Mailchimp vs MailerLite
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Both are all-round email marketing tools with free plans capped at 250 contacts or subscribers. The real differences are price as your list grows, and currency: Mailchimp's UK page charges in pounds, while MailerLite bills in US dollars or euros.
| Mailchimp | MailerLite | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Freemium | Freemium |
| Runs as | Cloud | Cloud |
| Free plan | 250 contacts, 500 sends a month (250 a day) | 250 subscribers, 2,500 emails a month |
| Paid plans from | £9.83/month (Essentials, 500 contacts) | $12/month (Growing/Comfort, 500 subscribers) Monthly billing; 10% off yearly. |
| Paid newsletters | Not documented | Yes |
| Nonprofit discount | 15% discount for nonprofits and charities | Not documented |
| Billing currency | GBP | USD or EUR |
| Hosting | Cloud | Cloud |
| Price | Free: 250 contacts. Essentials £9.83/month at 500 contacts, £83.15 at 10,000 mailchimp.com, checked 22 Oct 2026 | Free: 250 subscribers. Comfort $12/month at 500, $89 at 10,000 mailerlite.com, checked 22 Oct 2026 |
| Newsletter alternative to | Constant Contact | Mailchimp, Kit, Substack |
Key differences
- Mailchimp's free plan includes up to 250 contacts and 500 sends a month, with a daily limit of 250. (mailchimp.com/help/about-mailchimp-pricing-plans)
- MailerLite's free plan includes 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails a month. (mailerlite.com/pricing)
- At 500 contacts, Mailchimp Essentials was £9.83 a month and MailerLite's Growing Business (Comfort) plan $12 a month (about £8.95 at the ECB rate for 21 Oct 2026). (mailchimp.com/en-gb/pricing/marketing · mailerlite.com/pricing · ecb.europa.eu/stats/policy_and_exchange_rates/euro_reference_exchange_rates/html/index.en.html)
- At 10,000 contacts, Mailchimp Essentials was £83.15 a month; MailerLite's equivalent was $89 a month (about £66.41). (mailchimp.com/en-gb/pricing/marketing · mailerlite.com/pricing · ecb.europa.eu/stats/policy_and_exchange_rates/euro_reference_exchange_rates/html/index.en.html)
- Mailchimp offers nonprofits and charities 15% off. (mailchimp.com/en-gb/pricing/marketing)
- MailerLite takes payment in US dollars or euros only, so a UK card may pay a foreign-transaction fee depending on your bank. (mailerlite.com/pricing)
Which should you pick?
- Mailchimp: Pick Mailchimp if you want to pay in pounds, you qualify for its 15% charity discount, or your team already knows it.
- MailerLite: Pick MailerLite if price is what matters most: at most list sizes we checked its main plan cost less each month, even after converting dollars to pounds.
This verdict is based on the documented facts above, not on hands-on testing.
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- Substack vs Ghost
- beehiiv vs Kit (formerly ConvertKit)
- MailerLite vs Kit (formerly ConvertKit)
Sources: mailchimp.com/help/about-mailchimp-pricing-plans · mailerlite.com/pricing · mailchimp.com/en-gb/pricing/marketing · ecb.europa.eu/stats/policy_and_exchange_rates/euro_reference_exchange_rates/html/index.en.html. “Not available” or “Not documented” means we found no official source for it, not that the feature is missing.