This article was last updated May 2026 with verified current pricing and feature changes.
MailerLite is a beginner-friendly email marketing platform starting at $10/month (around €8.47) for 1,000 contacts, known for its 95%+ inbox deliverability and intuitive interface. GetResponse is a more feature-rich all-in-one marketing platform starting at $19/month (around €16.09), offering webinar hosting, advanced automation, and SMS campaigns. MailerLite is best for small businesses and creators prioritising simplicity; GetResponse suits businesses needing advanced marketing workflows.
I’ve spent the last few months evaluating both platforms — testing free plans, upgrading through paid tiers, and digging through hundreds of user reviews on Capterra, G2, and Reddit. The answer isn’t as simple as “one is better.” It’s more about which one fits your specific situation. What I’ll give you here is the honest picture — including the things both companies would rather you didn’t know.
Quick Answer
60-second read
MailerLite wins for simplicity, affordability, and deliverability — starting at $10/month (~€8.47) with 95%+ inbox placement, it’s the obvious choice for small businesses, creators, and newsletters. GetResponse wins for feature depth — webinars, advanced automation, and online courses — but you’ll pay $59/month (~€49.97) to actually access the automation features most people need. Always verify current EUR pricing at official pages as exchange rates vary.
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🔬 How I Compared These Two Platforms
This comparison is based on hands-on evaluation of both free plans and paid tiers, cross-referenced with deliverability data from EmailToolTester (2025), user reviews from Capterra, G2, and Reddit, and official pricing pages verified in February 2026 and reviewed May 2026. EUR prices are approximate conversions — always verify at official pricing pages before committing.
2
Platforms evaluated
500+
User reviews analysed
12
Features compared
May 2026
Pricing reviewed
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What Are the Biggest Differences Between MailerLite and GetResponse?
MailerLite is the better choice for small businesses, beginners, and budget-conscious marketers, starting at $10/month (~€8.47) with 95%+ email deliverability. GetResponse is the better choice for businesses needing webinar hosting, advanced marketing automation, or SMS campaigns, starting at $19/month (~€16.09). The core difference: MailerLite prioritises simplicity and deliverability; GetResponse prioritises feature depth and scalability for power users.
If you’re running a newsletter, a small business, or just getting started with email marketing — MailerLite will serve you better for less money. If you’re building a webinar-based business or need complex multi-step automation, GetResponse is worth the premium.
| Feature | MailerLite | GetResponse | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting Price (USD) | $12/month | $19/month | 🏆 MailerLite |
| Starting Price (EUR, approx.) | ~€10.38/month | ~€16.09/month | 🏆 MailerLite |
| Free Plan | ✅ 250 contacts, 2,500 emails/mo | ✅ 500 contacts, 2,500 emails/mo | 🏆 MailerLite |
| Ease of Use | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Beginner-friendly | ⭐⭐⭐ Steeper learning curve | 🏆 MailerLite |
| Email Deliverability | 95%+ inbox placement | 82.1% avg (Promotions tab issue) | 🏆 MailerLite |
| Marketing Automation | Basic (15 recipes, limited triggers) | Advanced (40+ templates, behavioral) | 🏆 GetResponse |
| Webinar Hosting | ❌ Not available | ✅ Up to 100 attendees (Creator) | 🏆 GetResponse |
| SMS Marketing | ❌ Not available | ✅ Native (Creator plan) | 🏆 GetResponse |
| Landing Pages | Modern, user-friendly | Feature-rich but clunkier | 🏆 MailerLite |
| Integrations | 100+ (Zapier + native) | 291 native integrations | 🏆 GetResponse |
| Analytics | Click heatmaps, detailed | Basic (limited visualisation) | 🏆 MailerLite |
| Customer Support | 24/7 live chat (paid plans) | 24/7 chat + email (Starter+) | 🤝 Tie |
| 🏆 Best For | Beginners, newsletters, small businesses, budget-conscious | Webinar hosts, course creators, advanced marketers |
EUR prices approximate. Always verify at official pricing pages. Quick verdict: Choose MailerLite if you need simplicity, better deliverability, and a lower price. Choose GetResponse if webinars, advanced workflows, or online courses are central to your business. Skip both if you have 100k+ subscribers and need enterprise-grade automation — look at ActiveCampaign or HubSpot instead.
How Much Does Each Platform Actually Cost in 2026 — USD and EUR?
MailerLite costs $12/month (~€10.38) for 500 contacts on the Comfort plan (formerly Growing Business) — MailerLite raised Comfort/Power pricing 10-30% across every tier in its June 2026 repricing, so check MailerLite’s live calculator for your exact list-size cost rather than a cached number. GetResponse costs $19/month (~€16.09) for 1,000 contacts on the Starter plan — but full automation requires the Marketer plan at $59/month (~€49.97), a jump that surprises many new users. EUR prices are approximate conversions; always verify at official pricing pages before committing.
