Mailchimp Alternatives for Small Publishers (2026): The Real Fee Math
Mailchimp's free plan dropped to 250 contacts. Here is what MailerLite, Beehiiv and Kit cost at 500, 1,000, 5,000 and 25,000 subscribers, verified against live vendor pricing where possible, with anything we could not confirm marked as not publicly listed.
Why people are leaving Mailchimp in 2026
The trigger for most switchers is the free tier collapse. Mailchimp's free plan now caps at 250 contacts with a maximum of 500 sends per month, down from 500 in 2023/24 and 2,000 before 2022. (mailchimp.com/pricing/marketing/, as of 2026-05-30.) Some users have also reported that the Classic Automation Builder was pulled from the free tier in mid-2025; we could not confirm that specific change on the current live pricing page, so treat it as reported rather than vendor-confirmed.
Paid entry pricing starts at roughly $11/mo for Essentials (regular price near $28) and roughly $17/mo for Standard (regular near $35). (mailchimp.com/pricing/marketing/, as of 2026-05-30.)
The honest caveat: Mailchimp is not the only platform tightening free tiers. MailerLite cut its own free plan from 1,000 to 500 subscribers on 2025-09-23, and Kit raised prices in September 2025. If you are migrating, migrate for the right reason: total cost at your list size, not just the headline cut.
The pricing table that actually matters
These figures are pulled from live vendor pricing pages as of 2026-05-30. Where a vendor only exposes pricing through an interactive slider, we did not invent the mid-tier numbers; those cells read "not publicly listed." MailerLite, Beehiiv and Kit figures assume annual billing where noted; monthly billing runs higher.
| Platform | 500 subs | 1,000 subs | 5,000 subs | 25,000 subs | Revenue cut |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beehiiv | $0 | $0 | $43/mo (Scale) | not publicly listed (slider) | 0% (flat fee) |
| MailerLite | $0 free | from $10/mo | slider (not enumerated) | slider (not enumerated) | 0% |
| Kit (ConvertKit) | $0 free / $33/mo annual | $0 free / $33/mo annual | not publicly listed (slider) | not publicly listed (slider) | 0% |
| Substack | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 10% of paid revenue |
| Mailchimp | ~$11 Essentials | ~$11 Essentials | vendor slider | vendor slider | 0% |
Notes and corrections: Beehiiv's live page shows Scale at ~$43/mo and Max at ~$96/mo at 5,000 subscribers; the 25,000-subscriber price is not enumerated on the live slider, so confirm it before budgeting. MailerLite exposes only "from $10/mo" (Growing Business) and "from $20/mo" (Advanced) plus a subscriber slider; exact 5k/25k prices are not listed as fixed figures. Kit's live page enumerates only the 1,000-subscriber tier (Creator $33/mo annual, Pro $66/mo annual); 5k/25k Creator pricing is not publicly listed there. Sources: beehiiv.com/pricing, mailerlite.com/pricing, kit.com/pricing, all as of 2026-05-30.
MailerLite: the cheapest flat-fee option at most tiers
For a budget-conscious publisher, MailerLite's pay-as-you-grow slider is generally the lowest real cost on this list. The live page shows Growing Business starting at $10/mo and Advanced at $20/mo, both with unlimited monthly emails on paid tiers and a 10% discount on annual billing. Exact prices at 5,000 and 25,000 subscribers are set by the subscriber slider and are not published as fixed figures, so pull your own number before committing. (mailerlite.com/pricing, as of 2026-05-30.)
The catch worth naming: MailerLite cut its free plan from 1,000 to 500 subscribers on 2025-09-23. Above 500 subscribers on the free plan, sending campaigns, running automations and adding subscribers manually stop working until you upgrade; forms, pop-ups and landing pages keep running. The free plan still includes 12,000 monthly emails. (mailerlite.com/help/free-plan-update-faq, as of 2026-05-30.) So MailerLite's free tier is now narrower than it was, but it still keeps automation, which Mailchimp's 250-contact free tier does not.
Check MailerLite's current pricing on the live slider for your exact subscriber count and billing term.
Beehiiv: free to 2,500, then a flat fee with a 0% cut
Beehiiv's free Launch plan covers up to 2,500 subscribers at a 0% take rate, which makes it the strongest $0 option for newsletters under that cap, well past where Mailchimp free taps out at 250. At 5,000 subscribers, the Scale plan runs ~$43/mo and Max ~$96/mo on the live page, both with annual discounts and no cut of your revenue. (beehiiv.com/pricing, as of 2026-05-30.)
