21 Best ActiveCampaign Alternatives

Our Pick for SaaS Companies

4.7avg rating

Sequenzy

SaaSAutomationTransactionalAPI-First

AI-powered email for SaaS with native Stripe integration. Much simpler than ActiveCampaign, and the AI writes your sequences for you.

Describe the automation you need — onboarding, trial conversion, dunning — and the AI generates the entire sequence in minutes, bypassing the hours of workflow building that ActiveCampaign requires. The native Stripe integration automatically syncs subscription data so billing events trigger the right emails without complex CRM rules. You trade ActiveCampaign's powerful visual automation builder and CRM for a focused email platform that handles what most SaaS teams actually need at a fraction of the complexity and cost.

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Best for

SaaS founders who want AI + simplicity

Pricing

$49/month for 120,000 emails, unlimited subscribers

Pros

AI generates email sequences automatically
Native Stripe integration
Marketing + transactional in one
Much simpler than ActiveCampaign
Direct founder support

Cons

Automation not as powerful
No CRM features
No SMS support
Newer platform

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4.2avg rating

Brevo

Budget-FriendlyAll-in-OneTransactional

Budget-friendly automation with unlimited contacts. Pay per email instead of per contact.

Good automation without the complexity. Brevo's unlimited contacts model flips ActiveCampaign's per-subscriber pricing on its head — a database of 50,000 contacts costs the same as 5,000 as long as your email volume stays within plan limits. The platform includes email, SMS, WhatsApp, transactional email, and a basic CRM with automation workflows. While the automation builder isn't as sophisticated as ActiveCampaign's conditional logic and branching paths, it handles standard drip sequences, welcome flows, and trigger-based campaigns well enough for most teams. At $25/month for the entry plan versus ActiveCampaign's $79+, the savings are significant.

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Best for

Budget-conscious teams

Pricing

$25/mo for unlimited contacts

Pros

Unlimited contacts
SMS and chat included
Decent automation builder
Transactional included
Actually affordable

Cons

Automation less powerful than ActiveCampaign
Interface feels dated
Pay-per-email can add up
Support can be slow

What users say

View source reviews

Gary Curran · Trustpilot

“Disappointing experience with Brevo. Our account was initially suspended after a first campaign due to bounce rate. We followed the required self-service steps and successfully revalidated the account ourselves. After this, support took ages to respond.”

Larry Chin · Trustpilot

“Brevo is a solid service for handling your marketing emails and much more. The tech support is fast and good. Making a marketing email is fast and easy. I have used SendinBlue, now Brevo, for many years now.”

4.4avg rating

MailerLite

Budget-FriendlySimpleCreator

Simple, affordable email with decent automation. Great for small businesses who don't need ActiveCampaign's complexity.

MailerLite includes landing pages, a website builder, pop-ups, and automation workflows alongside core email marketing — all in a clean interface that anyone can use on day one. The automation builder handles standard sequences with triggers, delays, and conditions without overwhelming you with options. A generous free tier (1,000 subscribers) lets you test everything before paying. At $50/month for 10k subscribers, MailerLite costs about 40% less than ActiveCampaign while covering the essentials that most small businesses actually use.

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Best for

Small businesses wanting simplicity

Pricing

$50/month for 10,000 subscribers

Pros

Very easy to use
Landing pages included
Good automation for the price
Generous free tier
Website builder included

Cons

Automation much simpler than ActiveCampaign
No CRM features
Advanced features limited
Deliverability reviews mixed

What users say

View source reviews

Alpine Sport · Trustpilot

“Our company used MailerLite as a professional email tool for legitimate business communication. Then, without notice, the account was terminated. We received only a generic rejection with no meaningful explanation.”

Joseph Berk · Trustpilot

“MailerLite is a powerful platform once everything is set up, especially for landing pages and email automation. The editor is flexible, and support was responsive and helpful when I hit a confusing publishing issue.”

4.3avg rating

HubSpot

EnterpriseAll-in-OneAutomation

The all-in-one marketing platform with CRM. More expensive than ActiveCampaign but includes everything from email to CRM to landing pages.

HubSpot's Marketing Hub adds blog hosting, SEO tools, social media management, and advertising alongside email and automation — creating a unified marketing platform that ActiveCampaign doesn't match in breadth. The free CRM is genuinely competitive with dedicated CRM tools and includes deal tracking, contact management, and pipeline visibility. Reporting spans the full marketing funnel from first touch to closed deal. At $800+/month for Professional, HubSpot costs significantly more than ActiveCampaign, making it best for teams that need the full marketing suite rather than just email automation.

