Brevo — Independent Software Review

One AI-powered customer platform for all your marketing and sales needs.

Compliance Transparency Index

Grade: A — Score: 88/100

Best For

Not Ideal For

Operational Overview

Brevo leverages advanced technology to provide a comprehensive marketing solution that integrates email, SMS, and CRM functionalities. The platform utilizes AI to optimize campaigns, ensuring high deliverability and engagement rates.

With an intuitive workflow, users can easily launch marketing campaigns using ready-made templates and guided automation. The drag-and-drop editor allows for quick design, while advanced segmentation features enable targeted messaging to specific audience segments.

However, businesses must consider potential risks such as reliance on a single platform for multiple functions, which may lead to challenges if the service experiences downtime or if there are changes in pricing structures.

Pricing Structure

Free: €0 forever (300 emails/day)

Starter: €6.33/mo billed yearly, €7/mo monthly (5,000 emails/mo)

Standard: €13.50/mo billed yearly, €15/mo monthly (5,000 emails/mo)

Professional: €449.08/mo billed yearly, €499/mo monthly (150,000 emails/mo)

Enterprise: Custom (1M+ contacts, quote only)

Alternative Consideration

Consider switching to Mailchimp: Mailchimp offers similar features with a strong focus on email marketing and a larger user base.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Brevo the same company as Sendinblue?

Yes. Brevo rebranded from Sendinblue in March 2023 but the legal entity is still Sendinblue SAS, headquartered in Paris, France. The rebrand reflected the product's evolution from an email tool into a full marketing, sales, and CRM platform. Customer accounts, data, and pricing history carried over without interruption.

What are the limits of Brevo's free plan?

The Free plan caps at 300 email sends per day with no monthly roll-over, and includes up to 100,000 stored contacts, one user, and Brevo branding on every email. Marketing automation, web tracking, and the AI content generator are included. The plan has no time limit and requires no credit card, but A/B testing, landing pages, and branding removal require a paid plan.

How does Brevo pricing compare to Mailchimp?

Brevo charges by emails sent per month while Mailchimp charges by contacts stored. For a list of 10,000 lightly-engaged contacts sending weekly, Brevo's Standard at €13.50/mo annual beats Mailchimp's Standard at roughly $35/mo, and the gap widens past 10,000 contacts. Mailchimp wins on template polish, predictive CLV analytics, and deliverability benchmarks (92.6% vs 74.7% in independent tests), so high-revenue ecommerce brands often still pay the premium.

Does Brevo include transactional email or is it a separate product?

Transactional email is included on every Brevo plan including Free, with RESTful APIs, SMTP relay, outbound webhooks, and unlimited log retention. Mailchimp charges extra for this through Mandrill, in 25,000-email blocks at $20 each that expire after a month. If your business relies on password resets, order confirmations, or shipping notifications alongside marketing campaigns, Brevo consolidates both in one bill.

Is Brevo SOC 2 certified?

No. Brevo's Terms of Service explicitly state the company does not hold any certification beyond what is listed on the site, and currently lists only ISO 27001:2022. Third-party comparison sites sometimes claim SOC 2 compliance but this contradicts Brevo's own legal disclosure. For procurement teams that require a SOC 2 Type II report, Brevo is not a fit, which is the main reason we scored 88 instead of 100.

Can Brevo be used for HIPAA-compliant healthcare email?

No. Brevo's Terms of Service explicitly disclaim use in industries governed by HIPAA or FISMA, and state that use of the Services in these contexts is at the customer's own risk. Healthcare organizations handling protected health information should use a HIPAA-compliant provider like Mailgun or Paubox instead. This is a hard boundary written into Brevo's contract, not a soft recommendation.

Where does Brevo store customer data?

Brevo hosts data across three geographically distinct servers and is GDPR-compliant with infrastructure primarily in the European Union. The company is ISO 27001:2022 certified and supports CCPA, CASL, and double opt-in workflows. Data is deleted immediately and permanently on account termination unless the customer requests a 24-hour extension to export it.

Does Brevo use customer data to train AI models?

Brevo's Terms of Service Section 6.7 state the company may use Content and Usage Data to train its AI Features, but limits the purpose to improving the Services and detecting fraud, phishing, and spam. Most AI Features can be disabled via the Control Center, which effectively opts accounts out of training for those components, though fraud and spam detection remain always-on. Customers retain all ownership rights in Inputs and own all Outputs produced by AI Features.

How much does Brevo's affiliate program pay?

Brevo runs its affiliate program through PartnerStack, paying $5 for every free account referred and $100 for every paying customer, with a 90-day cookie window. Payouts happen monthly via PayPal or Stripe with a $5 minimum threshold. Agency partners earn 10% recurring commission for 24 months on client referrals, with higher rates negotiable for qualified partners.

Can Brevo replace Klaviyo for Shopify stores?

Brevo Professional at €449.08/mo annual offers email, SMS, WhatsApp, and transactional sending for Shopify stores with a native app and unlimited contacts scaled on email volume. Klaviyo starts at roughly $45/mo for 1,500 profiles and wins on predictive analytics, revenue attribution, and shopping-behavior segmentation built for high-AOV DTC. Brevo is the better value for multichannel generalist needs or large lists sending infrequently; Klaviyo is the better fit for pure ecommerce optimization and brands sending daily campaigns.