Comparison · Evidence checked 2026-10-17
MailerLite vs Brevo: Contacts, Sends and Plan Limits
A practical, evidence-led decision guide. Product capabilities and limits are separated from anything that would require hands-on testing.
MailerLite and Brevo should be compared using both the people you store and the messages you send. A large list receiving one newsletter is a different workload from a small list receiving daily campaigns and purchase notifications.
Start with MailerLite when the main job is a predictable newsletter and its forms, landing pages and follow-up workflows. Shortlist Brevo when marketing campaigns must sit alongside transactional or multichannel requirements. In both cases, confirm the exact product and quota: a marketing plan is not an unlimited bundle of every communication channel.
This comparison uses official documentation checked 17 October 2026, not measured deliverability or hands-on campaign results.
BenPicks may earn a commission through MailerLite links on its product profile; we have no active Brevo affiliate link in this comparison. This does not determine the recommendation. The source links below are ordinary, untracked documentation links.
Compare the two constraint sets
| Buying question | MailerLite | Brevo |
|---|---|---|
| Primary budget inputs | Active subscriber tier, send allowance and plan limits | Email volume tier plus its contact-storage and feature boundaries |
| Free-plan issue | 250 subscribers and 2,500 sends per month | 300 sends per day; unused daily allowance does not accumulate |
| Paid entry point | Pricing FAQ starts Comfort at $12 and Power at $25; tier selection still matters | Regional plan and volume determine the quote; capture the selected currency and billing period |
| Operational check | Automations, seats and site/form limits | Stored contacts, automation eligibility, channels and any add-ons |
Brevo should not be described as “unlimited contacts at any paid send volume.” Its current plan-management help says email volume also determines the contact-storage ceiling. A low send count does not by itself prove that your list fits the cheapest tier.
We do not put a regional euro Brevo entry quote beside a US-dollar MailerLite entry quote and declare a percentage saving. Build a comparable basket first.
Original scenario: a large, quiet list
Suppose 6,000 opted-in readers receive one full-list newsletter per month, with no automations in this deliberately narrow example. That means 6,000 monthly sends and storage for 6,000 contacts.
For MailerLite, choose a subscriber tier that covers the list and verify its monthly sending allowance. For Brevo, quote enough email volume and storage for all 6,000 people. A send tier that covers the newsletter but stores fewer contacts fails the brief before price is considered.
Now change only frequency to four newsletters. The list is still 6,000, but volume becomes 24,000 sends. A contact-led quote and a volume-led quote can respond differently to that change. That is why we keep both columns visible instead of assigning a universal cheaper option.
Original scenario: a busy month on a smaller list
Take 1,000 subscribers in total, including one hundred who join that month, fourteen full-list campaign allowances and three welcome messages for each new subscriber. The calculation is 1,000 × 14 + 100 × 3 = 14,300 sends.
At MailerLite's up-to-1,000 Comfort tier, the ten-times-tier allowance is 10,000 sends. The scenario exceeds it by 4,300. Its current pricing FAQ says you can upgrade to Power or wait for the allowance to refresh; don't promise that sending will simply continue at the original price. Contact growth is a separate event: exceeding a paid subscriber ceiling can trigger a higher tier.
For Brevo, request a paid basket covering the 14,300 sends, the stored contacts and the required automation. Its free daily cap is unsuitable for a time-sensitive launch to 1,000 people: even if all daily capacity were reserved for that one job, ceil(1,000 / 300) = 4 days. This is a capacity calculation, not a recommendation to split a launch or a claim about campaign scheduling behavior.
Download both scenario baskets or adapt them in the email budgeting guide.
Keep receipts and campaigns separate
A receipt, password reset or booking confirmation must not wait behind a newsletter decision. If that is part of the brief, check the appropriate transactional product, sender authentication, integration and quota independently. MailerLite's pricing comparison points transactional needs to MailerSend; do not assume those messages are included in MailerLite's marketing allowance.
Likewise, pricing for SMS, WhatsApp or other Brevo features needs its own check. A broad product menu is not evidence that every channel is included at the selected marketing price.
Good fit and reasons to stay put
MailerLite is a strong shortlist for a team whose newsletter process is simple enough to describe as a list, a calendar and a few automations. Brevo deserves a closer look when communication spans more than newsletter production and the team can manage separate meters responsibly.
Stay with your current provider if the proposed move saves little after the work of rebuilding forms, suppression handling, templates and event connections. Trial one representative journey and keep existing unsubscribes suppressed. A successful import alone does not demonstrate a successful migration.
Use MailerLite vs Mailchimp for the migration-led choice and MailerLite vs Kit for creator automation and the migration checklist for acceptance checks.
Enter a custom subscriber/send basket in the email cost calculator.
Sources and limits
Checked 17 October 2026: MailerLite pricing ↗, billing help ↗, Brevo's plan overview ↗, Brevo volume and contact-tier rules ↗. Scenarios are derived planning examples, not observed customer outcomes.