Email · Head-to-head
MailerLite vs Substack
Side-by-side review of MailerLite and Substack for one-person businesses. Pricing, ratings, pros, cons, and which to pick.
Quick verdict
Too close to call. It depends.
Both MailerLite and Substack score 3.5/5. The right pick depends on your specific needs. The pros and cons below highlight where each one wins.
Benchmarks
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Five axes that matter for a one-person business. Each score is editorial, 1–10, higher is better. A tool that maxes every axis doesn't exist; the shape of the chart is the signal.
| Price | 8.0 | 8.0 |
| Solo fit | 8.0 | 9.0 |
| Learning curve | 9.0 | 10.0 |
| Lock-in | 6.0 | 4.0 |
| Support | 6.0 | 5.0 |
A no-frills email marketing tool that does the boring 80 percent well for a fraction of what Kit or Mailchimp charge. Automation, landing pages, and forms in one place without the upsell pressure.
The case for
- Generous free tier covers the first 1,000 subscribers, which is most solos' first year
- Drag-and-drop builder for emails and landing pages is the cleanest in this price band
- Automation flows handle welcome sequences and re-engagement without complexity tax
The case against
- Reporting is shallower than ConvertKit or ActiveCampaign
- Audience segmentation is fine for solos but limits growth into more complex marketing
- Customer support response time can be slow on the free tier
The easiest way to start a newsletter. Also the most expensive long-term, since they take 10% of every paid subscription forever.
The case for
- Genuinely the simplest way to start: write, hit send, you have a newsletter
- Built-in network: Substack Reader can recommend your work to readers of similar publications
- No upfront cost, no subscriber tiers, just write
The case against
- Takes 10% of every paid subscription, forever, on top of Stripe fees
- Limited customisation: every Substack looks like a Substack
- Lock-in is real: exporting subscribers is allowed but their address book is on Substack servers
At a glance
| MailerLite | Substack | |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | 3.5/5 | 3.5/5 |
| Pricing | Free for up to 1,000 subscribers and 12k emails/mo. Growing Business from $9/mo | Free to start. Substack takes 10% of paid subscription revenue + Stripe fees |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Best for | Newsletter writers, content creators, and small course or digital product businesses building an email list under 10k. | Writers starting a newsletter today who want to publish in 10 minutes and figure the rest out later. |
| Last reviewed | May 12, 2026 | April 30, 2026 |
Bottom line
MailerLite
Newsletter writers, content creators, and small course or digital product businesses building an email list under 10k.
Bottom line
Substack
Writers starting a newsletter today who want to publish in 10 minutes and figure the rest out later.
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