MailerLite

MailerLite’s story is a classic tale of "product-first" success. It was founded in 2010 by Ignas Rubezius in Vilnius, Lithuania. Ignas and his team originally ran a web design agency, but they fell in love with the potential of email marketing and decided to build a tool that focused on the small business experience. For over a decade, they remained a bootstrapped and profitable company, which allowed them to ignore industry trends and focus entirely on what their users actually wanted: simplicity and fair pricing.

In 2022, MailerLite made headlines when it was acquired by Vercom, a global communication platform, for $90 million. This acquisition in early 2026 has provided the financial muscle to expand their global infrastructure while keeping the original founding team and their "Lite" philosophy at the helm. Today, they are a 100% remote team with over 160 employees spread across 40+ countries. They remain one of the most transparent companies in the space, even publishing their own book, Leaving the Base Camp, which details their journey of building a world-class SaaS product from a small European city.

MailerLite is for the Solopreneur and Small Business Owner who is tired of the complexity and high price of Mailchimp. If you are a writer, a creator, or a niche e-commerce founder, MailerLite is designed for you. It provides everything you need to grow—landing pages to capture leads, automations to welcome them, and professional templates to sell to them—without requiring a degree in data science to operate.

It is also a favorite for Non-Profits and Community Groups. Because of its generous free tier and discounted rates for charities, it allows organizations with tight budgets to maintain a professional presence. In 2026, it has also become a sanctuary for Marketing Agencies who manage dozens of small client accounts and need a fast, reliable dashboard to switch between them without a steep learning curve for every new hire.

• • Substack Switchers: Authors who want more control over their design and data than Substack allows but don't want a complex backend.
• • E-commerce Builders: Shopify and WooCommerce users who need abandoned cart recovery that 'just works' out of the box.

MailerLite is a complete digital marketing kit. Its core is the Email Editor, which features three different ways to build: a modern drag-and-drop builder with pre-formatted blocks, a rich-text editor for personal-feeling letters, and a custom HTML editor for developers. Beyond sending one-off campaigns, its Automation Builder allows you to map out customer journeys based on actions like joining a list, clicking a link, or completing a purchase.

In 2026, their Website Builder has become a standout feature. It’s no longer just for simple landing pages; you can build a multi-page site with a blog, interactive forms, and even Sell Digital Products (like ebooks or courses) directly through the platform. Combined with their Pop-up and Form Builder, you have a complete machine for turning cold website traffic into a loyal, paying audience without ever leaving the MailerLite ecosystem.

• • Multivariate Testing: Test up to 3 different versions of your subject line or content to see what actually works before sending to everyone.
• • Dynamic Blocks: Show different parts of your email to different people based on their location or interests—all within the same campaign.
• • Native iOS App: Manage your campaigns, check your stats, and add new subscribers while you're on the go.

MailerLite is widely considered the best value for money in 2026. The Free Plan is genuinely useful, supporting up to 500 subscribers and 12,000 monthly emails. Most notably, it includes features like automation and 10 landing pages—things that rivals often charge $20+ for.

The Growing Business Plan starts at just $10 per month** (for 500 subscribers). This removes the MailerLite logo from your emails and gives you unlimited monthly emails, which is a massive win for high-volume senders. The Advanced Plan begins at **$20 per month and is intended for teams that need high-level tools like a custom HTML editor, 24/7 live chat support, and promotion pop-ups.

For larger organizations, the Enterprise Plan is a custom quote for lists over 100,000 subscribers. One of their most popular 2026 features is the 30% Annual Discount, which brings the monthly cost down even further, making it nearly impossible for other platforms to compete on price alone.

• • Free ($0): 500 subs, 12,000 emails, basic automation, 1 user.
• • Growing Business ($9/mo): Unlimited emails, 3 seats, removes branding, sell products.
• • Advanced ($18/mo): AI assistant, live chat support, unlimited seats, custom HTML.

The biggest "gotcha" with MailerLite is the Approval Process. Because they take deliverability so seriously, every new account is manually reviewed. If you don't have a professional website or a clear explanation of how you collected your emails, they may reject your application. It’s not an "instant launch" tool for everyone.

You should also pay attention to the Integration Depth. While MailerLite connects to the big platforms, it doesn't have the 300+ native "one-click" integrations that Mailchimp does. If your workflow relies on a very obscure CRM or e-commerce tool, you might have to spend extra time setting up a connection via Zapier or Make.com. Lastly, be aware that while they offer a free trial of premium features, it only lasts 14 days, so make sure you have your content ready to test before you sign up.

If MailerLite isn't the right fit, the 2026 market is full of strong competitors. Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) is the best alternative if you want to pay per email sent rather than per subscriber—ideal for businesses with huge lists but infrequent sending. Moosend is the most direct rival in terms of price and simplicity, offering a very similar "drag-and-drop" feel.

For those who want a more premium, design-forward experience, Flodesk is a great choice for creators who want the most beautiful templates in the industry for a flat monthly fee. If you need the absolute most powerful automation on the planet and don't mind a steep learning curve, ActiveCampaign is the enterprise standard.

• • Mailchimp: Still the standard for beginners who want massive integration support and don't mind paying more for it.
• • Kit (ConvertKit): The gold standard for bloggers and professional newsletter creators who value simple text and powerful sequences.

• Can I use my own domain for the landing pages? Yes, in 2026, MailerLite allows you to connect a custom domain to your landing pages on any paid plan. On the free plan, you must use their 'https://www.google.com/search?q=subdomain.mailerpage.com' link.

• Does MailerLite have a dedicated IP option? Yes. For high-volume senders (usually over 50,000 subscribers) who want total control over their reputation, MailerLite offers a dedicated IP as an add-on for $50/month.

• Is there a limit to how many landing pages I can create? On the free plan, you are limited to 10 landing pages. On all paid plans, you can create and publish an unlimited number of landing pages and websites.

• Does MailerLite support multi-user access? Yes. The Growing Business plan allows for 3 user seats, while the Advanced and Enterprise plans allow for unlimited user seats with custom permissions.

• Can I resend my campaigns automatically? Yes, one of their most popular features is 'Auto-resend.' You can set it to automatically resend a campaign to people who didn't open the first one, using a different subject line.