In this paper, the hydromagnetic heat and mass transfer by mixed convection flow due to a vertical flat plate is considered for analysis. The governing equations are solved both analytically and numerically. The analytical solutions are obtained using the Homotopy Analysis Method (HAM) while the numerical solutions are computed using Keller–Box method (K–B). Convergence of the Homotopy solutions for the governing non-dimensional equations are derived. A detailed error analysis is done to compute the average squared residual errors for flow, temperature and concentration. The optimal values of the convergence control parameter are computed for velocity and temperature. This study includes the effects of various parameters such as magnetic parameter, Grashof number, chemical reaction parameter, heat source parameter and Biot number on skin friction, heat and mass transfer rates as well on velocity, temperature and concentration profiles. Comparison of the HAM and K–B methods shows a very good agreement