8+ ActiveCampaign alternative [2024]

ActiveCampaign is an email marketing and automation tool that helps marketers and founders with email and omnichannel marketing. Initially launched as an email marketing tool, it has slowly expanded to include features such as CRM integration, Facebook and Google Ads integration, AI assistance, and much more.

It’s a powerful tool, but the steep learning curve is a major drawback for many marketers and founders.

Best ActiveCampaign alternatives

Free tier comparison

Tool	Free Tier (max subscribers)	Free Tier (max emails)
ActiveCampaign	Not available	Not available
EmailOctopus	2,500	10,000/mo.
MailChimp	500	1,000/mo.
Constant Contact	Not available	Not available
Klaviyo	250	500/mo.
Mailerlite	1,000	12,000/mo.
Campaign Monitor	Not available	Not available
ConvertKit	1,000 * ConvertKit has a free plan option with higher limits that requires you to allow advertised recommendations – this is explained in more detail below	No capping
Drip	Not available	Not available
HubSpot	1,000,000	2,000/mo.

Paid plan comparison

Tool	Pricing/mo. (500 subscribers)	Pricing/mo. (10K subscribers)
ActiveCampaign	Starts at $15	Starts at $149
EmailOctopus	$9	$40
MailChimp	Starts at $13	Starts at $110
Constant Contact	Starts at $12	Starts at $120
Klaviyo	Starts at $20	Starts at $150
Mailerlite	Starts at $10	Starts at $73
Campaign Monitor	Starts at $12	Starts at $109
ConvertKit	Starts at $29	Starts at $119
Drip	$39	$154
HubSpot	Starts at $20	Starts at $410/mo.

Pros and cons

Tool	Pros	Cons
ActiveCampaign	1. Has native integration with 500+ marketing tools 2. AI assistance	1. Several features are only available as a paid addon (even on the highest tier plan) 2. Dashboard feels more like a CRM which can be confusing for non-marketers
EmailOctopus	1. Easy to use 2. Very affordable (up to 70% less than alternatives) 3. No hidden costs. All features included	1. Zapier integrations required for Ecommerce
MailChimp	1. A/B testing 2. Inbuilt basic CRM 3. Mobile app	1. Dashboard feels cluttered due to multiple feature addons 2. Regular price increases with no grandfathering
Constant Contact	1. Social media integration 2. Event management 3. AI assistance	1. UI is cluttered due to several additional features 2. Some segmentation features only available on higher tiers
Klaviyo	1. Native integration with ecommerce platforms 2. AI assistance for predictions, automation & content 3. A/B testing	1. As Klaviyo is built for ecommerce, many of it’s features are not useful in general use cases 2. Pricing includes features like SMS and push notifications due to which you’ll be paying for features you might not use
Mailerlite	1. Inbuilt email validator 2. Feature rich landing page builder 3. Monetisation options 4. Ability to collect subscribers offline	1. Has multiple plans which means that several features are not available in the basic plans 2. Landing page builder has a slight learning curve
Campaign Monitor	1. User friendly interface 2. Customisable designs	1. Has multiple plans which means that several features are not available in the basic plans
ConvertKit	1. Creator network (feature to let to cross-promote your newsletter) 2. Feature rich landing page builder 3. Monetisation options	1. Focused towards creator economy, might not be the best choice for other domains/industries
Drip	1. A/B testing 2. Large collection of email and form templates  3. Native integration with ecommerce platforms	1. Drip is built for ecommerce so many of it’s features are not useful in general use cases 2. Users have reported Drip having a learning curve
HubSpot	1. Inbuilt CRM 2. Multiple sales specific features 3. Extensive landing page builder	1. Built to works as a CRM and customer support tool, not the best choice solely for marketing emails 2. Steep learning curve

Best use case and ratings

Tool	Best for	User Rating (data from GetApp)
ActiveCampaign	Startups and enterprises	4.6
EmailOctopus	Small/medium businesses and newsletter writers	4.7
MailChimp	Startups and enterprises	4.5
Constant Contact	Ecommerce and medium sized businesses	4.3
Klaviyo	Ecommerce and D2C businesses	4.6
Mailerlite	Small/medium businesses and startups	4.7
Campaign Monitor	Businesses that need advanced automations and personalisation	4.6
ConvertKit	Creators and writers	4.7
Drip	Ecommerce businesses	4.4
HubSpot	Startups and enterprises who are sales heavy	4.5

EmailOctopus

EmailOctopus focuses on providing an easy-to-use email marketing tool with all the essential features while keeping the prices affordable and transparent.

You get all the essential features like drag and drop email builder, no-code signup forms, automated emails and much more at a fraction of the cost versus alternatives.

Features:

1. Easy to use drag and drop email builder
2. List segmentation
3. No-code signup, popup forms and landing pages
4. Email automation
5. Zapier and Make integrations

EmailOctopus is a popular ActiveCampaign alternative that’s been used by over 80,000 businesses and individuals for their newsletters and email marketing activity.

