MailerLite vs Mailchimp (2026): Priced in Rands

MailerLite and Mailchimp are selling different things. MailerLite's bet is that you want the most features for the least money, paying more only as your list grows. Mailchimp's bet is certainty and reach: a price in rands, chat support at any hour and more connections to other software than anyone else here.

I priced both this week at the list sizes a small business actually has, MailerLite in the dollars it bills and Mailchimp in the rands it bills, so you can see what that difference costs you each month.

• Both priced at 4 list sizes
• Every price carries its date
• Each in the currency it bills
• Confirmed 24 September 2026

What each one costs a month

The fair comparison is the plan each company sells with real automation: MailerLite's Comfort plan against Mailchimp's Standard plan. Mailchimp's cheaper Essentials plan is in the table too, because on a small list it is the one people actually buy, but its automated flows stop at four steps.

The exchange rate is the obvious worry, so here is the worst case. MailerLite charges in dollars, and a weaker rand raises what you pay. At 1 000 subscribers the rand would have to lose about 20% before MailerLite's Comfort plan cost as much as Mailchimp's Essentials, and it would have to halve before it matched Standard.

What you get on each plan

Price is where MailerLite wins. The rest of the comparison is where Mailchimp earns its higher number, and two of these rows are why some businesses stay.

Chat support is the difference you will feel. Both answer email at any hour, but only Mailchimp puts a person in a chat window on its cheaper paid plans; on MailerLite, live chat comes with the Power plan at $39R642 a month for 1 000 subscribers. If you would rather type to someone than wait for a reply, Power costs about what Mailchimp's Standard plan does, and the price argument disappears.

Integrations matter only if yours is missing. 100 connections covers WooCommerce, Shopify, WordPress and the common form and payment tools. Check the one piece of software you cannot change, a booking system or an accounting package, against MailerLite's list before you decide; if it is there, the 300 on Mailchimp's list stop mattering.

The case for each, in brief

Put side by side, both platforms keep the promise they make. What each gives up is the other one's strength.

MailerLite

What works

• About R377 to R734 a month less than Mailchimp Standard at 1 000 to 5 000 contacts
• 50 automations and ten landing pages on the Comfort plan
• Free plan with 2 500 emails a month

What does not

• Billed in dollars or euros, so the rand amount moves
• Live chat support only on the pricier Power plan
• Sends capped at ten times your list on Comfort

1Cheapest with automation

MailerLite

✓ Price last confirmed on 24 September 2026

Why it wins on price

MailerLite's Comfort plan includes 50 automations and ten landing pages from $19R313 a month at 1 000 subscribers.

• Free plan250 subscribers, 2 500 emails a month
• At 5 000$49R806 a month
• Support24/7 email; chat on Power
• Best fora newsletter and a welcome series for the least money
• Watch fordollar billing moves with the exchange rate

What MailerLite gives everyone

• A 14-day trial of the paid features
• A free plan for up to 250 subscribers

Confirmed on 29 October 2026

$19R313a month at 1 000 subscribers · your bank may add a conversion fee

MailerLite's offer today10% off when you pay for a year upfrontShown on mailerlite.com on 1 Oct 2026.

My recommendations on MailerLite's plans

Starting out? Start on Comfort. It does the same job as Mailchimp's Standard, a newsletter plus automated welcome emails, for $19R313 a month at 1 000 subscribers against R690.

Growing or switching? Move to Power when you email daily or a team shares the account. It's still $39R642 a month at 1 000 subscribers.

Staying with Mailchimp? Stay if you budget in rands and want the bill to stay put, or if an app you rely on connects to Mailchimp and not to MailerLite.

Every plan includes email campaigns, automations, signup forms and 100+ integrations.

View all 3 MailerLite plans under 200 000 subscribersPriced at 1 000 subscribers, billed monthly

Mirrored from mailerlite.com These are MailerLite's own plans, prices and limits, as its pricing page showed them on 1 Oct 2026. The “Pick it if” lines are ours. Choose a plan to see it on MailerLite.

Free $0a month Pick it if you're testing email with fewer than 250 people on your list. You get

• Up to 250 subscribers
• 2 500 emails a month
• 3 automations

Worth knowing

• 2 user seats
• The MailerLite logo stays on your emails

See Free on MailerLite Our pick to start Comfort $19R313a month Pick it if you send a newsletter or two a month and want new sign-ups welcomed automatically. You get

• Up to 1 000 subscribers
• 10 000 emails a month
• 50 automations

Worth knowing

• 3 user seats
• MailerLite logo removed
• 24/7 email support

See Comfort on MailerLite Power $39R642a month Pick it if you email more than ten times your list a month, or more than three people need to log in. You get

• Up to 1 000 subscribers
• Unlimited emails
• Unlimited automations

Worth knowing

• Unlimited user seats
• 24/7 live chat and email support

See Power on MailerLite

Enterprise, for 200 000+ subscribers, is quoted. · Confirmed 1 Oct 2026

Start on MailerLite's Comfort plan

Try every feature free for 14 days, no card needed.

Start free at MailerLite

you'll go to www.mailerlite.com

Mailchimp's case rests on different things: a rand price that doesn't move with the exchange rate, a chat window, and the widest set of connections.

