These five tools get compared constantly, but they don’t actually compete for the same job. Kit, MailerLite, GetResponse and beehiiv are built around your email list. Systeme.io is built around selling things (funnels, courses, checkout), with email as one connected piece. So the useful question isn’t “which is best?” but “how do I make money, and what does my list need to do for me?”
This guide is organized around that question. You’ll get a pick by income model, a map of where each free plan runs out (and what you pay after), a cost table at three list sizes, and a one-hour test you can run yourself before paying anyone.
Last reviewed: October 2026. Prices and free-plan limits in this category change several times a year, so confirm on each vendor’s pricing page before buying.
How This Was Compared (and My Bias)
I compared the tools using their publicly listed plans and limits, cross-checked against independent pricing write-ups from 2026. Where sources disagreed, I say so instead of picking a number. I haven’t run independent inbox-placement tests, so statements about deliverability reflect general reviewer consensus, not my own measurements.
Disclosure: I’m a Systeme.io affiliate and earn a commission if you sign up through my links. That’s the reason for the “when to pick the other tool” notes throughout, which are there so the comparison stays useful even if you don’t pick Systeme.io.
Start Here: Pick by How You Make Money
| Your income model | Best fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| You sell your own courses, products, or services through funnels | Systeme.io | Funnels, checkout, courses and affiliates in one tool, flat pricing |
| The newsletter is the product (ads, sponsors, paid subscribers) | beehiiv | Growth and monetization tools built for publishers, 0% take on paid subscriptions |
| You’re a creator monetizing an email audience (digital products, sponsorships) | Kit | Creator-focused automations and commerce, a large free tier |
| You want clean, simple email for a small list | MailerLite | Easy editor and low entry prices, though the free plan is now small |
| Email automation is the engine (e-commerce, webinars, complex flows) | GetResponse | Deeper automation, plus webinars on higher plans |
If two rows describe you, that’s normal. Some businesses sell a course and run a newsletter. The sections below show what each choice costs you.
The Five Tools Side by Side
| Systeme.io | Kit | MailerLite | GetResponse | beehiiv | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core focus | Sales funnels + email | Creator email | Simple email | Email automation | Newsletter publishing |
| Free plan | 2,000 contacts, unlimited emails, 3 funnels, 1 course | Up to 10,000 subscribers, unlimited sends | 250 subscribers, 2,500 emails/mo | 500 contacts, 2,500 emails/mo | Up to 2,500 subscribers, unlimited sends |
| Entry paid | $17/mo (flat) | $39/mo at 1,000 subs | $12/mo at 500 subs | $19/mo at 1,000 contacts | $49/mo at 1,000 subs |
| Pricing model | Flat tiers | Per subscriber | Per subscriber | Per contact | Per subscriber |
| Sales funnels | Yes | No (landing pages) | No (landing pages) | Conversion funnels | No |
| Online courses | Yes | No | No | Yes (Creator plan) | No |
| Newsletter monetization | Limited | Paid newsletters, commerce | Limited | Paid newsletters (Creator plan) | Ads, paid subs, Boosts |
| Your own affiliate program | Yes, every plan | No | No | No | No |
The Free-Plan Cliff Map: Where “Free” Ends
Every free plan here works until your list crosses a line. What happens at that line is the most expensive surprise in this category, so here is the map:
| Tool | Free plan ends at | What you pay next | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| MailerLite | 250 subscribers (reduced in June 2026; it was 500 before, and 1,000 before September 2025) | Comfort from $12/mo at 500 subs | The free tier keeps shrinking, and it carries MailerLite branding |
| GetResponse | 500 contacts | Starter from $19/mo (1,000 contacts) | Starter has limited automation; Marketer ($59) is where full automation starts |
| Systeme.io | 2,000 contacts (also 3 funnels, 1 course) | Startup $17/mo flat (5,000 contacts) | Small “Powered by Systeme.io” badge and just 1 automation rule on free |
| beehiiv | 2,500 subscribers | Scale about $89/mo in the 2,501–5,000 band ($49 only applies up to 1,000) | Free tier excludes paid subscriptions, Boosts and the ad network |
| Kit | 10,000 subscribers | Creator $139/mo (Pro $189) at 10,000 | The largest free tier has the steepest drop-off; free-plan automations are limited |
Two lessons follow from this. First, a bigger free tier isn’t automatically cheaper: Kit’s 10,000-subscriber allowance is real value, but if you’re certain you’ll grow past it, you’re also building a list on a platform where the next step is $139+/month. Second, Systeme.io’s cliff is smaller in subscribers but gentler in cost: the next step is a flat $17.
