How to choose an email marketing platform: Kit vs MailerLite vs beehiiv
Last updated 2026-10-04 · By Smart Pick Desk editors · Facts from the three official pricing pages: Kit and MailerLite read 2026-09-20, beehiiv re-read 2026-10-04 after it renamed its plans · We have not used any of the three · How we checked ↓
The short answer: which one to look at first
All three are sold as email marketing tools, but their free plans are built for three different jobs. Match the job first and the price question gets much smaller.
- Look at Kit first if you want to grow a list now and pay later. Kit's free plan is listed as “Free—up to 10,000 subscribers” with “Unlimited landing pages & forms” and “Unlimited email broadcasts”.[1] What you do not get for free is automation: “Unlimited Visual Automations” and “Unlimited email sequences” are listed under the paid Creator plan.[1]
Read next: Kit vs MailerLite · Kit vs beehiiv
- Look at MailerLite first if you need an automatic welcome email from day one, or you expect to pay anyway. Its free plan is small — “Up to 250 subscribers” and “2,500 monthly emails” — but it lists “3 automations”.[2] Its first paid plan is listed lowest of the three at all four list sizes in this guide.
Read next: Kit vs MailerLite
- Look at beehiiv first if the newsletter is the product. Its Free plan lists a website builder, web hosting, a podcast show, a welcome email and unlimited email sends — a whole publication rather than a mailing tool.[3] Free stops at 2,500 subscribers and has no custom domain, and its first paid plan, Lite, is listed highest of the three at every list size in this guide.
Read next: Kit vs beehiiv
On this page
Start here: what do you need first?
Most people who compare these three are really asking one practical question. Find your row, then read the section it points to.
| If your first need is… | Start with | Read next |
|---|---|---|
| Grow an email list without paying yet | Kit — free up to 10,000 subscribers[1] | Where free stops; 8 free plans compared |
| Send a welcome email or sequence automatically, without paying | MailerLite — 3 automations on its free plan; beehiiv's Free plan lists a welcome email only; Kit lists automations on paid plans[1][2][3] | Automations |
| Collect sign-ups without your own website | Kit (unlimited landing pages and forms on Free) or beehiiv (a website on its Free plan)[1][3] | Forms and pages |
| Run a newsletter with its own web page | beehiiv — website and podcast on its Free plan[3] | Kit vs beehiiv |
| Pay as little as possible once you are paying | Depends on list size — see the price table[1][2][3] | What it costs |
| Sell digital products or paid subscriptions | Check the fees first — only beehiiv's page prints one (0% plus Stripe's fee)[1][2][3] | Selling and branding |
How we checked this (and what we did not check)
What we did. On 2026-09-20 we opened the pricing pages of Kit, MailerLite and beehiiv in a browser and read the pages themselves. On each page we moved the subscriber slider through its steps and recorded the price at each one, with the billing switch in both positions. Every price on this page comes from that record, and every chart is drawn from the same numbers. Feature wording in quotation marks is copied from those pages word for word, and a script checks each quote against the saved text of the page before we publish. On 2026-09-23 we re-opened the three pricing pages; the prices in their default view were the same as on 2026-09-20. On 2026-10-04 beehiiv's page listed new plans (Free, Lite, Pro and Enterprise instead of Launch, Scale and Max), so we re-read its slider, table and FAQ and replaced every beehiiv figure on this page; Kit's and MailerLite's default views that day showed the same prices as before.
What we did not do. We have not used any of these three products. There are no screenshots of them on this page, no account, no test send and no opinion about how any of them feels to use. We cannot tell you which editor you will prefer, how their deliverability compares or how quickly support answers, because we have not measured any of it. The full method is on How we check.
Prices and plans change. Confirm on the official page before you sign up.
Three tools, three jobs
Read the free plan of each one and a pattern shows. Kit's free plan is generous with people and pages but keeps automation back. MailerLite's is small but can already automate. beehiiv's free plan is built around publishing: a newsletter with a website and a podcast attached.
In plain terms: if you think of your list as a place to collect people you will write to later, Kit's free plan fits that shape. If you think of it as a machine that greets new sign-ups by itself, MailerLite's does. If you think of it as a publication with readers, beehiiv's does. None of the three is wrong; they are answers to different questions.
Where each free plan stops
All three use the word free. The ceilings are far apart.
| Limit on the free plan | Kit | MailerLite | beehiiv |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subscribers | up to 10,000[1] | up to 250[2] | up to 2,500[3] |
| Emails you can send | “Unlimited email broadcasts”[1] | “2,500 monthly emails”[2] | “Unlimited email sends”[3] |
| Automations | none on Free (the comparison table shows “-”)[1] | “3 automations”[2] | welcome email only; custom automations from Lite[3] |
| Seats and support | 1 user, “Email support” (comparison table)[1] | “2 user seats”, “Community support”[2] | 1 team seat; support listed as “beehiiv Agent”[3] |
Kit's free ceiling is forty times MailerLite's and four times beehiiv's. MailerLite also has a second ceiling that is easy to miss: 2,500 emails a month. A list of 200 people mailed three times a week uses about 2,600 emails a month (200 × 3 × 52 ÷ 12), so a small list can reach the sending ceiling before the subscriber one. Kit and beehiiv both list sending as unlimited on the free plan.