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Best for

Teams wanting full marketing suite + CRM

Pricing

$800+/mo for Marketing Hub Professional

Pros

Complete marketing + sales platform
Excellent CRM included
Great reporting and analytics
Strong brand recognition
Lots of training resources

Cons

Much more expensive than ActiveCampaign
Can be overkill for email-only needs
Complexity rivals ActiveCampaign
Pricing tiers are confusing

What users say

View source reviews

Charles KLHK · Trustpilot

“HubSpot has a lot of features, but it feels too complicated. There are so many menus and settings that it's hard to use, especially if you just want something straightforward. It can be powerful, but the complexity makes it frustrating.”

Kyrie Sutton · Trustpilot

“We switched from another CRM hoping for better automation and easier reporting. HubSpot CRM does deliver on basic automation and the workflow builder is fairly intuitive once you understand the logic. Still, there's a learning curve that caught us off guard.”

4.5avg rating

Klaviyo

E-commerceAutomationAll-in-One

E-commerce email powerhouse. If you're on Shopify, Klaviyo's e-commerce features beat ActiveCampaign.

Not for non-e-commerce. Klaviyo's deep Shopify, WooCommerce, and BigCommerce integrations automatically pull in product catalog, order history, and browsing behavior to power abandoned cart flows, post-purchase sequences, and product recommendation emails. Predictive analytics forecast customer lifetime value and churn risk, enabling targeted campaigns that ActiveCampaign's generic automation can't match for e-commerce. SMS is included alongside email for true multi-channel commerce marketing. At $150+/month for 10k profiles, Klaviyo is more expensive but purpose-built for the e-commerce use case where ActiveCampaign is a general-purpose tool.

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Best for

E-commerce stores, especially Shopify

Pricing

$150+/month for 10,000 profiles

Pros

Best Shopify integration
Product recommendations
Abandoned cart flows
SMS included
E-commerce-specific automation

Cons

Expensive
Only makes sense for e-commerce
No CRM like ActiveCampaign
Learning curve for non-e-commerce

What users say

View source reviews

Zaido Rivers · Trustpilot

“Basically a scam at this point. They are doomed with the rise of people building their own solutions.”

Mike L · Trustpilot

“Signed up with them to use their texting campaign feature. Keeps throwing me an error, tried a couple times to work it out with them and was not able to get anywhere. Finally requested a refund, it's been 2 plus weeks and not even a response.”

4.3avg rating

Drip

E-commerceAutomationSimple

E-commerce automation that's simpler than ActiveCampaign. Good visual workflows, reasonable pricing for smaller stores.

Drip's visual workflow builder creates sophisticated automation sequences with conditional branching and time delays, similar to ActiveCampaign's but focused on e-commerce conversion flows. Revenue attribution tracks how each email contributes to sales, giving clear ROI visibility. All features are included on every plan without tier gating. At $39/month for 2,500 contacts, Drip is accessible for smaller stores that find ActiveCampaign's complexity overwhelming and Klaviyo's pricing too steep.

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Best for

Small e-commerce stores

Pricing

$39/month for 2,500 contacts

Pros

Good visual workflow builder
E-commerce focused
Revenue attribution
Easier than ActiveCampaign
Good segmentation

Cons

Less powerful than ActiveCampaign
No SMS
No CRM
Fewer integrations

4.4avg rating

Customer.io

SaaSDeveloperAutomationTransactional

Behavioral automation for PLG companies. More developer-focused than ActiveCampaign, with multi-channel support.

Customer.io triggers messages based on real product behavior — API events, page views, feature usage — through a workflow builder that handles cross-channel orchestration across email, push, SMS, and in-app. The developer-friendly approach with Liquid templating, webhook triggers, and a flexible data model makes it the tool of choice for PLG companies where engineering teams own the messaging stack. At $100/month for 5k profiles, it's more expensive per contact than ActiveCampaign, but the behavioral depth for product-led use cases is superior.

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Best for

PLG companies with complex user journeys

Pricing

$100/month for 5,000 profiles

Pros

Powerful behavioral triggers
Multi-channel (email, push, SMS, in-app)
Built for product-led growth
Good API
Transactional included

Cons

Expensive
Complex setup
No CRM like ActiveCampaign
Steep learning curve

What users say

View source reviews

Sarit Rosenthal Aviram · Trustpilot

“Renewal terms were changed without a proper notification! They tried a sneaky way to add conditions to the renewal contract, and increased their pricing. They are not flexible at all on those terms even though we are their customers for many years.”

