beehiiv vs. MailerLite

At a glance

Best for

Best for newsletter creators and media teams that want audience growth and monetization built into the platform.

Freelancers
Small and mid-sized
Enterprise

Best for

Best for creators and small teams that want a straightforward email marketing platform with a flexible editor, automation and landing pages.

Freelancers
Small and mid-sized
Enterprise

Cataleo does not name a winner. Both statements come from the vendors themselves.

Full Comparison

Criterion	beehiiv	MailerLite
Starting price	Free plan; Scale from $43 / month Scale covers up to 100,000 subscribers, around $517 billed annually. Max $96 / month, Enterprise custom. Priced by subscriber count.	lower value From $12 / month Comfort plan; the price scales with the number of subscribers.
Free trial	Free Launch plan for up to 2,500 subscribers	Free plan available for up to 250 subscribers
API	Yes, API and webhooks on all plans; a Send API on Max	Yes, API access on all paid plans
Hosting	Cloud (SaaS)	Cloud (SaaS)
Campaign types	Yes, newsletters and email campaigns, plus a no-code website builder and podcast hosting	Yes, email campaigns and newsletters, plus landing pages and websites
Automation and journeys	Yes, email automations on the paid plans, with click-triggered automations on Max	Yes, automation workflows, unlimited on the paid plans
Segmentation and personalisation	Yes, audience segmentation, dynamic content, and surveys and polls	Yes, dynamic segments, tags and dynamic content, with Smart Sending timing delivery per subscriber
Templates and editor	Yes, a drag-and-drop newsletter editor and templates, plus an AI website builder	Yes, drag-and-drop, simple and custom HTML editors with customizable templates
Deliverability and testing	Optimized deliverability across all plans	Yes, A/B testing on every plan, with a deliverability consultation and dedicated IP on higher plans
Ecommerce and CRM data	Yes, Stripe-powered paid subscriptions with a 0% take rate on paid plans, digital products and a built-in ad network	Yes, integrations with Stripe, Shopify and WooCommerce
Integrations and API	Yes, API access and webhooks, a Send API on Max, plus a beehiiv MCP server	Yes, API access on all paid plans
AI features	Yes	Yes
MCP-ready	stated Yes	No
Deployment	Cloud (SaaS), Browser-based	Cloud (SaaS), Browser-based
Support	Email helpdesk	more entries Email helpdesk, Chat, Community forum
Onboarding	Documentation and knowledge base, Guided onboarding, Live online demos and webinars	Not stated
Company size	Freelancers, Small and mid-sized, Enterprise	Freelancers, Small and mid-sized, Enterprise
Integrations	Stripe, Zapier, Google Analytics	Stripe, Shopify, WooCommerce

Compare more tools

Row where the values differ The small markers point at the lower number, the longer list or the stated feature. They describe the data, they are not a verdict.

The short version

Key Differences

Starting price beehiiv Free plan; Scale from $43 / month MailerLite From $12 / month
Free trial beehiiv Free Launch plan for up to 2,500 subscribers MailerLite Free plan available for up to 250 subscribers
Support beehiiv Email helpdesk MailerLite Email helpdesk, Chat, Community forum
MCP-ready beehiiv Yes MailerLite No
API beehiiv Yes, API and webhooks on all plans; a Send API on Max MailerLite Yes, API access on all paid plans

Every line is one datapoint from the table above, picked automatically. Nothing here is written text.

The trade-offs

Strengths and Limitations

beehiiv

Strengths

Growth and monetization built in, with an ad network, paid subscriptions and a recommendation network
Free plan for up to 2,500 subscribers with unlimited sends
No-code website builder and podcast hosting alongside the newsletter
Offers a beehiiv MCP server for external AI agents

Limitations

Automations and the ad network require a paid plan
Priced by subscriber count, so cost grows with the list

MailerLite

Strengths

Drag-and-drop, simple and custom HTML editors on every plan
A/B testing available on every plan, including the free tier
AI email and subject line generator
Free plan for up to 250 subscribers

Limitations

Prices scale with the number of subscribers
Deliverability consultation and dedicated IP are reserved for the higher plans

Plans

Pricing

beehiiv

Launch $0 / month Up to 2,500 subscribers, with unlimited email sends, a website and podcast hosting. No automations or ad network.
Scale From $43 / month Up to 100,000 subscribers. Adds automations, the ad network, a 0% take rate on paid subscriptions, digital products and 3 team seats. Around $517 billed annually.
Max From $96 / month Adds removed branding, the Send API, audio newsletters, up to 10 publications and unlimited team seats. Around $1,151 billed annually.
Enterprise Not stated Custom pricing for 100K+ subscribers, with dedicated IPs, SSO and a dedicated account manager.

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MailerLite

Free $0 / month Up to 250 subscribers and 2,500 monthly emails, with 3 automations and community support.
Comfort From $12 / month Adds 50 automations, an AI writing assistant and 24/7 email support. Scales with subscribers.
Power From $25 / month Adds unlimited automations and monthly emails, a deliverability consultation and 24/7 live chat support. Scales with subscribers.
Enterprise Not stated Custom pricing for 200K+ subscribers, with a dedicated success manager, priority support and a dedicated IP option.

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What users say

Review Scores · opens after launch

beehiiv

Ease of use: Not rated yet
User interface: Not rated yet
Onboarding: Not rated yet
Support and service: Not rated yet
Value for money: Not rated yet
Features: Not rated yet

No reviews yet. Nothing has been published here yet, and no score is shown. How a review is checked before it appears is described below.

MailerLite

Ease of use: Not rated yet
User interface: Not rated yet
Onboarding: Not rated yet
Support and service: Not rated yet
Value for money: Not rated yet
Features: Not rated yet

No reviews yet. Nothing has been published here yet, and no score is shown. How a review is checked before it appears is described below.

How we check reviews

Before sending, the author has to confirm three things: that they have used the product themselves, that they work neither for the vendor nor for a competitor, and that nobody is paying them for the review. We also ask whether the vendor invited them to write it. That answer is required, either answer is accepted, and it stays with the review.

Every review is read by a person before it appears. An email address is required and is confirmed: we send a link to it, and a review does not reach us until the author opens that link, so a review has a sender who was reachable at least once rather than being anonymous. Where what somebody writes needs backing, we ask them for evidence that they used the product, and a review that does not get it is not published. We publish positive and negative reviews alike, we pay nothing and offer nothing for a review, and we accept none that was bought or incentivised.

What we cannot do is verify a purchase. There is no shop here and no account, so whether the author really used the tool rests on their own declaration, on whatever we ask them for, and on the plausibility of what they write. We say so rather than implying a check that does not exist.

A vendor cannot buy a review, and cannot have one removed or changed because they dislike it. We remove or edit a review only if it breaks our rules or the law, for example a false statement of fact. Paid placement has no effect on which reviews appear or on any score.

Read the full version on our methodology page

Where this comes from

beehiiv https://www.beehiiv.com · checked against the official source on 2026-08-21

MailerLite https://www.mailerlite.com · checked against the official source on 2026-08-19

This table lists factual criteria taken from information the vendors publish themselves. For how we put it together, see the methodology.