Top 6 MailerLite Alternatives in 2026
MailerLite keeps things light. Senders leave when they need advanced segmentation, a CRM or ecommerce features it does not offer. Paid plans start at $10.80/mo for 500 subscribers. 2 of the 6 tools below start cheaper. Mailchimp ($13/mo) is the familiar all-rounder, priced by audience size. Brevo ($8.08/mo) charges by emails sent instead of contacts stored, and adds SMS and transactional email. ConvertKit ($33/mo) is built for creators, with tagging, simple automations and ways to sell to an audience.
01Quick Comparison
| Tool | Entry price | Free plan | Value score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mailchimp | $13/mo | Yes | 4.5/5 |
| Brevo | $8.08/mo | Yes | 4.7/5 |
| ConvertKit | $33/mo | Yes | 4.1/5 |
| ActiveCampaign | $15/mo | No | 4.2/5 |
| Klaviyo | $20/mo | Yes | 4.3/5 |
| Constant Contact | $10.20/mo | No | 4.2/5 |
| MailerLite (current) | $10.80/mo | Yes | 4.6/5 |
02The Alternatives
Mailchimp
From$13/moValue score4.5/5
Compared with MailerLite: Starts at $13/mo, $2.20 a month more than MailerLite; its free plan allows 250 contacts and 500 sends a month.
Mailchimp is the email tool most small businesses try first. It covers campaigns, templates, basic automation, landing pages and forms, and connects to almost everything. It is a generalist: good at getting a newsletter out, less convincing once you need advanced automation, and priced by the size of your audience.
- Best for
- SMBs that want a familiar general-purpose email platform
- Pricing
- Essentials plan, billed monthly, 500 contacts at this price. Free plan: 250 contacts and 500 sends a month.
- Key features
- Email campaigns and templates, Audience segmentation, Marketing automation journeys
Where it falls short: The price rises with every contact you add, the free plan is small, and automation is shallower than in specialist tools.
Mailchimp plans and pricing Mailchimp vs MailerLite in detail Visit Mailchimp
Brevo
From$8.08/moValue score4.7/5
Compared with MailerLite: Starts at $8.08/mo, $2.72 a month less than MailerLite; its free plan allows 300 emails a day.
Brevo, formerly Sendinblue, combines email campaigns with SMS, WhatsApp, transactional email and a light CRM. Its pricing is based on how many emails you send, not on how many contacts you store, which favors large lists that are mailed occasionally. The free plan caps daily sends instead of list size.
- Best for
- SMBs that want email, SMS, and transactional messaging in one tool
- Pricing
- Starter plan, billed annually ($9 billed monthly), from 5,000 emails per month. Free plan: 300 emails a day.
- Key features
- Email campaigns and automation, Transactional email, SMS marketing
Where it falls short: Templates and reporting are plainer than Mailchimp’s, and the free plan’s daily cap limits how many people you can reach at once.
Brevo plans and pricing Brevo vs MailerLite in detail Visit Brevo
ConvertKit
From$33/moValue score4.1/5
Compared with MailerLite: Starts at $33/mo, $22.20 a month more than MailerLite; its free plan allows up to 10,000 subscribers.
ConvertKit, now called Kit, is email marketing for creators: writers, podcasters, course sellers and newsletter operators. Subscribers are organized with tags instead of lists, automations are drawn as simple visual flows, and you can sell digital products and paid subscriptions from the same account. Emails are plain and text-first by intent.
- Best for
- Creators and newsletter businesses focused on audience building
- Pricing
- Creator plan, billed annually ($39 billed monthly), 1,000 subscribers at this price. Free plan: up to 10,000 subscribers.
- Key features
- Visual automations, Landing pages and forms, Creator commerce tools
Where it falls short: Design options and reporting are limited, and it is not built for stores or sales teams.
ConvertKit plans and pricing ConvertKit vs MailerLite in detail Visit ConvertKit
ActiveCampaign
From$15/moValue score4.2/5
Compared with MailerLite: Starts at $15/mo, $4.20 a month more than MailerLite; unlike MailerLite, it has no free plan.
ActiveCampaign is an automation tool that also sends email. Its visual builder handles branching logic, lead scoring, site tracking and conditional content, and a sales CRM can be added on. It asks for more learning than its simpler rivals and repays it for businesses whose marketing depends on timing and behavior.
- Best for
- Businesses that prioritize automation and segmentation
- Pricing
- Starter plan, billed annually ($19 billed monthly), 1,000 contacts at this price.
- Key features
- Advanced automations, Segmentation and personalization, Built-in CRM
Where it falls short: There is no free plan, the learning curve is real, and the cost climbs with both contacts and tier.
ActiveCampaign plans and pricing ActiveCampaign vs MailerLite in detail Visit ActiveCampaign
Klaviyo
From$20/moValue score4.3/5
Compared with MailerLite: Starts at $20/mo, $9.20 a month more than MailerLite; its free plan allows up to 250 active profiles and 500 sends a month.
Klaviyo is built for online stores. It pulls order and browsing data from platforms such as Shopify and uses it for segmentation and automated flows: abandoned carts, post-purchase follow-ups, win-backs. Email and SMS run from the same data. It is the specialist’s choice for ecommerce and priced like one.
- Best for
- Ecommerce brands prioritizing retention and customer lifecycle revenue
- Pricing
- Email plan, billed monthly, 251-500 active profiles at this price. Free plan: up to 250 active profiles and 500 sends a month.
- Key features
- Behavior-based segmentation, Ecommerce automation flows, SMS marketing
Where it falls short: Pricing follows the number of active profiles and rises quickly, and it offers little to a business that is not selling online.
Klaviyo plans and pricing Klaviyo vs MailerLite in detail Visit Klaviyo
Constant Contact
From$10.20/moValue score4.2/5
Compared with MailerLite: Starts at $10.20/mo, $0.60 a month less than MailerLite; unlike MailerLite, it has no free plan.
Constant Contact is a long-standing choice for small businesses and nonprofits. Beyond email it handles event registration, social posting and surveys, and it backs them with phone support and plenty of guidance. Automation is basic, and there is a trial instead of a free plan.
- Best for
- Small businesses that want straightforward email marketing
- Pricing
- Lite plan, billed annually ($12 billed monthly), 500 contacts at this price.
- Key features
- Email templates and campaigns, Audience segmentation, Event marketing tools
Where it falls short: Automation and segmentation are limited, and you pay from the start.
Constant Contact plans and pricing Constant Contact vs MailerLite in detail Visit Constant Contact
03FAQ
What is the closest alternative to MailerLite?
Mailchimp. Mailchimp is the email tool most small businesses try first. Starts at $13/mo, $2.20 a month more than MailerLite; its free plan allows 250 contacts and 500 sends a month.
What is the cheapest alternative to MailerLite?
Brevo: free plan, then $8.08/mo. Starter plan, billed annually ($9 billed monthly), from 5,000 emails per month. Free plan: 300 emails a day.
Which MailerLite alternatives have a free plan?
Mailchimp, Brevo, ConvertKit and Klaviyo. Free plans differ a lot in what they limit, so check the plan tables on each tool’s pricing page.
Is MailerLite still worth using?
Yes, if you want the essentials done well at a low price. Its strength is covering the essentials well for very little money. The weakness: automation, reporting and integrations are lighter than in the bigger platforms.
04Bottom Line
If cost is why you are leaving MailerLite, start with Brevo. If you want the least disruption, Mailchimp is the closest in spirit: it is the familiar all-rounder, priced by audience size. If you would rather simplify, Constant Contact is the easiest of the group to adopt.