Good Comfort · Trustpilot

“After months of trying to make Customer.io work for our business, I can say with confidence: unless you have a dedicated engineering team and endless patience, look elsewhere.”

3.8avg rating

Mailchimp

All-in-OneSimple

The one everyone knows. Simpler than ActiveCampaign but less powerful. Good if you need something familiar with landing pages.

Mailchimp's integration ecosystem is the largest in email marketing — practically every SaaS tool has a native Mailchimp connector. The platform includes landing pages, a website builder, social ads, and Customer Journeys for multi-step automation. Everyone on your team probably already knows how to use it, eliminating the training investment that ActiveCampaign requires. The tradeoff is significant: Mailchimp's automation builder is a shadow of ActiveCampaign's conditional logic and branching capabilities. At $110-135/month for 10k contacts, the pricing isn't cheap, and they count unsubscribed contacts against your limit.

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Best for

People who want familiar + simple

Pricing

$110-135/mo for 10,000 contacts

Pros

Everyone knows how to use it
Landing pages included
Website builder included
Tons of integrations
Good templates

Cons

Automation much weaker than ActiveCampaign
Expensive for what you get
Counts unsubscribed contacts
No CRM

What users say

View source reviews

Jaimie Lancaster · Trustpilot

“Helped me resolve situations and waited till I did what they recommended. Never felt rushed or as if they were doing something else while waiting on me. Very responsive.”

Valeria Vinogradova · Trustpilot

“I had a very frustrating experience with Mailchimp's sales team that ultimately made me question the organization as a whole. I booked an initial sales call which went well, but follow-up questions were completely ignored.”

4.5avg rating

Loops

SaaSSimpleTransactional

Modern SaaS email platform. Much simpler than ActiveCampaign, built specifically for software companies.

Loops combines marketing campaigns, automation sequences, and transactional email in one clean interface with event-based triggers that fire on product actions. All features are included on every plan without tier gating, and the developer experience is polished with good API documentation. Where ActiveCampaign tries to be everything for every business, Loops is laser-focused on what SaaS teams need: lifecycle email that responds to product usage. At roughly $99/month for 10k subscribers, Loops costs slightly more than ActiveCampaign's entry but is dramatically simpler to set up and manage.

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Best for

SaaS teams wanting simplicity

Pricing

$49/mo for 5k, roughly $99/mo for 10k

Pros

Clean, modern interface
Built for SaaS
Transactional + marketing
Good deliverability
Simple pricing

Cons

Automation basic compared to ActiveCampaign
No CRM
No AI content generation
Smaller company

#10

4.1avg rating

GetResponse

All-in-OneAutomation

Full marketing suite with automation, landing pages, and webinars. Good mid-market option between simple tools and ActiveCampaign complexity.

GetResponse's built-in webinar platform eliminates the need for separate tools like Zoom, and conversion funnels guide leads from landing page to purchase through automated sequences. AI features assist with subject lines and email content generation. The automation builder is capable but less sophisticated than ActiveCampaign's conditional logic and branching. At $69/month for 10k contacts, GetResponse offers more features per dollar than ActiveCampaign if you value webinars and landing pages alongside your email automation.

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Best for

Teams needing webinars + automation

Pricing

$69/month for 10,000 contacts

Pros

Webinar hosting included
Landing page builder
Decent automation builder
Conversion funnels
Good value for features

Cons

Automation not as powerful as ActiveCampaign
No CRM features
Interface can feel cluttered
SMS costs extra

What users say

View source reviews

Tristram Powell · Trustpilot

“Big thanks to Alice for her help. She made it easy to get the image resized properly and explained everything clearly. Really good experience.”

Jeremy Rosenvall · Trustpilot

“Alice was so good at explaining things simply and clearly, I was impressed with her! And also willing to try to go to bat for me with pricing.”

#11

4.2avg rating

ConvertKit

CreatorSimpleNewsletter

Creator-focused email with visual automation. Simpler than ActiveCampaign, built for creators rather than marketers.

ConvertKit (now Kit) lets creators sell digital products, build landing pages, and automate subscriber journeys through an intuitive visual builder. The tag-based subscriber management is cleaner than ActiveCampaign's list approach for audience segmentation. A strong creator community provides templates, strategies, and peer support. At $119/month for 10k subscribers, it's more expensive than ActiveCampaign's entry tier, and the automation is less powerful for B2B marketing use cases. ConvertKit makes sense specifically for bloggers, YouTubers, and course creators — not general business marketing.

