Do you want to learn how to create a Mailchimp subscribe form in WordPress? Adding a Mailchimp signup form to WordPress is a great way to grow your email marketing list and build a bigger following.
In this article, we’ll show you how to create a Mailchimp subscribe form in WordPress.
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In This Article
- Does Mailchimp Have a Form Builder?
- Step 1: Install and Activate the WPForms Plugin
- Step 2: Install and Activate the Mailchimp Addon
- Step 3: Create a Mailchimp Signup Form in WordPress
- Step 4: Connect Your Form to Mailchimp
- Step 5: Configure Your Subscribe Form Notifications
- Step 6: Configure Your Subscribe Form Confirmations
- Step 7: Embed Mailchimp Signup Form in WordPress
Does Mailchimp Have a Form Builder?
Mailchimp has a form builder that lets you create signup forms from your Mailchimp dashboard. However, this form builder is fairly basic and offers only limited features.
In contrast, a dedicated form builder like WPForms comes with an extensive set of features that enable you to design easy-to-use and high-converting forms.
Plus, you can change the layout of your forms and even create embeddable lead forms that show only one field at a time in a stylish format to maximize lead generation and signups.
WPForms also integrates natively with Mailchimp, so you can easily use powerful WPForms features to capture leads and send your data to Mailchimp. For this reason, we strongly recommend using WPForms to embed Mailchimp forms on your site.
Create a Mailchimp Subscribe Form in WordPress
Just follow the step-by-step tutorial below to embed a Mailchimp signup form on your WordPress site.
Step 1: Install and Activate the WPForms Plugin
The first thing you’ll need to do is install and activate the WPForms plugin. For more details, see this step-by-step guide on how to install a plugin in WordPress.
Step 2: Install and Activate the Mailchimp Addon
Next, we need to activate the WPForms Mailchimp addon. Go to WPForms » Addons and find the Mailchimp Addon.
Install and activate the Mailchimp Addon.
Step 3: Create a Mailchimp Signup Form in WordPress
Once your WPForms Mailchimp addon is active, go to WPForms » Add New to create a new form.
On the setup screen, name your form and select the Newsletter Signup Form template.
WPForms will create a simple newsletter signup form.
Here, you can add additional fields by dragging them from the left-hand panel to the right-hand panel.
Then, click on the field to make any changes. You can also click on a form field and drag it to rearrange the order on your Mailchimp subscribe form.
One of the most important form fields to consider adding to your Mailchimp signup form is the GDPR Agreement field.
This form field helps you create GDPR compliant forms by giving your site visitors an explicit way to agree to storing their personal information and sending them email marketing materials.
Keep in mind that all you have to do is click on the form field to change the default language the GDPR form field has.
In order to use the GDPR form field, you’ll need to go to WPForms » Settings and click on the GDPR Enhancements checkbox.
By doing this, you’ll enable the GDPR enhancement features WPForms has available for you to make complying with GDPR that much easier.
In fact, you’ll be able to:
- Disable user cookies
- Disable user details, which includes IP addresses and User Agent data
- Access the GDPR form field for your WordPress forms
Once you’re done customizing your form, click Save.
Now, we’ll take a look at how to configure the Mailchimp settings so you can connect your signup form to your newsletter service.
Step 4: Connect Your Form to Mailchimp
To connect your newsletter signup form to Mailchimp, go to Marketing » Mailchimp.
Next, click Add New Connection.
A box will pop up asking you to add the Mailchimp API key and Account Nickname.
You can get your Mailchimp API key by signing in to your Mailchimp account. Copy-paste your Mailchimp API Key in the required field.
Enter account name as per your choice, since this is for your reference only, and click on the Add button.
After clicking, one more pop will appear asking to Enter a connection nickname. Here also you can add any name as per your choice.
After you enter your connection name, a new window will appear. Here you can:
- Select your Mailchimp account
- Pick the email list you want people to be added to when they subscribe
- Click on the Email Address dropdown and any other form fields you want to be added to your Mailchimp account when someone subscribes
- Enable conditional logic if it applies to your form
- Enable the double opt-in option if you want
- Mark subscribers as VIP
- Update the profile if this contact is already in an audience
- Notify users that they are already subscribed
If you’re interested in letting your site visitors pick the mailing list they want to join, check out our helpful guide on how to let users pick a Mailchimp list.
After configuring these settings, click Save.
