If you’re sending email marketing and newsletters in Canada, using a Canadian email provider rather than Mailchimp might be a smart choice.
Local platforms offer significant benefits compared to international options. They go beyond basic email campaigns by offering integrated SMS messaging, local customer service, and specialized features designed for Canadian businesses.
We’ll compare our software, Activity Messenger, against Mailchimp to help Canadian businesses choose the best option for compliant, feature-packed email marketing and communication tools that suit their needs.
Disclaimer: Activity Messenger is our software. We created it after experiencing the various shortcomings of existing club management software for years.
| Company | Key Features | Pros | Cons | Data Hosting | CASL Compliance | Bilingual Support | Pricing | Capterra Rating |
|
Mailchimp
|
Drag-and-drop email builder, templates, automation workflows, SMS marketing add-on, large integrations marketplace. | Mature ecosystem and integrations; advanced analytics and A/B/testing; large user base and many third-party plugins. | Contact-based pricing scales quickly; servers are in the U.S.; some advanced features and SMS require paid plans. | Primarily United States. | Offers tools and guidance for CASL; you must configure consent tracking and record keeping. | Supports multiple contact languages including French for forms, but full French support may be limited. | Tiered pricing based on contact count + features; SMS is an add-on/credits model. | 4.5 / 5 |
| Activity Messenger | All-in-one: drag-and-drop email builder, Canva integration, built-in SMS & bulk texting, registrations/ticketing, surveys, waivers, certificate automation, optimized for Canadian SMBs and rec programs. | Built for Canadian use cases, Canadian-based support, predictable flat-rate pricing tiers, integrated email + SMS + operational features (reduces need for multiple tools). | Smaller company vs global players, may require evaluation for high-volume enterprise deliverability needs. | Data hosted in Canada. | CASL-friendly with built-in consent management and Canadian legal considerations. | Fully bilingual support and bilingual features (forms, templates, and support materials). | Flat-rate monthly pricing tiers. Flat tiers and bundled SMS often make costs more predictable as lists grow. | 4.7 / 5 |
📌 Read More: 7 best email marketing tools for Canadian Businesses
Tools like Mailchimp store your information in the US. Their privacy is therefore governed by the American government, which has different standards from Canada.
Activity Messenger, like other Canadian email marketing platforms, stores all of your data in Canada. Hosting your data in Canada ensures that all the data privacy laws are respected.
Mailchimp offers minimal support to its customers; when you request customer support through the website, you are first redirected to their help center directory. You can utilize the live chat feature, but you must navigate through multiple AI-driven options before speaking with a representative. Plus, if you are on the free plan, you only receive email support for the first 30 days.
Activity Messenger offers unlimited support regardless of your plan. Additionally, all customer support is provided by Canadian-based experts, ready to assist you.
All Canadian email platforms, including Activity Messenger, are bilingual. All templates and features are available in both English and French. You don’t need to translate anything, unlike with Mailchimp, where you have to learn merge tags in order to translate from English to French.
Both tools feature drag-and-drop email builders and automation workflows, essential for any email marketing platform. Both platforms offer the ability to integrate with Canva directly, allowing you to design branded newsletters and marketing emails without leaving the app.
While Mailchimp offers many ready-to-use templates, Activity Messenger also provides a library of options, or you can build your own from scratch in just a few clicks.
Takeaway: Both make it easy to design; Activity Messenger adds the convenience of design and brand assets in one place with no additional paywalls.
Some newsletter systems are so advanced that they can be expensive and complex for SMBs without a dedicated email marketing team. Activity Messenger is easy to use and integrates Canva and ChatGPT within one platform.
Canva allows you to access your designs without leaving Activity Messenger. You won’t need to learn new tools or upload images; just upload your existing brand images for a cohesive look.
Marketing automation is another shared feature that enhances your email marketing. Activity Messenger and Mailchimp allow businesses to set up automated workflows based on triggers like customer actions or predefined conditions. However, depending on your plan, you may not have access to all marketing automation tools.
This feature helps you maintain consistent communication, whether it’s sending welcome emails to new subscribers, offering birthday discounts to loyal customers, or reaching out to inactive contacts.
Many organizations today send more than just marketing emails—they also send reminders, operational notices, or SMS updates.
Takeaway: If your communications include SMS, class reminders, or urgent notifications in addition to newsletters, Activity Messenger is stronger in this use case.
Managing your contacts and ensuring you send only to people who gave appropriate consent is critical — especially in Canada.
Takeaway: Both platforms support audience management, but Activity Messenger offers more tailored workflows for Canadian consent rules and operational messaging scenarios.
Understanding how your campaigns perform allows you to make data‑driven improvements.
Takeaway: While both platforms have good reporting, Activity Messenger’s strength is in combining multi‑channel (email + SMS) analytics for Canadian use‑cases.
