Cakemail vs MailerLite (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, MailerLite grades higher than Cakemail: 2.6 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Cakemail grades higher on the free plan. MailerLite grades higher on features, ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Cakemail
Email marketing platform with a free plan, priced by contacts
MailerLite
Email newsletters, automations, sites and paid subscriptions
Which one is for you
Pick Cakemail if
- Fits if you have a list under 500 and send a few campaigns a month
- Works for small senders who want to start free and watch the cap
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if your list grows past 500 contacts, because the free plan stops there and Growth is priced by contacts
- Skip it if you want A/B testing or landing pages cheaply, since those are Premium
- Watch out: Growth sends a set number of emails per contact, and 10,000 contacts costs $63 a month
- Watch out: the email API is priced separately, for example $1.00 per 1,000 emails on its own page
Pick MailerLite if
- Fits if you want a newsletter, a few automations and a basic website without juggling three tools
- Works for selling a paid newsletter or an ebook through Stripe
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you're staying free and your list is heading past 250 people, as campaigns lock past it
- Not for you if you also need receipts and password-reset emails, which come from a separate product
- Pricey if your list grows in bursts, as subscribers count up through each billing cycle and move you up a tier automatically
- Watch out: Comfort caps emails at 10 times your tier, and live chat support starts on Power at $25
- Watch out: the free plan can't send through the API and has community support only
How we grade them
| 2.2GPACakemailFair | 2.6GPAMailerLiteGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CGrowth is $11 a month for 500 contacts, just above the $9.99 where email tools' cheaper quarter starts, and it rises with contacts: $63 at 10,000. Premium is $19. | C$12 a month for 500 subscribers, just under the middle of what email tools charge, and that already gets you 50 automations, 10 forms and 10 sites. At 10,000 subscribers it's $89 a month, and yearly billing takes 10% off. |
| Free plan and trial | BFree for up to 500 contacts and 6,000 emails a month, no card needed. Hit either cap and sending stops until you upgrade or the cycle resets. | CFree for up to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails a month, with automations, one website and three forms. That's a start, but 250 people is a cap you'll hit, and then campaigns and automations lock until you pay. There's a 14-day trial of paid features too, no card needed. |
| Features | CCampaigns, templates, workflows, segmentation, forms, reports and an API. A/B testing, popups, landing pages and the HTML editor need Premium. | BThree email editors, a visual automation builder, websites, landing pages and forms, plus paid newsletters, digital products and bookings through Stripe. That's the whole job. Receipts and other transactional emails live in a separate product, MailerSend. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You build lists, templates and sender authentication yourself. | B4.67 from about 1,100 App Store ratings for its companion app, just under the 4.7 an A needs. The real work still happens in the web app, building emails and automations. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only, with 1 integration on record plus an API. | BWeb and an iPhone app, with Shopify, WooCommerce, Stripe, Claude and ChatGPT, an API and an MCP server. No desktop app, so it can't go higher than a B. |
| Best for | a small list that wants a free email plan | a newsletter with a simple website on the side |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Cakemail and MailerLite. How we grade
Price against what you get
Cakemail starts at $11 a month and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. MailerLite starts at $12 a month and scores 3.0.
MailerLite scores higher, and starts $1 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other email marketing and newsletter tools on the chart, 16 score higher than Cakemail for less, and 1 scores higher than MailerLite for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Cakemail also covers templates and popups.
- MailerLite also covers paid newsletters.
At a glance
| Cakemail | MailerLite | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $11 per month for up to 500 contacts, billed monthly | $12 per month for up to 500 subscribers, billed monthly |
| Free plan | Up to 500 contacts and 6,000 emails per month, with no card needed. | Up to 250 subscribers, 2,500 emails a month, 2 seats, automations, 1 website, 1 landing page and 3 forms. No sending through the API. |
| Free trial | None listed | 14-day free trial of paid features, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Made by | Cakemail | MailerLite |
| Price read from | cakemail.com | mailerlite.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Cakemail
- The free plan caps at 500 contacts and 6,000 emails a month; hitting either stops sending until you upgrade or the cycle resets.
- Growth prices by contact count and sends a set number of emails per contact; at 10,000 contacts it is $63 a month.
