In this buying guide, we compare the Emma & Mailchimp email marketing platforms on automation, features, and pricing. Spoiler alert: we’re pretty fond of Emma, but we’ll call out where each platform actually wins—even when it stings a little 🤍
Disclaimer: The features, pricing, and details mentioned for each product are as of September 2025 and may have changed since then.
| Category | Emma | Mailchimp |
| Pricing | Starts $99/mo; Emma Lite for 10k contacts, annual contract | 14-day free trialPaid plans start at ~$13/mo (Essentials) and go up with contacts. SMS add-on available on paid tiers, starting at ~$46/mo + SMS usage. |
| User sentiment | 4/5 average rating (500+ reviews) | 4.4/5 average rating (5,000+ reviews) |
| Automation & journeys | Multi-step journeys with branching, welcome and drip, API and date triggers | Up to 200 “flow steps” |
| AI features | AI Assistant for writing and edits, A/B and subject tests, reporting insights | Intuit Assist, Creative Assistant, predictive sending. |
| Deliverability & reliability | High deliverability (99.53% as of a 2022 review), SPF/DKIM/DMARC guidance, SFTP sync | 99%+ delivery with robust infrastructure. |
| Segmentation & personalization | Dynamic segments with real-time updates, dynamic content, opt-down center | Predictive segmentation and AI-powered targeting. |
| Integration ecosystem | Hundreds of integrations and open API, deep CRM syncs (Salesforce, Blackbaud, EverTrue), Shopify app, Eventbrite | 300+ integrations: Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, Stripe, Salesforce, HubSpot, Zoho CRM. |
| Conversion & list-building tools | Landing pages included on Essentials plan, brand controls for consistent capture | Basic signup forms, landing pages, popups. |
| Support & resources | Email and phone support, live tech support Mon–Fri 7am–7pm CT, onboarding services | Email support on free plan for the first 30 days, 24/7 chat + email on paid tiers, phone support on premium. |
| Best for… | Franchises, higher ed/nonprofits, and media; consistent branding and engagement. | Small businesses or nonprofits wanting flexible entry with AI-assisted tools. |
“Emma is our top-of-the-line and favorite email marketing tool”
Anna L., Senior Vice President Marketing (G2)“We have never faced failure since day one. I can say that it helps generate a positive turnover. Emma has been our favorite since the start. I decided to choose Emma as our email marketing tool and beyond any doubt it has proved itself over and over again…”
| Feature | Emma | Mailchimp |
| Average Rating | 4/5 (500+ reviews) | 4.5/5 (17K+ reviews) |
| Setup Experience | Quick and easy setup — from minutes to hours for SPF authentication. | A few minutes – 48 hrs for validating domain authentication. |
| Learning Curve | Intuitive interface with guide to getting started, and Quick Start training. | Intuitive interface, offers a Getting Started course, easy to use for basic campaigns. |
| Best for: | Franchises & multi-location teams needing centralized brand control | Small businesses wanting simplicity |
Emma is ideal for franchises and multi-location teams that need centralized control with ease of use. Its balanced learning curve makes it a fit for organizations prioritizing brand consistency without overwhelming complexity.
Mailchimp shines for small businesses seeking simplicity, offering fast setup and wide adoption backed by strong ratings. It’s best for those who want to launch campaigns quickly without deep customization.
“Emma is very user friendly and insight oriented”
“The navigations to Emma are very simple and self explanatory. There is a very short learning curve and a very clean UI to use.”
| Feature | Emma | Mailchimp |
| Email Editor | Drag-and-drop editor with mobile design mode | Drag-and-drop with New Builder and Classic Builder modes |
| Template Library | Hundreds of pre-designed, mobile-optimized templates | 130+ industry-specific templates with layout combinations |
| Design Flexibility | Style locking, asset sharing, template approval workflows | Intuit Assist for subject lines and Creative Assistant for design |
| Branding Consistency | Professional templates with brand locking capabilities for consistent branding | Auto-branding via Creative Assistant |
| Best for: | Teams requiring consistent branding across locations | Marketers wanting quick, professional designs |
| Email Editor | Drag-and-drop editor with mobile design mode | Drag-and-drop with New Builder and Classic Builder modes |
Emma is built for teams managing consistent branding across multiple locations, ensuring polished designs that align with strict brand standards. It’s ideal for organizations where brand control and approval workflows are non-negotiable.
Mailchimp works best for marketers needing quick, professional designs, pairing AI-assisted branding with flexible editors. It’s a strong choice for businesses prioritizing speed and visually appealing campaigns without heavy oversight.
