MailChimp and MailerLite are two different email marketing tools with a lot of features. MailChimp is a common email marketing tool that all are familiar with. It is an email marketing tool for all types of businesses. It has a free plan with limited features and also it is easy to set up. So, it is a good tool for beginners also. On the other hand, MailerLite is also a simple email marketing tool. It also has a free version with a lot of features. MailerLite is more focused on Small business organizations and those who are budget-conscious. Here I compared MailChimp Vs MailerLite. If you are looking for a better marketing tool for your business, then this comparison is for you.
MailChimp is a general email marketing tool. More than 90% of Mailchimp customers are free users. Its free plan is popular and beginner-friendly. It has so many features. But most of them are not available in the free plan & extremely priced, only suitable for large-scale corporate businesses. At the same time, its free plan is popular among students as a learning point. The highest number of users are beginners who are just started to learn. That’s why Mailchimp contributes the highest number of spam emails. Mailchimp is good in its features and ease of use.
Who uses: Students, Large corporate businesses, Universities, Local clubs, etc
Ease of Use : Easy
Support : 24/7
Deliverability : 96%
Pricing /mo : $0 – $299
Templates : 100+
Automation : 5/5
Trial Period : No (Free plan & limited)
Integration : 300+
Refund Policy : No
What is MailerLite?
MailerLite is one of the best and most affordable email marketing tools in the Market. Its interface is pretty cool and it is easy to use. You will get most of the features of email marketing in its free version. MailerLite focused on providing more features at a low cost to its customers. Around 8,00,000 businesses including small businesses, large corporates, start-ups, and others are using MailerLite. And it is one of the fastest-growing SaaS Businesses all around the world.
MailerLite is cheaper when compared to Mailchimp. Both have a free plan. Using MailChimp, you will get only basic features. But you will get some more in MailerLite’s free plan. You can create unlimited automation from MailerLite. For 1000 subscribers, MailerLite’s first plan pricing is $9 /mo and MailChimp’s price is $23 /mo [For up to 1500 subscribers]. The second plan is $19 for MailerLite and $59 for MailChimp. For the complete package, MailChimp will cost $299. On the other hand, MailerLite will cost you only $19 /mo.
Who is better Mailchimp or MailerLite?
On the basis of value for money, MailerLite will be better. But there are a lot of better features in MailChimp. MailerLite is affordable. You will get most of all features in its free plan itself. MailChimp is a little expensive. The more important features are included in the highest plans. MailerLite has better templates and design, campaign creation & email builder, Landing page & website builder, automation workflow, customer support, etc. MailChimp has better integrations, Analytics & reporting, split test, etc.
Is Mailchimp free to use?
Mailchimp provides you with a free version. In the free version, you will get some of the basic features like creating campaigns, 1 automation, basic email templates, basic segmentation, behavioral targeting, landing pages, pop-ups & sign-up forms, etc. And also, you can add up to 2000 contacts and you can send 10,000 emails per, month using its free version.
What are the disadvantages of MailChimp?
>> Most of the template designs are outdated. >> Only automation previews are available in the free version. >> Chance of your email being flagged as spam is high. >> Deliverability rate is low. >> Pricing is based on the number of subscribers.
Does Mailchimp go into spam?
Yes. Most of the students and beginners will use MailChimp’s free plan & first plan. And also it provides unlimited emails. So there are a lot of IP addresses flagged. That’s why there is a high chance for your email to go to spam. But for higher plans of MailChimp, the deliverability rate is comparatively high.
What is MailerLite used for?
MailerLite is an easy-to-use email marketing tool with powerful features. It is mainly focused on beginners and small business organizations. Its free plan provides you with most of the features like Landing pages, mobile-friendly email newsletters, email automation, advanced segmentation, etc. MailerLite is affordable when compared to other email marketing tools. It also provides advanced reporting, integration, free websites, etc.
Can you use MailerLite with Gmail?
Yes. But you have to integrate with Zapier. It allows you to connect Gmail with your MailerLite and then you can send information from Gmail and MailerLite.