- A/B testing, popups, landing pages and the HTML editor are Premium features.
- The email API is priced separately, for example $1.00 per 1,000 emails on the page for that product.
MailerLite
- The Free plan stops at 250 subscribers; above that, campaigns and automations are locked until you upgrade.
- Subscribers count cumulatively through each billing cycle, and passing your tier moves you up and charges the card automatically.
- Comfort caps monthly emails at 10 times the top of your subscriber tier; Power has no monthly cap, subject to fair use.
- Transactional email is not part of these plans; MailerLite points to its separate MailerSend product.
Key features
Cakemail
- Campaigns and templates
- Email campaigns built in a drag-and-drop editor, with 700+ templates listed on paid plans.
- Automated workflows
- Automations triggered by how contacts interact with your emails; Premium adds contact tags in automation and drip campaigns.
- Segmentation
- Audience groups that update on their own, with behavioral segmentation on Premium.
- Signup forms
- Embedded or linked forms for collecting subscribers; Premium adds popups and landing pages.
- Reports and sender authentication
- Per-campaign reports and guided DNS setup so mail is authenticated against your domain.
- API access
- Cakemail's API is included for building custom integrations.
MailerLite
- Three email editors
- Drag-and-drop, custom HTML and a simple text editor on every plan. Paid plans add the AI writing assistant, multivariate testing and dynamic content.
- Automation builder
- A visual workflow builder with templates, e-commerce triggers, RSS campaigns and auto-resend. Comfort allows 50 active automations; Power has no cap.
- Websites, landing pages and forms
- Build sites with a blog, landing pages, embedded forms and pop-ups. Free allows one site and three forms; an iPad app collects sign-ups offline.
- Paid newsletters and digital products
- Sell one-time or recurring newsletter subscriptions, digital downloads and bookings, with payments taken through Stripe.
- Reports
- Click maps, list growth and comparative reports, e-commerce sales tracking, individual subscriber profiles and custom report exports.
- MCP server and API
- Claude, ChatGPT and other AI tools can manage campaigns through MailerLite's MCP server. Full API and MCP access, including sending, needs a paid plan.
Plans
Cakemail
Free$0
Up to 500 contacts and 6,000 emails a month, with the core campaign, template and form tools.
Growth$11
per month for up to 500 contacts, billed monthly
6,000 emails a month per 500 contacts, templates, workflows, segmentation, forms and API. $63 a month at 10,000 contacts and 120,000 emails.
Premium$19
per month for up to 500 contacts, billed monthly
7,500 emails at 500 contacts, plus A/B testing, journey mapping, popups, landing pages, HTML editor and a dedicated IP option. Price also rises with the list.
MailerLite
Free$0
250 subscribers, 2,500 emails a month, 2 seats, 1 website, 1 landing page and 3 forms. Community support only.
Comfort$12
per month for up to 500 subscribers, billed monthly
Emails up to 10 times the tier (5,000 here), 3 seats, 50 automations, 10 forms and sites. Price rises with the list: $89 a month at 10,000 subscribers.
Power$25
per month for up to 500 subscribers, billed monthly
Unlimited emails, seats, automations, forms and sites, plus 24/7 live chat. Price rises with the list: $129 a month at 10,000 subscribers.
EnterpriseCustom
For more than 200,000 subscribers: custom sending volume, a success manager, account audits and a dedicated IP as an add-on.
Ways to pay less
Cakemail
No public discounts listed.
MailerLite
- Annual discount
Save 10% with yearly billing
MailerLite's pricing page takes 10% off paid plans billed yearly: Comfort at 500 subscribers is $10.80 a month instead of $12.
- Nonprofit
30% off paid plans for nonprofits
Nonprofits get 30% off paid plans after sending support a document showing their status, such as an IRS tax exemption certificate.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Cakemail or MailerLite?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Cakemail is cheaper to start with: $11 a month, against $12 a month for MailerLite. Cakemail starts at $11 per month for up to 500 contacts, billed monthly, and MailerLite starts at $12 per month for up to 500 subscribers, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, Cakemail or MailerLite?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Cakemail and MailerLite have a free plan.
Which platforms do Cakemail and MailerLite run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only MailerLite lists an iOS app. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.