MailerLite is the more promising first trial for a small newsletter that needs frequent sends and a short welcome sequence. Mailchimp is worth retaining or choosing when its specific store integrations, reporting and existing workflows justify the bill. Start with your sending pattern, contact count and the integrations your business relies on.
The free plans have changed enough that older comparisons can lead you towards the wrong product. A business sending a weekly newsletter has different requirements from one sending two announcements a month, even when both have the same number of subscribers.
Table of Contents
The current free plans
| Limit | MailerLite Free | Mailchimp Free |
|---|---|---|
| List size | 250 active subscribers | 250 contacts |
| Monthly email sends | 2,500 | 500 |
| Users | Two seats | One seat |
| Extra sending constraint | Monthly allowance applies | 250 sends per day |
These are the published MailerLite limits and Mailchimp limits. MailerLite reduced its Free allowance on 16 June 2026: references to 500 subscribers and 12,000 monthly emails are now outdated for that plan. Read the official change notice.
An email allowance counts messages sent to individual people. One newsletter to 200 subscribers uses 200 sends. Leave room for welcome emails and other messages instead of dividing the allowance only by your regular campaign schedule.
Work out whether free is enough
Consider an illustrative local business with 200 subscribers. Four newsletters to the full list require 800 sends per month before automated messages. That exceeds Mailchimp Free’s monthly allowance while leaving room within MailerLite Free. It does not establish a universal price advantage: the calculation changes when the list grows or a required feature needs a paid plan.
If the same business sends just two newsletters, the campaign total is 400. Both monthly allowances could cover that pattern, subject to other messages and the products’ different contact-count rules. In this case, the value of keeping an existing template and familiar process could outweigh the benefit of changing platforms.
Project your list size three months ahead. If it is already close to the free cap, compare paid plans now. Building an entire launch around a free plan that you expect to outgrow next week is unlikely to save much work.
Subscribers are not counted the same way
MailerLite bills for active subscribers and counts addresses cumulatively during a billing cycle. Removing an address that was active does not necessarily reduce that cycle’s bill. Its paid subscriber tier can increase automatically when the limit is exceeded. MailerLite billing explanation.
Mailchimp counts subscribed, unsubscribed and non-subscribed contacts towards the contact limit. Archived contacts do not count. That makes a list audit useful before requesting a price: the number you can email may be smaller than the number that determines your tier. Mailchimp contact types.
For a fair comparison, export counts by status rather than importing every historical record into a trial. Preserve unsubscribe information and the relationship between contacts and their preferences. A migration should not accidentally turn an opted-out customer into someone receiving a fresh welcome sequence.
Choose the automation you need before the plan
MailerLite’s current paid plans are Comfort and Power. Free supports three active automations with up to five steps; Comfort increases those limits to 50 automations and 100 steps. Power adds multiple automation triggers and larger usage allowances. Current MailerLite plan comparison.
Mailchimp Essentials includes automation flows with up to four steps. Standard expands automation and segmentation capabilities. Check the actual workflow against the plan, particularly if it has several conditions or follow-up messages. Mailchimp plan guide.
Sketch one subscriber’s journey: signup, introduction, relevant advice, an offer, then an exit when they purchase or unsubscribe. Mark every delay, condition and message. A sequence described as “three emails” may need more than three workflow steps, so counting emails alone can underestimate the plan required.
If your main uncertainty is what to send, use our email copy guide before buying more automation capacity. A clearer message and a useful next step are still necessary whichever tool sends it.
Compare the paid bill at your real list size
For MailerLite, choose the subscriber tier and sending allowance together. Check the monthly send allowance quoted for Comfort at your selected subscriber tier. Power advertises unlimited sending subject to fair use. Monthly and annual billing are available, with USD and EUR choices on the pricing page.
For Mailchimp, check the relevant contact tier, monthly send allowance and any add-ons. Its non-USD display is an exchange-rate estimate, so a UK buyer should confirm the charge and taxes at checkout. Record the normal renewal price separately from a trial or introductory offer. Mailchimp pricing conditions.
A useful budget comparison has three scenarios: today’s list, likely growth and an unusually busy month. Include the time needed to rebuild templates and reconnect forms. If a small apparent saving requires hours of migration, ask how long it will take to recover that cost.
Run a migration rehearsal before committing
- Rebuild one real newsletter. Check the mobile layout, links, footer, images and plain-text version rather than choosing from template thumbnails.
- Import a small permitted sample. Verify custom fields, groups or tags, and subscription status before transferring the main audience.
- Follow the complete signup journey. Submit the website form and inspect confirmation, welcome and unsubscribe behaviour.
- Test the commercial connection. If purchase data drives campaigns, confirm that the exact event and fields arrive from your store.
- Keep an exit copy. Export the list structure, important templates and automation notes so the next change is manageable.
Evaluate inbox placement using your own sending domain, sample messages and audience; the plan comparison alone cannot predict that result.
Which should you choose?
For a new newsletter business, trial MailerLite with your real template and welcome journey. Its current Free allowance makes a regular small newsletter feasible, and its paid usage structure is worth modelling as you grow. For an established Mailchimp user, identify a concrete problem before migrating: cost, a missing function or an unmanageable workflow.
If neither fits the way you market, widen the shortlist with our email marketing software guide. Choose the product that meets the next few months of work with understandable limits and a manageable migration.
Checked 9 September 2026 against official documentation. Examples are illustrative.