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Best for

Creators and course sellers

Pricing

$119/month for 10,000 subscribers

Pros

Visual automation builder
Landing pages included
Sell digital products
Creator community
Free migration help

Cons

Not for B2B or marketing teams
No CRM
Limited compared to ActiveCampaign
Recent price increase

What users say

View source reviews

K.G. · Trustpilot

“This company now calls itself 'Kit.' This platform has more than a few issues. It doesn't have the basic functionality that other platforms such as Constant Contact and Mailchimp have had for years. And last year, they raised their prices 50% without telling customers.”

Paris · Trustpilot

“I signed up for ConvertKit Trial and the first thing I noticed is there are very limited capabilities so I immediately provided my card details for the full experience but was still limited. It was preventing me from creating what I needed.”

#12

4.3avg rating

Omnisend

E-commerceAutomationBudget-Friendly

E-commerce automation with SMS. Good Shopify integration and reasonable pricing. Simpler than ActiveCampaign for e-commerce.

Omnisend bundles email, SMS, and push notifications with native e-commerce integrations for Shopify, WooCommerce, and BigCommerce. Pre-built automation flows for abandoned carts, post-purchase sequences, and browse abandonment get stores running quickly without building workflows from scratch. At $59/month for 6k contacts, Omnisend costs less than ActiveCampaign while offering purpose-built e-commerce capabilities. The tradeoff is that Omnisend only works for e-commerce — if you need general business automation with CRM integration, ActiveCampaign is more versatile.

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Best for

E-commerce stores

Pricing

$59/month for 6,000 contacts

Pros

Strong e-commerce integrations
SMS and push included
Pre-built e-commerce automations
Lower price than ActiveCampaign
Generous free tier

Cons

Only for e-commerce
No CRM features
Automation less flexible
Reporting less sophisticated

What users say

View source reviews

Jason Decker · Trustpilot

“I had an issue connecting the mail product to our DNS. I spent a couple hours attempting to fix it. I reached out and was set up with a call with Melanie (a human) which was incredible. She fixed the problem which would have taken me hours more.”

Sipho Ndlovu · Trustpilot

“I'm not technical at all, but moving to Omnisend was super easy. Omnisend support basically walked me through it.”

#13

4.2avg rating

Moosend

Budget-FriendlyAutomationSimple

One of the most underrated ActiveCampaign alternatives if budget is a concern. Moosend gives you a surprisingly capable automation builder with conditional logic, triggers, and multi-step workflows at a fraction of ActiveCampaign's price.

At $32/month for 5,000 subscribers, the pricing is aggressive, and all plans include automation, landing pages, and transactional emails without tier-gating features. The drag-and-drop editor and pre-built automation templates mean you can get running fast. The tradeoffs are a smaller integration ecosystem than ActiveCampaign, no CRM, and being a less well-known brand. But for teams that want real automation without paying ActiveCampaign prices, Moosend punches well above its weight.

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Best for

Budget teams wanting real automation

Pricing

$32/month for 5,000 subscribers

Pros

Very affordable pricing
Decent automation builder
All features on every plan
Landing pages included
Transactional emails included

Cons

Smaller integration ecosystem
No CRM features
Less known brand
Reporting could be deeper
No SMS support

What users say

View source reviews

Sarah · Trustpilot

“From day one, Moosend has been great to work with. I'm new to marketing, and their team made everything feel straightforward and accessible. They patiently walked me through all of my questions and never made anything feel overwhelming.”

Mia · Trustpilot

“I tried using Moosend because I wanted a quick, one-time email campaign tool that was either free or super cheap. They advertised 'start free' and $9 plans, but the moment I started, I realized I couldn't even import my subscribers.”

#14

4.3avg rating

Sender

Budget-FriendlySimple

If ActiveCampaign's pricing is the main reason you're looking to switch, Sender deserves a look. The free tier supports up to 2,500 subscribers and 15,000 emails per month with automation included — no credit card required.

Paid plans start at $15/month, making it one of the cheapest options in the market. The automation builder covers standard triggers, conditions, and workflows, and the email editor is clean and responsive. You won't get ActiveCampaign's advanced conditional branching or CRM, but Sender nails the basics at a price point that makes ActiveCampaign look extravagant. Especially good for small businesses and startups watching every dollar.

