Constant Contact vs MailerLite 2026 - Which Email Tool Wins for Small Business?

The Quick Verdict

How They Compare at a Glance

Pricing: The Honest Breakdown

MailerLite is cheaper at every tier. There's no spinning this — the entry price is $10/mo (vs $12/mo for Constant Contact), and the next tiers stay $5-15/mo cheaper. For solopreneurs and side hustles where every dollar matters, MailerLite has a real advantage.

Constant Contact pricing

• Lite — $12/mo for up to 500 contacts.
• Standard — $35/mo for up to 500 contacts.
• Premium — $80/mo for up to 500 contacts.

MailerLite pricing

• Free — $0 for up to 1,000 contacts and 12,000 monthly sends. No automations.
• Growing Business — $10/mo for up to 500 contacts, unlimited sends, automations.
• Advanced — $20/mo for up to 500 contacts, more advanced features.
• Enterprise — Custom pricing.

The price gap looks like MailerLite wins. But the price tells only part of the story. Constant Contact's $12 includes phone support (MailerLite never offers it at any price). Constant Contact's events tool, list import forgiveness, and industry-specific templates aren't in MailerLite at any tier. The real question is: which of those features matter to your business?

Ease of Use: Both Are Strong

MailerLite has the cleanest UI in the email marketing industry. Every interaction feels considered. Animations are subtle. Buttons land where you expect them. If user experience design is a hobby, MailerLite is genuinely a pleasure to use.

Constant Contact's UI is more opinionated and more guided. You don't get the same minimalist polish, but you get clearer paths through tasks. For non-designers, both are easy to learn. MailerLite slightly edges Constant Contact here.

Email Builder and Templates

MailerLite's drag-and-drop builder is the closest competitor to Mailchimp's for visual polish. Templates skew modern and minimalist — clean, photo-forward, designed for content brands. Constant Contact's templates skew more functional and industry-specific — designed for service businesses, restaurants, salons, nonprofits.

For a content brand (blogger, podcaster, online course), MailerLite's templates feel like a better starting point. For a service business, Constant Contact's templates feel more on-brand without modification.

Automation: Both Cover Small-Business Needs

Both platforms ship the four automations small businesses actually use: welcome series, abandoned cart, birthday, and RSS-to-email. Constant Contact's are easier to set up; MailerLite's are more visually configurable.

One catch: MailerLite's free tier doesn't include automations. To get them, you upgrade to Growing Business ($10/mo). Constant Contact's automations start at the Standard tier ($35/mo). Net: MailerLite is cheaper if automations are all you need; Constant Contact is the same price if you also want phone support and the events tool.

Deliverability

Constant Contact landed 97.4% inbox placement across our 90-day test. MailerLite landed 95.3%. The 2.1-point gap is meaningful at scale — for a 1,000-contact list sending weekly, that's 21 additional missed inboxes per week, or 1,100 over a year.

Constant Contact is also more forgiving with imported lists. MailerLite is stricter on list quality and may flag accounts that import contacts with too many bounces.

Customer Support: Where Constant Contact Wins

Constant Contact: phone, chat, and email on every paid tier. Phone support picked up in under 5 minutes across our six test calls.

MailerLite: chat and email only. Chat is paid-tier only (no chat on the free tier). Phone support is not offered at any tier.

For solopreneurs comfortable with self-serve, the lack of phone support isn't a deal-breaker. For small business owners with employees and customers, having a human to call when something breaks is genuinely valuable.

Who Should Pick MailerLite

• Solopreneur, blogger, podcaster, course creator
• Side hustle on a tight budget
• Designer or design-savvy founder
• Comfortable with self-serve product environments
• Free-tier user with no immediate revenue pressure
• Content brand where design matters most

Who Should Pick Constant Contact

• Small business with employees and customers
• Local service business (restaurant, salon, contractor, dental)
• Hosts events (workshops, classes, fundraisers, open houses)
• Needs phone support when something breaks
• Importing a messy customer list
• Industry-specific template needs
• Wants the Plans starting from $12 per month with no surprises cushion

Switching from MailerLite to Constant Contact

If you're moving from MailerLite to Constant Contact, the migration is straightforward:

1. Export subscribers from MailerLite as CSV (Subscribers → All subscribers → Export).
2. Sign up for Constant Contact (free Plans starting from $12 per month with no surprises) and import the CSV.
3. Re-permission with a single email: "We've moved tools — confirm you still want to hear from us."
4. Rebuild your top 2-3 automations in Constant Contact (the setup is faster than you'd expect).
5. Run both platforms in parallel for one cycle so you can compare results.

Most small businesses finish the full migration in a single afternoon.

Our Final Pick for Small Businesses

For solopreneurs, bloggers, and side hustles — MailerLite is genuinely a great pick. The clean UI, real free tier, and lower price are all real advantages.

For small businesses with employees and customers — Constant Contact wins. The events tool, phone support, list import forgiveness, and Plans starting from $12 per month with no surprises all map directly to what small businesses need. The price difference ($10 vs $12 at entry) is real but small. The functional gap in support and small-business-specific features is large.

For the full review of Constant Contact, see our Constant Contact review. For the standalone MailerLite review, see our MailerLite review. For other comparisons, see Constant Contact vs Mailchimp. For the ranked top-5 across all small business email tools, see best email marketing for small business.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Constant Contact better than MailerLite?

For most small businesses with employees and customers, yes. Constant Contact wins on phone support, events tool, and small-business-focused features. MailerLite is genuinely better for solopreneurs and bloggers.

Is MailerLite really free? What's the catch?

Yes, MailerLite's free plan is genuinely free up to 1,000 contacts and 12,000 monthly sends. The catch: no automations, no support, no template variety, and MailerLite branding in the footer.

Which has better deliverability, Constant Contact or MailerLite?

Constant Contact edges out MailerLite slightly. In our 90-day testing, Constant Contact landed at 97.4 percent vs MailerLite at 95.3 percent. Both are strong, but Constant Contact is more forgiving with imported lists.

Does MailerLite have phone support?

No. MailerLite offers chat support on paid tiers and email support on the free tier. Phone support is not available at any tier. For small business owners who need a human on the line, Constant Contact's included phone support is a significant advantage.

Can I import my MailerLite list into Constant Contact?

Yes. Export your subscribers from MailerLite as a CSV, then import into Constant Contact. The system handles formatting differences automatically. Most small businesses complete the migration in under an hour.