How to migrate from Mailchimp to beehiiv

In order to successfully migrate from Mailchimp to beehiiv, you’ll need to do 2 things:

• Migrate your subscribers 
• Migrate your newsletter content

You can follow the step-by-step instructions for each below.

Subscriber Migration

Export your subscribers from Mailchimp

1. Log into your Mailchimp account.
   
   
2. Navigate to Audience > All contacts.
   
   
   
   
   
   
3. Here, you will see all of your contacts. Click on the Export Audience button to begin the process.
   
   
   
   
   
   
4. After clicking, you will be taken to the Audience exports area, select the audience list and click the Export as CSV option.
   
   
   
   
   
   Note: Depending on how many subscribers you're exporting, it may take several minutes to receive the export email.
5. Check the email of the account owner to retrieve the download link to the exported CSV file.

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Import your subscribers to beehiiv

Before you import the exported Mailchimp CSV file into beehiiv, it is best practice to look through the data and clean up any fields that are not applicable anymore.

1. Open the exported Mailchimp CSV file and review the header, or top row, information.
   For easier mapping during the import, you’ll want to make sure the header fields use the same names as the tags and custom fields that you’ll be using in beehiiv, and remove any data that you don’t plan to use.
   
   
   
   
   
   
2. From the left panel Dashboard, scroll down to Settings, then click on the Subscribers Import tab.
   
   
3. Depending on  the amount of subscribers you need to import, you’ll choose accordingly. 
   • If you're importing more than 10 subscribers into beehiiv, you'll first need to complete Stripe Identity Verification to verify your identity.
     • You can do so by going to Settings > Subscribers Import, and then click on the Start Stripe Identity Verification button. After you have completed the Stripe verification process, click on the Start New Import button.
   • If you’d like to import more than 10,000 subscribers, you’ll need to complete the Stripe verification process as outlined above, then fill out a form to submit.
     • You can access the form by going to Settings > Subscribers Import, then navigate to Request to raise your import limit and click on Open request form.
       (You can also refer to this article on why we set import limits.)
       
       
       
       
       
       
4. After clicking on the Start Import button, you’ll be prompted to choose an import method. Select Upload a CSV file and then choose the CSV file that you want to import.
   
   
   
   
   
   If you have a welcome email setup or an active automation, you can choose those options or leave them blank. You can also select or skip the email validation.
   
   
5. Review your selections and click on Import Subscribers.
   
   
6. A confirmation message will pop up where you will need to confirm that the contacts in the list have knowingly opted-in to receiving emails from you. Click on Import to confirm.
   
   
   
   
   
   
7. Next, you’ll be able to start mapping out the fields (or tags) from the CSV file as custom fields within beehiiv.
   
   
   
   
   
   
8. When done making your selections, click on the Import button.
   
   
9. Once completed, you will see how many subscribers were accepted lower down on the page under Historical Imports.
   
   
   
   
   
   
10. You can then view the subscribers by navigating to the Audience section of your account.
    
    
    
    
    
    
11. To see the newly imported custom fields, click on an individual subscriber’s name and navigate to the Custom Fields section.
    
    
    

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Content Migration

Migrate your newsletter content from Mailchimp to beehiiv

We’ve created an easy-to-use tool* for importing your Mailchimp newsletter content that you can access directly from your beehiiv account.

1. Log into your beehiiv account and from the left panel Dashboard, scroll down and select  Settings.
   
   
2. From the Settings panel, click on Content Import. In the Content Import section, click Start Import.
   
   
   
   
   
   
3. In the Content Location section, select Mailchimp from the Import from dropdown options. Click Next to continue.
   
   
   
   
   
   
4. From the Connect your Mailchimp account section, click Connect to Mailchimp.
   
   
   
   
   
   
5. This will take you to a Mailchimp authorization page. Log into your Mailchimp account and once you are done, you'll receive a success message.
   
   
   
   
   
   
6. Back at your beehiiv account, reselect Mailchimp from the Import from dropdown options and click Next.
   
   
7. Your Mailchimp account will be presented, ensure it is correct and then click Next. Otherwise, click Connect another account to reopen Mailchimp and select another. 

   
   

   
   
   
   

8. In the Select Folders section, choose All campaigns to import them all, or select Customized by campaign folders and then make your folder selections. Click on the Save button to complete the process.

   
   
   
   
   
   
9. You’ll receive a quick success message at the top of your screen. Under Historical Imports, you’ll see that your import is Pending. Once done, it will show as Complete and the imported content will be accessible in the Posts section of your account.
   
   
   

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Known Limitations*

In our commitment to ensuring a seamless migration process, it's essential to acknowledge specific constraints while transferring content from Mailchimp to beehiiv. Our content importers, although considered advantageous features, typically function effectively for the majority of our customers. Yet, achieving complete accuracy poses challenges due to the dynamic nature of third-party platforms, often subject to changes beyond beehiiv's control.

Efforts to streamline the transition from previous platforms to beehiiv are ongoing. However, it's pertinent to note that our current Mailchimp importer is optimized for Mailchimp version 2022 and later, which may present limitations in some instances.

Use a beehiiv services partner

You always have the option to access our internal services partner to help you and your team with any migration efforts to beehiiv.  

Please fill out this services form for assistance.