Beehiiv leans toward newsletter monetization (ad network, paid subscriptions, referral program) rather than the broad marketing-automation surface Mailchimp offers. If your goal is to grow and monetize a publication rather than run e-commerce campaigns, the trade is usually worth it. The price at 25,000 subscribers is not enumerated on the live slider, so confirm whether you land on Scale or Max, and the exact figure, before budgeting.
See Beehiiv's plans and free Launch tier.
Kit (ConvertKit): a free Newsletter tier and the strongest automation
Kit's free Newsletter plan includes unlimited broadcasts and unlimited forms with one basic visual automation. Note a discrepancy worth verifying yourself: Kit's live pricing page presented the free Newsletter plan at a 1,000-subscriber tier, while several third-party 2026 round-ups describe the free plan as covering up to 10,000 subscribers. Because the live vendor page and third-party sources disagree, confirm the exact free cap on kit.com/pricing for your list size before relying on it.
The paid Creator plan adds full automation. The live page lists Creator at $33/mo and Pro at $66/mo on annual billing (about $39 and $79 monthly) at the 1,000-subscriber tier. Creator pricing at 5,000 and 25,000 subscribers is not publicly listed on that page; third-party estimates put 5,000 subscribers in the rough range of $66 to $89/mo, but treat those as unverified until you check the slider. (kit.com/pricing, as of 2026-05-30.)
The flag: Kit raised prices in September 2025, with the increase reported to hit smaller lists hardest. So Kit's free tier is the most attractive part of its offer for small publishers, while the paid Creator plan tends to be the priciest of the three at larger list sizes.
Compare Kit's free Newsletter plan and Creator tiers.
The Substack wedge: "free" until you have paying subscribers
Substack charges no flat fee, which looks unbeatable until you monetize. It takes 10% of your paid subscription revenue, plus Stripe processing fees. The math flips the comparison once real money is involved. (beehiiv.com/blog/how-much-does-substack-cost, note this is a competitor's framing; corroborate against Substack directly before relying on it.)
Worked example at 5,000 subscribers: a writer with 200 paid subs at $8/mo earns $1,600/mo gross. Substack's 10% cut is ~$160/mo. On flat-fee platforms the same publisher pays Beehiiv ~$43/mo at 5,000 subscribers on Scale (or $0 if still under 2,500 subs) or MailerLite a slider-based fee starting from $10/mo, both 0% of revenue. The crossover is roughly $430/mo in paid revenue: above that, Substack's 10% exceeds Beehiiv's Scale flat fee, and the gap widens as you grow.
The trade-off is real, not one-sided: Substack bundles discovery, a reader network and zero upfront cost, which matters when you have no paying subscribers yet. The point is to run the percentage against your own paid revenue rather than assuming "free" means cheapest.
FAQ
Is Mailchimp's free plan really only 250 contacts now?
Yes. Per the vendor pricing page as of 2026-05-30, the free plan is 250 contacts with a maximum of 500 sends per month, down from 500 in 2023/24 and 2,000 before 2022. (mailchimp.com/pricing/marketing/)
Which Mailchimp alternative is cheapest for a small list?
Under 2,500 subscribers, Beehiiv's free Launch plan is $0 with a 0% revenue cut. Kit also has a free Newsletter plan (confirm the exact subscriber cap on its live page, as sources disagree). For paid plans, MailerLite's pay-as-you-grow slider is generally the lowest, starting from about $10/mo on annual billing.
Does MailerLite still have a free plan?
Yes, but it was cut from 1,000 to 500 subscribers on 2025-09-23. Above 500 subscribers, sending campaigns, running automations and adding subscribers manually stop until you upgrade; forms, pop-ups and landing pages keep working. The free plan still includes 12,000 monthly emails. (mailerlite.com/help/free-plan-update-faq)
Is Substack actually free?
There is no flat fee, but Substack takes 10% of your paid subscription revenue plus Stripe fees. At 200 paid subscribers paying $8/mo (~$1,600/mo), that 10% is ~$160/mo, more than Beehiiv Scale (~$43/mo at 5,000 subscribers) or MailerLite (from $10/mo). Above roughly $430/mo in paid revenue, Substack's cut exceeds Beehiiv's flat Scale fee.
Did Kit (ConvertKit) raise its prices?
Yes, in September 2025, with the increase reported to affect smaller lists most. Exact Creator pricing above 1,000 subscribers is not publicly listed on Kit's live pricing page, so confirm it on the slider. Kit's free Newsletter plan remains its most attractive feature for small publishers. (kit.com/pricing)