Mailerlite is a decent email marketing tool. However, once you start growing your email list, Mailerlite feels costly, considering the limitations and lack of advanced features.
Most users who start with Mailerlite seek Mailerlite alternatives due to the lack of a user-friendly automation builder, confusing segmentation capabilities, and high costs. If you’re someone who’s also looking for an option, we’ve got you covered.
In this blog, we’ve covered the best email marketing tools that you can consider as viable Mailerlite alternatives.
Curious? Let’s begin by first exploring the reasons why everyone’s searching for a Mailerlite alternative.
Why Consider Mailerlite Alternatives?
Mailerlite used to be a beginner-friendly email marketing solution. However, simplicity can be restricting when you need advanced features for effective email marketing campaigns.
In other words, you outgrow email marketing systems meant for beginners. That’s a major reason for searching for an alternative to Mailerlite. Plus, the platform has some limitations, such as:
- 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;
- High cost. 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.
11 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 email campaign tools:
- Sender
- ActiveCampaign
- Brevo (Sendinblue)
- GetResponse
- Drip
- Mailchimp
- Constant Contact
- SendGrid
- Mailjet
- Sendpulse
- MailerSend
Let’s look at each of these email marketing services one by one.
1. Sender – Best Alternative for Email Marketing
Sender is the best substitute for Mailerlite if you want an all-rounder tool for your small business. Run omnichannel campaigns to engage customers across multiple channels from a single platform.
Best for:
- Small and medium-sized businesses;
- Ecommerce & retail stores;
- SaaS businesses.
Ratings: Capterra 4.6 | G2 4.4 | Shopify 4.3
Sender solves every problem you must have faced while using Mailerlite. The forever-free plan has a restriction-free automation builder, generous sending limits, and advanced segmentation features.
It also has a powerful visual automation builder and advanced segmentation features. Also, you get one of the best response times in the industry if you need any help.
There’s a powerful drag-and-drop email builder, and the template library is full of responsive email designs for every occasion.
Plus, you’ll fall in love with Sender’s behavioral triggers. You can set up automated follow-up, upsell, and abandoned cart campaigns that hit the inbox at the right moment. All this without making you feel you’re overpaying.
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.
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 & Free Plan
- 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.
Best for:
- Content creators;
- Small to midsize businesses
- Service-based businesses.
Ratings: Capterra 4.6 | G2 4.5 | Shopify 4.4
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.
ActiveCampaign Features
- Dynamic content customization & personalization;
- Wide variety of responsive email templates;
- Built-in sales CRM platform;
- Detailed reporting and analytics.
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 & Free Plan
- 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 Alternative for Email Automation Software
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.
Best for:
- Ecommerce platforms;
- Small businesses;
- Personal branding experts.
Ratings: Capterra 4.5 | G2 4.5 | Shopify 2.6
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.
Brevo Features
- RSS to email functionality;
- Vast email template library;
- Marketing automation builder;
- Drag-and-drop email builder;
- SMS, WhatsApp, and chat marketing.
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
- 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 email newsletter tools, make it a worthy alternative to Mailerlite.
Best for
- Ecommerce business owners;
- Personal coaches and influencers;
- B2B SaaS businesses.
Ratings: Capterra 4.2 | G2 4.2 | Shopify 1.9
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.
GetResponse Features
- Automation flows based on user journey;
- Integration with ecommerce solutions;
- 200+ modern email templates;
- Drag-and-drop builder to create a landing page;
- Integrated webinar hosting tools.
Pros & 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
- 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.
Best for:
- Small ecommerce businesses;
- Info product creators;
- Online/offline retailers.
Ratings: Capterra 4.4 | G2 4.4 | Shopify 4.6 (currently unavailable)
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.
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.
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 Plan
- 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.
Best for:
- Marketing agencies;
- B2B startups;
- Coaches and influencers.
Ratings: Capterra 4.5 | G2 4.4 | Shopify 3.3
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.
Mailchimp Features
- Drag-and-drop editor for emails and landing pages;
- Basic automation and segmentation;
- Appointment scheduler;
- Built-in campaign/email optimizer.
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
- 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.
Best for:
- Online retailers;
- Event marketers;
- Bloggers.
Ratings: Capterra 4.3 | G2 4.0 | Shopify 3.0
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.
Constant Contact Features
- No-code drag-and-drop email editor;
- Social media integration;
- Landing page and form builder;
- Donation and event management features.
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 Plan
- 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 that offers a mix of a user-friendly interface and a dedicated email API.
Best for
- Tech companies;
- SaaS platforms;
- Marketing agencies.
Ratings: Capterra 4.2 | G2 4.0 | Shopify NA
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.
SendGrid Features
- Email API;
- Dynamic templates;
- Advanced analytics;
- Integration-friendly;
- Signup forms.