Car Talk simplified templates and optimized for mobile with clear CTAs using Emma, sustaining ~40% opens and up to 50% clicks on The Puzzler and lifting overall click rates by nearly 20%.
| Feature | Emma | Mailchimp |
| Trigger Options | Signup, date-based, field change, contact import, and custom API events | 50+ behavioral triggers |
| Conditional Logic | Branching on opens/clicks; dynamic-content rules from contact fields; up to 20 branches | Basic if/then rules, tags/segments, contact fields, and purchase data |
| Prebuilt Journeys | Common workflows: welcome series, re-engagement/drip, abandoned cart | Cart recovery, welcome, re-engagement/win-back, birthday/anniversary, and post-purchase |
| Journey Complexity | Multi-step workflows with Wait/Send steps and branching; automate from activity inside or outside the inbox | Visual Customer Journey builder with multi-step paths, delays, splits, and goal tracking. |
Emma is best for franchises and distributed teams that need advanced branching workflows and the ability to automate from multiple touchpoints inside and outside the inbox.
Mailchimp is best for SMBs and ecommerce brands that want prebuilt journey templates and a visual builder to streamline recovery, re-engagement, and post-purchase flows.
Dogfish Head activated automated welcomes and a web-series send with Emma, with welcome emails averaging ~78% opens and 27% clicks and the series pulling ~58% opens and 33% clicks.
| Feature | Emma | Mailchimp |
| AI Content Creation | AI Assistant writes/rewrites email copy, fixes grammar, and adjusts tone/length to speed up campaign creation | Intuit Assist generates on-brand emails, subject lines, and personalized campaigns (welcome flows, abandoned carts, win-backs). |
| Design Intelligence | Drag-and-drop editor with mobile design mode; brand controls lock styles and manage shared templates | Creative Assistant + AI Brand Kit auto-designs assets using brand fonts, colors, and logos. |
| Optimization Tools | Subject line split testing, A/B content testing, click-map visualization, and detailed analytics/compare reports | Content Optimizer suggests improvements; reporting co-pilot surfaces key insights. |
| Predictive Features | Response Dashboard shows robust analytics that reveal subscriber insights so you can double down on what works. | Predictive demographics, CLV, AI-suggested segments, and send-time optimization. |
| Best For | Small businesses needing all-in-one AI help for content, design, and reporting. | Small businesses needing all-in-one AI help for content, design, and reporting. |
Emma is best for small businesses that want AI-driven assistance across content, design, and analytics to simplify marketing without heavy lifting.
Mailchimp is best for growing brands seeking AI-powered personalization and predictive insights to optimize campaigns and scale smarter.
“Very smooth email marketing experience with Emma”
“I liked using the platform a lot, it was very smooth to use and AI suggestions were cherry on a cake truly.”
— Nirmalya N., WhatsApp Chatbots and Automation Information Technology and Services (G2)
| Feature | Emma | Mailchimp |
| Delivery Rate | High deliverability (99.53% deliverability as of 2022 review) | 99% delivery rate |
| Inbox Placement | Strong reputation management across multiple accounts | Global sending infrastructure with dedicated IPs |
| Deliverability Tools | Supports SPF, DKIM, and DMARC authentication with best-practice guidance to improve inboxing | Domain authentication prompts (SPF, DKIM), Omnivore abuse-prevention, list hygiene checks |
| Sending Reliability | Automated SFTP Connect for steady contact syncs. | Send Time Optimization, Content Optimizer, engagement reporting |
| Best for: | Multi-location brands needing to monitor delivery and manage authentication across sub-accounts | SMBs needing reliable infrastructure and strong compliance guardrails |
Emma is best for multi-location brands that need tight deliverability oversight and advanced authentication management across sub-accounts.
Mailchimp is best for SMBs prioritizing reliable sending infrastructure with built-in compliance safeguards to protect reputation.
“Emma is an excellent product for SMEs for email & SMS marketing”
“The deliverability rate of Emma was the highest we ever saw for any of our Email campaigns and we could send numerous campaigns at once that was the highlight.”
| Feature | Emma | Mailchimp |
| Segmentation Capabilities | Dynamic segments with real-time updates based on behavior, demographics | Combines up to 5 conditions (tags, demographics, purchase, engagement, SMS/ecommerce activity) |
| Dynamic Content | Dynamic blocks that personalize per subscriber using fields or custom API events. | Conditional logic and product recommendations |
| Personalization Tags | Personalization/merge tags from contact fields (e.g., name, custom fields) in the editor. | Custom tags (demographics, CLV, purchase likelihood, VIP status) |
| Subscriber Preferences | Customizable subscription center with opt-down options | Subscriber preference center with update options |
| Best for: | Complex audience management across multiple accounts | SMBs wanting automated yet flexible segmentation |
Emma is best for organizations with complex audiences that need centralized control and reliable segmentation across multiple accounts.
Mailchimp is best for SMBs aiming for automated, flexible targeting that adapts to customer behaviors and purchase signals.