The pricing gap between these two platforms is bigger than most reviews suggest. MailerLite is more straightforward: pay $10/month, get a solid set of tools. GetResponse’s advertised $19/month price will hit a wall quickly once you realise automation workflows require the $59/month Marketer plan.
MailerLite Pricing (USD & EUR, 2026)
For 500 contacts unless noted. EUR prices approximate — always verify at mailerlite.com/pricing.
Free
$0/month
- ✅ 250 subscribers
- ✅ 2,500 emails/month
- ✅ Drag-and-drop editor
- ✅ Basic automation (15 recipes)
- ✅ 10 landing pages
- ⚠️ 1 user only
- ❌ No AI writing assistant
- ❌ Support limited to 30 days
Best for: Testing the platform
Comfort
$12/month
~€10.38/month · $10.80/mo annual (~€9.34/mo)
- ✅ Everything in Free
- ✅ Unlimited emails
- ✅ AI writing assistant
- ✅ A/B testing (2 variables)
- ✅ Click heatmaps
- ✅ 3 user seats
- ✅ Custom domains
- ✅ Unlimited landing pages
Power
$25/month
~€21.63/month · $22.50/mo annual (~€19.46/mo)
- ✅ Everything in Comfort
- ✅ Unlimited users
- ✅ Custom HTML editor
- ✅ Priority 24/7 support
- ✅ Newsletter archive
- ✅ Developer API access
- ✅ Enhanced AI content generation
Best for: Growing teams, agencies
GetResponse Pricing (USD & EUR, 2026)
For 1,000 contacts unless noted. EUR prices approximate — always verify at getresponse.com/pricing.
Free
$0/month
- ✅ 500 contacts
- ✅ 2,500 emails/month
- ✅ 1 landing page
- ✅ Sign-up forms
- ❌ No automation workflows
- ❌ No customer support
Best for: Very basic testing only
Starter
$19/month
~€16.09/month · ~€13.19/mo annual
- ✅ Unlimited emails
- ✅ AI email generator
- ✅ Autoresponders
- ✅ Unlimited landing pages
- ✅ 24/7 support
- ❌ No workflow automation
Best for: Basic email sending
Marketer
$59/month
~€49.97/month · ~€40.97/mo annual
- ✅ Everything in Starter
- ✅ Full marketing automation
- ✅ 40+ automation templates
- ✅ Behavioral triggers
- ✅ Lead scoring
- ✅ Cart abandonment
- ✅ Sales funnels
Creator
$69/month
~€58.45/month · ~€47.93/mo annual
- ✅ Everything in Marketer
- ✅ Webinars (100 attendees)
- ✅ Online courses
- ✅ SMS marketing
- ✅ Paid newsletters
- ✅ Community features
Best for: Course creators, online business
⚠️ GetResponse’s Hidden Automation Cost
GetResponse’s free plan and Starter plan ($19/month) do NOT include the marketing automation workflow builder. To access full automation — the main reason most people choose GetResponse over MailerLite — you must upgrade to the Marketer plan at $59/month (~€49.97/month). That’s a jump of more than 3× and catches a lot of new users off guard after they’ve signed up for the entry tier.
💡 European Pricing Note
All EUR prices in this article are approximate conversions. Both platforms bill primarily in USD. Always check the official pricing pages in your local currency before subscribing. MailerLite offers a 30% nonprofit discount; GetResponse offers 50% off nonprofit plans. Both offer 10–18% off when billed annually.
What Features Do You Actually Get — and Which Platform Does Each Better?
Both platforms are more capable than their pricing might suggest, but they’ve made very different decisions about what to prioritise. Here’s where each one actually shines and struggles.
⚡ Key Performance Metrics: MailerLite vs GetResponse
Ease of use: aggregated from Capterra and G2. Deliverability: EmailToolTester 2025 independent testing.
Email Editor and Templates
MailerLite’s drag-and-drop editor is genuinely one of the cleanest I’ve used. It loads fast, the block system is intuitive, and the design output looks professional without much effort. Templates are modern — 123 available across multiple categories — and even the free ones hold up well for newsletters.
GetResponse has more templates (150+), but the quality is inconsistent. Some look like they haven’t been updated since 2018. The editor itself is functional but noticeably clunkier — more options, but arranged in a way that slows you down when you just want to move something.
