Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase through them, I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend tools I believe are useful for readers.

If you’re searching for a modern email marketing service that’s easy to use, reasonably priced, and powerful enough to grow with your business, you’ve probably bumped into MailerLite.

MailerLite has built a reputation as a “simple, clean, and affordable” platform—but 2026 buyers are smarter. You want automation that actually works, list management that doesn’t feel like a puzzle, landing pages that convert, and a pricing model that won’t surprise you later.

This review breaks down MailerLite’s real-world feature set, pricing, pros & cons, and how it compares to popular alternatives like Mailchimp, Brevo, GetResponse, ActiveCampaign, and Kit (ConvertKit).

Key Takeaways

• Best for: creators, bloggers, small businesses, and lean teams who want strong email marketing + landing pages without enterprise-level complexity.
• Free plan: great for starting out, but the subscriber limit is tighter than it used to be—plan ahead for growth.
• Standout strengths: clean editor, visual automations, landing pages, forms, website/blog tools, and solid value.
• Biggest watch-outs: advanced “CRM-style” features are lighter than platforms like ActiveCampaign; some premium features require paid plans.
• My 2026 verdict: if you want “simple + capable,” MailerLite is one of the strongest value picks.

Table of Contents

1) Quick Verdict (Who MailerLite is for)

MailerLite is a strong pick in 2026 if:

• You want an easy editor + automations without enterprise bloat
• You’re building a newsletter, creator brand, blog, course, or small business funnel
• You want built-in landing pages, signup forms, and lightweight website/blog features
• You want predictable value for money

MailerLite may not be ideal if:

• You need a deep CRM + sales automation engine (ActiveCampaign/HubSpot-style)
• You run extremely complex multi-step pipelines with advanced attribution needs
• You require highly specialized enterprise compliance workflows

Try it here: MailerLite official website

↑ Back to top

2) What is MailerLite?

MailerLite is an all-in-one email marketing platform that focuses on doing the essentials exceptionally well: newsletters, email automations, list growth, and conversion tools like landing pages and signup forms.

In practical terms, MailerLite helps you:

• Collect subscribers through forms, pop-ups, and landing pages
• Send newsletters and promotional campaigns
• Automate welcome sequences, onboarding, sales follow-ups, and re-engagement
• Segment your audience and personalize messaging
• Track performance (opens, clicks, sales events, and more)

Useful official pages to explore:

• MailerLite pricing & plan comparison
• Email automation feature overview
• Landing page builder
• Website builder

↑ Back to top

3) MailerLite Pricing & Plans (2026 Snapshot)

MailerLite has four plan tiers: Free, Growing Business, Advanced, and Enterprise. Pricing scales mostly based on subscriber counts, and paid plans include unlimited monthly emails in many cases (depending on the plan rules shown at checkout).

Free Plan (best for testing + early-stage lists)

The Free plan is designed for beginners and small lists. It’s best used to validate your newsletter concept, start collecting leads, and build your first automation.

• Free plan details: MailerLite free plan page
• Important update info: Free plan update FAQ

Growing Business Plan

Growing Business is typically the “sweet spot” plan: you unlock more templates, remove branding, scale landing pages and websites, and generally get the “real MailerLite experience” for serious list growth.

See the latest starting price and your subscriber tier here: MailerLite pricing

Advanced Plan

Advanced is for teams who want more power, enhanced automation tools, advanced website options, and more control at scale.

Full plan comparison: Compare Free vs Growing Business vs Advanced

Enterprise

Enterprise is designed for large senders and organizations that need higher-volume support and deliverability help (including options like a dedicated IP and consultation).

• Enterprise info: MailerLite Enterprise
• Dedicated IP overview: Dedicated IP

Tip (important): Pricing and limits can change. Always confirm your current tier on the official pricing page before purchasing.

↑ Back to top

4) Core Features (What you actually get)

A) Email editor & newsletter builder

MailerLite’s drag-and-drop editor is one of its biggest strengths. It’s built for speed: you can create a professional campaign quickly without fighting the interface.

What I like about MailerLite’s approach (for most businesses):

• Clean blocks and layouts (easy to maintain brand consistency)
• Reusable content patterns (for recurring newsletters)
• Good balance between simplicity and customization

Helpful to explore: Plan comparison includes editor features

B) Email automations (visual workflows)

Automation is where most modern email marketing ROI happens. Welcome sequences, lead nurturing, onboarding, cart recovery, upsell flows—these are the “always-on” assets that keep your business growing while you sleep.

