Brevo

What Is Brevo?

Brevo (rebranded from Sendinblue in 2023) is a multi-channel marketing platform that combines email, SMS, WhatsApp messaging, live chat, and CRM in one subscription. Its defining advantage is pricing structure: Brevo charges per email sent rather than per contact stored, meaning you can maintain a list of 100,000 subscribers and only pay for how many emails you actually send.

This model is particularly favorable for businesses with large, low-frequency send lists: seasonal businesses, event-based senders, or businesses that communicate monthly rather than weekly. Brevo’s free plan allows 300 emails per day with unlimited contacts — no other major platform offers unlimited contact storage at no cost.

Key Features

• Email-based pricing, pay for sends, not contacts stored — a critical advantage for large dormant lists
• Unlimited contacts on all plans, store your entire list regardless of size
• SMS and WhatsApp marketing, send marketing messages across all three channels from one platform
• Visual automation, trigger-based automation workflows for email, SMS, and transactional messages
• Transactional email, reliable SMTP infrastructure for order confirmations, password resets, and notifications
• Live chat, add a website chat widget connected to the same contact database as your email list
• CRM, basic contact management, deal pipelines, and contact history
• AI subject line generator, AI-powered recommendations for subject lines based on past performance

Brevo vs. Mailchimp

Mailchimp charges per contact; Brevo charges per email sent. For businesses with large, infrequently-contacted lists, Brevo is significantly cheaper. For businesses sending to small, active lists weekly, Mailchimp’s pricing is often more predictable. Brevo’s multi-channel capability (email + SMS + WhatsApp) is also a differentiator for businesses that use all three channels.

Who Is Brevo Best For?

Businesses with large contact lists but low send frequency: seasonal retailers, event organizers, B2B companies sending monthly newsletters. E-commerce businesses using both email and SMS for marketing and transactional messages. SaaS and tech companies needing both marketing and transactional email infrastructure in one platform. Budget-conscious businesses that want multi-channel marketing without paying Klaviyo-level prices.

Pricing

• Free: 300 emails/day, unlimited contacts, basic templates, email support
• Starter: $9/month, 5,000 emails/month, no daily sending limit, email support
• Business: $18/month, 5,000 emails/month, marketing automation, A/B testing, phone support
• Enterprise: Custom pricing, volume discounts, dedicated IP, SLA
• SMS credits are purchased separately regardless of plan

Limitations

Daily send limit on the free plan (300/day) is restrictive for businesses with large lists; a 10,000-contact list takes over a month to email on the free plan. Automation workflows are less sophisticated than ActiveCampaign. E-commerce behavioral segmentation is not as deep as Klaviyo. The Brevo rebrand from Sendinblue has created some brand recognition confusion.

Verdict

Brevo is the best value platform for businesses that prioritize cost efficiency and multi-channel coverage over deep e-commerce automation. The per-send pricing model and unlimited contact storage make it uniquely suited for high-list-size, low-frequency senders. For e-commerce behavioral automation, Klaviyo is stronger; for simplicity, Mailchimp is easier.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Brevo the same as Sendinblue? Yes. Sendinblue rebranded to Brevo in 2023. The platform is the same product; only the name changed.

Is Brevo free? Yes, Brevo has a free plan with unlimited contacts and 300 emails per day. There is no contact limit on the free plan, which is unique in the industry.

How does Brevo’s pricing compare to Mailchimp? Brevo charges based on email volume (emails sent), while Mailchimp charges based on contact count. For businesses with large lists but low send frequency, Brevo is often significantly cheaper. For businesses with small, frequently-emailed lists, the difference is smaller.

Does Brevo support transactional emails? Yes. Brevo has dedicated transactional email infrastructure (SMTP and API) for order confirmations, password resets, and notifications, alongside its marketing email capabilities — both managed from the same platform.