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Best for

Startups and small businesses on tight budgets

Pricing

$15/month for 2,500 subscribers

Pros

Extremely affordable
Generous free tier
Automation included on all plans
Clean email editor
Good deliverability for the price

Cons

Automation far simpler than ActiveCampaign
No CRM or sales tools
Limited integrations
No SMS support
Smaller support team

What users say

View source reviews

Sebastian · Trustpilot

“Honestly, was skeptic at first because the pricing was so low, but the quality of the email services is really good. And if you need support Michael is always able to help you, even on the weekends!”

Robin Metz · Trustpilot

“Michael helped me with my DNS problems in a blink. Lightning fast and super friendly support! Highly appreciated!”

Constant Contact landing page screenshot

#15

3.7avg rating

Constant Contact

SimpleAll-in-One

Constant Contact is the anti-ActiveCampaign in terms of complexity. Where ActiveCampaign gives you a Swiss Army knife of automation tools, Constant Contact gives you a simple, reliable email platform that small business owners can pick up without training.

The event management feature is genuinely unique — you can create event pages, manage registrations, and send follow-up emails from within the platform. Social media posting and basic ads are included. At $80/month for 5,000 contacts, it's not cheap for what you get, and the automation is very basic. But for local businesses, nonprofits, and teams who find ActiveCampaign overwhelming, the simplicity is the point.

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Best for

Local businesses and nonprofits

Pricing

$80/month for 5,000 contacts

Pros

Very easy to use
Event management tools
Social media posting included
Phone support available
Been around 25+ years

Cons

Automation is very basic
Expensive for limited features
No CRM capabilities
Templates feel outdated
No transactional email

What users say

View source reviews

Cindy · Trustpilot

“Shannon was so helpful and friendly. She was very patient with me as I am new to CC. Thanks for your help!”

Landon · Trustpilot

“Shannon did a great job! Answered all the questions I had and navigated through the website easily! Give her a million dollar raise!”

#16

3.9avg rating

AWeber

SimpleNewsletter

AWeber has been around since 1998, and while it doesn't try to compete with ActiveCampaign on automation depth, it offers rock-solid deliverability and the kind of reliability that comes from 25+ years in the business. The phone support is a rare perk that ActiveCampaign doesn't offer on lower tiers.

AWeber's autoresponder system is straightforward, and the template library is extensive. The interface shows its age compared to modern platforms, and the automation capabilities are basic — think simple sequences rather than conditional branching workflows. At roughly $70/month for 10k subscribers, it's priced similarly to ActiveCampaign without the power, making it best for teams who prioritize simplicity and human support.

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Best for

Traditional email marketers wanting reliability

Pricing

$70/month for 10,000 subscribers

Pros

Excellent deliverability reputation
Phone support available
Simple and reliable
Good template library
25+ year track record

Cons

Interface feels dated
Automation very basic
Priced similarly to ActiveCampaign
No CRM or advanced features
No transactional email

What users say

View source reviews

Patricia Dent · Trustpilot

“I decided to speak to a customer service specialist when after several attempts to remove blank space from my weekly newsletter I could never permanently banish it. The AWeber Customer Solutions Specialist was thorough and resolved the issue.”

Mai · Trustpilot

“Martha helped me solve my problem within minutes. It saved me a lot of time trying to troubleshoot it on my own. Her expertise saved me anguish from figuring out how to solve the problem.”

#17

4.3avg rating

Encharge

SaaSAutomationDeveloper

Encharge is the closest thing to ActiveCampaign's automation power built specifically for SaaS companies. The visual flow builder supports complex branching logic, A/B testing within flows, and behavioral triggers based on product events — all things that ActiveCampaign handles for general marketing but Encharge targets at the SaaS lifecycle specifically.

Native integrations with Segment, HubSpot, Stripe, and Intercom pull user data directly into automation workflows. At $99/month for 10k subscribers, the pricing is slightly higher than ActiveCampaign but you get a tool designed for your use case rather than adapted from a general marketing platform. The trade-off is a smaller ecosystem and less brand recognition.

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Best for

SaaS companies needing advanced automation

Pricing

$99/month for 10,000 subscribers

Pros

Advanced visual flow builder
Built specifically for SaaS
Native Segment and Stripe integrations
Behavioral triggers from product events
User-friendly despite being powerful

Cons

Smaller company than ActiveCampaign
No CRM included
Limited e-commerce features
Fewer third-party integrations
No SMS support

What users say

View source reviews

eddy calvin · Trustpilot

“Encharge has made my email marketing easier and more likely to get done. Super simple and easy to set up. I had a drip campaign running in a couple of hours.”