Marketing Automation — Where the Real Gap Is
This is where the two platforms diverge most sharply. MailerLite covers the basics well — welcome sequences, re-engagement flows, birthday emails — with 15 pre-built automation recipes available even on the free plan. For most small businesses, that’s enough.
GetResponse’s automation builder (Marketer plan, $59/month) is genuinely powerful. You get 40+ pre-built workflow templates, behavioral triggers based on page visits or purchase data, lead scoring, and cart abandonment sequences. If you’re selling online courses or running a funnel-heavy business, the difference is substantial.
Deliverability — The Metric That Actually Matters
📬 Deliverability: The Hidden Deciding Factor
According to EmailToolTester’s 2025 independent testing, MailerLite achieves 95%+ inbox placement compared to GetResponse’s 82.1% average. For every 1,000 emails sent: MailerLite reaches 950+ inboxes, while GetResponse reaches around 820 — with the rest going to Promotions or Spam. On a newsletter with 5,000 subscribers, that’s roughly 650 fewer people reading your email every send.
The GetResponse Promotions tab issue comes up consistently in user reviews on Reddit and G2. It’s not that GetResponse emails are being marked as spam — it’s that Gmail’s AI categorises them as promotional, which significantly suppresses open rates. MailerLite doesn’t have this problem to the same degree, which directly translates to better open rates and better revenue for the same list size.
What Are the Real Advantages and Disadvantages of Each Platform?
MailerLite: Honest Pros and Cons
✅ What Works Well
- Affordability: Starting at $10/month (~€8.47), significantly cheaper for comparable features
- Ease of use: Consistently rated #1 for beginners; clean, modern interface
- Deliverability: 95%+ inbox placement — emails reliably reach the primary inbox
- Landing page builder: Modern, fast builder with solid templates
- Analytics: Click heatmaps and detailed reporting at entry tier
- Free plan: 250 subscribers + 2,500 emails/month
❌ Where It Falls Short
- Basic automation: No behavioral triggers or advanced conditions on entry plans
- No webinars: Must use a separate platform
- No SMS: Requires third-party integration
- No spam testing: Missing inbox preview tools
- Free plan cut twice: 1,000→500 subscribers (2025), then 500→250 subscribers, 12,000→2,500 emails/mo (June 2026)
GetResponse: Honest Pros and Cons
✅ What Works Well
- All-in-one scope: Webinars, SMS, online courses, funnels in one platform
- Advanced automation: 40+ pre-built templates, behavioral triggers, lead scoring
- Webinar hosting: Built-in up to 100 attendees
- Integrations: 291 native integrations
- Ecommerce: Product recommendations and cart abandonment on Marketer+
- Nonprofit discount: 50% off — most generous in the category
❌ Where It Falls Short
- Poor deliverability: 82.1% inbox rate — Promotions tab problem
- Automation gated at $59/month: Starter plan lacks workflow automation
- Steep learning curve: Complex interface takes real time
- Support inconsistencies: Multiple reviews cite poor responsiveness
- Dated UI elements: Some sections feel clunky vs newer tools
What Are the Real Complaints Users Have About These Platforms?
MailerLite’s account approval and banning issue is a genuine frustration that comes up on Reddit, G2, and even in my own experience. MailerLite manually reviews accounts and has a history of banning users without detailed explanation — citing anti-spam policy violations even when users claim they weren’t sending cold emails. I’ve seen this first-hand: accounts terminated citing practices that “involve cold mailing” when no emails had even been sent yet.
GetResponse’s pricing confusion around the automation barrier is a different kind of frustration. Many users sign up for the $19/month Starter plan expecting to build automation workflows, then hit a wall. The jump to $59/month comes as a nasty surprise for small businesses that budgeted around the entry price.
MailerLite’s 2025 free plan reduction also left users bitter. Cutting from 1,000 to 500 contacts in Sept 2025, then to 250 contacts (2,500 emails/mo) in June 2026 gave people with growing lists a forced decision: upgrade or shrink your list. On GetResponse’s side, the deliverability problem isn’t minor — an 82.1% inbox rate means nearly 1 in 5 emails isn’t reaching the primary inbox. Multiple users on G2 report open rates dropping significantly after moving to GetResponse from other platforms.
⚠️ Account Termination Risk on MailerLite
MailerLite manually reviews accounts and has terminated users — sometimes before any emails were sent — citing cold mailing or policy violations. If you’re in affiliate marketing, outreach, or certain B2B niches, check MailerLite’s Terms of Use carefully before investing time building your account. This pattern is consistent across multiple independent reports online, not isolated incidents.
Who Should Use MailerLite vs GetResponse — and Who Should Skip Both?