Step 5: Configure Your Subscribe Form Notifications
Notifications are a great way to send an email whenever your subscribe form is submitted on your website.
You can send an email to yourself, which WPForms does automatically unless you disable form notifications.
You can also send a notification to a member of your team by adding their email to the Send to Email Address field.
In addition, if you use smart tags, you can even send a form notification to your site visitor to let them know their form has been received.
For help with this step, check out our documentation on how to set up form notifications in WordPress.
Step 6: Configure Your Subscribe Form Confirmations
Confirmations are a great way to let your site visitors know immediately that their form has been submitted.
WPForms lets you choose from 3 types of confirmations:
- Message. This confirmation type will display a simple message once a site visitor submits their form, letting them know their form has been processed.
- Show Page. This confirmation type will take site visitors to a specific web page on your web page. For help with this step, check out our tutorial on redirecting site visitors to a thank you page, as well as our guide to creating effective Thank You pages.
- Go to URL (Redirect). This last confirmation type will send site visitors to a different website.
For step-by-step instructions, check out this documentation on setting up form confirmations.
Step 7: Embed Mailchimp Signup Form in WordPress
After you’ve created your Mailchimp subscribe form, you need to add it to your site.
WPForms allows you to add your forms in several locations, including your blog posts, pages, and even as a sidebar widget.
Click on the Embed button on the top-right of your form builder.
Now, WPForms will ask you if you want to embed your form to a new page or within an existing page. For this tutorial, we’ll select Create New Page.
When you click on this button, WPForms will ask you to enter a name for your new page. Enter a name and then press Let’s Go.
WPForms will then take you to your WordPress page editor window, where you’ll find your Mailchimp form already embedded.
When you’re ready, press Publish to take our page with the Mailchimp form live.
This is how your Mailchimp Subscribe Form will look on your website.
And there you have it! You now know how to create a Mailchimp subscribe form in WordPress to help build yourself a bigger email list and grow your business
Next, Explore More Mailchimp Integrations
You’ve already integrated Mailchimp with WPForms using the steps above. You can improve your marketing workflows even further by using these Mailchimp integrations.
If you want a way to boost form conversions and encourage more site visitors to subscribe to your email list, consider delivering a content upgrade to subscribers in exchange for their email address.
You might also want to read some other Mailchimp related posts we’ve written:
- WPForms vs Mailchimp Form Builder: Which One Should You Use?
- 5 Mailchimp Alternatives That Are More Powerful (+Better Support)
So, what are you waiting for? Get started with the most powerful WordPress forms plugin today.
And don’t forget, if you like this article, then please follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
I’d like to try WPFprms lite but comes up with this page not found when I enter the WordPress website in the box. Any idea what I’m doing wrong please?
Thanks
Hi Morag! I apologize, but I’m not sure I understood the issue that you’re facing.
Could you please reach out and contact us with more details about the issue that you’re experiencing?
Thanks!
Hello,
I need to know if your MailChimp Addon will meet my specific requirements:
My newsletter subscription form will allow subscribers to select multiple newsletters (up to 4). The form will look something like this:
Name: _____________________ Email: __________________________
Newsletter Type: ____ HTML _____ Text (Radio button)
Newsletter Subscriptions
____ No ____ Yes Community Events Newsletter
____ No ____ Yes Town Board Minutes Newsletter
____ No ____ Yes Recreation Newsletter
____ No ____ Yes Emergency Alerts Newsletter
Submit
So, since a subscriber can choose up to FOUR different newsletters to subscribe to on one form, will your MailChimp Addon collect the information necessary, and pass that information to MailChimp in a format that will allow MailChimp to send out multiple emails (with attached PDF newsletter files, or at least links to those PDF newsletters)?
Also, will the HTML/Text option selection be passed to MailChimp?
If so, will MailChimp be able to automatically distinguish which subscribers receive the HTML version of the email vs. the Text version of the email?
Hoping this can all be automated using your MailChimp Addon and MailChimp.
Thank you.
Hi Larry,
Conditional logic allows you to set rules for events based on users’ selections or input in their form entries. For example, you could use conditional logic to allow users to choose if they’d like to join your mailing list or which Groups they’d like to be in.
Unfortunately, the HTML Fields cannot be sent to the MailChimp account from WPForms as HTML Field is not a input field.
Also, we do not have an inbuilt feature to distinguish between the HTML version vs Plain Text email.
In case it helps, here is a complete guide on the MailChimp addon.
Hope this helps! 🙂