MailerLite has announced big changes to its free plan, which come into effect on 1st July 2026. Understandably, it’s left lots of people with questions about whether MailerLite is the platform to stay with, or whether there are other options out there which offer better value.
This change marks the second big downgrade of features in the last 12 months. While they are unlocking a few new features, key numbers like subscriber counts, monthly email sends, and automation limits are taking a big dip. However, we do have to remember that MailerLite’s old free plan was one of the most generous out there, so while these cuts have come as a shock, they are bringing MailerLite in line with the rest of the industry, and it seems the era of the completely free email marketing may be coming to an end.
If your lead magnets, welcome funnels, or newsletters live on MailerLite’s free plan, you need to understand exactly how the MailerLite free plan limits 2026 updates affect your business over the next two months.
The 2026 MailerLite Free Plan Changes: Two Deadlines to Watch
MailerLite is rolling out these new restrictions in two stages. The first phase affects how many people you can have on your list and the number of emails you can send them. The second phase affects your automations and the complexity of what you can build on the free plan.
Just to be clear, none of the existing features are disappearing, it’s just that what was once free will now come at a cost.
Phase 1: July 1, 2026 (Subscriber and sending emails)
The first deadline for these changes is happening on July 1st for existing Mailerlite free accounts (please note that both phases of these changes are already in effect for any brand-new accounts if you sign up today). This phase relates to subscriber numbers and the number of emails you can send a month.
Subscribers: The free plan moves from 500 down to 250 active subscribers.
Monthly Emails: Lowered for the free plan from 12,000 down to 2,500 emails per month.
What this means for you right now: If you have 300 or 400 subscribers on July 1st, your account will stop working. Your landing pages and opt-in forms will still collect names on the front end, but MailerLite will stop sending emails within your automations and you won’t be able to send any campaigns until you either cut your list back to under 250 or upgrade to a paid plan.
Phase 2: August 2026 (Automations, signup forms and landing pages)
Even if you stay under the 250-subscriber mark in July, by August the any current free plans will also be subject to the followj g changes to automations, signup forms and landing pages
With a free MailerLite account, you’ll be able to have a maximum of:
- 1 Landing Page
- 3 Signup Forms (including pop-ups and embedded boxes)
- 3 Active Automations
- 5 Steps Maximum per automation (Note: the initial entry trigger doesn’t count as a step, but every single email, time delay, or backend action after that does).
Lead Magnet Delivery: Setting up a welcome sequence for a freebie funnel, you’ll be limited to include a maximum of three emails. A free automation will have to look something like this: [Trigger] -> Email 1 (The Freebie) -> Wait -> Email 2 -> Wait -> Email 3. That uses exactly 5 steps. If you want to add a 4th email, a 3rd wait delay, or any advanced conditional filters (like splitting people out based on if they opened the previous email or not) you will have to upgrade to the paid tier. Basically, only the simplest automations remain free.
Should You Switch? The Two Options You Have Right Now
With these changes kicking in soon, you don’t have long before 1st July is here to decide on your next steps.
You could, if you aren’t far over the limit, remove unengaged subscribers who haven’t opened your emails in ages to get back under that 250 cap. But honestly? I hope your email list is going to continue to grow, so cleaning your list is only a temporary solution that won’t sustain your business for long.
That leaves you with two real options: either stay with MailerLite and start paying for it, or look to move your email list to a different platform.
But before you jump ship and spend days migrating your data, ask yourself this one question:
“Do I already know how to use MailerLite, and am I happy with how it works?”
If the answer is yes, save yourself the time, stress, and cost of moving and re-testing everything works. Just upgrade to their monthly paid plan. It will cost you roughly £11 a month (shown on their site as $12) for up to 500 subscribers, or roughly £17 a month (shown as $19 on MailerLite’s website) for up to 1,000 subscribers. Plus, they offer an extra discount if you decide to pay for the whole year in one go.
