Shopolo vs Mailchimp

Mailchimp alternative that also sells
gift cards and builds your list for you

Mailchimp is email-only. You have to build your contact list yourself. Shopolo automatically builds your customer list from every gift card purchase, loyalty sign-up, and booking — then lets you email them all from the same dashboard.

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FeatureShopoloMailchimp
Email campaignsIncluded — send to your full customer listYes — core feature. Free up to 500 contacts, then $13–$350/mo
Customer list buildingAuto-built from gift card buyers, loyalty members, bookingsManual import or third-party integrations required
Digital gift cardsIncludedNot available
Loyalty programIncludedNot available
Appointment bookingIncludedNot available
Online ordering0% commissionNot available
Table reservationsIncludedNot available
Transactional emailsGift card delivery, booking confirmationsYes, via Mandrill (separate pricing)
AutomationSimple — send to list, targeted sendsAdvanced automations and flows

Pricing sourced from public Mailchimp and Shopolo plan pages. Subject to change.

The real problem: Mailchimp can't build your list for you

Mailchimp needs contacts. Shopolo creates them.

To use Mailchimp effectively, you need a contact list. That means asking customers to sign up, collecting emails manually, or running contests. Shopolo automatically adds every gift card buyer, loyalty sign-up, and appointment booking to your customer list — no extra steps.

Mailchimp is email-only. Shopolo is email + everything else.

With Mailchimp you pay for email software. With Shopolo you get email campaigns, gift cards, loyalty stamps, appointment booking, online ordering, table reservations, and a customer CRM — all in one platform, all included in your monthly plan.

Mailchimp scales with list size. Shopolo scales with your business.

Mailchimp charges more as your contact list grows — $13/mo for 500 contacts, up to $350/mo+ for larger lists. Shopolo's pricing is flat per plan, not per contact. As your customer list grows, your Shopolo bill doesn't automatically go up.

When Mailchimp is the right choice

Mailchimp is the right choice when email marketing is your primary need and you need advanced automation — multi-step drip sequences, A/B testing subject lines, complex segmentation. If you're running a digital-first brand with thousands of subscribers and sophisticated flows, Mailchimp's depth is valuable. For a local service business that just wants to email 200–2,000 customers with promotions and gift card campaigns, Shopolo's included email tool is simpler and more cost-effective.

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Try Shopolo free for 30 days

No hardware. No setup fees. Gift cards, loyalty, email, and more — live in under 10 minutes.

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