Sahawat Nilwatcharamanee · Trustpilot

“It makes mapping out complex user journeys incredibly intuitive. I can drag and drop triggers and actions to see exactly how a lead moves through my funnel. The segmentation is top-tier.”

#18

4.4avg rating

Braze

EnterpriseAutomationAll-in-One

Braze is what you move to when you outgrow ActiveCampaign entirely. This is enterprise-grade cross-channel engagement — email, push, SMS, in-app messages, and content cards orchestrated through a sophisticated journey builder called Canvas.

Real-time data streaming, machine learning for send-time optimization, and predictive analytics put it in a different league than ActiveCampaign's automation. The pricing starts in the tens of thousands per year, so this only makes sense for companies with large user bases and dedicated marketing engineering teams. If ActiveCampaign feels too limited (not too complex), Braze is the upgrade path. But if you're leaving ActiveCampaign because it's overwhelming, Braze will be ten times worse.

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Best for

Enterprise companies with large user bases

Pricing

Custom pricing (typically $50k+/year)

Pros

Enterprise-grade cross-channel orchestration
Real-time data streaming
ML-powered send optimization
Scales to millions of users
Best-in-class mobile engagement

Cons

Extremely expensive
Requires engineering resources to implement
Overkill for most businesses
Long implementation timeline
No self-serve onboarding

#19

3.8avg rating

Keap

All-in-OneAutomation

Keap (formerly Infusionsoft) competes directly with ActiveCampaign in the CRM + email automation space. If the reason you chose ActiveCampaign was the CRM, Keap is worth considering — it combines contact management, sales pipeline, invoicing, and appointment scheduling with email automation in one platform.

Small service businesses (consultants, coaches, agencies) often find Keap's business management features more useful than ActiveCampaign's marketing-first approach. At $249/month for the Pro plan, Keap is more expensive but includes features you'd need separate tools for with ActiveCampaign. The automation builder is visual and capable but quirky. The main complaint is the price and a learning curve that rivals ActiveCampaign's.

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Best for

Service businesses needing CRM + automation

Pricing

$249/month for Pro plan

Pros

CRM + email in one platform
Invoicing and payments built in
Appointment scheduling included
Good for service businesses
Visual campaign builder

Cons

Very expensive
Learning curve is steep
Interface can feel clunky
Not ideal for marketing teams
Limited e-commerce features

What users say

View source reviews

Anastasia Diamonds · Trustpilot

“Canceling their service is extremely hard and they continuously upgrade your package without asking, just billing your card. And they give your information to debt collector agencies if you have any outstanding payments.”

Dawn B · Trustpilot

“We have been with Keap over 20 years, and they have become non-functional. They are constantly raising prices and lowering service. Tried to speak with my account rep today and she interrupted everything I said! We're quitting their service.”

#20

4.0avg rating

Mailjet

DeveloperTransactionalBudget-Friendly

Mailjet is a solid choice if you're leaving ActiveCampaign because you need transactional email alongside marketing and don't want to pay for two platforms. The collaborative email editor is unique — multiple team members can work on the same email simultaneously, which is great for agencies.

The API is clean and well-documented, making it developer-friendly. Automation is basic compared to ActiveCampaign but covers standard workflows. At $17/month for 15,000 emails (unlimited contacts), the pricing is very competitive. Owned by Sinch (same parent company as Mailgun), the sending infrastructure is reliable. The main gaps versus ActiveCampaign are limited automation depth, no CRM, and a smaller feature set overall.

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Best for

Developer teams needing marketing + transactional

Pricing

$17/month for 15,000 emails

Pros

Collaborative email editor
Marketing + transactional combined
Developer-friendly API
Very affordable
Good sending infrastructure

Cons

Automation much simpler than ActiveCampaign
No CRM features
Limited segmentation
No SMS or multi-channel
Basic analytics

What users say

View source reviews

Davide · Trustpilot

“Mihael has been extremely patient, knowledgeable, and flexible throughout the entire process. We've received excellent support and truly appreciated the clear and consistent communication.”

Teresa Nelson · Trustpilot

“Nice services, deliverability 100%. But the most important - every question and every request is processed extremely quickly.”

#21

3.6avg rating

Mautic

Open SourceAutomationDeveloper

Mautic is the open-source alternative for teams that want ActiveCampaign-level automation without the per-subscriber SaaS fees. Self-hosted and free, Mautic offers visual campaign building, lead scoring, dynamic content, landing pages, and multi-channel messaging.

