In the Mailchimp vs HubSpot decision, Mailchimp is usually the better fit for small businesses that mainly need affordable, easy email marketing. HubSpot is the stronger choice if you want email tied closely to a full CRM, sales pipeline, and customer service tools. Both platforms offer free or entry-level plans, so the real question is how much of your marketing and sales you want in one system.
Below, we compare the two platforms feature by feature so you can choose based on how your business actually works.
What is the main difference between Mailchimp and HubSpot?
Mailchimp started as an email marketing tool and grew into a broader marketing platform with automation, landing pages, and basic audience management. Email is still its center of gravity.
HubSpot started from inbound marketing and is built around its CRM. Marketing, sales, customer service, content, and operations tools all share the same contact database. Email is one part of a larger system.
That difference shapes almost everything else: how contacts are stored, how automation works, what reporting can show, and how costs grow as you add contacts and features.
Mailchimp vs HubSpot email marketing: which builder is better?
Mailchimp’s email builder and templates
Mailchimp offers a drag-and-drop email builder with a library of pre-designed templates. It is quick to learn, and many small teams can send a polished newsletter on their first day. You can also save your own templates, and custom HTML templates can be imported for more control.
HubSpot’s email builder and templates
HubSpot also has a drag-and-drop email editor with templates, plus brand settings for logos, colors, and fonts. Developers can build fully custom coded templates and modules using HTML and HubL. Because emails connect to the CRM, you can personalize with any contact or company property, and higher tiers add smart content that changes by audience.
Verdict on email building
Both builders are capable for standard newsletters and promotions. Mailchimp tends to feel simpler for pure email. HubSpot offers deeper personalization and more developer control, which matters as your emails get more targeted. If you plan to use custom designs on either platform, a responsive, well-tested template matters more than which builder you pick.
How do Mailchimp and HubSpot compare on automation?
Mailchimp’s Customer Journey Builder lets you create automated flows such as welcome series, abandoned cart emails for connected stores, and re-engagement campaigns. It covers common email automation needs well, and more advanced options are available on higher plans.
HubSpot’s workflows go further. Because they run on the CRM, they can do more than send emails. Workflows can update contact properties, assign leads to sales reps, create tasks, rotate owners, and trigger internal notifications. Full workflow automation is part of HubSpot’s paid Marketing Hub tiers rather than the free tools.
If your automation is mostly email sequences, Mailchimp may be enough. If you need marketing and sales steps in the same flow, HubSpot is built for that.
How deep is each platform’s CRM?
This is the biggest gap between the two.
HubSpot’s CRM is the foundation of the platform. It tracks contacts, companies, deals, tickets, and activities like emails, calls, and meetings. Sales teams can manage pipelines, and service teams can manage support tickets, all using the same records marketing uses.
Mailchimp has audience management with tags, segments, groups, and contact profiles that show engagement history. That is useful for marketing, but it is not a full sales CRM. Businesses that need deal pipelines usually connect Mailchimp to a separate CRM.
Which is better for landing pages and forms?
Both platforms let you build landing pages and signup forms without a separate website tool.
- Mailchimp offers landing pages, signup forms, and pop-up forms that feed directly into your audience. They are simple to set up and work well for list building and basic promotions.
- HubSpot offers forms on its free tools, and landing pages with more customization, testing, and personalization options on paid plans. Form submissions create or update CRM records and can trigger workflows.
If landing pages are central to your lead generation, HubSpot gives you more room to grow. Many businesses also host landing pages on their own website for full design control. Our landing page design and development case study shows that approach.
How do reporting and analytics compare?
Mailchimp reports cover the essentials: opens, clicks, unsubscribes, bounces, and, for connected stores, revenue from campaigns. Higher plans add more comparative and audience insights.
HubSpot reporting can connect email activity to website visits, form submissions, deals, and revenue in the CRM. On higher tiers, you can build custom reports and attribution reports that show which campaigns influence closed deals. That depth is valuable if leadership wants to see marketing’s impact on sales, but it takes more setup to use well.
