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MailerLite vs Kit: free tier, price, and when each makes sense
Short version: MailerLite Comfort costs roughly half of what Kit Creator costs at the same paid tier. That price gap is real and consistent from 1,000 to 10,000 subscribers. The fork comes on two dimensions most comparisons skip. First, the free tier: Kit supports 10,000 subscribers for free with no expiry; MailerLite's free plan was cut to 250 active subscribers as of July 2026. Second, affiliate policy: Kit explicitly permits affiliate links in email with one restriction (sends cannot be 100% affiliate-based); MailerLite permits individual affiliate links in brand-aligned content but prohibits using the platform when affiliate marketing is your primary business model. If you are a creator who occasionally links to tools you use, both platforms allow it. If affiliate marketing is how you primarily make money, only Kit has written permission.
The comparison at a glance
| Dimension | MailerLite | Kit |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier subscriber limit | 250 active subscribers | 10,000 subscribers |
| Free tier automations | 3 automations, 5 steps max | 1 basic Visual Automation |
| Paid entry price (1,000 subs, monthly billing) | $19/month (Comfort) | $39/month (Creator) |
| Paid price at 5,000 subs (monthly billing) | $49/month (Comfort) | $89/month (Creator) |
| Monthly send limit (paid) | 10x subscriber count on Comfort | Unlimited on Creator and Pro |
| Affiliate marketing as primary model | Prohibited | Permitted with restriction: sends cannot be 100% affiliate-based |
| Individual affiliate links in email | Permitted if brand-aligned and clearly disclosed as third-party offers | Permitted if properly marked and used responsibly |
| Paid automations | Up to 50 active (Comfort) | Unlimited Visual Automations (Creator) |
The free tier gap
This is the comparison that matters most if you are just starting out. Kit's free Newsletter plan supports up to 10,000 subscribers with no time limit. MailerLite's free plan was cut from 500 to 250 active subscribers as of July 2026 (a further restriction on forms and landing pages takes effect August 13, 2026). For a creator building an audience, that is a significant difference. With Kit you can reach 10,000 subscribers and learn what works before paying anything. With MailerLite you hit a hard wall at 250 and need to upgrade to Comfort to keep sending.
The one place MailerLite's free tier has a small advantage is automations: MailerLite allows 3 automations (with up to 5 steps each) on the free plan. Kit's free tier includes only one basic Visual Automation. If you need a specific welcome sequence or a simple drip on day one, MailerLite's free automation offering is slightly more flexible. But that advantage disappears on paid plans, where Kit offers unlimited Visual Automations on Creator and MailerLite caps Comfort at 50 active automations.
Our full free plan comparison across six platforms covers free-tier limits in more detail, including subscriber caps, send limits, and automation step constraints as of July 2026.
The price difference on paid plans
MailerLite Comfort is consistently cheaper than Kit Creator at every subscriber tier. At 1,000 subscribers the gap is $20/month ($19 vs $39). At 5,000 subscribers it is $40/month ($49 vs $89). At 10,000 subscribers it is roughly $50/month ($89 vs $139).
These are monthly billing prices. Both platforms offer annual discounts of roughly 10 to 16 percent. MailerLite's annual rate for Comfort at 1,000 subscribers is not separately listed in the sources used here; Kit's annual rate at 1,000 subscribers is $33/month (billed $390/year). Verify current pricing at mailerlite.com/pricing and kit.com/pricing before deciding, as both companies have adjusted rates in 2025 and 2026.
One limit worth knowing: MailerLite Comfort applies a monthly send cap of 10 times your subscriber count. At 5,000 subscribers that is 50,000 sends per month. For a weekly newsletter that sends to the full list, the math works out to about 20,000 sends per month at 5,000 subscribers, well within the cap. The cap matters if you send more than twice a week or run heavy automation sequences. Kit Creator has no send limit on the paid plan.
For a fuller look at what you pay per subscriber tier across four platforms, see our cost-at-scale comparison.
The affiliate policy difference
Both platforms permit affiliate links in email. The difference is in how they define the limit.
MailerLite's terms of service (fetched August 3, 2026) state: "You may include affiliate links in your campaigns, provided they are clearly presented as offers from another company." Those links must "naturally align with your brand's content and match the expectations of your subscribers." The same terms prohibit: "Affiliate marketing, defined as the promotion of multiple referral links from various third-party companies purely to generate commission-based income."
Kit's acceptable-use policy (fetched August 3, 2026) states: "We do not restrict the use of affiliate links in emails as long as they are properly marked and used responsibly." The one restriction Kit adds is: "we do not allow content that is 100% affiliate based, including selling other tools, software, 'business in a box', etc."
The practical difference: Kit tests whether a send is 100% affiliate content. MailerLite tests whether affiliate marketing is your primary business model. A Field Tested-style newsletter that sends original commentary and occasionally links to a tool it uses would pass both tests. A newsletter that exists to promote referral links from many unrelated companies would fail MailerLite's test even if some sends include original content alongside the links.
If your monetization strategy relies on affiliate income from multiple unrelated programs, Kit is the only platform here with clear written permission. If you are a creator who earns occasional commissions from tools relevant to your niche, MailerLite's policy covers that use case and the price advantage applies.
For a full comparison of how six platforms handle affiliate senders, see our ESP policy comparison for affiliate marketers.
Which to pick for your situation
You are starting from zero and not yet monetizing through affiliate links
Start on Kit's free plan. Ten thousand subscribers gives you real room to grow and test before you spend anything. MailerLite's 250-subscriber free cap means you will be paying $19/month before you have proved the newsletter has any traction. Once you hit 1,000 subscribers and decide to upgrade, reconsider MailerLite Comfort if the $20/month savings matters to your budget and affiliate income is not central to your model.
You run affiliate marketing as your primary income model
Use Kit. MailerLite's terms prohibit running affiliate marketing as a primary business model. Kit's AUP explicitly permits affiliate links with one restriction: do not send emails that are 100% affiliate content. Our Kit free plan guide covers what the free tier actually includes.
You are a creator with occasional affiliate links in brand-aligned content
Either platform works on the policy dimension. MailerLite Comfort is meaningfully cheaper at scale ($19/mo vs $39/mo at 1k subscribers). If budget is the constraint and you are past 250 free subscribers, MailerLite's paid pricing is the better deal. If you are not yet at 250 subscribers and price is the constraint, stay on Kit's free plan longer before evaluating the switch.
You send more than twice a week or run heavy automation
Consider Kit. MailerLite Comfort's 10x monthly send cap and 50-automation limit can constrain high-frequency senders and complex automation setups. Kit Creator has no send limit and no automation cap on the paid tier.
Sources
Kit pricing: kit.com/pricing, retrieved August 3, 2026. Kit Creator monthly billing ($39/month at 1,000 subscribers) cross-referenced against justpricing.com (updated April 2026) in Kit affiliate link — we are a Kit affiliate, see disclosure above. Kit acceptable-use policy: help.kit.com/en/articles/3038130-acceptable-use-policy, retrieved August 3, 2026. MailerLite free plan: mailerlite.com/pricing, retrieved July 2026 (250-subscriber cap change; mailerlite.com/pricing, July 2026). MailerLite Comfort pricing at paid tiers: emailvendorselection.com (verified July 16, 2026), a third-party pricing tracker; verify at mailerlite.com/pricing. MailerLite terms of service: mailerlite.com/terms-of-service, retrieved August 3, 2026.
Affiliate disclosure: the Kit link in this Sources section is an affiliate link. See disclosure at top of page for full terms.