Buttondown
Email Marketing
Newsletters for writers and indie hackers.
Buttondown is a minimal, Markdown-friendly newsletter tool with paid subscriptions.
Visit Buttondown Compare head to headWhy teams switch
The pain
Mailchimp: Prices tied to contact count, including contacts you never email.
The upgrade
- Markdown editor
- Paid newsletters
- API
- Privacy-friendly
Trade-offs
- Smaller ecosystem of integrations and add-ons than Mailchimp.
- Fewer enterprise compliance certifications and admin controls in most cases.
Savings calculator
Team size: 25 seats
Estimated yearly savings
$2,100
$3,900 on Mailchimp vs $1,800 on Buttondown — 54% less. Prices are editable estimates.
How to migrate
From Mailchimp to Buttondown
- Export. Export your audience as CSV (keep tags and consent status) and save email templates as HTML.
- Set up Buttondown. Create your workspace and invite one or two people to pilot it first.
- Import. Bring your data in using Buttondown's import tools, starting with what your team uses daily.
- Switch over. Warm up the new sending domain and re-authenticate SPF/DKIM before your first big send. Then invite the rest of the team and cancel Mailchimp at the end of your billing period.
How it compares
| Tool | Pricing | Self-host | Best for | Highlights |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beehiiv | Freemium | Growing newsletters | Referral program · Ad network · Websites | |
| Buttondown | Freemium | Writers | Markdown editor · Paid newsletters · API | |
| Kit | Freemium | Creators | Visual automations · Landing pages · Commerce | |
| Listmonk | Open source | High-volume senders | Self-hosted · Millions of subscribers · Templates | |
| Loops | Freemium | SaaS startups | Transactional + marketing · Event-based loops · Clean editor |