Mailerlite is a decent email marketing tool. But once you’ve graduated from the basics, you realize you should look at other solutions with advanced features and functionalities.
Many users start seeking Mailerlite alternatives when they consider the costs, automation features, and segmentation capabilities of other tools. In this blog, we’ll compare the best Mailerlite alternatives. But before we begin, let’s examine why people search for a substitute for Mailerlite.
Why Consider Mailerlite Alternatives?
Mailerlite used to be a beginner-friendly email marketing solution. However, simplicity can be restricting when you seek advanced features for email marketing campaigns. In other words, you outgrow the beginner-first approach as you learn more and grow your business through email. That’s a major reason for users searching for alternatives, along with:
- Limited automation capabilities. Mailerlite offers automation capabilities but with limitations. You can build basic-level automation with simple triggers, but it’s impossible to create elaborate automations consisting of advanced behavioral triggers;
- Restrictive free plan. The free plan is limited. You get basic email builder, segmentation, and automation features. It’s enough to test the basic features, but don’t expect it to help you much if you want to run email campaigns regularly;
- Expensive. The platform offers a basic plan for $9 per month. But the cost scales quickly as your email list grows. For example, for an email list of over 10,000 subscribers, annual costs can go over $1000 on its basic plan;
- Unsatisfactory customer service. Some users report that Mailer lite’s support could sometimes be more responsive. Also, live chat support isn’t available on the starter plan;
- Lack of segmentation options. While the segmentation options might look good initially, they get confusing (and limited) as your needs evolve and you want to segment your list based on the stages of customer journey.
10 Best Mailerlite Alternatives (Including Free Options)
If you’re searching for an email marketing software like Mailerlite but with better features, pricing plans, or for any other reason, you should consider the following tools:
- Sender
- ActiveCampaign
- Brevo (Sendinblue)
- GetResponse
- Drip
- Mailchimp
- Constant Contact
- SendGrid
- Mailjet
1. Sender – Affordable Mailerlite Alternative with Unlimited Automation
Sender is the best substitute for Mailerlite if you want an all-in-one tool for your business. Run omnichannel campaigns to engage customers across multiple channels from a single platform.
Sender Features
- Email and SMS campaigns;
- Advanced automation;
- Drag-and-drop email builder;
- Free responsive templates;
- Popups and sign-up forms;
- 24/7 customer support.
Sender solves all the problems you must’ve faced while using Mailerlite. The forever-free plan offers generous limits, a powerful visual automation builder, and advanced segmentation features. Plus, the email builder supports drag-and-drop design and custom HTML templates.
Sender even has a template library with responsive email designs for different occasions. So, you can quickly create, schedule, and send emails that look good everywhere.
You’ll love Sender for its behavioral triggers. Set up automated follow-up, upsell, and abandoned cart campaigns that hit the inbox at the right time to supercharge your email marketing strategy.
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Easy-to-use visual automation builder | No landing page builder (yet) |
| Drag-and-drop email builder with free templates | Sender branding in the free plan |
| Exceptional deliverability |
Pricing
- Forever-free plan for up to 2,500 subscribers and 15,000 emails per month;
- Paid plans start at $15/month for up to 30,000 emails.
2. ActiveCampaign – Mailerlite Alternative with Good Template Library
If you’re bored with limited email templates in Mailerlite, you should look at ActiveCampaign. It has templates for all industries and situations, making it a good alternative.
ActiveCampaign Features
- Dynamic content customization & personalization;
- Wide variety of responsive email templates;
- Built-in sales CRM platform;
- Detailed reporting and analytics.
ActiveCampaign brings multiple aspects of nurturing leads for conversions on a single dashboard. You can use customer relationship management, email marketing, and marketing automation features. CRM features greatly benefit sales teams, enabling a unified view of customer interactions.
It’s perfect for businesses looking to conduct targeted, data-driven campaigns and using data insights to nurture leads. The platform also offers advanced customer segmentation features to improve engagement rates and ROI.
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Advanced automation features | Complexity may get overwhelming for beginners |
| Comprehensive CRM | More expensive than other alternatives |
| Wide range of email templates | Customer service varies based on pricing plans |
Pricing
- A free trial account is available with feature restrictions and limits;
- Paid plan starts at $29 per month for up to 1000 contacts.
3. Brevo (Sendinblue) – Best MailerLite Competitor for Marketing Automation
If you want a blogger-friendly email marketing tool, try Brevo (formerly Sendinblue). It has impressive RSS capabilities allow you to send automated campaigns based on your RSS feed.
Brevo Features
- RSS to email functionality;
- Vast email template library;
- Marketing automation builder;
- Drag-and-drop email builder;
- SMS, WhatsApp, and chat marketing.
Brevo was recently rebranded from Sendinblue, promising better features for use cases other than newsletters. And the features look promising. From marketing automation to user experience personalization and transactional emails to WhatsApp and SMS marketing, Brevo offers a lot on a single dashboard.
