Overview
ActiveCampaign and ConvertKit represent different philosophies in email marketing. ActiveCampaign is a powerful marketing automation platform built for businesses. ConvertKit is purpose-built for creators who want simplicity and monetization.
The choice between them usually comes down to whether you're a business that needs CRM and complex automation, or a creator who values simplicity and built-in commerce.
Pricing Comparison
At 10,000 subscribers, pricing is similar:
- ActiveCampaign: $149/month (Plus plan with CRM)
- ConvertKit: $139/month (Creator plan)
- Sequenzy: $19/month for 10,000 emails with all features
ConvertKit is $10/month cheaper, but ActiveCampaign includes CRM features that would otherwise require a separate tool. Sequenzy is dramatically cheaper at $19/month - that's $120-130/month less than either option.
Where ActiveCampaign Wins
Marketing automation power
ActiveCampaign's automation capabilities are in a different league. With 500+ automation recipes, advanced conditional logic, and A/B testing within workflows, it handles complex marketing scenarios.
Built-in CRM
The integrated CRM with pipeline management, deal tracking, and sales automation makes ActiveCampaign a complete business solution. ConvertKit has no CRM functionality.
Email design options
With 125+ email templates and a full drag-and-drop builder, ActiveCampaign offers more design flexibility. ConvertKit intentionally focuses on simple, text-based emails.
Advanced segmentation
ActiveCampaign's segmentation and lead scoring capabilities are more sophisticated, important for businesses with complex customer journeys.
Where ConvertKit Wins
Creator monetization
ConvertKit's killer feature is built-in monetization. Paid newsletters, tip jars, and digital product sales are integrated directly. This is invaluable for creators looking to earn from their audience.
Simplicity
ConvertKit is deliberately simple. For creators who want effective email marketing without complexity, this simplicity is a feature, not a limitation.
Creator network
The creator network enables cross-promotion between ConvertKit users, helping grow audiences organically. ActiveCampaign has nothing comparable.
Free tier
ConvertKit's free tier includes up to 10,000 subscribers (with limited features). ActiveCampaign only offers a 14-day trial.
Why Sequenzy Beats Both for SaaS
If you're building a SaaS product, neither ActiveCampaign nor ConvertKit is designed for you. Here's why Sequenzy is the better choice:
Purpose-built for subscriptions
ActiveCampaign is built for sales pipelines. ConvertKit is built for content creators. Sequenzy is built for subscription businesses. Native Stripe integration means you can trigger emails based on billing events without Zapier hacks.
Unified email platform
Password resets, receipts, onboarding sequences, upgrade prompts - all from one platform. ActiveCampaign and ConvertKit force you to use separate services for transactional email.
Dramatically lower cost
At $19/month, Sequenzy costs 87% less than ActiveCampaign and 86% less than ConvertKit. For a startup watching burn rate, that's $1,440-1,560/year you can invest elsewhere.
Developer-first design
Clean API, event tracking, webhooks. Sequenzy integrates into your product, not just your marketing department.
Direct founder support
Questions? Talk directly to the founders who built it. No ticket queues, no enterprise sales calls - just helpful humans who understand SaaS.