What Each Tool Costs as Your List Grows
Subscriber-based pricing is where these tools really diverge. The table shows the entry paid plan at three list sizes. Remember that features differ: the email-first tools don’t include funnels, courses, or a native affiliate program.
| List size | Systeme.io | Kit (Creator / Pro) | MailerLite (Comfort / Power) | GetResponse (Starter) | beehiiv (Scale) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2,000 | $0 (free plan) | $0 (free plan) | Paid plan needed (from $19 at 1,000) | ~$29 (2,500-contact tier) | $0 (free plan) |
| 5,000 | $17 (Startup) | $89 / $139 | $49 / $69 | ~$54 | ~$89 ($77 annual) |
| 10,000 | $47 (Webinar) | $139 / $189 | Check the slider (the old plan was $73 before the June 2026 increases) | ~$79 | Check the slider |
The arithmetic is blunt: at 5,000 subscribers, Kit’s Creator plan costs about $864 more per year than Systeme.io’s Startup plan ($89 vs $17 a month). At 10,000, the gap is about $1,100 a year ($139 vs $47 a month). Whether that gap is worth paying depends on what you get for it, which is exactly what the next sections cover.
Systeme.io vs Kit
Pick Kit if your list is your business: you’re a blogger, podcaster, or newsletter creator who wants strong creator-oriented automations, paid newsletters, and the Creator Network for growth, and who doesn’t need funnels or courses. Its free tier (up to 10,000 subscribers) is the most generous in this comparison.
Pick Systeme.io if you sell products or courses and want funnels, checkout, a course area, and an affiliate program alongside email at a flat price. You give up Kit’s creator-specific tools and some email polish.
What you give up either way: Kit’s free plan carries Kit branding and limited automation, and Kit raised prices by about a third in late 2025. Systeme.io’s email is simpler (tags, rules, sequences) and its free plan has just one automation rule. For the details, see our Systeme.io pricing guide.
Systeme.io vs MailerLite
Pick MailerLite if you want a clean editor and simple newsletters for a small list, and you’ll pay for a plan from the start (the free tier is now just 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails a month). It’s widely praised for ease of use.
Pick Systeme.io if your plan includes selling something. MailerLite doesn’t build full sales funnels or host courses, and the free tier is far smaller than Systeme.io’s 2,000 contacts with unlimited emails.
What you give up either way: MailerLite’s entry price ($12 at 500 subscribers) is lower than Systeme.io’s $17 only at tiny list sizes. By 5,000 subscribers the gap flips ($49 vs $17). Systeme.io’s editor and automation are plainer than MailerLite’s polished tools.
Systeme.io vs GetResponse
Pick GetResponse if email automation is the engine of your business: multi-step behavioral workflows, segmentation, webinars on higher plans, and e-commerce integrations. It’s one of the longest-running platforms in this category.
Pick Systeme.io if you want one flat-priced tool for funnels, courses, affiliates, and straightforward email automation. Systeme.io’s tags-and-rules automation covers what most small businesses need, and it stays the same price as your list grows.
What you give up either way: GetResponse’s Starter plan ($19) has limited automation, so serious automation starts at Marketer ($59+), and costs rise with your list (Starter is about $79 at 10,000 contacts). Systeme.io’s automation is simpler and its webinar tool is more basic. See also our email automation guide.
Systeme.io vs beehiiv
Pick beehiiv if the newsletter is the product and you plan to earn from ads, sponsorships, or paid subscriptions. Its referral program, Boosts network, and 0% take on paid subscriptions are built for that job, and the free Launch tier supports 2,500 subscribers.
Pick Systeme.io if you earn by selling something (a course, a service, a product) rather than monetizing attention. beehiiv doesn’t build sales funnels or host courses.
What you give up either way: beehiiv’s paid plans start at $49 for just 1,000 subscribers and climb a subscriber slider, and its monetization tools sit on paid plans rather than the free one. Systeme.io has basic newsletter-growth tools and no ad network or Boosts. Some creators use both: beehiiv to grow and monetize the audience, Systeme.io to run the funnels and courses that sell to it. That setup works, but it means two logins and two bills, and the tools are usually connected through links, CSV transfers, or automation services, so check what integrations you’d need before committing.
Automation and Deliverability: What I Can and Can’t Tell You
Automation depth, roughly from simplest to deepest, based on vendor documentation and reviewer consensus: Systeme.io (tags, rules, sequences tied to funnels and purchases), MailerLite and Kit (visual builders, with advanced features on higher plans), and GetResponse (the deepest workflow tools, mostly on Marketer and above).
