What's the difference between Growing Business and Advanced?

Growing Business removes MailerLite branding, adds auto-resend and unlimited monthly emails, and suits most small businesses and creators. Advanced adds the more sophisticated tools: the custom HTML editor, AI writing assistant, promotional pop-ups, Facebook custom audiences, and crucially unlimited user seats versus three on Growing Business. If you run a team or want the deeper personalization and design features, Advanced is the tier; if you mainly need clean campaigns and automation, Growing Business is usually enough.

Is MailerLite good for paid newsletters?

Yes, and it is a strong Substack alternative on economics. MailerLite lets you sell paid subscriptions and digital products, and unlike Substack it does not take a percentage of your revenue — you pay only your subscription based on list size. For a newsletter earning real money, that difference compounds fast: at larger lists, avoiding a 10% revenue cut can save far more than the MailerLite subscription costs. The trade-off is that Substack's built-in discovery network can help you find readers, which MailerLite does not replicate.

4.6 / 5.0

Compare Visit website

Home / Partner Picks / MailerLite

Email Builder Small Businesses Clean Templates

MailerLite

Affiliate Program

Best for: Simple Email Builder

Last updated: July 23, 2026

4.6 / 5.0

Visit Website Compare tools

MailerLite has long been the easiest, best-value on-ramp to email marketing — a clean drag-and-drop editor, automations, landing pages, websites and paid newsletters in one tidy platform, at prices that undercut Mailchimp. It's still that. But 2026 brought two changes worth knowing before you sign up: the free plan shrank to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails a month, and paid prices rose roughly 10–30%. It remains excellent value — just no longer the automatic cheapest choice it once was, especially as your list grows.

Pros

One of the easiest, most intuitive email platforms to learn
Excellent value — well below Mailchimp at comparable list sizes
Bills only for active subscribers — excludes unsubs & bounces
All-in-one: emails, automation, landing pages, websites, digital products
No revenue cut on paid newsletters (vs Substack's 10%)

Cons

— — — Free plan cut in 2026 to 250 subscribers & 2,500 emails/mo
— — — Paid prices rose ~10–30% across tiers in 2026
— — — Subscriber-based: bill jumps at each tier even if sending is flat
— — — Transactional email needs a separate product (MailerSend)
— — — Automation is solid but below ActiveCampaign / GetResponse

Key features

Drag-and-drop email editor

Automation & workflow builder

Landing pages, websites & signup forms

Paid newsletters & digital product sales

Billing on active subscribers only

30+ e-commerce blocks & store integrations

Custom HTML editor & AI writing assistant (Advanced)

Promotional pop-ups & Facebook audiences (Advanced)

Unlimited user seats (Advanced; 3 on Growing Business)

100+ integrations inc. ChatGPT & Claude

Pricing

STARTS AT

Free – $20/mo+

Monthly billing Annual discount Free trial: Yes

Visit website

Frequently asked questions

How much does MailerLite cost in 2026? +

Priced by active subscriber count. Free plan, then Growing Business from ~$9–10/mo and Advanced from ~$18–20/mo at the smallest list size (cheaper annually), plus custom Enterprise. Prices rise as your list grows through each bracket. Note: prices went up ~10–30% across tiers in 2026, so older reviews quoting lower numbers are stale.

What changed with the free plan in 2026? +

It shrank a lot. The subscriber limit dropped to 250 and the monthly send limit to 2,500 emails — both meaningful cuts. You still get the editor, landing pages, some automation and multiple seats, but at 250 subscribers it's now really a trial or starting point, not a long-term home. One good lead magnet can push you past it.

How does subscriber-based pricing work? +

You pay by active subscribers, and the price steps up as your list crosses each bracket (500, 1k, 2.5k, 5k…) regardless of send volume. The upside: MailerLite bills only for active subscribers and excludes unsubscribed and bounced contacts — so keeping your list clean directly lowers your bill, and costs scale predictably.

Growing Business vs Advanced? +

Growing Business removes branding, adds auto-resend and unlimited emails — enough for most creators and small businesses. Advanced adds the custom HTML editor, AI writing assistant, promotional pop-ups, Facebook audiences, and unlimited seats (vs 3). Run a team or want deeper personalization and design? Advanced. Mainly need clean campaigns and automation? Growing Business.

MailerLite or Mailchimp? +

For most small businesses and creators, MailerLite — better value and a gentler learning curve, consistently priced below Mailchimp at the same list size, while still covering automation, landing pages and websites. Mailchimp has a bigger app marketplace and some deeper enterprise features. But for affordable email you can set up yourself, MailerLite is the more sensible default.

Is it good for paid newsletters? +

Yes — a strong Substack alternative on economics. You can sell paid subscriptions and digital products, and unlike Substack, MailerLite takes no cut of your revenue — you pay only your list-size subscription. On a newsletter earning real money, avoiding a 10% revenue cut can save far more than the subscription. The trade-off: Substack's discovery network helps you find readers; MailerLite doesn't replicate that.

Not sure yet?