The Reality of Tech in 2026: Free Plans are Becoming Free Trials
Most of the main email marketing platforms are offering similar plans. Free plans are being turned into longer-term trials rather than a way of starting email marketing without costs. If you move to a different platform just because they have a free tier today, there is zero guarantee they won’t cut their features six months from now, just like MailerLite has.
Unless you have the next two weeks completely free to rebuild your funnels, update your forms, and test your tech, I highly recommend paying for July to keep MailerLite rolling monthly. This buys you a whole extra month before the automation changes hit in August, giving you the time to decide on your long-term plan without risking broken lead magnets or frozen signups.
MailerLite Alternatives: Comparing different platforms
If you do want to use these changes as motivation to move platforms because you want to explore other features, here is a comparison table of some of the other platforms available:
| Feature | MailerLite | Mailchimp | Kit (previous ConvertKit) | Funnel Sketchers (white label of Go High Level) |
| Max Free Subscribers | 250 | 250 | 10,000 | No Free Tier (Paid Upfront) |
| Max Free Emails / Month | 2,500 | 500 | Unlimited | 4,000 on the lowest-paid tier |
| Max Free Automations | 3 | 0 (Paid Only) | 1 | Unlimited |
| Sign-up forms in lowest tier | 3 active | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Landing pages in lowest tier | 1 active | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Restrictions | Max 5 steps per automation. | No automations allowed for free. | Zero integrations: you cannot connect it to a website builder, shop, or third-party tool without paying. | No free tier, you have to pay from your first subscriber |
| First paid tier pricing | £10 – £12 a month ($12) (Up to 500 subscribers) | £11 – £13 a month ($13) (Up to 500 subscribers) | £31 – £37 a month ($39) (Up to 1,000 subscribers) | Find out the funnel sketchers pricing here (this is an affiliate link) |
4 Rules for Safely Migrating Your Email List
If you decide that switching platforms is the right move for you, please do not rush the process. Rushing an email migration can cause your messages to land straight in your subscribers’ spam folders and undo any great results you were getting in MailerLite. Follow these four tips for a successful move:
- Authenticate Your Domain First: Before you send a single email from a new email marketing platform, you must re-verify your domain settings (your DKIM and SPF records). If you use an all-in-one system like Funnel Sketchers, you may have to set up a separate subdomain (like
mail.yourdomain.com). - Warm up your new platform: Never import your entire list and immediately email them all at once. Export and migrate your most active subscribers first, the people who have actually opened or clicked your emails in the last 30 to 60 days. This means you can check everything works with subscribers you know will open up your emails and will give you a better reputation with email filters like Gmail and Outlook.
- Warn Your Current Subscribers: Send one final email from your old platform. Tell them: “I’m moving! Look out for an email called xx. When it arrives, make sure to click x link inside it so your inbox knows I’m safe.” If you can, add a special incentive to open that email that will help too, such as a special offer once they click on the link. When I moved from MailerLite to Funnel Sketchers, I put everyone who opened and clicked into a draw to win a 1:1 call with me.
- Move the Rest: Once you have tested the new platform and it’s successfully sending to your most active subscribers, you can safely bring the rest of your subscribers over.
Look at your options before you decide
Before you do anything else, take a look at the table above, audit your current email list size, and decide what features your business actually needs its email marketing tools to do.
If you are happy with MailerLite and want to keep things simple, upgrading to their monthly plan for £10-£12 is a brilliant way to buy yourself time.
If you know you only want one freebie and email sequence and want to keep things free as long as possible, that Kit might be a good option (I have not used Kit myself, so I cannot comment on how user-friendly it is)
If you have been waiting for the motivation to upgrade your email marketing system and have plans for multiple lead magnets and automations, it might be time to look at an all-in-one system.
I can’t say which option is the best, as everyone’s business is different and the use of email marketing will be different, but I hope this blog has given you some options for what to do since this MailerLite announcement. If you have any questions relating to your business, either email me at info@thismumlovestech.co.uk or DM me on Instagram here