For more than three free plans side by side, see What “free” actually means on 8 email platforms. Moosend has no lasting free plan, only a trial; Moosend pricing, checked covers it.
Automations: the line that moves the decision
An automation is what sends a welcome email by itself when someone signs up, then the next one a few days later. It is the feature most people expect from an email tool, and it is where the three free plans differ most.
MailerLite lists a number on every plan: “3 automations” on Free, “50 automations” on Comfort and “Unlimited automations” on Power.[2] Kit lists “Unlimited Visual Automations” and “Unlimited email sequences” under Creator, in the list that begins “Everything in Free, plus”.[1] beehiiv's comparison table lists “Welcome email” as Yes on Free, and “Live custom automations” as a dash on Free, 10 on Lite and Unlimited on Pro.[3]
So the question that decides most of this guide is simple. If you need more than a welcome email to go out by itself before you pay anything, MailerLite is the only one of the three that lists it. If one welcome email is enough, beehiiv's Free plan lists that too. If you need neither, Kit and beehiiv both give you more room on the free plan, and automation becomes something you buy later.
What the first paid plan costs as your list grows
No pricing page shows you the other two. This table does: the first paid plan of each company, at the same list size, read on the same day, billed yearly. We only use list sizes that exist on all three sliders, so no number is rounded to a nearby step.
| Your list | Kit Creator, billed yearly | MailerLite Comfort, billed yearly | beehiiv Lite, billed yearly | Lowest listed price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | $33[1] | $17.10[2] | $49[3] | MailerLite |
| 5,000 | $75[1] | $44.10[2] | $95[3] | MailerLite |
| 10,000 | $116[1] | $80.10[2] | $119[3] | MailerLite |
| 25,000 | $166[1] | $161.10[2] | $169[3] | MailerLite |
Three things stand out. First, MailerLite is listed lowest at all four sizes. Second, Kit and beehiiv are close at 10,000 and 25,000 subscribers ($116 against $119, $166 against $169), and the order between them flips above 25,000; our Kit vs beehiiv guide follows that pair step by step. Third, by 25,000 the three are within about $8 of each other. Two other tools priced by list size have their own ladders: AWeber pricing, checked and GetResponse pricing, checked.
The plans are not feature-identical, so this is a price comparison, not a value judgement. Kit's free plan still exists at 10,000 subscribers, so at that size the Kit figure is what you pay for automation and the other Creator features, not for the list itself.
The next plan up tells a similar story at 1,000 subscribers:
| Your list | Kit Pro, billed yearly | MailerLite Power, billed yearly | beehiiv Pro, billed yearly | Lowest listed price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | $66[1] | $35.10[2] | $95[3] | MailerLite |
| 10,000 | $158[1] | $116.10[2] | $199[3] | MailerLite |
Monthly or yearly: the same plan at two prices
All three pricing pages open on the yearly price, shown per month. If you plan to pay month to month, the number you glanced at is not the one you will pay.
| Your list | Kit Creator, billed monthly | MailerLite Comfort, billed monthly | beehiiv Lite, billed monthly | Lowest listed price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | $39[1] | $19[2] | $59[3] | MailerLite |
| 5,000 | $89[1] | $49[2] | $109[3] | MailerLite |
| 10,000 | $139[1] | $89[2] | $139[3] | MailerLite |
| 25,000 | $199[1] | $179[2] | $199[3] | MailerLite |
Kit labels its yearly option “Pay yearly—save 17%”; MailerLite labels its own “Save 10%”; beehiiv's FAQ says “Yearly billing saves up to 20% compared with paying month to month.”[1][2][3] MailerLite stays lowest in both billing modes at these sizes, but the gaps change: at 1,000 subscribers the monthly price is $6 more for Kit, $10 more for beehiiv and $1.90 more for MailerLite, and billed monthly Kit and beehiiv cost the same at 10,000 and 25,000.
Forms, landing pages and a website
If you do not already have a website, the tool has to host your sign-up page.
| Point | Kit | MailerLite | beehiiv |
|---|---|---|---|
| Landing pages and forms (free) | “Unlimited landing pages & forms”[1] | “1 website & 1 landing page”, “3 signup forms”[2] | Subscribe forms and Link-in-Bio: Yes; 1 custom page[3] |
| A website (free) | “Create a newsletter feed & website” ✓[1] | “1 website & 1 landing page”[2] | Website builder and web hosting: Yes; custom domains: a dash[3] |
| First paid plan adds | automations and sequences (Creator)[1] | “10 websites & landing pages”, “10 signup forms” (Comfort)[2] | custom domains, 10 live custom automations, paid subscriptions (Lite)[3] |
One landing page is enough to launch. It is not enough to run two versions of an offer at once, and MailerLite's free limit of one will stop that before it starts. Kit's free plan has no such cap on pages. beehiiv approaches the question from the other side: the website is the publication, on beehiiv's address until a paid plan adds your own domain.