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 Plan
- 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, such as custom contact properties, online behavior, and SMS marketing capabilities. These help businesses segment their email lists better and run omnichannel campaigns for better results.
Best for:
- Non-profits;
- Marketing agencies;
- Media and publishing companies.
Ratings: Capterra 4.3 | G2 3.8 | Shopify 1.0
Mailjet also helps businesses set up and schedule targeted SMS and email campaigns. Its transactional email and SMS feature promises timely delivery of vital messages, improving customer experience and trust in your brand.
Plus, its segmentation feature enables you to segment the audience based on their online behavior and personalize your campaigns. Apart from all this, Mailjet also offers an intuitive email template builder, A/B testing features, and a real-time analytics dashboard.
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.
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
- 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.
10. SendPulse – Multi-Channel Marketing Automation Platform
SendPulse is a useful solution if you aim to build automations to nurture your leads across different channels, such as email, SMS, and web push notifications. It has several useful features that help you monitor customer conversations across multiple platforms.
Best for:
- Small business owners;
- Ecommerce platforms;
- Early-stage startups.
Ratings: Capterra 4.6 | G2 4.6 | Shopify 0
Apart from all the essential features you find in any email marketing solution, SendPulse also offers a chatbot builder and a CRM. So, you can start nurturing leads through multiple mediums right away. There’s even a landing page builder, so you can launch dedicated website pages to capture leads.
SendPulse Features
- Automation builder;
- Chatbots and web push notifications;
- Free CRM;
- Segmentation and personalization;
- Free link in bio page.
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Chatbot and web push notifications | Slow customer support |
| Readymade automation templates | Deliverability issues |
| CRM dashboard | Charges for every contact on the list (no duplicate identification) |
Pricing & Free Plan
- Paid plans start at $6.4/month for up to 500 subscribers, 10 automation flows, and 5 audience segments;
- Free plan for up to 500 subscribers, 15,000 emails, and five automation flows.
11. MailerSend – All-Inclusive Email Sending Service
MailerSend is a comprehensive email-sending platform for businesses seeking high deliverability rates, simple integration, and seamless API support.
Best for:
- Developers;
- SaaS companies;
- Marketers.
Ratings: Capterra 4.6 | G2 4.2 | Shopify NA
MailerSend is ideal for transactional emails, and you can plug and play directly using SMTP relay and inbound routing. Businesses can set up automations for sending invoices, delivery updates, and general emails in a few hours.
MailerSend boasts of human technical support, collaboration tools, and effortless integration, which makes it useful for business owners with little or no knowledge. However, the email marketing service is designed to benefit a tech or SaaS team better because of its focus on API integration.
MailerSend Features
- SMTP relay for connecting to your apps and website;
- Inbound routing feature;
- Supports multiple domains;
- Seamless integration through SDK or email API;
- Customizable email templates
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Real-time customer support | Accuracy of email analytics is not up to mark |
| High deliverability | Complex set up for non-tech person |
| Supports multiple domains/websites | Limited email templates |
Pricing & Free Plan
- MailerSend’s free plan supports sending up to 3,000 emails every month;
- Its paid plans start at $24/month for up to 50,000 emails, 100 SMS & 100 email verification credits.
Mailerlite Alternatives: Price & Feature Comparison Table
Now that you’ve explored all the available alternatives, what do you feel about switching to improve your email marketing efforts? Still confused? Here’s a tools comparison table to help you quickly compare the mentioned Mailerlite alternatives side by side.
| Cost | Monthly Emails | Free Plan | Best Feature | |
| Sender | Starts at $15 | 30,000 | Yes | Drag-and-drop email builder & responsive templates |
| ActiveCampaign | $29 per month | 10x of contact limit | No (14-day trial only) | Lead scoring capabilities |
| Brevo | Starts at $25 | 20,000 | Yes | WhatsApp/SMS marketing features |
| GetResponse | Starts at $15 | Unlimited | Yes | Conversion funnel builder & CRM |
| Drip | Starts at $39 | Unlimited | No | Customer journey builder |
| Mailchimp | Starts at $13 | 5,000 | Yes | Landing page builder |
| Constant Contact | Starts at $12 | 10x contact tier sending limit | No (60-day trial only) | CRM dashboard |
| Sendgrid | Starts at $19.95 | 50,000 | Yes | Developer-focused APIs |
| Mailjet | Starts at $15 | 15,000 | Yes | Transactional email API |
| Sendpulse | Starts at $6.4 | Unlimited | Yes | Web push notifications |
| MailerSend | Starts at $24 | 50,000 | Yes | SMTP relay |
Looking for more to read? Explore our suggested articles below to deepen your understanding of email marketing platforms:
- 14 Best Email Marketing Platforms in 2024 (Software Review)
- 15 Free Email Template Builders (HTML + Drag-and-Drop Editor)
- 20 Best Marketing Automation Tools & Platforms in 2024