Communicating with participants, clients, and their families is an important part of any organization. Activity Messenger allows more flexibility in your outreach. In some cases, texting/SMS has become the preferred method of communication between an organization and a client.
Imagine you need to reschedule or cancel an event, class or time at the last minute. Bulk SMS ensures that everyone receives the information in a timely manner. Plus, SMS has a 98% open rate, so you can be sure that your message will reach almost all recipients.
While Mailchimp does offer SMS marketing in Canada, it is only available as an add-on for plans of a certain tier or higher.
Key difference: For organizations that require more than email (especially in Canada), Activity Messenger supports a broader range of communication channels as an all-in-one.
Mailchimp and other tools are limited to marketing communications. Activity Messenger allows you to send communications other than marketing. What does that mean exactly?
Imagine you need to send an email reminder to everyone who has registered for an event a few days before the event. It takes a considerable amount of time to send a message to multiple people using Gmail or Outlook. Mailchimp will not send it to people who have unsubscribed (even if they registered for the activity).
Activity Messenger allows you to send non-marketing-related emails, including transactional and administrative messages (such as unsubscribes, changes, etc.). Even people who have unsubscribed from your marketing list can receive these emails if you so choose.
Key difference: If your organization blends marketing + operations + communications (not just marketing), Activity Messenger supports more integrated workflows.
Mailchimp pricing is based on the total number of contacts, which increases quickly. Activity Messenger has only three categories: less than 2,500, 5000, and 10,000. You’ll save money by switching to Activity Messenger, no matter which plan you choose.
Key difference: Predictability of cost and bundled value favours Activity Messenger for many Canadian SMBs.
💭 But Mailchimp has a free plan… True — but it limits you to 1,000 sends/month and customer service only for the first 30 days, with Mailchimp branding and no email automation. For most growing Canadian organizations, the “free” plan runs out fast.
Surveys
Registration platform
Digital signature
Bulk certificates
Online ticketing
SMS reminder
Activity Messenger is an all-in-one software with simple yet powerful features designed for Canadian SMBs and organizations.
💬 What our customers say:
“We have been working with Activity Messenger for almost two years now and we are so happy we were introduced to their product. We replaced both Mailchimp and Survey Monkey with Activity Messenger as well as continue to find new ways to utilize AM in our daily work. It’s such a robust and easy platform to use.” — Catherine D., Member Services Manager & Finance, Non-Profit Organization Management
“This product allows me to send email and/or SMS messages, saves me money and is significantly easier to use than the competitors. I can create, copy, modify and send newsletters and automated messages in minutes where Constant Contact takes hours. Sending SMS messages opens a whole new world with instant response.” — Duncan M., Manager, Recreational Facilities and Services
Mailchimp 2025 Updates:
Activity Messenger 2025 Updates:
📌 Read More: Want even more Canadian alternatives? Make the switch from Jotform, Jackrabbit, iClassPro, Constant Contact, Eventbrite, and SurveyMonkey using these articles as guides.
This depends on your specific needs. While Mailchimp is popular, there are Canadian alternatives like Activity Messenger that offer specialized features catering to different types of businesses.
Mailchimp primarily uses servers based in the U.S., which may have implications for users with data sovereignty concerns in Canada.
Canadian alternatives like Activity Messenger might offer better data privacy, comply with local regulations, and understand the unique needs of Canadian businesses.
Yes, many Canadian-based platforms offer free tiers, similar to Mailchimp, which can be ideal for smaller businesses and startups.
Consider features such as ease of use, pricing, data privacy, integrations, customer support, and the ability to comply with email marketing regulations like CASL.
CASL requires businesses to obtain explicit consent before sending commercial electronic messages, making it crucial to choose a platform that simplifies compliance.
Most alternatives offer import tools, allowing you to migrate your email lists from Mailchimp or other platforms easily.
Some Canadian platforms cater to the bilingual nature of Canada by offering support in both languages, making it easier for customers.
Many Canadian platforms offer integrations with popular tools like CRM software, analytics, and social media, enhancing the overall marketing experience.
Not necessarily, but combining email and SMS on a single platform typically increases efficiency (single contact database, unified analytics, and one billing) and reduces integration issues. For Canadian organizations, bundling email and SMS in a platform built for Canada means less setup, easier compliance, and direct vendor support versus managing separate tools.
Canadian email marketing platforms like Activity Messenger offer more than just email campaigns—they’re comprehensive communication solutions built with Canadian regulations and business needs in mind. Here are compelling reasons to make the switch:
💡 Ready to switch to a Canadian email marketing platform that ensures compliance and supports your growth? Book a demo with Activity Messenger to see how Canadian alternatives can streamline your marketing while keeping your data secure and compliant.
