MailerLite vs Sendy
We give MailerLite a 2.6 GPA and Sendy a 2.0, out of 4.0. MailerLite grades higher on the free plan, features and ease of use. Sendy grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
MailerLite
Email newsletters, automations, sites and paid subscriptions
How we grade them
| 2.6GPAMailerLiteGood | 2.0GPASendyFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | 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. It stays reasonable as you grow, at $89 a month for 10,000 subscribers, and yearly billing takes 10% off. | A$69 once for one domain, less than half a year of this category's middle subscription. Sending is Amazon's $1.6 per 10,000 emails, so even a big list costs little. Add your own server, $79 if you want Sendy to install it, and $39 for the AI add-on. |
| Free plan and trial | CFree for up to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails a month, with automations, one website and three forms. A fair 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. | FNothing is free and there's no trial. Sendy promises a refund if it doesn't work out, but a money-back promise isn't a trial. |
| Features | 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. | CThree editors, autoresponders on intervals or dates, rules and webhooks, segments, custom fields, live reports, automatic list cleaning and white-labeled client brands. It does newsletters fully, but it's a smaller job, and it can't send without your own Amazon SES or SMTP account. |
| Ease of use | 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. | DNo App Store rating on record, and you install it yourself on a PHP and MySQL server and set up your own Amazon SES account. That's self-hosting, which puts it at a D. Sendy will install it for $79. |
| Platforms and integrations | 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. | BIt runs in a browser on your own server, with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailjet, Elastic Email, Zapier, WordPress, Magento and Joomla, plus an API. No desktop or phone app, so a B. |
| Best for | a newsletter with a simple website on the side | big lists without a monthly bill |
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: MailerLite and Sendy. How we grade
Where they differ
- MailerLite starts at $12 per month for up to 500 subscribers, billed monthly. Sendy starts at $69 one-time purchase, for one domain.
- MailerLite has a free plan. Sendy does not.
- Only MailerLite lists an iOS app.
- Sendy is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Sendy can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- MailerLite also covers forms and paid newsletters.
At a glance
| MailerLite | Sendy | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Paid |
| Starts at | $12 per month for up to 500 subscribers, billed monthly | $69 one-time purchase, for one domain |
| Free plan | 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. | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of paid features, no credit card required | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Made by | MailerLite | Sendy |
| Price read from | mailerlite.com | sendy.co |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
MailerLite
- Creators and small businesses sending a regular newsletter
- People who want a simple website and email list in one tool
- Writers charging for a newsletter through Stripe
Sendy
- Publishers with large lists who want to stop paying per subscriber
- Developers comfortable running a PHP app on their own hosting
- Agencies sending for several clients under their own brand
Worth knowing
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.
Sendy
- You host it yourself on a PHP and MySQL server and need your own Amazon SES account.
- Each license covers one domain, and major version upgrades are not included.
- The AI Assistant is a $39 one-time add-on (shown cut from $49), and installation by Sendy costs $79.
- There is no free trial; Sendy offers a refund if it does not work out.
Key features
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.
Sendy
- Sending through Amazon SES
- Campaigns go out through your own Amazon SES account at Amazon's rate; SendGrid, Mailjet and Elastic Email also work natively over SMTP.
- Three email editors
- Switch between drag-and-drop, WYSIWYG and HTML editors when building templates.
- Autoresponders, rules and webhooks
- Drip sequences sent at set intervals or on dates, plus rules that send notifications, fire webhooks or move subscribers when something happens.
- Segments and custom fields
- Build segments from any conditions, store custom fields for personalization, and include or exclude lists and segments per campaign.
- White-labeled client brands
- Group lists into brands and give clients their own access, permissions, sending limits and pricing.
- Live reports and list cleaning
- Real-time opens, clicks, bounces, complaints and locations, with bounces and complaints removed automatically.
Plans
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.
Sendy
Sendy software$69
one-time purchase, for one domain
The self-hosted app for one domain, with free updates until the next major version. Sending through Amazon SES costs $1.6 per 10,000 emails, paid to Amazon.
Ways to pay less
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.
Sendy
No public discounts listed.