Also, it’s a great alternative if you’re considering growing your email list, as it allows you to store unlimited contacts, even on the free plan.
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Omnichannel automation builder | Email-only customer service, on lower plans |
| SMS and WhatsApp campaigns | Advanced features are only available in higher plans |
| Simple user interface | Transactional emails require a separate setup |
Pricing
- Free plan with unlimited contacts and a sending limit of 300 emails/daily;
- Paid plans start at $25 per month for up to 20,000 emails.
4. GetResponse – Email Marketing Platform with Landing Page Builder
GetResponse is ideal for businesses looking for more than email marketing. Its unique features, like landing page builder, webinar hosting, and ecommerce tools, make it a worthy alternative to Mailerlite.
GetResponse Features
- Automation flows based on user journey;
- Integration with ecommerce platforms;
- 200+ modern email templates;
- Drag-and-drop builder to create a landing page;
- Integrated webinar hosting tools.
Its simple, feature-rich, and intuitive dashboard caters is useful for both beginners and pros. However, deliverability rates and limited automation capabilities on lower plans can be problematic for some businesses.
Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Visual automation builder | Issues with email deliverability |
| Integrated CRM & webinar hosting tools | Limited automation capabilities on lower plans |
| Integrations with ecommerce platforms | No phone support |
Pricing
- Free plan available for up to 500 contacts with sending limit of 2,500 emails/mo;
- Paid plans start at $19/mo for up to 1000 contacts and unlimited email sends.
5. Drip – Good Alternative for Email Marketing Automation
Drip is designed specifically for ecommerce businesses. Its segmentation and marketing automation features can help you with better customer relationships and contextual campaigns.
Drip Features
- Behavioral automation based on online activity;
- Segmentation for campaign personalization;
- Easy-to-use automation builder;
- Ecommerce friendly feature set;
- A/B testing for email campaigns.
Create highly targeted email campaigns using Drip’s behavioral segmentation capabilities. Then, add its automation builder to personalize customer interactions.
So, whether you’re looking to nurture leads, recover abandoned carts, or streamline your email marketing, Drip has essential features that Mailerlite lacks.
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Advanced customer segmentation | Lack of customization features for landing pages |
| User journey builder for personalizing interactions | Expensive compared to other tools |
| Powerful analytics dashboard | No A/B testing for email content |
Pricing
- Free 14-day trial is available;
- Paid plans start at $39 per month for up to 2,500 subscribers.
6. Mailchimp – Great Mailerlite Alternative for Popups & Optin Forms
If Mailerlite’s popups and forms are giving you trouble, try Mailchimp. It is a nice alternative known for its versatility and clean user interface.
Mailchimp Features
- Drag-and-drop editor for emails and landing pages;
- Basic automation and segmentation;
- Appointment scheduler;
- Built-in campaign/email optimizer.
Mailchimp is quite popular among email marketing beginners because of its features and documentation. It has audience segmentation features and automation capabilities to help you personalize your email campaigns at scale. The form and landing page builder are useful for increasing signups and growing your email list.
The only problem is its pricing model. It charges users for duplicate contacts and add-ons to utilize advanced features. The restrictive feature set on basic plans makes picking Mailchimp for email marketing a costly affair.
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Intuitive popup and opt-in form creator | Expensive for businesses with large email lists |
| Segmentation and automation features | Restrictive lower-tier plans |
| Responsive template library | Limited customer service, especially for lower plans |
Pricing
- Free plan is available with a sending limit of up to 1000 emails;
- Paid plans start at $13 per month for up to 500 subscribers and a sending limit of 5,000 emails.
7. Constant Contact – Mailerlite Alternative for Bloggers
Constant Contact is a Mailerlite alternative for small businesses and companies that organize online events and webinars. It has an intuitive interface and several useful features for growing and nurturing your email list.
Constant Contact Features
- No-code drag-and-drop email editor;
- Social media integration;
- Landing page and form builder;
- Donation and event management features.
Its audience segmentation features are good for personalizing campaigns. Other features include automated campaigns based on blog posts, an opt-in form builder for growing email lists, and an integrated event management dashboard.
This makes it ideal for businesses that host online events and webinars. They can send tickets and promo codes, set up event landing pages, and study analytics on a single dashboard.
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Customizable email templates | Limited automation capabilities |
| Decent segmentation features | Email deliverability isn’t the best |
| Social media post scheduler | Expensive, compared to other alternatives |
Pricing
- Free limited-period trial plan is available to test out platform features;
- Paid plans start at $12 monthly for up to 500 subscribers with basic email marketing features. More advanced features are available on a plan that costs $35 per month for 500 subscribers.
8. SendGrid – Good Email Marketing Software with High Deliverability
Looking for an alternative that scores well on deliverability, integrations, and utility? Check out SendGrid. It’s a decent tool for businesses and seasoned marketers, offering a mix of great interface and a dedicated email API.