Pricing:

Free for upto 2500 subscribers, with paid plans starting from $9/mo.

Mailchimp

Mailchimp is one of the most popular and well-known email marketing tools and has been for many years. They used to have a generous free plan of 12,000 emails to 2,000 subscribers per month and were known for their affordability. However, in 2023 they increased their prices three times and have reduced their free plan to a maximum of 1,000/month or 500/day with a 500 subscribers limit. So, although Mailchimp remains a good email marketing platform, we’d recommend checking out all the other great alternatives to find the best fit for you.

Features:

1. Email automation
2. Segmentation
3. Forms & landing Pages
4. Dynamic content
5. A/B testing

Pricing:

Has a free plan that’s good enough for testing, but not suitable for real life use cases. Paid plans start at $13/mo.

Constant Contact

Constant Contact started off as an email marketing tool, but as of 2024, they have expanded into a full-fledged marketing communications platform. They now offer SMS marketing, social media marketing, and marketing automation.

Features:

1. Email automation
2. List segmentation
3. Forms & landing pages
4. Dynamic content
5. A/B testing
6. AI assistant

Constant Contact is a feature-rich tool, but it’s best if you need all its features. If not, a simpler email marketing tool like EmailOctopus might be a better fit.

Pricing:

No free plan exists, and paid plans start at $12/mo.

Klaviyo

Klaviyo is similar to Constant Contact but focuses on ecommerce and D2C businesses. In addition to email marketing, Klaviyo offers SMS marketing, push notifications, and product review management.

Features:

1. Email automation
2. List segmentation
3. Forms & landing pages
4. Dynamic content
5. Native ecommerce integrations
6. AI assistant

Klaviyo is a great choice if you are a D2C brand and have the budget. However, there are many other tools that can get the job done at a fraction of the cost.

Pricing:

Has a free plan that’s good enough for testing, but not suitable for real life use cases. Paid plans start at $20/mo. which also includes SMS and push notification credits.

MailerLite

MailerLite is another popular email marketing platform, known for providing good tools at an affordable price. Despite a price increase in 2023, it’s still a great option if you need extra features like a comprehensive landing page builder.

Features:

1. Easy to use drag and drop email builder
2. List segmentation
3. No-code signup and popup forms
4. Extensive landing pages builder
5. Email automation
6. Zapier and Make integrations

MailerLite offers many additional features, like a native payment gateway and locked content. However, these extras can sometimes distract from the core service of email marketing. If you need these extra features and don’t mind paying a bit more, MailerLite could be a good choice.

Pricing:

A generous free plan exists, and paid plans start at $10/mo.

Campaign Monitor

Campaign Monitor is an email marketing tool that goes beyond marketing emails; it can also be used for SMS and transactional emails. Additionally, Campaign Monitor offers features like email personalisation, automation, and segmentation.

Features:

1. Easy to use drag and drop email builder
2. List segmentation
3. A/B testing
4. Loyalty & referral tool
5. No-code signup and popup forms
6. Extensive landing pages builder
7. Email automation
8. Zapier and Make integrations

Pricing:

Has no free tier and paid plans starts at $12/mo.

ConvertKit

ConvertKit is an email marketing tool focused on the creator economy, aiming to empower individual creators to build and monetise newsletters successfully. All its features are designed to help creators grow.

Features:

1. Easy to use drag and drop email builder
2. List segmentation
3. Natively supports paid newsletters
4. Extensive landing pages builder
5. Email automation
6. Zapier and Make integrations
7. Monetise your newsletter with paid recommendations and ads

If you’re a creator, ConvertKit is an excellent choice. The only downside might be it’s pricing, especially if you’re not using all it’s premium features.

Pricing:

Has a generous free plan and paid plans starts at $29/mo.

Drip

Drip started as a popup tool and has evolved into an email marketing platform. It’s designed to integrate seamlessly with Shopify and includes all the features needed to scale your ecommerce business.

Features:

1. Email automation
2. List segmentation
3. Large popup template collection
4. Dynamic content
5. A/B testing

Pricing:

Has no free tier, and paid plans start at $39/mo.

HubSpot

HubSpot offers a suite of products for inbound marketing, sales, and customer service. It includes tools for email marketing, social media management, content management, analytics, and customer service automation.

Features:

1. Email automation
2. Segmentation
3. Forms & landing Pages
4. Inbuilt CRM
5. Added customer support tools

Pricing:

Has free plan with a generous contact limit with restricting limits on number of emails. Paid plans start at $20/mo.

Frequently asked question

What is ActiveCampaign used for?

ActiveCampaign is an omnichannel marketing tool, primarily used for sending marketing emails.

Is ActiveCampaign easy to learn?

According to user reviews, ActiveCampaign is not the most user-friendly platform and is primarily suited for B2B users.