Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 2, 2026

Ben Chestnut

Ben Chestnut is an American Internet entrepreneur. He is the co-founder and former CEO of Mailchimp, an email marketing company. As of November 2022, his net worth was estimated at US$4.1 billion.

Last revised
Jul 2, 2026
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≈ 2 min
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Wikipedia ↗
Ben Chestnut
Chestnut in 2019
Born1973 or 1974 (age 51–52)1
Augusta, Georgia, US
EducationUniversity of Georgia
Georgia Institute of Technology
OccupationInternet entrepreneur
Known forCo-founder and former CEO of Mailchimp
Children2

Ben Chestnut (born 1973/1974) is an American Internet entrepreneur. He is the co-founder (with Dan Kurzius) and former CEO of Mailchimp, an email marketing company.234 As of November 2022, his net worth was estimated at US$4.1 billion.1

Early life

Ben Chestnut was born and raised in Augusta, Georgia5 and attended high school in Hephzibah, Georgia. He studied physics at the University of Georgia and industrial design at the Georgia Institute of Technology.6

Career

He is the co-founder and former CEO of Rocket Science Group,7 commonly known as Mailchimp68 a CRM with 11 million users.9 In 2016, he was recognized as Ernst & Young's Entrepreneur of the Year.10 According to Atlanta Business Chronicle, in August 2017, Chestnut was awarded "Most Admired CEO".11 In October 2018, Forbes noted that Chestnut was a billionaire.12 In August 2022, Chestnut abruptly stepped down as CEO one month after sending a nearly 1,400-word email to a small group of employees identifying what he considered an alarming trend in his workforce: new hires introducing themselves in virtual meetings with their preferred pronouns.13

Personal life

Chestnut is married, with two children, and lives in Atlanta, Georgia.114

Reference

  1. "Forbes profile: Ben Chestnut". Forbes. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  2. Carney, Michael (2012-11-30). "Attention founders: Here's how you respond to an unfair post about your company". PandoDaily. Archived from the original on 2013-06-05. Retrieved 2013-06-17.
  3. "Interview with Mailchimp co-founder and CEO Ben Chestnut". DoesWhat. 2012-09-26. Archived from the original on 2013-06-25. Retrieved 2013-06-17.
  4. Schultz, Ray. "Ben Chestnut Stepping Down As Mailchimp CEO". www.mediapost.com. Retrieved 2026-02-11.
  5. Atlanta Biz Journals.
  6. "Case Study: Co-Founder Ben Chestnut Talks About MailChimp – Worth Of Web Academy". worthofweb.com. 17 November 2012. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  7. "Interview with ben chestnut (mailchimp) – Does What". doeswhat.com. 26 September 2012. Archived from the original on 15 October 2018. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  8. Kruppa, Miles (17 September 2021). "Ben Chestnut and Dan Kurzius, the men who made MailChimp". Financial Times. Retrieved 2026-03-11.
  9. "Mailchimp, Klaviyo, and HubSpot: See how we compare". Mailchimp. Retrieved 27 January 2026.
  10. Kim, Larry (2019-04-10). "10 Fascinating Facts About Mailchimp CEO Ben Chestnut". Inc.com. Retrieved 2020-05-19.
  11. "Most Admired CEO Awards (Sold Out)". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2017-10-11.
  12. "The New Atlanta Billionaires Behind An Unlikely Tech Unicorn". Forbes. 2018-10-08. Retrieved 2019-02-19.
  13. Schiffer, Zoë (20 October 2022). "Did this email cost Mailchimp's billionaire CEO his job?". www.platformer.news. Retrieved 2023-11-26.
  14. Countryman, Vanessa. "Forbes list of the 400 richest people in America 2025: Meet the 10 from Georgia". Savannah Morning News. Retrieved 2026-03-11.