Selling and branding
All three mention money on some plan. Kit's free plan lists “Sell digital products & subscriptions” with no number attached.[1] MailerLite's free plan lists “1 digital product or booking” and Comfort “5 digital products or bookings”.[2] beehiiv lists paid subscriptions from Lite with a “0% take rate”, and its FAQ says “beehiiv takes 0% of your paid subscription and digital product revenue.”, apart from Stripe's processing fee.[3] Kit's and MailerLite's pricing pages do not print a transaction-fee percentage for selling a digital product, and we will not guess at one. If selling is your reason for choosing, find that number before you decide.
Branding is the other thing that stays on while you are free. Kit lists “Remove Kit branding” under Creator, MailerLite lists “Remove MailerLite logo” under Comfort, and beehiiv's table prints “Remove beehiiv branding” as Yes only from Pro, its second paid plan.[1][2][3] If a clean footer matters to you, beehiiv's price to remove it is the Pro column in the table above, not the Lite one. If charging readers is the main job, Substack pricing, checked covers a tool that takes a share of each payment instead of a monthly price, and Buttondown pricing, checked one that takes no share.
Which one to look at first
Where each one is weaker
- Kit: no automation on the free plan, and the first paid step is $33 per month billed yearly for any list up to 1,000.[1]
- MailerLite: 250 subscribers and 2,500 monthly emails on free — two ceilings a growing list meets quickly.[2]
- beehiiv: no custom domain and no automation beyond the welcome email on Free, its branding stays on until the second paid plan, and its first paid plan is the highest of the three at every size in this guide.[3]
Want the detail on one pair? Kit vs MailerLite: where the free plans actually stop and Kit vs beehiiv: the point where the cheaper one changes take the pairs one at a time. All comparisons are listed on Compare.
Want one company at a time? Kit pricing, checked, MailerLite pricing, checked and beehiiv pricing, checked go through each company's plans, billing and terms on its own.
See Kit's plans See MailerLite's plans See beehiiv's plans
Questions people ask
Which of the three has the largest free plan?
Kit, at up to 10,000 subscribers. beehiiv's Free plan lists up to 2,500 and MailerLite's free plan up to 250, with 2,500 monthly emails.[1][2][3]
Which one can send an automatic welcome email for free?
MailerLite is the only one of the three that lists automations beyond a welcome email on its free plan: 3 of them.[2] beehiiv's Free plan lists the welcome email itself.[3]
Which first paid plan costs less?
At the four list sizes we compare, MailerLite Comfort, in both billing modes. See the price table.
Is the price on the pricing page the monthly price?
Usually not. All three open on the yearly price shown per month. Switch the billing toggle before comparing.
Can I remove the platform's branding on a free plan?
Not on any of the three. It comes off on Creator (Kit), Comfort (MailerLite) and Pro (beehiiv).[1][2][3]
Do you get paid if I sign up?
Not from this page. It has no affiliate links. See the Affiliate Disclosure.
Sources and check log
| # | Source | URL | Checked | How |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kit, Pricing | kit.com/pricing | 2026-09-20 | Opened in a browser; every slider step and both billing positions recorded; default view re-opened 2026-09-23 and 2026-10-04; comparison table re-read 2026-09-28 |
| 2 | MailerLite, Pricing | mailerlite.com/pricing | 2026-09-20 | Opened in a browser; every slider step recorded; default view re-opened 2026-09-23 and 2026-10-04 |
| 3 | beehiiv, Pricing (Free, Lite, Pro, Enterprise; comparison table and FAQ) | beehiiv.com/pricing | 2026-10-04 | Opened in a browser; all eleven slider positions and both billing positions saved; table and FAQ saved opened |
Change log
- 2026-10-04 — beehiiv replaced Launch, Scale and Max with Free, Lite, Pro and Enterprise. Every beehiiv price, plan name and quotation re-read and replaced; MailerLite is now listed lowest at all four sizes. Kit's free plan entries corrected from its comparison table (1 user, email support, a newsletter site).
- 2026-09-25 — Rebuilt this guide: added price tables at four list sizes shared by all three sliders, monthly prices, the second paid plan, branding, eight charts drawn from our own records and a question list. No new reading of the pricing pages was made for this edit; every figure comes from the 2026-09-20 record.
- 2026-09-23 — Rebuilt the top of the page as a starting point with three short answers. Default views of the three pricing pages were re-opened on this date and matched 2026-09-20.
- 2026-09-20 — First published.
- Previous check: 2026-09-23 (default views); beehiiv re-read in full 2026-10-04.
- What we will re-check: the free plan limits, the price at each list size used here, and which plan each feature is listed on.
Who writes this
Smart Pick Desk is an independent site that compares tools for people who work online. We are not employed by, or partnered with, any company on this page, and we do not run these products in our own business. What we do is read what each company publishes, write down the date we read it, and say plainly which parts we could not check. More: who the editors are and how we check a page.
We do not promise results. Nothing here is a prediction about what a tool will do for your list.