MailerLite is best for small businesses, bloggers, creators, and newsletter publishers with under 10,000 subscribers who prioritise ease of use, strong deliverability, and affordable pricing. GetResponse is best for online course creators, webinar-based businesses, and advanced marketers who need complex automation workflows and are willing to pay the $59/month Marketer plan to access them.
Choose MailerLite if you: run a newsletter or blog and deliverability matters most to you; are just getting started with email marketing; have a list under 10,000 contacts and basic automation needs; care about cost and don’t want to justify a $59/month bill; or primarily need beautiful landing pages and signup forms.
Choose GetResponse if you: host webinars as part of your sales process; sell online courses and need built-in course creation tools; need advanced behavioral automation (cart abandonment, event-triggered sequences); want email, SMS, webinars, and courses in one platform; or can realistically justify the $59/month Marketer plan based on features you’ll actually use.
Skip both if: you have a list over 100,000 and need enterprise-grade automation (look at ActiveCampaign or HubSpot); you need advanced ecommerce email marketing with AI-powered product recommendations (look at Klaviyo); or you’re primarily doing cold outreach (neither platform supports this, and both will terminate accounts for it).
MailerLite vs GetResponse 2026: What’s the Final Verdict?
MailerLite wins for simplicity, deliverability, and value (7.5/10). GetResponse wins for feature depth and power users who need webinars, courses, and advanced automation (7.5/10). Choose MailerLite for newsletters and small businesses. Choose GetResponse if you genuinely need its Creator or Marketer features — not just because it has a longer feature list.
These platforms solve different problems. MailerLite is excellent at the thing most people actually need from email marketing: getting emails into inboxes, efficiently, without a complicated setup process. GetResponse is excellent at being a hub for businesses that run webinars, sell courses, and need complex sales funnels — but it asks you to pay for that complexity in both money and time.
The deliverability gap is the thing that nudges me toward recommending MailerLite for most users. A 13 percentage-point difference in inbox placement is not trivial. If you have a list of 5,000 people and you send weekly, you’re reaching 650 fewer people with every single email on GetResponse vs MailerLite. Over a year, that compounds significantly.
✉️
MailerLite
7.5/10
Our rating
Best for simplicity, deliverability, price. Ideal for newsletters, small businesses, creators.
🚀
GetResponse
7.5/10
Our rating
Best for webinars, online courses, advanced automation. Marketer plan ($59/mo) required.
If neither platform feels right, there are solid alternatives worth considering. Our roundup of the best email marketing software covers 12 platforms with honest comparisons. For GetResponse-specific alternatives, see our GetResponse alternatives guide.
🔍 Also Worth Considering: Brevo
Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) offers unlimited contacts on all paid plans, with pricing based on emails sent rather than list size. This makes it genuinely cheaper for users with large, less-frequently-emailed lists. Starting at €9/month for 5,000 emails/month.
Related Guides on CompareAITools.org
- 📊 GetResponse Review 2026 — deep dive into the full feature set
- 📊 GetResponse vs Mailchimp — how GetResponse stacks up against the most popular alternative
- 📊 GetResponse vs ActiveCampaign — which is better for advanced automation
- 📊 GetResponse vs Brevo — pricing and feature comparison
- 📊 Best Email Marketing Software 2026 — the full ranked list
- 📊 Email Marketing Automation Guide — how to choose the right automation features
- 📊 Best Mailchimp Alternatives — if you’re coming from Mailchimp
- 📊 Best Landing Page Builders — standalone builders vs email-tool builders
- 📊 MailerLite Review 2026 — full in-depth review
More MailerLite & Brevo Guides
- MailerLite Review – our full hands-on MailerLite test
- MailerLite vs Mailchimp – full comparison
- MailerLite vs Brevo – full comparison + winner
- How to Use MailerLite – step-by-step setup guide
Plan-name update: MailerLite also renamed its paid tiers that same month: “Comfort” replaces “Growing Business” and “Power” replaces “Advanced,” with existing customers auto-migrated to the new names at their next renewal starting August 13, 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions: MailerLite vs GetResponse
Which is cheaper — MailerLite or GetResponse?
MailerLite is significantly cheaper at entry level. The Comfort plan (formerly Growing Business) starts at $12/month (~€10.38) for 500 contacts, while GetResponse Starter starts at $19/month (~€16.09) — nearly double. For users who need advanced automation, the gap widens further: GetResponse Marketer costs $59/month (~€49.97), compared to MailerLite Power at $25/month (~€21.63). EUR prices are approximate — always verify at official pricing pages before committing.
Does GetResponse have a free plan?