Keep in mind that open rates have become less reliable in recent years due to privacy features in some email apps, so clicks and conversions are better signals on both platforms.
Which platform is easier to use?
Mailchimp is generally easier to start with. The interface is focused on creating audiences and sending campaigns, and there are fewer concepts to learn.
HubSpot is well designed but larger. There are more tools, settings, and connections between objects. Most teams get comfortable quickly with the basics, but getting full value from workflows, reporting, and CRM properties usually takes planning and training.
HubSpot or Mailchimp for small business: which scales better?
For a small business sending a regular newsletter to a modest list, Mailchimp is often the simpler and more affordable place to start.
As you grow, the picture changes. Both platforms price based on contacts and features, so costs rise with list size either way. HubSpot’s paid tiers can cost more, but they replace several tools at once: CRM, marketing automation, landing pages, and reporting. Mailchimp can stay lean, but you may end up adding and connecting separate tools for sales and service.
Pricing and plan limits for both platforms change regularly. Both offer free or entry-level options, so check each vendor’s current pricing page and compare the plans that match your actual contact count and feature needs.
How do their integrations compare?
Both platforms connect to many popular tools, including ecommerce platforms, website builders, form tools, and payment systems. Both also work with automation services like Zapier.
Mailchimp is often chosen by online stores for its ecommerce connections and product-focused emails. HubSpot has a large app marketplace and strong sync options with other CRMs, sales tools, and business software. It also connects well with WordPress through its official plugin.
Before choosing, list the tools you already use and confirm each one has a current, well-supported integration with the platform you are considering.
Mailchimp vs HubSpot at a glance
| Feature | Mailchimp | HubSpot |
|---|---|---|
| Core focus | Email marketing first | CRM-based marketing, sales, and service |
| Email builder | Easy drag-and-drop with templates | Drag-and-drop plus coded templates and modules |
| Automation | Customer journeys focused on email | Workflows that span marketing and sales tasks |
| CRM | Audience management, tags, and segments | Full CRM with contacts, companies, deals, and tickets |
| Landing pages and forms | Included and simple | Forms on free tools, advanced pages on paid tiers |
| Reporting | Campaign and ecommerce metrics | Email through revenue, with custom reports on higher tiers |
| Ease of use | Faster to learn | More to learn, more capability |
| Pricing | Free or entry tier available; check current pricing | Free tools and entry tiers available; check current pricing |
| Best fit | Small teams focused on newsletters and ecommerce email | Growing teams aligning marketing and sales |
Which platform fits which business?
Choose Mailchimp if:
- Email newsletters and promotions are your main marketing channel.
- You run an online store and want product and cart emails.
- You have a small team and want something quick to learn.
- You already have a CRM you are happy with, or do not need one yet.
Choose HubSpot if:
- You have a sales team that needs pipelines and lead tracking.
- You want marketing, sales, and service on one contact database.
- You need automation that goes beyond sending emails.
- You want reporting that connects marketing activity to revenue.
Some businesses need a different approach entirely, such as an all-in-one funnel and CRM tool. Our GoHighLevel funnel and CRM services are an option for service businesses that want that setup.
Frequently asked questions
Is Mailchimp or HubSpot better for beginners?
Mailchimp is usually easier for beginners who only need email marketing. HubSpot is also approachable, but it has more features to learn because it includes a full CRM.
Can I move from Mailchimp to HubSpot later?
Yes. You can export contacts from Mailchimp and import them into HubSpot. Plan time to rebuild templates, forms, and automations, since those do not transfer directly.
Can I use Mailchimp and HubSpot together?
Yes, there are integrations that sync contacts between them. Running both adds cost and complexity, so most businesses eventually settle on one for email.
Do both platforms have free plans?
Both offer free or entry-level options, but limits on contacts, sends, and features change over time. Check each platform’s current pricing before deciding.
The right answer to Mailchimp vs HubSpot depends on whether you need an email tool or a connected CRM platform. Whichever you choose, our email template and landing page services can build templates that work on either, as shown in our HubSpot and Mailchimp case study, or contact us.
