EmailOctopus vs MailerLite: bigger free plan or deeper automation?

How are EmailOctopus and MailerLite really different?

What will EmailOctopus or MailerLite cost for your setup?

The cheapest plan that covers each setup, add-ons included. Prices exclude VAT.

EmailOctopus vs MailerLite side by side

I compare email/CRM platforms on: Real cost per list size, both billing bases; Free-tier contact ceiling before you must pay anything; Team seats included, and the seat price past that; List segmentation depth; Automation workflow depth and any step/action limits; Deliverability and sending limits (emails per month, per day, or per rolling window); CRM and ecommerce integration depth; What happens past your plan's contact ceiling (overage pricing vs a forced upgrade).

Who should pick EmailOctopus, and who should pick MailerLite?

EmailOctopus

Desk research

• Best for solo marketers and small businesses
• Best for growing lists sending regularly
• Best for small teams sharing one account

EmailOctopus is free to start with 2,500 subscribers and 10,000 emails per month, then scales into Pro, which starts at $10/month billed monthly at a 500-subscriber floor and climbs with subscriber count up to 500,000 subscribers. The free plan caps sending at 10,000 emails per month, while Pro's monthly sending allowance grows with your subscriber count, so it suits solo creators and small lists that want a free start and room to scale. There is no free trial; the free Starter plan is the trial substitute.

Best for: Solo creators and small business owners with lists under 2,500 subscribers who want a truly free entry tier and don't need advanced segmentation or high email volume. The free plan's 2,500 subscriber cap and 10,000-email limit fit weekend projects and side hustles more than established businesses.

Strengths

• True free plan at $0/month billed monthly with 2,500 subscriber capacity and 10,000 emails per month; no credit card required to explore.
• Pro tier starts at $10/month billed monthly at the 500-subscriber floor and unlocks unlimited team members and unlimited landing pages, full design control, and removes EmailOctopus branding.
• Flexible contracts: choose Month-to-month and annual plans available, cancel anytime on Pro; no lock-in on Pro, and 20% lifetime discount for nonprofits.

Limits

• Free tier caps at 2,500 subscribers and 10,000 emails per month, which is tight for established lists. There is no separate trial period; crossing the cap means moving straight to a paid Pro tier.
• Free sending is capped at 10,000 emails per month, so a weekly digest plus occasional promo already uses most of it. On Pro the sending allowance grows with the subscriber tier.
• Pro's price rises with subscriber count; the entry price ($10/month billed monthly) only holds up to 500 subscribers, and published prices stop at 500,000 subscribers.

Skip it if you need more than 10,000 emails per month in the free tier, unlimited automations, or multiple team members collaborating from day one.

EmailOctopus reviewEmailOctopus pricingEmailOctopus alternatives

MailerLite

Desk research

MailerLite prices by subscriber count, not by locking features behind tiers, so a $12/month billed monthly plan gets the same automation builder and landing pages as the top tier, just fewer of each. The free plan is a real permanent plan, not a trial, capped at 250 subscribers.

Best for: A small business or solo marketer who wants full features at a low subscriber count and doesn't want to pay for a bigger list than they have yet.

Strengths

• A genuine free plan at 250 subscribers, not a time-limited trial.
• A 14-day trial of paid features with no card required.
• Automation and landing pages scale by count, not by locking the builder away from cheaper tiers.

Limits

• Removing the MailerLite logo needs Comfort or above.
• API and MCP access on Free is limited and can't send.
• Refunds are discretionary, not a guaranteed money-back window; MailerLite's terms only commit to a refund if it cancels your service on you first.

Skip it if you resell email under your own brand (MailerLite offers no white-label version), you need logo removal on the free plan, or you need unrestricted API sending without upgrading past Free.

MailerLite reviewMailerLite pricingMailerLite alternatives

Neither EmailOctopus nor MailerLite? Try these

• 

  Mailchimp

  From $13/mo billed monthly

  Pick it if brand recognition and an all-in-one marketing suite matter more than price. It's the category default most buyers already know, though both EmailOctopus and MailerLite undercut it for a small list.

  Mailchimp reviewMailchimp alternatives

• 

  beehiiv

  From $49/mo billed annually

  Pick it if you want built-in monetization alongside your list. beehiiv leans into newsletter publishing and reader revenue in a way neither EmailOctopus nor MailerLite attempts.

  beehiiv reviewbeehiiv alternatives

• 

  Kit

  From $33/mo billed annually

  Pick it if you're a creator who wants audience tagging and a creator-focused marketplace. Kit positions itself for creators first, not small businesses running a general list.

  Kit reviewKit alternatives

Buying guides that rank EmailOctopus or MailerLite

• Best Email Marketing for Nonprofits

  EmailOctopus is #7 of 8, MailerLite is #1 of 8

• Best Free Email Marketing Software

  EmailOctopus is #4 of 8, MailerLite is #3 of 8

• 11 Best Newsletter Platforms for Creators and Writers

  EmailOctopus is #8 of 11, MailerLite is #7 of 11

EmailOctopus vs MailerLite: questions people ask

Is EmailOctopus cheaper than MailerLite?

Yes. EmailOctopus Starter is free up to 2,500 subscribers, while MailerLite's free plan stops at 250. Past that, EmailOctopus Pro is $31.50/month billed monthly at 5,000 subscribers and MailerLite Comfort is $49/month billed monthly.

Does EmailOctopus have a free plan?

Yes. Starter is free with 2,500 subscribers and 10,000 emails a month, 1 seat. There's no separate free trial; EmailOctopus states it doesn't offer one and treats the free plan as the entry point.

Does MailerLite have a free plan?

Yes, permanent, not a trial: 250 subscribers, 2,500 emails a month, 2 seats, 3 automations.

Does EmailOctopus support Zapier or an API?

EmailOctopus's own software profile lists both, but neither is confirmed on its pricing page, so I treat them as not confirmed rather than included or absent. No Make.com integration is documented.

Which has deeper automation, EmailOctopus or MailerLite?

MailerLite, based on what's published. It states an exact automation count per tier (3 on Free, 50 on Comfort, Unlimited on Power). EmailOctopus's own pricing page doesn't publish an automation count at any tier, so there's nothing to compare it against directly.

What happens if I go over EmailOctopus's email sending limit?

The free Starter plan caps sending at 10,000 emails a month, and a weekly digest plus an occasional promo can already use most of that. On Pro the monthly sending allowance grows with the subscriber band, so moving up to Pro lifts the ceiling.

Which is better for a small business just starting an email list?

EmailOctopus, if the list is genuinely small: its free plan covers 2,500 subscribers at no cost, well past where MailerLite's free plan stops. Pick MailerLite instead once automation depth or a documented per-tier feature set matters more than a bigger free ceiling.