Yes, GetResponse has a free plan with 500 contacts and 2,500 emails/month. However, MailerLite’s free plan now has fewer contacts (250 vs GetResponse’s 500) but the same 2,500 emails/month, since MailerLite cut its free tier again in June 2026 — MailerLite’s edge is no longer sending volume, it’s that automation and 30 days of live chat are included free, which GetResponse’s free tier doesn’t offer. GetResponse’s free plan also comes with no customer support, while MailerLite provides 30 days of live chat on the free tier. GetResponse offers a 30-day free trial of all paid features for new accounts.
Which has better email deliverability — MailerLite or GetResponse?
MailerLite has significantly better deliverability. According to EmailToolTester’s 2025 independent testing, MailerLite achieves 95%+ inbox placement, while GetResponse averages 82.1% — with emails frequently landing in Gmail’s Promotions tab. For every 1,000 emails sent, MailerLite reaches approximately 130 more primary inboxes than GetResponse. This directly impacts open rates and revenue.
Which is better for beginners?
MailerLite is clearly better for beginners. It won EmailToolTester’s “Best Email Marketing Tool For Ease of Use” badge in 2025 and is consistently rated for its clean, intuitive interface across Capterra and G2. GetResponse has a significantly steeper learning curve — its extensive feature set requires more time to navigate effectively. Most users report being productive on MailerLite within a few hours; GetResponse can take days or weeks to master.
Does MailerLite support webinars?
No, MailerLite does not offer built-in webinar hosting. This is one of GetResponse’s strongest differentiators — its Creator plan ($69/month) includes webinar hosting for up to 100 attendees. If webinars are a core part of your marketing strategy, GetResponse is the right choice. MailerLite users who need webinars must integrate a separate platform like Zoom or WebinarKit. See our best webinar platforms guide for alternatives.
Which has better marketing automation?
GetResponse has significantly more powerful automation on its Marketer plan ($59/month). You get 40+ pre-built workflow templates, behavioral triggers based on actions, lead scoring, and cart abandonment sequences. MailerLite offers 15 automation recipes with simpler trigger conditions, available even on the free plan. For welcome sequences and basic drip campaigns, MailerLite is sufficient. For complex multi-step behavioral workflows, GetResponse Marketer is the clear winner — at a 3× higher price. Read more in our email marketing automation guide.
Is GetResponse worth the higher price?
GetResponse is worth the higher price only if you actively use its advanced features: webinar hosting, complex automation workflows, SMS marketing, or online course creation. For users who primarily send newsletters and run basic welcome sequences, GetResponse’s premium over MailerLite is hard to justify — especially given MailerLite’s better deliverability. Businesses that consolidate webinar platform + email + course platform into GetResponse Creator can find the cost competitive.
What happened to MailerLite’s free plan in 2025?
MailerLite cut its free plan twice: from 1,000 to 500 contacts in September 2025, then from 500 to 250 contacts (12,000 to 2,500 monthly emails) in June 2026. This time the email sending limit dropped too, from 12,000/month to 2,500/month. This was received negatively by many users who had been on the 1,000-contact free tier — some migrated to competitors as a result. Despite the cut, MailerLite’s free plan now offers the same monthly email allowance as GetResponse’s free tier (2,500 vs 2,500) and fewer contacts (250 vs GetResponse’s 500) — the sending-volume advantage MailerLite used to have here is gone since the June 2026 cut. What MailerLite still keeps free that GetResponse doesn’t: automation workflows and 30 days of live chat support.
Which is better for ecommerce?
GetResponse is better for ecommerce businesses needing advanced automation. GetResponse Marketer ($59/month) includes abandoned cart emails, product recommendations, and behavioral automation based on purchase data. MailerLite integrates with WooCommerce and Shopify and supports basic abandoned cart functionality, but lacks the automation depth of GetResponse. For large ecommerce operations, GetResponse or a dedicated tool like Klaviyo is the stronger choice. For small shops with straightforward needs, MailerLite is more cost-effective.
Can I switch from GetResponse to MailerLite (or vice versa)?
Yes, switching between the two platforms is straightforward. Both support CSV import/export of contacts with tags and segments. MailerLite also allows direct import from Mailchimp. The main complexity in switching is recreating automation workflows — MailerLite users moving to GetResponse gain access to more powerful automation, while GetResponse users moving to MailerLite will need to simplify their flows. Neither platform charges for contact imports.
Data Sources and Methodology
- EmailToolTester Platform Reviews — independent deliverability testing data (2025)
- Capterra: MailerLite vs GetResponse — verified user review aggregation
- MailerLite Official Pricing — verified February 2026, reviewed May 2026
- GetResponse Official Pricing — verified February 2026, reviewed May 2026