Main Differences
MailChimp is very easy to set up. So, it will be easy for beginners to use it. But MailerLite is a time-consuming process. You have to go through so many steps. It is a time-consuming process. And also, you have to complete an approval process before sending emails.
Importing contacts in MailChimp is an easy process. You can import bulk contacts in many ways. You can even import from other services like Shopify, WooCommerce, etc. MailerLite does not have an option for importing contacts from other services. And also, for importing bulk contacts, you have to show the evidence from where did you get that contacts. But it will help your email not end up in the spam folder and increase deliverability.
In MailChimp, you will get basic templates from the free version. But in MailerLite, you won’t get any pre-built templates in its free version. And also, there is only less number of templates available.
In MailerLite, You will get customer support in different languages like English, French, Spanish, Russian, Ukrainian, Lithuanian, Polish, etc. But in MailChimp, you will get customer support only in English.
On the basis of research, MailChimp’s deliverability rate is around 91%. And MailerLite has around a 95% deliverability rate. It is high compared to MailChimp.
You can create unlimited landing pages and websites in MailChimp using its free plan. But in MailerLite, you can create only 1 website and 10 landing pages from the free plan.
Interest over time of MailChimp Vs MailerLite according to Google Trends is given below.
Let’s compare some features of Mailchimp Vs MailerLite in depth.
1. Contact Management
>> MailChimp
Importing contacts in MailChimp is easy. You can create a mailing list in Mailchimp using several ways. You can add subscribers manually, you can upload a CSV file or TXT file, and you can copy and paste the contacts from the Spreadsheet. MailChimp allows you to create multiple lists. You can separate one contact list from one another and you can use these multiple contacts for different purposes. You can also create segments for these contact lists. You can create simple or complex segments. Mailchimp’s pricing is based on the number of customer lists. You can add up to 2000 contacts to your free plan.
You can import contacts from other services like Zapier, Salesforce, WooCommerce, Shopify, Squarespace, etc.
MailChimp also has customer segmentation. There are so many segmentation options available. You can segment customers based on location, birthday, signup source, automation activity, etc.
>> MailerLite
Adding subscribers to MailerLite is simple. You can add it in different ways. You can add a single subscriber, you can import from a CSV or TXT file, you can copy & paste from an excel sheet, and you can import from Mailchimp also. But you can’t import contacts from other services like Shopify, Squarespace, WooCommerce, etc. You can also group different lists. But when you import bulk contacts like 1000 contacts, MailerLite will ask you the proof of where you got these contacts. Whatever it will help the email to not end up in the spam folder.
MailerLite also provides you with advanced list segmenting. You can segment your customers according to their behavior like signup source, location, date, etc. You can segment them using minuted features and you can send more targeted emails to your segmented subscribers.
Mailerlite Contact segmentation
Key Take-Aways: Contact management is better in MailChimp when compared MailerLite. Because it is an easy process in MailChimp. and, we can import contacts from other service providers also. It is not possible in MailerLite. And also, while we import bulk contacts, we have to show proof of where we got the contacts.
On the other hand, MailChimp is a design-centric email marketing tool. Mailchimp provides around 100+ templates with various designs. We can use them for holiday mails, newsletters, promotions, etc. Also, we can create our templates. For that, they are providing around 15 blank templates. But most of the templates are outdated and non-usable. In the free version, you will get only the basic templates. Pre-built templates are available in the paid plans.
Mailchimp Templates
>> MailerLite
Templates of MailerLite are templates-based. It provides you with around 80+ templates. All are good-looking and attractive templates. These templates are categorized into different sections like E-Commerce, Announcements, Deals & offers, etc. But you won’t get templates in the free version. You will get only blank templates and some layouts. You have to create your own design. It is a time-consuming process. However, it offers a lot of customization options.
MailerLite Templates
Key Take-Aways: The number of contacts is lesser in MailerLite, even though the look and feel of templates are better in MailerLite compared to MailChimp. MailerLite templates are all good-looking. But in the case of MailChimp, most of the templates are a bit outdated.
Mailchimp’s email editor is user-friendly and easy to navigate. All the options are present on the right side itself. You can simply drag and drop the blocks you want. You have plenty of features in the Mailchimp editor. You can also add videos from your gallery or you can give the youtube link. For the free version, you can have all the features in the Mailchimp email editor. But to create Dynamic content, you need to upgrade the plan to $17 /month.