On deliverability, every vendor and most reviewers say good things, but no one can promise inbox placement, and I haven’t tested it myself. Your results depend mostly on your sending domain authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), list quality, and engagement, not just the platform. Whichever tool you choose, set up domain authentication on day one and only email people who asked to hear from you.
The One-Hour Test That Beats Any Review
Every tool here has a free plan or trial, so you can run the same small test on your top two choices before paying:
- Build the same 3-email welcome sequence in both tools and time how long each takes.
- Connect your own domain and authenticate it as the vendor instructs.
- Send test emails to a few real inboxes (Gmail, Outlook, and one more provider you use) and note where they land.
- Try one thing you actually need: a checkout, a tag-based automation, a paid-subscription setup, or a signup form on your site.
- Check the real bill at your list size on each pricing slider.
If one tool is clearly faster, clearer, or cheaper for your task, you have your answer. Start with Systeme.io’s free plan via this signup link and compare.
Switching Later: What Lock-In Looks Like
- Contacts export easily as CSV on every platform here, but tags, automations, and landing pages don’t transfer. Budget a weekend to rebuild them.
- Big free tiers create inertia. A list of 9,000 on Kit’s free plan feels free until the 10,001st subscriber costs $139/month. Decide your path before you hit the cliff, not after.
- Re-confirm your sender authentication after any move so deliverability doesn’t dip.
- Keep the old tool running for a few weeks while you test the new one.
Common Mistakes When Choosing
- Comparing entry prices instead of prices at your list size. $12 vs $17 at 500 subscribers tells you almost nothing about 5,000.
- Choosing by feature checklist instead of income model. A newsletter platform can’t sell your course; a funnel tool won’t grow an ad-supported newsletter as well as beehiiv.
- Trusting a free plan’s size without reading its limits. Branding, automation caps, and excluded monetization features change what “free” really covers.
- Assuming last year’s pricing. MailerLite’s free plan shrank twice in under a year, and Kit raised prices by about a third.
- Using two tools when one would do, then paying twice for overlapping email features.
FAQ
Which is better, Systeme.io or Kit?
It depends on your income model. Kit suits creators whose business is their email list; Systeme.io suits people who sell products or courses and want funnels, checkout, and email together at a flat price.
Is Kit the same as ConvertKit?
Yes. ConvertKit rebranded as Kit in late 2024.
Which has the best free plan?
By subscriber count, Kit (10,000). By features, Systeme.io (2,000 contacts plus 3 funnels, a course, a blog, and unlimited emails). beehiiv’s free Launch plan covers 2,500 subscribers for newsletter publishing. MailerLite’s free plan is now the smallest at 250 subscribers.
What changed with MailerLite in 2026?
Recent pricing reviews report that on June 16, 2026, MailerLite renamed its plans (Growing Business became Comfort, Advanced became Power), raised prices by roughly 10–30%, and cut the free plan to 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails per month. Confirm the current numbers on its signup page.
Which is cheapest for a large list?
Systeme.io, because its tiers are flat: $97/month covers unlimited contacts, and $47/month covers up to 10,000. The email-first tools charge by subscriber count, so costs rise as you grow. They may still be worth it if you need their specialized features.
Can Systeme.io replace Kit, MailerLite, or GetResponse?
For many small businesses, yes: it handles email plus funnels, courses, and affiliates. It won’t match Kit’s creator tools, MailerLite’s editor polish, or GetResponse’s automation depth.
Do I need beehiiv if I already use Systeme.io?
Only if you want beehiiv’s growth and monetization tools (referrals, Boosts, ads, paid subscriptions). If you just want a newsletter alongside your products, Systeme.io can send unlimited emails and host a blog on its own.
Which is best for a complete beginner?
If you’re building something to sell, start with Systeme.io’s free plan. If you only want a simple newsletter, MailerLite or Kit’s free plan are easy starting points. Either way, run the one-hour test above before paying.
The Bottom Line
Pick the tool that matches how you make money, not the one with the longest feature list. Kit, MailerLite, GetResponse and beehiiv are strong at email and newsletters; Systeme.io is strongest when email is one part of a sales system and you want costs that stay flat as your list grows. Check the cliff map before you build on any free plan, and test your top two with the same small task before you commit.
If selling is part of your plan, start free on Systeme.io and compare it against your current or intended email tool. For wider context, see our Systeme.io review, the best all-in-one marketing platforms, and email marketing for beginners.
Affiliate disclosure: some links on this page are affiliate links. If you sign up through them, I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Pricing and plan limits were checked against recent independent reviews and vendor information in October 2026 and may have changed since.
