Updated March 2026

Mailchimp vs MailerLite

This is a common switch, but old tier-by-tier savings claims are no longer reliable because MailerLite changed plans on June 16, 2026. Free includes up to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails per month. Comfort starts at $12/month and Power starts at $25/month. Subscriber-tier pricing varies; verify the live quote before making a cost comparison. MailerLite and Mailchimp were close in EmailToolTester's January 2024 deliverability round. Mailchimp offers broader analytics, integrations, and template choice; MailerLite is generally simpler and bills using different contact rules. Compare live quotes for the same audience, sends, features, and billing term.

Our pick: MailerLite (7.5/10 vs 6.5/10)

MailerLite wins 3 out of 6 categories. Mailchimp is better for: complete beginners who want the easiest interface and maximum third-party integrations.

Try MailerLite

Mailchimp

6.5/10

MailerLite

7.5/10

2/5

Automation

3/5

Deliverability

5/5

Ease of Use

5/5

Templates & Design

3/5

Analytics

2/5

Customer Support

3/5

At a Glance

Feature	Mailchimp	MailerLite
Free Plan	Yes	Yes
Starting Price	$13/mo	$12/mo
Automation	2/5	3/5
Deliverability	3/5	5/5
Ease of Use	5/5	5/5
Templates & Design	5/5	3/5
Analytics	3/5	2/5
Customer Support	2/5	3/5
Overall	6.5/10	7.5/10

Pricing Comparison

Mailchimp

Free Plan

Paid plans from $13/mo

View Pricing

MailerLite

Free Plan

Paid plans from $12/mo

View Pricing

Pros & Cons

Mailchimp

Genuinely intuitive interface — G2 rates ease of use 4.3/5, Capterra 4.4/5. The drag-and-drop builder has a shallow learning curve for basic campaigns

300+ third-party integrations — the largest ecosystem of any email tool. Nearly every SaaS product connects to Mailchimp natively

260+ professional templates on paid plans. The email builder produces clean, responsive emails that look good on mobile

Free plan has been systematically gutted: 2,000 contacts (pre-2021) → 500 (2023) → 250 (Jan 2026). Automations removed June 2025. A/B testing removed. Email scheduling removed. It is now effectively a demo, not a free plan

Charges for ALL contacts including unsubscribed and bounced — you pay for contacts who will never receive an email unless you manually archive each one. Most competitors only bill for active subscribers

Trustpilot: 2.7/5 with 67% one-star reviews. Support is widely despised — phone support only available on the $350+/month Premium plan. Below that, users report chatbots and generic responses

Full Mailchimp review →

MailerLite

89.8% deliverability rate across 5 independent test rounds (EmailToolTester) — highest we found among all platforms tested

Comfort starts at $12/month and Power starts at $25/month

Won 'Best Email Marketing Tool for Ease of Use' every year from 2023-2026 across G2 and Capterra

Account approval/termination is a real problem — 60% of Capterra reviews mentioning it were negative. Users report accounts terminated without warning and no refund

Free is limited to 250 subscribers and 2,500 monthly emails as of June 16, 2026

Limited analytics — no heatmaps, no custom reports, no revenue attribution, no bot-click filtering. If data matters to you, this will frustrate you

Full MailerLite review →

The Bottom Line

Choose Mailchimp if: Complete beginners who want the easiest interface and maximum third-party integrations. Despite the lower overall score, it excels where it matters for its target audience.

Choose MailerLite if: Small businesses and creators on a budget who want simplicity. It wins 3 of 6 categories.

Price comparison: MailerLite starts at $12/mo (free plan available) vs Mailchimp at $13/mo (free plan available).

Who Should Pick Which?

Pick Mailchimpif…

You need a tool best for complete beginners who want the easiest interface and maximum third-party integrations
Genuinely intuitive interface — G2 rates ease of use 4.3/5, Capterra 4.4/5. The drag-and-drop builder has a shallow learning curve for basic campaigns
300+ third-party integrations — the largest ecosystem of any email tool. Nearly every SaaS product connects to Mailchimp natively

Try Mailchimp

Pick MailerLiteif…

You need a tool best for small businesses and creators on a budget who want simplicity
89.8% deliverability rate across 5 independent test rounds (EmailToolTester) — highest we found among all platforms tested
Comfort starts at $12/month and Power starts at $25/month

Try MailerLite

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ActiveCampaign vs MailerLite

Mailchimp vs Klaviyo

Klaviyo vs MailerLite

Looking for more options?

See our full ranking: Best Email Marketing for Small Business — 11 Tools Ranked, Real Pricing

Read Full Reviews

Mailchimp

MailerLite

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Mailchimp or MailerLite better?

MailerLite scores higher overall (7.5/10 vs 6.5/10). MailerLite is best for small businesses and creators on a budget who want simplicity. Mailchimp is better if you need complete beginners who want the easiest interface and maximum third-party integrations.

Which is cheaper, Mailchimp or MailerLite?

MailerLite is cheaper, starting at $12/mo with a free plan. Mailchimp starts at $13/mo (also has a free plan).

What is Mailchimp best for?

Mailchimp is best for complete beginners who want the easiest interface and maximum third-party integrations. It scores highest in ease of use, templates & design.

How we compared these tools

We research every tool using real user reviews from Reddit, G2, Capterra, and Trustpilot — then verify current pricing and cross-reference independent deliverability data. No paid placements, no sponsored rankings.

Read our full methodologyLast updated: March 2026

Transparency note: We earn affiliate commissions from some tools on this page. This never influences our scores. Our methodology