Mailchimp email editorMailchimp Editor
>> MailerLite
Campaign creation is an easy process in MailerLite. What you have to do is click the campaign option and just create the campaign. In MailerLite, Campaigns are categorized into different types. Regular Campaigns, A/B split campaigns, auto resend, and RSS campaigns. In a Regular campaign, you have to give the Campaign name, Subject, and Sender Name.
MailerLite CampaignsMailerLite Campaign types
After creating the campaign, it will lead you to the email design page. There you can select drag & drop editor, rich text editor, or custom HTML editor. Or you can select the templates and Custom HTML. But in the free version, pre-built templates and Custom HTML will not be available.
MailerLite email design types
MailerLite has a drag & drop email builder. It contains several blocks like Gallery, Content, Button, E-commerce, special, etc. In its special block, there are so many unique features. They are Countdown, Accordion, Coupon/ Voucher, etc. It also allows you to sell digital products. You can also add products in the Email.
MailerLite Email builderMailerlite emailbuilder text editor
Key Take-Aways: Campaign creation is simple in MailerLite when compared to MailChimp. And also, the email builder is advanced in MailerLite. Both MailerLite and MailChimp have a drag-and-drop editor. But, you will get more elements (special elements) like Countdown, Accordion, Coupon, etc in MailerLite.
MailChimp has two types of testing. A/B Testing and Multivariate Testing Testing. Multivariate Testing is just an evolution of A/B testing that contains 8 variations instead of the two variations that you get in A/B testing. But it is only available for a $299 /month plan.
You can test different versions of the subject line, from name, Content, and Send time. After you select the version, you can split the test among your recipients.
>> MailerLite
Split Testing of MailerLite is also good. You can perform A/B split test for Name, Subject line, and Content. MailerLite allows you to perform the split tests for landing pages also. You can perform the split test in the Free version also. You will get Split Test from: “Create Campaign -> A/B Split Campaign“. Then you can test 2 different versions of Email, From name, etc.
MailerLite Campaign types
Key Take-Aways: Split test in MailChimp is better when compared to MailerLite. You can test more elements in MailChimp when compared to MailerLite. When you pay $299, you can even test 8 variations in MailChimp.
In Mailchimp, the $11 and the higher plan includes automation workflow. You can create only 1 automation using the free plan. There are about 25 automation workflow triggers based on the various customer activity. You can also visualize the journey of the customer in a simple way. If you want advanced automation features, you need to upgrade to $11 or to other higher plans. Mailchimp has also a multi-step workflow based on customer activity.
You can create complex workflows using the $17 plan. You can create a customer journey and also you can send transactional emails on Mailchimp.
Mailchimp Automation trigger
>> MailerLite
MailerLite also provides you with a visual automation workflow. It has so many actions and triggers available. There are six trigger options. They are “When a subscriber joins a group, completes a form or clicks a link, when the subscriber field is updated, and trigger for a specific date”. The steps will be email, delay, condition, and action. The Actions include “Update custom field”, “Copy to a group”, “Move to a group”, “Remove from a group”, “Mark as unsubscribed”, and “Move to another step”. Automations are available in the Free version.
Mailerlite Automation
Key Take-Aways: Automation workflow is better in MailChimp when compared to MailerLite. You can create simple and also complex workflows using MailChimp. There are more actions and triggers there in MailChimp.
You will get better analytics and reports using Mailchimp when compared to MailerLite. You will get an open rate, click rate, bounced rate, unsubscribe rate, etc. They are also providing a performance chat of your campaign. You will get a campaign benchmark also. By this, you can compare your campaign performance with your competitors. It has better features like geo-location tracking, Google analytics integration, etc. You will get even better analytics and reports with higher plans. You will get comparative reporting using the $299 plan.
Mailchimp analytics & report
>> MailerLite
MailerLite also has better analytics & Report. You can see Spam complaints, Hard bounce, Soft bounce, reading environment, Opens by location, etc. You can also see the basic reporting like open rate, click rate, and unsubscribed rate.