The automation builder is genuinely sophisticated with conditional logic, decision trees, and timed triggers that rival ActiveCampaign's capabilities. The catch is significant: you need server infrastructure, technical expertise to install and maintain it, and you'll spend time on updates and security patches that a hosted platform handles for you. For companies with technical teams and large contact databases where per-subscriber pricing becomes prohibitive, Mautic can save thousands per year. For everyone else, the operational overhead isn't worth it.

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Best for

Technical teams wanting open-source automation

Pricing

Free (self-hosted; hosting costs vary)

Pros

Free and open source
Powerful automation builder
No per-subscriber fees
Full data ownership
Highly customizable

Cons

Requires server setup and maintenance
Steep technical learning curve
No official support (community only)
UI feels rough compared to SaaS tools
Plugin ecosystem is uneven

Why Consider Alternatives to ActiveCampaign

The learning curve is steep

ActiveCampaign's power comes with complexity. It can take weeks to fully learn the platform. If you don't need advanced automation, simpler tools get you results faster.

Pricing climbs quickly

ActiveCampaign starts affordable but scales fast. At 10k contacts, you're paying $79+/month. At 50k, it's $200+. Alternatives like Brevo offer unlimited contacts for $25/month.

You might not need the power

Most businesses use 20% of ActiveCampaign's features. If you're sending newsletters and basic automations, simpler tools do the job without the complexity.

Recent pricing changes

ActiveCampaign restructured pricing in 2024, affecting many legacy accounts. Some users saw significant price increases, prompting a search for alternatives.

What Users Say About ActiveCampaign

Trustpilot

I've been using ActiveCampaign for years, but the recent experience has been extremely frustrating. Since early November, a critical bug has been blocking one of our core automations. I opened a ticket immediately, provided all the details, logs, and examples requested — and after that? Weeks of silence and runaround.

Giovanni Pizza2026-02

Trustpilot

ActiveCampaign has a steep learning curve, and I was a little intimidated. But I found all the training videos and support really helpful. I was able to become effective with the platform pretty quickly. I think the capabilities of the platform are awesome once you put in the time to learn the system.

Eric S.2026-02

Trustpilot

I really enjoy working with Active Campaign. It is very user friendly, really intuitive. Plus when I haven't been able to find a feature that I'm looking for, the customer service is very helpful. The multiple features allow me to develop highly attractive emails.

ConCiencia ECAI2026-02

Trustpilot

I signed up for AC and had to wait a week before I could get an integration/onboarding call. I emailed the salesperson who signed me up twice and then left him a voicemail the next day to see if he could help me get a few questions answered so I wouldn't have to wait a week. Guy ghosted me.

June Camacho2026-02

Trustpilot

ActiveCampaign is very mighty, has a lot of potential that I am actually using. However, AC has some big disadvantages, such as sometimes poor performance. Writing a mail and suddenly all is gone - very frustrating.

Claudia Goebel2026-02

Trustpilot

Good enough software for mailing lists. They've recently 'implemented AI' which means they've replaced all of the homepages with a text box. Their AI chatbot can direct me how to find things that were hidden, at least.

Anonymous2026-02

Feature

ActiveCampaign

Sequenzy

Brevo

MailerLite

HubSpot

Customer.io

Loops

Price at 10k

$79+

$49

$25+

$50

$800+

$150+

$99

Automation power

Best

Good

Basic

Good

Basic

CRM included

Basic

Best

Learning curve

Steep

Easy

Medium

Steep

Easy

AI content

Transactional

When to Use Each Platform

Choose Sequenzy if...

You want AI to write your email sequences
You run a SaaS and use Stripe
You prefer simplicity over power
You need transactional + marketing together

Choose Stay with ActiveCampaign if...

You need the most powerful automation available
CRM integration is essential
You've already invested in learning the platform
Complex conditional logic is required

Choose Brevo if...

Budget is your primary concern
You want unlimited contacts
Good enough automation is fine
You need SMS alongside email

Choose MailerLite if...

You want the simplest option
Landing pages matter to you
You're a small business or creator
Basic automation covers your needs

Choose HubSpot if...

You need a full marketing + sales platform
CRM is as important as email
Budget isn't a constraint
You want everything in one place

Honest take: Is ActiveCampaign too complex for you?

