Mailchimp review - email marketing with a 15% nonprofit discount

What it is

Mailchimp is one of the best-known email marketing platforms, with a friendly drag-and-drop editor, automations, landing pages, and a free tier for very small lists. It is widely used and easy to start, which is often the main reason nonprofits land here.

The honest math

Paid plans are priced by contact count across Essentials, Standard, and Premium. Verified 501(c)(3)s can claim a 15% discount on the base plan, but you must request it before you buy - Mailchimp does not apply the discount retroactively or refund past purchases, and it does not apply to your first paid month. US organizations verify by adding their EIN and, if asked, uploading a copy of their 501(c)(3) letter.

Why the amber rating

Two catches keep this at amber. First, 15% is the smallest nonprofit discount among the major email tools - Constant Contact’s prepay discount and purpose-built nonprofit platforms tend to save you more. Second, Mailchimp counts every contact in your audience toward your billable limit, including unsubscribed and non-subscribed people; only archived, cleaned, or deleted contacts stop counting. So you can quietly pay for people who already left your list unless you archive them regularly.

The honest take

A familiar, capable tool with the least generous nonprofit deal and a billing model that charges you for dead weight if you are not diligent. Compare it against Constant Contact and a nonprofit-specific option before committing. We are not enrolled in any Mailchimp affiliate program, so the link above is a plain link to their site.