MailerLite Report
Key Take-Aways: Analytics & Reporting is better in MailChimp compared to MailerLite. Using MailerLite, we will get only basic reporting. But Analytics & Reporting of MailChimp is advanced.
MailChimp provides you with only 9 templates for creating landing pages. You can create beautiful landing pages using MailChimp within minutes. It will help you to grow your audience. You can publish them on the internet or send them through MailChimp Campaigns. You can send unlimited landing pages for free.
MailChimp has a drag-and-drop landing page builder. So many features are available for MailChimp Landing pages. They include Creating a buzz for your new business (Test Product, message, Ideas, etc. before launching), Highlight products (You can insert products directly from your eCommerce store), Offer Free downloads, etc. Creating Landing pages is easy. You have to follow some steps.
Click Create icon -> Click on Landing Pages -> Name your Landing page -> Select Audience -> Click Begin. Thats all.
You can also create stunning websites using MailChimp and publish them. You can create unlimited pages with unlimited bandwidth in all plans. And MailChimp provides SEO tools, a free SSL certificate, and site visit analytics in every plan.
>> MailerLite
There are around 15 templates are available on the Landing page of MailerLite. The drag and drop option is available in the editor and also there are so many blocks there. You can add text, images, links, sign-up forms, surveys, quizzes, count dows, etc. You can also edit and customize the image and font style.
Mailerlite landing page templates
You will get Landing pages from Sites on the left side of the dashboard. There will be 2 options. Website and Landing page. Select landing page -> Give a name -> Click next -> Add a subscriber group -> Create.
Mailerlite landing page builder
Website creation is easy in MailerLite. It is almost the same as the Landing page builder. You can create a website from scratch or you can select a template. There will be options like Block, Pages & Settings. From Blocks, you will get various elements like Text, Divider, spaces, Images, columns, buttons, Forms, Surveys & quizzes, maps, tables, etc.
All you have to do is drag and drop the elements you want. From the pages, you can edit the page name, add pages, etc. You can also protect pages using passwords. From settings, you can customize the background, font style, Call to action, etc.
Key Take-Aways: Creating Landing pages & Website is better in MailerLite when compared to MailChimp. You will get a better landing page builder and Website builder using MailerLite. There are a lot of options are available in MailerLite than MailChimp.
Winner of Kanding page & Website Builder: MailerLite
MailChimp: 4-3 : MailerLite
8. Pricing Comparison
Both MailChimp & MailerLite has a free version with a lot of features included. Let’s see what the things that we get for free.
Features
MailChimp ($0 /mo)
MailerLite ($0 /mo)
Number of Subscribers
2000
1000
Monthly email send
10,000
12,000
Create Landing pages
Unlimited
10
Drag & Drop editor
✔️
✔️
Rich Text Editor
✔️
✔️
Templates
✔️
❌ $9 /mo
Create customized templates
❌ $17 /mo
❌ $9 /mo
A/B Testing
✔️
✔️
Use custom domains
❌ $10 /mo (Website & eCommerce Plan)
❌ $9 /mo
Create signup forms
✔️
✔️
Subscriber management
✔️
✔️
Advanced tagging & Segmentation
❌ $299 /mo
✔️
Facebook custom audiences
❌
❌ $19 /mo
Send email
10,000
12,000
Visual automation funnels
✔️
✔️
Integrations & API
✔️ 300+
✔️ 150+
Deliverability reporting
❌
❌
Run a paid newsletter
❌
❌ $9 /mo
Mobile-friendly email newsletters
✔️
✔️
Priority support
❌ $299 /mo
❌ $19 /mo
Auto resend
✔️ $11 /mo
✔️ $9 /mo
Deliver by time zone
❌ $17 /mo
✔️
Multi-user accounts
❌ 1 User
❌ 1 User
>> MailChimp
MailChimp has a free plan as well as paid plans. You will get all the basic features in the free plan. MailChimp has mainly 3 paid plans. The pricing plan (yearly) of MailChimp based on 1000 contacts is given below.
Essential: $23 /month: Email and landing page template, Customer journey builder, custom branding, A/B testing, 24/7 email, and also chat support.