MailerLite’s automation builder is visual and beginner-friendly, but still capable enough for many advanced workflows.

• Automation overview: MailerLite automation
• Automation triggers guide: Automation triggers (help)
• Automation education (guides): Email automation guide

Examples of automations you can build:

• Welcome series: deliver a lead magnet, introduce your brand, ask a question, and offer next steps
• Interest-based nurture: tag users based on clicks and send tailored content
• Re-engagement: detect inactive subscribers and run a win-back sequence

C) Segmentation & personalization

MailerLite supports segmentation (rules-based audiences) and grouping/tagging strategies so you can stop blasting the same email to everyone.

Practical personalization methods include:

• Segment by signup source (form or landing page)
• Segment by engagement (opened last 30 days / clicked recently)
• Tag subscribers by interest or product preference
• Use custom fields for personalized greetings and dynamic content

On the deliverability side, segmentation also helps: engaged segments generally produce better inbox placement than sending to cold lists.

D) Signup forms & pop-ups

List growth is a core MailerLite focus. You can create embedded forms for blog posts, pop-ups for exit intent, and promotional overlays.

Start here: Forms & pop-ups features (plan comparison)

E) Landing pages

MailerLite’s landing page builder is a major advantage if you want to run simple funnels without paying for a separate landing page tool.

• Landing page builder: MailerLite landing pages

Why landing pages matter: They convert better than sending people to a generic homepage, because they’re focused on one action—subscribe, book a call, buy, or download.

F) Website builder & blog

If you’re starting from scratch, MailerLite can even host a simple website and blog. This won’t replace WordPress for advanced sites, but it can be enough to launch fast.

• Website builder: MailerLite website builder

G) E-commerce & selling (Shopify / WooCommerce)

If you sell products, MailerLite can connect your store data and help you automate revenue flows—welcome coupons, product follow-ups, and abandoned cart emails (depending on integration and plan features).

• Shopify integration: MailerLite + Shopify
• WooCommerce integration: MailerLite + WooCommerce
• Integrations directory: MailerLite integrations

H) Reporting & analytics

MailerLite includes comparative reporting, performance reports by campaign, and subscriber-level insights. For most small businesses, this is enough to optimize subject lines, content, and sending frequency.

If you want deeper attribution (multi-touch revenue attribution, sales pipeline tracking, etc.), you’ll typically look at more CRM-heavy tools.

↑ Back to top

5) Deliverability, SPF/DKIM/DMARC & Compliance

Deliverability is the hidden game. A “cheap” email platform becomes expensive if your emails land in spam.

A) Domain authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC)

In 2026, authenticating your domain is not optional for serious senders. Set up:

• SPF (authorizes senders)
• DKIM (cryptographically signs email)
• DMARC (policy + reporting)

Helpful explainers:

• Cloudflare: What is SPF?
• Cloudflare: What is DKIM?
• Cloudflare: What is DMARC?

B) Deliverability best practices

MailerLite publishes deliverability best practices and has deliverability help resources.

• MailerLite deliverability guide: Improve email deliverability
• Deliverability help center: Deliverability resources

C) Legal compliance: GDPR + CAN-SPAM

Email marketing needs legal compliance baked in:

• GDPR (EU/UK privacy and consent requirements)
• CAN-SPAM (US commercial email rules)

• EU GDPR overview: European Commission: GDPR overview
• FTC CAN-SPAM compliance guide: FTC: CAN-SPAM guide

D) Monitoring sender reputation

When list volume grows, use sender reputation tools:

• Google Postmaster Tools
• Microsoft SNDS

↑ Back to top

6) Integrations, WordPress, Shopify, WooCommerce & API

MailerLite integrates with major website builders, e-commerce platforms, and automation tools. For many businesses, the combo of:

• WordPress + MailerLite
• Shopify/WooCommerce + MailerLite
• Zapier + MailerLite

…covers almost every workflow you’ll need.

