Pricing: what the tools cost, checked

Last updated 2026-09-25 · By Smart Pick Desk editors · How we check

Pricing pages show one number at a time: the price for the list size the slider happens to be on, usually billed yearly. These guides lay the steps out side by side so you can find your own list size, see both billing modes, and read the terms that sit behind the price.

All prices on these pages come from a record of every price step the page offers, read on the date the guide states. We do not round a list size to a step that does not exist on the company's slider; where a nearby step is used, the guide says which one.

Guides in this section

• Systeme.io pricing, checked: what the free plan includes and when you start paying

  Four plans, what the free plan includes, and three rules that are in the terms rather than on the pricing page. Facts read 2026-09-23.

  One product in depth: four plans, what the free plan includes, when you start paying, and three rules in the terms — automatic upgrades, refunds and what happens to contacts when you cancel.

• Kit pricing, checked: the free plan, Creator vs Pro at every list size, monthly vs yearly

  Free, Creator and Pro from 1,000 to 25,000 subscribers in both billing modes, and two refund texts that disagree. Facts read 2026-09-25.

  Kit on its own: what the free plan leaves out, what Pro adds over Creator, the automatic tier upgrade when your list grows, and the refund lines in the help centre and the terms.

• MailerLite pricing, checked: what 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails get you, and every paid step after

  Free, Comfort and Power from 500 to 50,000 subscribers, the June 2026 change to the free plan, and how sending can move you up a tier. Facts read 2026-09-25.

  MailerLite on its own: the free plan after its June 2026 change, the limits that differ between Comfort and Power, and where the pricing page and the terms describe going over a limit differently.

• beehiiv pricing, checked: Launch, Scale and Max at every subscriber count

  Launch, Scale and Max from 1,000 to 100,000 subscribers, plan type versus plan tier, and what the terms say about pauses and refunds. Facts read 2026-09-25.

  beehiiv on its own: why the price follows your subscriber tier rather than your sending, what Scale and Max add over the free Launch plan, and the pause and refund rules.

• How to choose an email marketing platform: Kit vs MailerLite vs beehiiv

  All three side by side: free plans, automations, branding and the first paid plan at four list sizes shared by all three sliders. Facts read 2026-09-20.

  The first paid plan of Kit, MailerLite and beehiiv at 1,000, 5,000, 10,000 and 25,000 subscribers, in both billing modes, with the lower price named at each size.

• Kit vs MailerLite: where the free plans actually stop

  The free plan limits, the automation line that decides most of it, and what each one costs at 500 to 10,000 subscribers. Facts read 2026-09-20.

  The price of each first paid plan at every step from 500 to 10,000 subscribers, and what the gap between them does as the list grows.

• Kit vs beehiiv: the point where the cheaper one changes

  Two generous free plans built for different things, and the list size where the lower-priced paid plan swaps over. Facts read 2026-09-20.

  Where the two price lines cross, and why the answer to which one costs less depends on list size.

Three things to check before you pay

• Which billing mode the number is. The Kit, MailerLite and beehiiv pricing pages open on the yearly price shown per month, and the month-to-month price is higher; Systeme.io's page opened on monthly billing. See monthly or yearly.
• Which step your list falls into. A list just over a step boundary pays the next step's price. The guides above show the steps.
• What the terms say. Some rules that decide what you pay are in the terms rather than on the pricing page. The Systeme.io guide quotes three of them, and the Kit, MailerLite and beehiiv guides quote the refund lines in each company's terms.

Prices change. Each guide lists the date its prices were read and what we will re-check; confirm on the official page before you pay.