Standard: $59 /month: Customer journey builder and Branching points, Send time optimization, Behavioral targeting, Custom templates, and also dynamic content.
Premium: $299 /month: This plan is for expert builders. Advanced segmentation, Multivariate testing, comparative reporting, Unlimited seats & role-based access, and phone support.
>> MailerLite
MailerLite is one of the affordable email marketing tools. Its pricing depends on the number of subscribers. It has a Free version and also paid version. We will get most of the features in its free version itself. And also in its free plan, they are providing a 14-day free trial with the premium features like Newsletter templates, Auto Resend, Promotion pop-ups, Click maps, and Live chat. The pricing plan of MailerLite based on 1000 subscribers is given below.
MailChimp does not provide a refund policy. On the other hand, MailerLite provides you with a 30 days refund policy.
Key Take-Aways: MailerLite is affordable and worth money when compared to MailChimp. Its plan starts from $9 for 1000 subscribers. But for MailChimp, it is $23 for 1000 subscribers. And also, MailerLite has a refund policy that MailChimp does not has.
Nobody can beat MailChimp at integration. Mailchimp offers more than 300+ integrations. They are also integrated with major CRMs. Their integrations are categorized into Ecommerce, productivity, point of sale, etc. Mailchimp is integrated with Shopify, Zapier, WooCommerce, etc.
Mailchimp-integration
>> MailerLite
MailerLite has around 130+ integrations. Integrations are categorized into Automation, Sign-up forms, Tools & Reports, Project management, etc. It is also integrated with popular apps and websites like Shopify, WordPress, WooCommerce, Zapier, etc.
Mailerlite integrations
Key Take-Aways: The number of integrations is more in MailChimp when compared to MailerLite. MailChimp has around 300+ integration and MailerLite has only around 130+ integrations.
Provides customer support via Live Chat, Email, and phone support. 24/7 email and chat support is provided for the $11 plan, phone support is provided for the $299 plan. You will not get proper customer support for the free plan.
>> MailerLite
All the support options like Email/Help Desk, FAQs/Forum, Knowledge Base, 24/7 (Live Rep), and Chat are available in MailerlIte. 24/7 customer support is available in the free version. In the 14-day free trial of the premium plan, you will get 24/7 live chat support. MailerLite provides you with better customer support.
MailerLite customer support
Key Take-Aways: Customer support is better in MailerLite when compared to MailChimp. MailChimp’s customer support is not that good. You will get proper customer support for only a $299 plan.
The Email propagation of website that using MailChimp is given below. In the cross mark (❌) area, the email will deliver slowly.
The Email propagation of website that using MailerLite is given below. In the cross mark (❌) area, the email will deliver slowly.
Alternatives of MailChimp Vs MailerLite
ConvertKit
Constant Contact
Campaign Monitor
ActiveCampaign
Salesforce Marketing Cloud
GetResponse
Moosend
Benchmark
SendInBlue
Emma
In-depth Side by side comparison features of MailChimp and MailerLite are given below.
