Why people leave Ortto

Ortto (formerly Autopilot) built its reputation on visual journey building - drag-and-drop automation that marketing teams could actually use. The rebrand brought expanded features: SMS, WhatsApp, web push, landing pages. But it also brought enterprise pricing that's hard to justify for many teams.

The pricing cliff

At $509/month for the Professional plan (10k contacts), Ortto positions itself alongside enterprise tools. That's fine if you're using all the multi-channel features. But most SaaS teams are primarily doing email marketing, and paying $509/month for email automations when alternatives cost $49-149/month is a hard sell. For context on what modern SaaS teams actually need, read our guide to email marketing tools for SaaS.

Feature breadth vs depth

Ortto tries to do everything: email, SMS, WhatsApp, web push, landing pages, forms, popups, surveys. This breadth means each feature is good but not great. Dedicated tools often beat Ortto in their specialty - Klaviyo for e-commerce, Customer.io for PLG, Typeform for surveys.

Transactional email locked to higher tier

If you need both marketing and transactional email, Ortto only includes transactional on the Business plan ($849/month). That's a significant jump from Professional, or you're managing a separate transactional service alongside Ortto.

The alternatives, honestly

If you're SaaS and want simpler: Sequenzy

Sequenzy costs $19/month for 10k emails - 10x cheaper than Ortto. You lose the visual journey builder, but gain AI that writes your email sequences and native Stripe integration that syncs customer data automatically.

For most SaaS teams, the focused email automation is more valuable than Ortto's multi-channel sprawl. And having transactional + marketing in one platform at that price is hard to beat.

If you want Ortto features cheaper: ActiveCampaign

ActiveCampaign at $149/month for 10k contacts gives you visual automation builder, CRM, and SMS marketing - similar to Ortto at less than 1/3 the price. The interface isn't as clean, and the learning curve exists, but the capability is comparable.

If you're PLG with complex journeys: Customer.io

Customer.io is the choice for PLG companies with sophisticated user journeys. Multi-channel orchestration (email, push, SMS, in-app), event-based automation, and deep behavioral tracking. It's not cheap ($100/mo for 5k profiles), but nothing else matches its power for product-led companies.

If budget is everything: Brevo

Brevo's $25/month for unlimited contacts with basic automation is the budget answer. You won't get Ortto's sophistication, but you get marketing + transactional email that works. Good for early-stage when every dollar matters.

The pricing comparison

At 10,000 contacts:

• Ortto Professional: $509/month (marketing only)
• Ortto Business: $849/month (with transactional)
• Sequenzy: $19/month (marketing + transactional + AI)
• ActiveCampaign Plus: $149/month (with CRM)
• Customer.io: $100/month for 5k (behavioral powerhouse)
• Brevo: $25/month for 20k emails (budget option)
• MailerLite: $73/month (clean and simple)

The price difference is dramatic. Make sure you're getting value for the premium. Check our pricing page for detailed Sequenzy costs.

When Ortto is still the right choice

Stay with Ortto if:

• You actively use the visual journey builder daily
• Multi-channel (SMS, WhatsApp, web push) is core to your strategy
• Having landing pages in the same platform reduces your tool sprawl
• The enterprise features justify the enterprise price

Don't switch just because it seems expensive. If Ortto's journey builder is central to how your marketing team works, the switching cost and learning curve elsewhere might not be worth it. But if you're a SaaS team mostly doing email automations, you're likely overpaying.

Verify your email infrastructure with our DMARC checker and SPF checker before any migration. Use our email validator tool to clean your list.