Convince & Convert used Emma’s audience-choice segmentation and sponsor-friendly newsletter format to grow and engage the daily “Definitive” readership while preserving trust and giving partners credible visibility.
| Feature | Emma | Mailchimp |
| Number of Integrations | Hundreds of integrations + open API | 300+ partner-built integrations via Mailchimp Marketplace |
| CRM Integrations | Salesforce, Blackbaud, EverTrue with deep sync capabilities | Salesforce, Pipedrive, plus marketplace connectors (Zapier, Integromat) |
| E-commerce Integrations | Shopify app; SFTP Connect for automated data sync | Shopify, WooCommerce, Squarespace |
| API Flexibility | Ecommerce, landing pages, events (Eventbrite) | Comprehensive Marketing API for custom builds; partner program with OAuth2 support |
| Best for | Distributed brands (franchises, universities) needing centralized control with deep CRM integrations. | SMBs using mainstream tools and looking for marketplace add-ons |
Emma is best for distributed brands like franchises or universities needing centralized control with deep CRM integrations.
Mailchimp is best for SMBs using mainstream platforms and seeking plug-and-play marketplace add-ons for quick expansion.
“Emma is the best ever multi-channel email marketing software”
“Emma is the best ever email marketing software used by me with various features. The ease of use in analytics of campaigns makes my life easier… Integration of this software to my CRM is soo easy and if I get any query, their customer support is ready to help me in the quickest way.”
| Feature | Emma | Mailchimp |
| Starter Offer | $99/mo; Emma Lite (10,000 contacts, annual contract) | Free plan (500 contacts, 1,000 monthly emails, 1 user, basic support) |
| Most Popular | Emma Essentials — $159/mo (10,000 contacts, annual contract; adds landing pages, unlimited automation, SMS*) | Standard: $20/mo (500 contacts, automations, analytics, A/B testing, and advanced segmentation) |
| Pricing Model | Contact-based tiers with flat monthly/annual billing; per-contact overages if you exceed your limit; custom quotes for >10k contacts; annual discounts available | Tiered plans (Free → Essentials $13/mo → Standard $20/mo → Premium $350/mo); pay-as-you-go credits available; 15% nonprofit discount |
| Best for | Large organizations who want to scale | Small businesses wanting affordable entry and flexible pay-as-you-go options |
Emma is best for large organizations that need structured, scalable pricing with custom quotes and annual discounts to support growth.
Mailchimp is best for small businesses seeking an affordable entry point with flexible pay-as-you-go and nonprofit discounts.
| Feature | Emma | Mailchimp |
| Support Availability | Email & phone support, plus Support Hub; live tech support Mon–Fri, 7am–7pm CT. | Free: 30 days of email support → chatbot ongoing. Essentials+: 24/7 chat + email. Premium: 24/7 chat, email, and phone with screen share. |
| Support Response Time | Business-hours live support; priority phone support available on Corporate plan | Helpful; faster resolution on Premium plans. |
| Knowledge Resources | Support Hub, Emma 101 resource hub & webinar , and video library | Help Center, Resources center, and Step-by-step guides. |
| Onboarding Assistance | Professional Services onboarding packages (strategic kickoff, list import, custom training). | Assisted onboarding on Standard; dedicated onboarding for Premium (first 90 days). |
| Best for | Teams wanting business-hours live help + self-serve resources; larger orgs needing priority phone support & services. | Self-service SMBs that need occasional live support. |
Emma is best for teams that need live business-hours help paired with self-serve tools, making it ideal for larger orgs that also want priority phone support.
Mailchimp is best for self-service SMBs that mostly rely on guides but still need access to occasional live support on higher-tier plans.
“Emma has made my job communicating to my customers so valuable!”
“Emma’s customer support is extremely superior to many other development tools I have used in the past. By using Emma to send my emails, newsletters and landing pages, I am able to get metrics that are so valuable.”
“Emma email marketing – a multi-tasker email marketing tool”
Angelika E., Marketing & Sales Lead, Retail (Brick and Mortar) Gift Cards (G2)“It provides ease to the users for creating and summarizing results. It is easy to update and add new contacts on this platform. It allows people to manage their list of emails. It has great integration with other applications. Users can also edit them for a long time as well. There are certain different features in this regard.”
“Emma is a really good alternative to Mailchimp”
Muhammed S., Digital Marketing Executive (G2)“The best thing about emma is it contains almost all tools I need for Email marketing, additionally it has sms marketing which I think marketers will find useful having all the tools they need at one place.”
“My organization switched to Emma from Mailchimp…”
Verified User in Non-Profit Organization Management (G2)“Emma has more specific options for opting out of some mailing lists without opting out of all mailing lists… Subscribers have more options for opting out of certain mailing lists without opting out of all our mailing lists… Also, Emma is pretty intuitive and user-friendly overall.”