Email Marketing Features
MailChimp ($11 /mo)
MailerLite ($9 /mo)
MailChimp ($17 /mo)
MailerLite ($19 /mo)
Number of Contacts
500
1000
500
1000
Emails Send
10 * Number of Contacts
Unlimited
12 * Number of Contacts
Unlimited
Users
3 Users
3 Users
5 Users
Unlimited
Drag & Drop Editor
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
HTML Editor
✔️
❌
✔️
✔️
Template Library
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
A/B Split Testing
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Multivariate Testing
❌
❌
❌ For $299 plan
❌
Split automation
❌
❌
❌
❌
Apps & Integration
✔️
300+
✔️
✔️
130+
✔️
Advanced Tracking & Reporting
✔️
❌
✔️
❌
Ecommerce marketing
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Customizable pop-up forms
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
SMS marketing
❌ (With Simple Texting Integration)
❌
❌ (With Simple Texting Integration)
❌
SMS Service Follow-ups
❌
❌
❌
❌
In-depth reporting
❌
❌
❌ For $299 plan
❌
Predictive analytics
❌
❌
✔️
❌
Built-in CRM
✔️
❌
Using Integrations
✔️
❌ Using Integrations
Create invoices
✔️
❌ Using InvoiceBerry Integration
✔️
❌ Using InvoiceBerry Integration
Lead Scoring
❌
❌
❌
❌
Contact Management
Sign-up forms
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Contacts list import from other services
✔️
❌
✔️
❌
List segmentation
✔️
✔️
✔️ Advanced segemtation for $299
✔️
Ecommerce Segmentation
✔️
❌
✔️
❌
Automation
Visual automation Workflow
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
List Building tools & Welcome emails
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Smart Sending
❌
❌
❌
❌
Dynamic content
❌
✔️
✔️
✔️
Automated Email Welcome series
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Automated email behavioral series
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Landing Pages
Custom Branded landing pages
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Shoppable landing pages
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Landing page creation & Hosting
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Logo Maker
✔️
❌
✔️
❌
Customer Support
Phone Support
❌
❌
❌ For $299
❌
Email/Help Desk
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
24/7 (Live Rep)
✔️
❌
✔️
✔️
Chat
✔️
❌
✔️
✔️
FAQs/Forum
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Knowledge Base
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Training
Live Online
✔️
❌
✔️
❌
In-Person
❌
❌
❌
❌
Videos
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Documentation
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Webinars
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Deployment
Cloud, SaaS, Web-Based
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Desktop – Mac
✔️
❌
✔️
❌
Desktop – Windows
✔️
❌
✔️
❌
Desktop – Linux
❌
❌
❌
❌
Desktop – Chromebook
❌
❌
❌
❌
On-Premise – Windows
❌
❌
❌
❌
On-Premise – Linux
❌
❌
❌
❌
Mobile – Android
✔️
❌
✔️
❌
Mobile – iPad
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Mobile – iPhone
✔️
✔️
✔️
✔️
Conclusion
Why should you use MailChimp over MailerLite?
Here is what is great about Mailchimp:
MailChimp is very easy to set up. There for, it will be very easy to use for beginners. They can easily set up and use MailChimp. On the other hand, MailerLite is a little complicated. There are so many approval processes that will be there.
Adding bulk contacts in MailChimp is very easy. You can easily add any number of contacts quickly. But in the case of MailerLite, you have to show the evidence of from where you got the contacts.
Using MailChimp, you will get better analytics and tracking. It has better features like geo-location tracking, Google analytics integration, etc.
Split testing is better in MailChimp than MailerLite. You can test 2 different versions of the Subject line, from name, content, and send time. For $299, you can even test up to 8 variations. On the other hand, using MailerLite, you can split test only the Subject line, content, and from name.
There are so many integrations available in MailChimp. There are around 300+ integrations there in MailChimp. But in MailerLite, there are only 130+ integrations available.
MailChimp has a better automation workflow compared to MailerLite. You can create a simple to more complex workflow using MailChimp.
Why should you use MailerLite over MailChimp?
Here is what is great about MailerLite:
The deliverability rate is high in MailerLite when compared to MailChimp. MailChimp has around a 90% deliverability rate, whereas, MailerLite has around a 95% deliverability rate.
The templates are less in number but, MailerLite has a better collection of templates when compared to MailChimp.
You can micro-segment your customers based on different parameters. It will help you to send more targeted emails to your subscribers. In MailChimp, you have to pay $299 for advanced segmentation.
If you are looking for better customer support, then MailerLite will be better. MailerLite has a better customer support system when compared to MailChimp.
If you are looking for a budget-friendly email marketing tool, then MailerLite is a good option for you. MailerLite is affordable and MailChimp on the other is a little expensive.
MailerLite provides you with a refund policy. But MailChimp does not provide a Refund policy with any of the plans.
You can create beautiful landing pages and Websites using MailerLite. There are so many elements available in its editor.
Sophia Gilbert is an Email Marketing Specialist and Web Application Expert with 10+ years of experience. She meticulously tested and used most of the email marketing tools & website builders in the real field. Here she is sharing reviews and comparisons of different email marketing tools based on her past experience through different companies where she has worked.
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