SendGrid Features
- Email API;
- Dynamic templates;
- Advanced analytics;
- Integration-friendly;
- Signup forms.
If you send many emails, particularly transactional ones, you should try it out. Its email API supports high-volume senders and promises great deliverability rates. Plus, it supports integrations with several marketing platforms off the shelf.
However, its marketing automation is not as advanced as some competitors, and the user interface might be overwhelming for beginners.
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Great deliverability | Limited marketing automation features |
| Informative reporting and analytics dashboard | Deliverability issues |
| Extensive integrations | Customer support can be slow at times |
Pricing
- Free forever plan for up to 2,000 contacts and a sending limit of up to 6,000 emails per month;
- Email API plans start at $19.95 per month for up to 50,000 emails, and marketing plans start at $15 per month for up to 1000 contacts and 10,000 emails per month.
9. Mailjet – Mailerlite Competitor for SMS Marketing Efforts
Mailjet offers great list management features like custom contact properties, online behavior, etc. This allows businesses to segment their email lists better, improving campaign personalization.
Mailjet Features
- Smart contact management and segmentation;
- Drag-and-drop email builder with responsive templates;
- SMS API and email SMTP relay;
- Campaign A/B testing;
- Real-time analytics.
Mailjet also helps businesses create targeted SMS and email campaigns. Its segmentation feature enables you to segment the audience based on their online behavior and personalizing your campaigns.
Mailjet offers an intuitive email template builder, A/B testing features, and a real-time analytics dashboard. Plus, its transactional email & SMS feature promises timely delivery of vital messages, improving customer experience and trust in your brand.
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Advanced personalization and segmentation | Limited features in the free plan |
| Intuitive email builder | More focus on technical aspects and not responsive designs |
| Email API for transactional emails | Complicated and overwhelming UI |
Pricing
- Free plan with a limit of 1,500 email contacts and 200 emails per day;
- Paid plans start at $15/month for unlimited contacts and sending up to 15,000 emails monthly.
Mailerlite Alternatives: Price & Feature Comparison Table
| Sender | ActiveCampaign | Brevo (Sendinblue) | Drip | Mailchimp | Constant Contact | SendGrid | Mailjet | GetResponse | |
| Contacts | Up to 2,500 (Free Plan) | 100 Contact (free plan) | Unlimited | Upto 2,500 (Starter Plan) | Up to 500 (Free Plan) | up to 500 (Starter plan) | Up to 2,000 contacts (Free plan) | Up to 1500 (Free plan) | up to 500 contacts (Free plan) |
| Emails | Up to 15,000 (Free Plan) | 100 emails (Free plan) | Up to 6,000 (Free Plan) | Unlimited ( Starter Plan) | Up to 1000 | 10x of contacts | Up to 6,000 emails (Free plan) | 200 emails/ day (Free plan) | 2,500 emails per month (Free plan) |
| Daily limits (Free account) | Unlimited | – | 300 | – | – | 300 | – | – | – |
| Support | 24/7 Live Chat + Email | Email and Live Chat | Email-only | Email Support | Email-only, first 30 days | Email-only | Email Support | Email and Live Chat | Email Support |
| WordPress Integration | + | + | + | + | + | + | + | + | + |
| Email Automation | + | + | + | + | Basic | + | + | + | + |
| Email Templates Library | + | + | + | + | Basic | + | + | + | + |
| Advanced Segmentation | + | + | Basic | + | Basic | Basic | + | + | + |
| Email Scheduling | + | + | + | + | – | + | + | + | + |
| Advanced Reporting | + | + | – | + | – | – | + | + | Basic |
| Geography & device reporting | + | + | – | – | – | – | – | + | – |
| Heatmap reporting | + | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Advanced open & click stats | + | + | – | + | – | – | Basic | + | Basic |
| Multi-user access | Unlimited | 3 Users | Limited on Lower Plans | – | Limited on Lower Plans | 1 | Limited on Lower Plans | Yes | Limited on Lower Plans |
| Pricing | $15 per month for 2,500 subscribers and up to 30K emails per month | $29 per month for 1000 subscribers | $25 per month for sending up to 20K emails/month (No restriction on subscribers) | $39 per month for up to 2,500 subscribers | $13 per month for 500 subscribers and 5,000 emails per month | $12 per month for upto 500 contacts | $15 per month for sending up to 15,000 emails | $15/month for up to 15,000 emails | $19 per month for up to 1000 subscribers |
Key Takeaways: Mailerlite Alternatives
When switching from Mailerlite, compare all available options by reviewing their pros and cons. Make sure to remember the following:
- Pick a solution that helps you save time through automation and improve your email marketing efforts;
- Choose a platform with segmentation capabilities, prompt customer support, and great deliverability;
- Try and test multiple email marketing services using the free plan before you think of migrating from Mailerlite;
- Pick an email marketing service provider with affordable pricing plans.
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