Mailchimp → Kit

Plan mapping at the entry paid tier

The lowest non-free, non-custom tier on each side. Use this for the "if I'm on $X with Mailchimp, what's the equivalent on Kit?" gut check.

Step-by-step migration

1. 01

   Export your list from Mailchimp

   Pull a fresh CSV of every active subscriber. Capture the fields you actually use downstream: email is required, name is standard, signup date and tier (free/paid) are useful when Mailchimp provides them.

2. 02

   Provision Kit

   Sign up, set sender identity, and verify your sending domain (DKIM, SPF, DMARC). Do this before importing the list; sending from an unverified domain is the single fastest way to land in spam at the moment of cutover.

3. 03

   Import the list and map fields

   Upload the CSV. Map email + name + any custom fields. Decide whether to import as one list or split into segments/tags. Mailchimp-style organization rarely maps 1:1, so plan the split before the upload, not after.

4. 04

   Rebuild automations and templates

   Kit's automation builder is structurally similar but won't import Mailchimp's flows directly. Rebuild only what you actively use; the move is a chance to delete the unused ones rather than lift-and-shift dead infrastructure.

5. 05

   Send a test broadcast

   Pick a small segment and send a real broadcast (not just a preview). Verify deliverability, link clicks, and unsubscribe flow. If anything's off, you find it before the announcement, not after.

6. 06

   Announce the move and cut over

   Send your last broadcast from Mailchimp announcing the new sender domain and what to expect. Cut over DNS and sending from Kit on the same day, not staggered. A dual-send week creates more confusion than it prevents.

Mailchimp-to-Kit specific gotchas

Universal steps cover most of the work. These are the failure modes unique to this exact pair.

• #1

  Mailchimp audiences map to Kit's tag-based model, not to a list. If you have multiple audiences, decide whether to consolidate into one Kit account with tags, or split across accounts. Tag organization is cleaner long-term but the consolidation step is the slowest part of the move.

• #2

  Mailchimp merge fields (FNAME, LNAME, etc.) need to be re-mapped to Kit custom fields. Export the field list from Mailchimp first; re-create in Kit before the import so subscriber data lands cleanly.

• #3

  Mailchimp's customer-journey automations don't import. Rebuild only the flows you actively use; the move is a chance to delete the dead ones rather than recreate every branch you've ever touched.

• #4

  If you sell physical products, Kit's commerce is digital-only. Keep Stripe/Shopify for the physical side and use Kit purely for the email + digital-product side.

Common questions

Is Kit cheaper than Mailchimp?

Both start at the same headline price (Free). The reason to migrate is the pricing model and feature scope, not the entry-tier number.

Will I lose subscribers in the move?

Email lists transfer as raw addresses; subscriber relationships transfer with you because the addresses haven't changed. What you can lose: re-engagement (some readers won't notice the new sender domain immediately), paid subscriptions if Mailchimp handles billing differently from Kit (the gotchas above call out the specific cases), and any "engagement" or warmth signals that Mailchimp's deliverability inferred from your sending history. Plan a clear announcement and a deliverability warm-up week.

How long does the migration take?

For a list under 10,000 subscribers, a clean migration is one focused week: domain setup and verification, list import, automation rebuild, test broadcast, announcement, cutover. Larger lists or complex automations can stretch to 2 or 3 weeks. The constraint is rarely the import itself; it's the deliverability warm-up and the time to rebuild flows you actually depend on.

Are Mailchimp and Kit direct competitors?

Yes. Both are primarily email marketing tools, which is why this is a defensible head-to-head migration rather than a cross-category consolidation.

Where can I see Mailchimp vs Kit side-by-side?

The /compare/kit-vs-mailchimp page on TierGauge shows side-by-side plans, headline pricing, included features, and limit comparison at the entry paid tier. This migration guide is the long-form decision narrative; the compare page is the data-only dashboard.