Mailchimp

What works

• Rand prices for South African buyers
• 24/7 chat and email support on every paid plan
• 300+ integrations and five seats on Standard

What does not

• Standard costs about twice MailerLite Comfort at 1 000 contacts
• Essentials limits automated flows to four steps
• The free plan stops under 250 contacts

2Billed in rands

Mailchimp

✓ Price last confirmed on 24 September 2026

Why it's worth more to some

Mailchimp's Standard plan has up to 200 flows, 24/7 chat and email support and a rand price.

• EssentialsR410 to 1 500 contacts, 4-step flows
• Standard at 5 000R1 540 a month
• Trial14 days on Standard
• Best fora fixed rand bill, chat support or a Mailchimp-only integration
• Watch forabout R377 a month more than MailerLite at 1 000 contacts

R690a month for up to 1 500 contacts

My recommendations on Mailchimp's plans

Starting out? If you choose Mailchimp, start on Standard. Essentials' four-step flows are too short for a proper welcome series, and Standard allows up to 200 flows.

Growing or switching? Move to Premium only when a team needs unlimited seats and phone support.

Moving to MailerLite? MailerLite's Comfort saves about R377 a month at 1 000 subscribers, with the same automation.

Every plan includes pop-up forms, pre-built templates, email scheduling and 300+ integrations.

View all 4 Mailchimp plansPriced in rands at up to 1 500 contacts, billed monthly

Mirrored from mailchimp.com These are Mailchimp's own plans, prices and limits, as its pricing page showed them on 1 Oct 2026. The “Pick it if” lines are ours. Choose a plan to see it on Mailchimp.

Free R0a month Pick it if you have fewer than 250 contacts and want to try Mailchimp's tools first. You get

• Under 250 contacts
• Core email tools

Worth knowing

• Move to a paid plan as your list grows

See Free on Mailchimp Essentials R410a month Pick it if you want a rand price and simple scheduled sends, with automations of up to four steps. You get

• 15 000 emails a month
• 3 seats
• Automation flows of up to 4 steps

Worth knowing

• 24/7 email and chat support
• Mailchimp branding removed

See Essentials on Mailchimp Our pick to start Standard R690a month Pick it if you want full automation flows and AI help, billed in rands every month. You get

• 18 000 emails a month
• 5 seats
• Up to 200 automation flows
• Generative AI features

Worth knowing

• 24/7 email and chat support
• 1 onboarding session

See Standard on Mailchimp Premium R5 600a month Pick it if a team needs unlimited seats and phone support, or you send up to 150 000 emails a month. You get

• 150 000 emails a month
• Unlimited seats
• Up to 200 automation flows

Worth knowing

• Phone and priority support
• R4 760 a month for the first 12 months on Mailchimp's current offer

See Premium on Mailchimp

Confirmed 1 Oct 2026

Start on Mailchimp's Standard plan

Essentials and Standard start with a free 14-day trial.

See Mailchimp's plans

you'll go to mailchimp.com

So MailerLite is the one to start on for the lowest monthly bill, and Mailchimp for a rand bill and someone to chat to. And if Brevo is on your list as well, Brevo vs MailerLite compares those two in dollars.

Moving from Mailchimp to MailerLite

If you are reading this with a Mailchimp bill in front of you, moving is mostly an afternoon's work. You export your audience as a CSV and import it, keeping the consent you already hold, because a contact who agreed to hear from your business still has that agreement on a new platform.

What does not move is anything you built: your automated flows, templates and forms have to be rebuilt by hand in MailerLite. On a list with a welcome series and one or two forms, that is a few hours. On a store with a dozen flows, price the time before the saving.

So which one should you use?

Neither loses on its own terms. MailerLite does give you the most for the least, and Mailchimp does give you a rand price, a chat window and the widest set of connections.

Take MailerLite if you want a newsletter and automated welcome emails for the lowest monthly cost, which is most small businesses. At 1 000 subscribers it saves about R377 a month, R4 529 a year, over the Mailchimp plan with the same automation, and you can start on its free plan today and upgrade when the list passes 250.

Take Mailchimp if you budget in rands and want the bill to stay put, if you want to chat to someone rather than email, or if a tool you rely on connects to Mailchimp and not to MailerLite. If neither fits, the ranking of all seven platforms is in our email marketing guide.

Can't decide between the two? It keeps coming back to how you want to pay, how you want support, and how much automation you need. Your answers below pick one of the two and tell you why.

Three questions

MailerLite or Mailchimp?

Answer for how your business works today.

1How do you want to pay?

Whatever is cheapest, on a cardA fixed rand price every month

2When you are stuck, what do you reach for?

Email is fineA chat with a person

3What will you send?

A newsletter and a welcome seriesFlows tied to other software we use

Before you answer

MailerLite, for most small businesses

It is cheaper at every list size once automation is included.

The trade-off: dollar billing, and live chat only on its pricier Power plan.

Start free at MailerLite See Mailchimp's plans

Prices last confirmed on 24 September 2026.

Questions people ask about MailerLite and Mailchimp