ActiveCampaign deserves its reputation. The automation builder is genuinely the most powerful available. You can create workflows with complex conditional logic, integrate with your CRM, and automate almost anything. Learn more about smart segmentation and advanced campaign automation. But most businesses use 20% of ActiveCampaign's features and spend weeks learning the platform before seeing results. At $79+/month for 10k contacts with pricing that scales quickly as your database grows, you're paying for power you might never touch. The 2024 pricing restructure also caught many legacy accounts off guard with significant increases.

But power comes with complexity. Here's when simpler alternatives make sense:

If you want AI to help: Sequenzy

ActiveCampaign expects you to build everything manually. Sequenzy takes a different approach - describe what you want ("a 5-email onboarding sequence for a project management SaaS") and AI generates it. You edit and polish, but you're not starting from scratch. Read about how AI email sequence builders work to see the difference.

At $49/month for 120,000 emails, unlimited subscribers with native Stripe integration, it's also simpler.

If budget is tight: Brevo

Brevo offers unlimited contacts for $25/month. The automation isn't as powerful as ActiveCampaign, but it covers the basics well. SMS and transactional are included, making it a good all-rounder for cost-conscious teams. See our Brevo comparison.

If you want the simplest option: MailerLite

MailerLite is what email marketing looks like without the complexity. Easy to use, affordable ($50/mo for 10k), and includes landing pages. The automation is basic, but if you're sending newsletters and simple sequences, that's fine. Check out our guide to email marketing tools and learn about email sequence fundamentals.

If you need full marketing + CRM: HubSpot

HubSpot is more expensive than ActiveCampaign ($800+/month for Professional), but it's a complete marketing and sales platform. If you need CRM, landing pages, email, and analytics in one place, HubSpot consolidates everything. See our HubSpot comparison.

If you're a SaaS company: Customer.io or Encharge

Both Customer.io and Encharge offer behavioral email automation designed for software companies. Customer.io is better for PLG with multi-channel support; Encharge is closer to ActiveCampaign's power with a SaaS-specific focus. Check our Customer.io comparison and read about product-led growth email strategies.

If you want open-source: Mautic

For technical teams tired of per-subscriber pricing, Mautic offers ActiveCampaign-level automation that's completely free. You'll need your own infrastructure and a developer, but the savings at scale are massive. Read our email authentication guide before self-hosting.

The pricing comparison

At 10,000 contacts:

ActiveCampaign: $79/month (Plus plan)
Sequenzy: $49/month (AI + Stripe included)
Brevo: $25+/month (unlimited contacts)
MailerLite: $50/month
Loops: roughly $99/month
Encharge: $99/month (SaaS-focused)
HubSpot: $800+/month (Professional)
Mautic: Free (self-hosted)

See our pricing page for complete comparisons and explore our email deliverability guide to maximize ROI regardless of which platform you choose.

When ActiveCampaign is still the right choice

Stick with ActiveCampaign if:

You need complex conditional automation logic
CRM integration is essential to your workflow
You've already invested time learning the platform
You genuinely use the advanced features

Don't switch just to save money if you'll lose capabilities you actually use. But if you're paying for power you never touch, simpler alternatives make sense. Read our guide on email onboarding sequences and check our SaaS email marketing benchmarks to understand if your current setup is actually performing.

Frequently Asked Questions

All Pricing Tiers

2.5k emails/month: Free (Free annually)

15k emails/month: $19/month ($205/year annually)

60k emails/month: $29/month ($313/year annually)

120k emails/month: $49/month ($529/year annually)

300k emails/month: $99/month ($1069/year annually)

600k emails/month: $199/month ($2149/year annually)

1.2M emails/month: $349/month ($3769/year annually)

Unlimited emails/month: Custom pricing (Custom annually)

Yearly billing: All plans offer a 10% discount when billed annually.

21 ActiveCampaign Alternatives for Growing Teams

TL;DR

21 Best ActiveCampaign Alternatives

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What Users Say About ActiveCampaign

Feature Comparison

When to Use Each Platform

Honest take: Is ActiveCampaign too complex for you?

If you want AI to help: Sequenzy

If budget is tight: Brevo

If you want the simplest option: MailerLite

If you need full marketing + CRM: HubSpot

If you're a SaaS company: Customer.io or Encharge

If you want open-source: Mautic

The pricing comparison

When ActiveCampaign is still the right choice

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the best ActiveCampaign alternative for small businesses?

Is ActiveCampaign worth the complexity?

ActiveCampaign vs HubSpot: Which is better?

What's cheaper than ActiveCampaign?

Does ActiveCampaign have a free plan?