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MailerLite is good. Actually good, not “fine for the price” good. For small businesses, solo operators, and newsletter creators who don’t need enterprise-grade automation, it’s my first recommendation in 2026 — and has been for the last two years running.
That said, it has a ceiling. And once you hit it, you’ll know.
What You’re Getting
Let me put the pricing out there first, because it’s the thing most people are actually asking about.
Free plan: Up to 1,000 subscribers, 12,000 emails per month. No credit card required. Automation is limited to 1 active automation, but you get the drag-and-drop editor, landing pages, and pop-up forms.
Growing Business (paid): Starts around $9/month for up to 500 subscribers. Around $18/month for up to 1,000. Scales by subscriber count from there. This unlocks unlimited emails, unlimited automations, A/B testing, and the newsletter template library.
Advanced: Starts around $19/month for 500 subscribers — adds custom HTML editor, promotion pop-ups, and a Facebook custom audiences integration.
For most people reading this, the Growing Business plan is the relevant tier. And at $18/month for up to 1,000 subs with unlimited sends, it’s hard to find a better deal.
The Editor
This is where MailerLite earns its reputation.
The drag-and-drop editor is fast and clean. Not flashy — clean. Blocks snap into place, resizing works predictably, and the mobile preview is actually accurate to what subscribers see. I’ve used email editors that made me want to throw my laptop. This isn’t one of them.
Template selection is decent but not huge. You’ll find something workable for most standard use cases (newsletters, promotions, announcements, welcome emails), but if you’re comparing to Mailchimp’s template library, MailerLite’s is notably smaller. Not a dealbreaker, but worth knowing.
The plain text editor is also there for those who prefer it. And the auto-resend feature – resend to non-openers with a different subject line – is one of those small things that delivers real results without much effort.
Automation
Good enough. That’s the honest answer.
MailerLite’s automation builder handles the core use cases well: welcome series, abandoned cart (on e-commerce integrations), date-based sequences, post-purchase follow-ups. The visual workflow editor is clear and the triggers make sense. For a small business running a standard nurture sequence or onboarding series, it works well.
Where it runs out of gas: complex conditional logic. If you need branching paths based on multiple behavioral triggers, custom events, or deep CRM data syncing, you’ll be fighting the tool. This is not ActiveCampaign territory. It’s not trying to be.
One specific win: the welcome sequence builder is genuinely good. Drag in a trigger, set delays, add conditions for link clicks or specific opens – it handles the 80% use case cleanly.
Landing Pages
This deserves its own mention because it’s legitimately better than what most competitors include at this price.
Every MailerLite plan – including free – includes landing page creation. You get a clean builder with page templates, form embed options, and basic analytics. Paid plans add custom domain support.
For creators and small businesses using email marketing to grow a list, this is a real money-saver. You’re not buying a separate Leadpages or Unbounce subscription just to have a landing page. The pages aren’t as flexible as a dedicated landing page tool, but they’re functional and they convert.
Forms and Pop-Ups
MailerLite includes pop-up and embedded form builders on all plans. The pop-up builder is clean enough – you can configure timing triggers (exit intent, scroll depth, time on page), choose templates, and set display rules to avoid annoying the same visitor repeatedly.
Not the most sophisticated pop-up tool out there. But it’s included, it works, and for most small business use cases, it’s enough. Not having to pay for a separate Sumo or Privy subscription for basic list-building pop-ups is a real benefit.
Integrations
The integration list is solid for a tool at this price. Shopify, WooCommerce, WordPress, Zapier, Make (formerly Integromat), Stripe, Teachable, and a few dozen more. Zapier connectivity means you can connect MailerLite to almost anything with some creativity.
The e-commerce integrations specifically enable the abandoned cart automation that makes email such a high-ROI channel for online stores. Set it up once, let it run – that’s the promise, and MailerLite delivers on it for straightforward stores.
Where integrations thin out: native CRM connections. If your CRM isn’t HubSpot or Salesforce (which have direct integrations), you’re routing through Zapier, which adds latency and potential points of failure.
Deliverability
Deliverability is the thing email marketing tools don’t like to talk about directly, because it’s hard to measure and easy to game with cherry-picked data. Here’s what I’ll say: MailerLite has consistently strong deliverability in independent tests – better than several tools that cost significantly more. Their shared IP pools are well-maintained, dedicated IPs are available on higher plans, and their authentication setup (SPF, DKIM, custom domain sending) is well-documented.
I haven’t had inbox placement issues with accounts I’ve managed on MailerLite. That experience matters more to me than any benchmark.
Support
This is the one area where MailerLite’s pricing shows. Free plan users get email support for 30 days only — after that, it’s community forums. Paid plan support is email-based, and response times can stretch to several hours during busy periods. No phone support at any tier.
If your email program is mission-critical and you need quick support turnaround, that’s worth knowing. For most small businesses sending weekly newsletters, it’s rarely a problem. But if you’re in e-commerce and a broken automation costs you real revenue, slow support stings.
What It Lacks
Advanced segmentation. MailerLite lets you segment by subscriber fields, tags, campaign activity, and a handful of other conditions. That covers most needs. But if you want to build segments based on purchase history, predictive engagement scores, or multi-condition behavioral data – you’ll hit a wall. ActiveCampaign and Klaviyo handle this much better.
Template library depth. Smaller than Mailchimp’s. Fine for basics, limited for teams that send varied content types.
CRM functionality. MailerLite is an email marketing tool, not a CRM. Contact data is there, notes are there, but there’s no deal tracking, no pipeline view, no real sales features. If you need email + CRM in one tool, look at HubSpot.
Reporting depth. Basic analytics are good. But if you want to track revenue per campaign, customer lifetime value tied to email behavior, or complex multi-touch attribution, you’ll need a separate analytics tool or a platform upgrade.
The Brevo Question
If advanced automation is a priority and MailerLite’s builder isn’t cutting it, Brevo is worth a serious look. The workflow builder is more capable – especially for multi-step conditional sequences – and Brevo’s pricing model (based on email volume, not subscriber count) can be a significant advantage for businesses with large lists they don’t email frequently. We went deep on that in our Brevo review.
The Verdict
MailerLite is the right answer if you’re a small business owner, content creator, or newsletter operator who needs a clean, reliable email tool without paying $50-100+/month.
The free tier gets you started with zero risk. The Growing Business plan at $9-18/month is excellent value. The editor is a genuine pleasure to use. Deliverability is strong.
It’s not the right answer if you need serious automation depth, advanced segmentation, or e-commerce-specific features. But for the majority of small businesses sending consistent newsletters or basic nurture sequences? MailerLite is the best value under $20/month in 2026.