In this guide · 7 sections
Short answer
Brevo is usually cheapest for a small list and also does SMS and transactional email. Klaviyo is the strongest choice for an online store that wants automated flows based on orders. Mailchimp is the most familiar and easiest to start with, but costs more as your list grows.
Mailchimp vs Brevo vs Klaviyo at a glance
Each tool has a free plan, a cheap entry plan and an automation-focused plan. The main differences are how they charge and what kind of business they are built for.
Mailchimp
Essentials from S$32/mo at 501-1,500 contacts
- Priced by number of contacts
- Free under 250 contacts
- Easy editor and templates
- Automation flows on Standard and above
Best for: Service businesses and newsletters that want a familiar tool.
Brevo
Cheapest for small listsStarter from S$10/mo (5,000 emails)
- Priced mainly by emails sent per month
- Email, SMS and transactional email in one
- Free plan: up to 300 emails a day
- Marketing automation on Standard
Best for: Small businesses on a budget, or anyone needing SMS too.
Klaviyo
Best for online storesFrom US$20/mo (500 profiles)
- Priced by active profiles
- Built around store data: orders, browsing, carts
- Free: 250 profiles, 500 emails a month
- Also SMS, WhatsApp and reviews add-ons
Best for: Shopify and WooCommerce stores that live on automated flows.
Price at 1,000 and 5,000 contacts (October 2026)
Monthly-billing prices from Mailchimp's pricing (shown in SGD for Singapore), Brevo's pricing (SGD) and Klaviyo's pricing (USD), checked 18 October 2026. Approximate, before GST; all three offer discounts for paying yearly.
| List size | Mailchimp Essentials | Mailchimp Standard | Brevo Starter | Klaviyo Email |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| About 1,000 | S$32 (501-1,500 contacts) | S$61 | S$20 (10,000 emails, 1,500 contacts) | US$30 (1,000 profiles, 10,000 emails) |
| About 5,000 | S$81 (2,501-5,000 contacts) | S$120 | S$41 (20,000 emails) | US$100 (5,000 profiles, 50,000 emails) |
| Free plan | Under 250 contacts | n/a | Up to 300 emails a day | 250 profiles, 500 emails a month |
Read the limits, not just the price. Mailchimp's Essentials plan includes 15,000 monthly sends at 1,500 contacts and limits automation flows to four steps, while Standard allows up to 200 flows. Klaviyo's price rises with active profiles, so cleaning out people who never open saves money.
Which suits which business
- Shopify store with abandoned carts and repeat buyers: Klaviyo, for flows triggered by orders, browsing and carts.
- Clinic, salon or studio sending a monthly newsletter: Mailchimp or Brevo. Brevo is cheaper; Mailchimp is more familiar.
- Tight budget, list under 2,500: Brevo, with the lowest entry price on monthly volume.
- Need SMS or transactional email too: Brevo, which does email, SMS and transactional sending in one account.
- Team of several marketers: Mailchimp Standard or Klaviyo, for seats, roles and more advanced automation.
All three connect to common platforms such as Shopify and WordPress, but they do so differently. If you run a store, check how each one syncs orders and products with your platform before choosing; our guide to what a Shopify store costs covers app costs in general.
Deliverability: authenticate your own domain
Whichever tool you choose, send from your own domain (news@yourbusiness.sg), not a free Gmail address, and authenticate it. Google's sender guidelines require all senders to Gmail to set up SPF or DKIM, keep spam complaint rates below 0.3%, and, for senders of more than 5,000 messages a day, set up SPF, DKIM and DMARC and support one-click unsubscribe.
Add your sending domain in the tool
Each of the three has a domain authentication section that gives you DNS records to add.
Add the DKIM and SPF records at your DNS host
Copy them exactly. Keep only one SPF record per domain, merging values if needed.
Publish a DMARC record
Start with a monitoring policy (p=none) and tighten it once reports look clean.
Send a test and check the headers
In Gmail, 'Show original' should show SPF, DKIM and DMARC as PASS.
Our guide to fixing emails that go to spam explains SPF, DKIM and DMARC in plain English, and our guide to email bounce-back errors helps when messages are rejected.
PDPA consent and unsubscribes
Under the PDPA you need consent to use someone's email address for marketing, and you must let them withdraw it. In practice:
Email marketing consent checklist
If you also send SMS or WhatsApp marketing from the same tool, the Do Not Call rules apply to those messages; see our Do Not Call Registry guide. This is general guidance, not legal advice.
Do it yourself or get help?
Setting up an account and sending a first newsletter is easy on all three. The parts that go wrong are domain authentication, importing contacts without consent records, and automations that send the wrong thing at the wrong time.
Our Emails Land in Spam Fix (S$249, with 14 days of monitoring) sets up SPF, DKIM and DMARC for your domain and your marketing tool. Workflow Automation (S$390 per workflow) builds a welcome series, an abandoned-cart flow or a sync from your forms or CRM into the email tool.
Frequently asked questions
For small lists, usually yes. In October 2026, Brevo's Starter plan was about S$20 a month for 10,000 emails and 1,500 contacts on monthly billing, while Mailchimp Essentials was S$32 for 501 to 1,500 contacts. Compare the features you need, such as automation, which needs Brevo Standard or Mailchimp Standard.
It can be, if automated flows like abandoned cart, browse abandonment and post-purchase emails drive a good share of your sales. Klaviyo is built around store data. It costs more than Brevo or Mailchimp Essentials at the same list size, at US$30 a month for 1,000 active profiles in October 2026.
Google requires every sender to Gmail accounts to use SPF or DKIM, and bulk senders of more than 5,000 messages a day to use SPF, DKIM and DMARC with one-click unsubscribe. Even below that volume, setting up all three for your own domain improves the chance your campaigns reach the inbox.
Under the PDPA you need consent to use personal data, including email addresses, for marketing, unless an exception applies. The safest approach is an unticked opt-in checkbox at checkout or sign-up, a record of when each person agreed, and an easy unsubscribe in every email.
It depends on your list. Brevo's free plan allows up to 300 emails a day, Mailchimp is free under 250 contacts, and Klaviyo is free up to 250 active profiles and 500 emails a month. Check each plan's contact and feature limits against your list before you commit.