• Integrations directory: MailerLite integrations
• WordPress integration: MailerLite + WordPress
• Shopify integration: MailerLite + Shopify
• WooCommerce integration: MailerLite + WooCommerce

For developers or advanced setups:

• MailerLite API documentation: MailerLite Developers (API)

↑ Back to top

7) Setup Walkthrough (Getting started the right way)

If you want better results (and fewer deliverability issues), use this onboarding checklist:

A) Start with list hygiene

• Do NOT import scraped/bought lists (this can destroy deliverability)
• Import only consent-based subscribers
• Remove obvious role emails (info@, support@) if they didn’t opt in

B) Authenticate your domain early

• Set SPF/DKIM/DMARC (see the resources in the deliverability section)
• Use a consistent “From” name and domain

C) Build your first 3 essential assets

• 1) Welcome email (sent immediately)
• 2) Value email (sent day 1–2)
• 3) Offer/next step (sent day 3–5)

D) Create segmentation from day one

• Create an “Engaged 30 days” segment
• Create an “Unengaged 60 days” segment
• Tag subscribers by interests whenever possible

↑ Back to top

8) MailerLite Pros & Cons

Pros

• Excellent ease of use: clean UI, fast email creation
• Strong value: practical features without excessive pricing complexity
• Landing pages + forms included: reduces need for extra tools
• Automation builder: visual workflows that are friendly for beginners
• Great for creators and SMBs: supports list growth and content-driven funnels

Cons

• Free plan is tighter than before: you may outgrow it faster
• Not a full CRM powerhouse: advanced pipeline-style automation is stronger in some competitors
• Some features are plan-gated: you may need a paid plan for certain advanced options

↑ Back to top

9) MailerLite vs Alternatives (2026)

Choosing an email marketing service is about fit. Here’s how MailerLite stacks up against popular options:

MailerLite vs Mailchimp

Choose MailerLite if you want better value, simple automations, and landing pages without paying extra for basic growth features.

Choose Mailchimp if you want a long-established ecosystem and don’t mind paying more as your list grows.

• Mailchimp marketing pricing: Mailchimp pricing
• Mailchimp plan details (help): About Mailchimp pricing plans

MailerLite vs Brevo (Sendinblue)

Brevo is often attractive for volume-based sending (it’s priced by emails sent, not always by subscribers), and it includes broader marketing/CRM tools.

MailerLite tends to feel simpler and more “newsletter + landing page” focused for creators and SMBs.

• Brevo pricing: Brevo pricing
• Brevo free plan limits (help): Brevo free plan limits

MailerLite vs GetResponse

GetResponse is a bigger “marketing suite” and can be attractive if you want more features in one platform (depending on plan), while MailerLite stays lean and user-friendly.

• GetResponse pricing: GetResponse pricing

MailerLite vs ActiveCampaign

ActiveCampaign is a top choice when you want deeper automation, CRM, and customer journey orchestration. It’s often more complex (and can cost more) than MailerLite.

• ActiveCampaign pricing: ActiveCampaign pricing

MailerLite vs Kit (ConvertKit)

Kit is creator-first and strong for newsletter businesses and audience building. MailerLite is often the “simpler and cheaper” option for many SMB workflows, especially if you want landing pages/websites built in.

• Kit pricing: Kit pricing

↑ Back to top

10) Who should use MailerLite?

MailerLite is excellent for:

• Bloggers & content sites that need forms, landing pages, and newsletters
• Creators launching lead magnets, courses, or paid content
• Small businesses building onboarding and promotional automations
• New e-commerce brands who want straightforward store + email workflows

Consider alternatives if:

• You need advanced sales CRM + pipeline automation (look at ActiveCampaign or HubSpot)
• You want a “send-volume first” pricing model (Brevo can be interesting)

FAQs

Is MailerLite good for beginners?

Yes. MailerLite is one of the most beginner-friendly email marketing services thanks to its clean editor and visual automation builder.

Does MailerLite have a free plan in 2026?

Yes, MailerLite has a Free plan, but subscriber limits are tighter than before. Check the latest details here:
MailerLite Free Plan and
Free plan update FAQ.

Does MailerLite support landing pages?

Yes. Landing pages are a core part of the platform: MailerLite landing pages.

Can I use MailerLite with WordPress?

Yes. There’s a WordPress integration available: MailerLite + WordPress.

Is MailerLite better than Mailchimp?

For many small businesses and creators, MailerLite is better value and simpler. Mailchimp has a broader ecosystem, but can become expensive as your list grows. Compare:
MailerLite pricing vs
Mailchimp pricing.

How do I improve email deliverability with MailerLite?

Authenticate your domain (SPF/DKIM/DMARC), keep your list clean, segment engaged subscribers, and avoid sudden volume spikes. Start with:
MailerLite deliverability best practices.

References

• MailerLite Pricing & Plan Comparison
• MailerLite Free Plan
• MailerLite Automation
• MailerLite Landing Pages
• MailerLite Deliverability Tips
• Mailchimp Pricing Plans (Help)
• Brevo Pricing
• GetResponse Pricing
• ActiveCampaign Pricing

↑ Back to top