generation through social media and Google Ads

🤝 Integrations: Drip integrates with over 100 platforms including Shopify, WooCommerce, Wordpress, HubSpot CRM, Facebook, and Givebutter via Zapier.

🧮 Mailchimp vs Drip: OK, we have to admit, taking Drip out for an email platform test-drive is kinda like driving a Tesla off the lot. So, what's the catch? In exchange for Drip's advanced features, you'll pay more for their service—no free option here. Since Drip's automation features are more advanced than other services, it may also be more difficult for your team to master.

5. MailerLite: For advanced list management

💸 Nonprofit pricing: Nonprofits can get 30% off MailerLite’s paid plans, which start at $10–$21 per month for unlimited emails and up to 1,000 contacts. You will have to pay more for advanced features and as your subscriber list grows. Enterprise custom pricing is also available for organizations with more than 100K subscribers.

🤩 Standout features: 

• Intuitive email builder with drag-and-drop templates
• Easy-to-follow automations
• A/B split testing
• Fun pop-up forms
• User-friendly list management with advanced group segmentation 

🤝 Integrations: MailerLite has 100+ standard integrations including Facebook, MailerCheck, Shopify, WooCommerce, and Wordpress, and Givebutter via Zapier.

🧮 Mailchimp vs MailerLite: On the surface, the two platforms seem quite similar. But if you're looking for an email marketing solution that's even simpler than Mailchimp, MailerLite may make the cut. MailerLite also has improved list management, where you can segment subscribers into groups. This is different from Mailchimp where mutually exclusive lists prevent you from segmenting or reporting on subscribers across different lists. 

However, if you need an email solution to automate campaigns, Mailchimp offers more options. While you can create workflows within MailerLite, it lacks certain automation tools like e-commerce triggers. 

6. ConvertKit: For a variety of workflows

💸 Nonprofit pricing: ConvertKit Offers tiered pricing plans starting at $0, $15, and $29 per month for up to 300 subscribers. Prices increase depending on list size and the features you need. ConvertKit does not offer a discount for nonprofits, but anyone can use either of its paid plans for free for the first two months.

🤩 Standout features: 

• Landing page builder
• Tags and custom fields
• Triggers and automated workflows
• Integration with e-commerce platforms
• Unlimited forms

🤝 Integrations: ConvertKit offers tons of integrations with top sites like Squarespace, Teachable, Shopify, and Givebutter via Zapier.

🧮 Mailchimp vs ConvertKit: There are few competitors that take such a polar-opposite stance as ConvertKit and Mailchimp. One's strength is the other's weakness, so it's important to know what you're looking for. ConvertKit's greatest asset is its ability to build complex workflows off various triggers and grow your email list through different opt-in forms. With Mailchimp, you can only have one form per list, which can be a headache. But with ConvertKit, subscribers are segmented by tags, keeping everyone in one place. 

Where ConvertKit falls short is its lack of templates and absence of a drag-and-drop email builder. You won't get the beautiful, graphic-designer-worthy emails you so easily get from Mailchimp. In fact, ConvertKit follows a less-is-more design approach, telling users to use videos, images, GIFs, and other media sparingly.

Givebutter is the Mailchimp alternative trusted by thousands of nonprofits

With Givebutter, there are no contracts, monthly subscriptions, or subscriber limits because all of our features are completely free to use, forever. The user-friendly, donor-centric interface makes it easy to build, design, and automate marketing campaigns, and the always-free platform can fit perfectly within any nonprofit’s budget.

Create your free Givebutter account in minutes to see how you can better grow, engage, and track your supporters with Givebutter’s all-in-one fundraising platform. 💪

‍