MailerLite vs Brevo: list size or sending volume?
The central difference is economic: MailerLite is organized around active subscriber tiers, while Brevo combines monthly email volume with contact-storage limits.
| Question | MailerLite | Brevo |
|---|---|---|
| Free contact allowance | 250 active subscribers | Up to 100,000 stored contacts |
| Free sending allowance | 2,500 emails per 30 days | 300 sends per day; unused sends do not roll over |
| Entry paid structure | Subscriber tier with plan-specific send limits | From $9/month for 5,000 monthly emails and up to 500 contacts |
| Free automation | Visual automation available within free-plan limits | Up to 2,000 unique contacts entering active automations |
| Branding | Check current plan comparison before launch | Brevo branding remains on free-plan email |
Where Brevo's free plan is unusually strong
Brevo separates contact storage from daily sending. A business can keep a large database and communicate with a small segment each day. That is useful for low-frequency reminders, sales follow-up, or selective operational messages. It is a poor fit for a same-day newsletter sent to thousands because the free campaign must be resumed across multiple days.
Where MailerLite is easier to reason about
MailerLite's free plan is much smaller, but its 2,500-email monthly allowance can support ten complete sends to a 250-person list. Paid Comfort plans document a monthly send ceiling equal to ten times the subscriber tier, while Power documents unlimited monthly sending under fair use.
Upgrade surprise to watch
Brevo's entry paid tier removes the daily limit but pairs 5,000 monthly emails with storage for up to 500 contacts. A free user storing thousands of contacts cannot assume the cheapest paid tier will hold the existing database. MailerLite's main upgrade trigger is the active-subscriber ceiling or the plan's sending allowance.
Do not choose from the headline price alone
Calculate both the number of stored contacts and the number of messages sent to each contact. A 20,000-contact database receiving one campaign per quarter behaves very differently from a 1,000-contact list receiving daily automation.
Official sources
Facts on this page were checked against the following provider documentation on 2026-07-14.