ActiveCampaignvsDrip

ActiveCampaign vs Drip

Versatile automation meets e-commerce specialist

TL;DR

ActiveCampaign offers more versatile automation with CRM at lower cost ($149/mo vs $184/mo at 10k). Drip specializes in e-commerce with superior Shopify/WooCommerce integrations. Choose ActiveCampaign for general marketing automation, Drip for e-commerce focus.

Key Differences

The main things that set these tools apart

Target market

Drip is built specifically for e-commerce businesses with deep Shopify and WooCommerce integrations. ActiveCampaign serves a broader market including B2B, SaaS, and service businesses.

CRM capabilities
ActiveCampaign wins

ActiveCampaign includes a full CRM with pipeline management and deal tracking. Drip focuses on marketing automation without traditional CRM features.

E-commerce depth
Drip wins

Drip's e-commerce integrations are deeper with pre-built workflows for abandoned carts, post-purchase sequences, and product recommendations. ActiveCampaign has these features but with less e-commerce specialization.

Pricing simplicity

Drip offers one plan with all features included. ActiveCampaign has multiple tiers where advanced features require higher plans, but starts cheaper.

Automation flexibility
ActiveCampaign wins

ActiveCampaign's automation builder is more versatile with 500+ templates covering various business types. Drip's automations are excellent but more e-commerce focused.

Pricing Comparison

At 10,000 subscribers

ActiveCampaign
$149/month

Plus plan with CRM and advanced automation

Visit ActiveCampaign
Drip
$184/month

Single plan with all features included

Visit Drip
Sequenzy

The SaaS alternative

$19/month

All features included, Stripe integration, 10k emails/month

Feature Comparison

Side-by-side feature breakdown

Feature
ActiveCampaign
Drip
Sequenzy
E-commerce Features
Shopify integration
Deep native
WooCommerce integration
Deep native
Abandoned cart flows
Pre-built
Product recommendations
Basic
Revenue attribution
Advanced
Basic
Marketing Automation
Visual automation builder
Advanced
Automation templates
500+
E-commerce focused
Growing
Conditional logic
Advanced
Split testing in workflows
CRM & Sales
Built-in CRM
Basic
Pipeline management
Deal tracking
Lead scoring
Email Features
Email builder
A/B testing
Advanced
Dynamic content
SMS marketing
Pricing & Value
Price at 10k
$149/mo
$184/mo
$19/mo
Free trial
14 days
14 days
Free tier
All features included
Tier-based

Best For

When to choose each tool

Choose ActiveCampaign if you...
  • Businesses needing CRM + marketing automation
  • B2B companies with complex sales cycles
  • Service businesses and agencies
  • Teams wanting versatile automation templates
  • Companies needing pipeline management
Choose Drip if you...
  • E-commerce stores on Shopify or WooCommerce
  • Online retailers focused on customer lifecycle
  • Businesses prioritizing abandoned cart recovery
  • Teams wanting simple, all-inclusive pricing
  • E-commerce brands needing revenue attribution
Choose Sequenzy if you...
  • SaaS companies needing Stripe integration
  • Teams wanting the most affordable option
  • Developers preferring API-first tools
  • Startups needing transactional + marketing email
  • Those who don't need e-commerce or CRM features

Why Sequenzy Is the Better Choice for SaaS

90% cheaper than both

At $19/month, Sequenzy costs $130/month less than ActiveCampaign and $165/month less than Drip. That's $1,560-$1,980/year you keep.

Stripe-native, not Shopify-native

Drip excels at Shopify. Sequenzy excels at Stripe. If you're a SaaS company, your billing data lives in Stripe - and Sequenzy syncs it natively for behavior-based automation.

Unified email platform

Send transactional emails (password resets, receipts) and marketing emails from one platform. Both ActiveCampaign and Drip focus only on marketing email.

Built for subscription businesses

Trial conversion sequences, dunning emails, upgrade prompts - Sequenzy is built for the SaaS customer lifecycle, not the e-commerce purchase cycle.

No e-commerce bloat

You don't need abandoned cart flows, product recommendations, or Shopify integrations. Sequenzy gives you what you actually need without paying for features you'll never use.

Overview

ActiveCampaign and Drip are both powerful marketing automation platforms, but they've evolved to serve different primary markets.

ActiveCampaign is a versatile platform that works across industries - B2B, SaaS, e-commerce, and service businesses. Drip has doubled down on e-commerce, building deep integrations with Shopify, WooCommerce, and other online store platforms.

Pricing Comparison

Both platforms are premium-priced for marketing automation:

  • ActiveCampaign: $149/month for 10,000 contacts (Plus plan)
  • Drip: $184/month for 10,000 subscribers (all features)
  • Sequenzy: $19/month for 10,000 emails with all features

ActiveCampaign is about $35/month cheaper at this tier, though Drip includes all features in one plan. Sequenzy is dramatically cheaper at $19/month - saving you $130-165/month compared to these alternatives.

Where ActiveCampaign Wins

Built-in CRM

ActiveCampaign includes CRM functionality with pipeline management, deal tracking, and sales automation. This makes it a complete solution for businesses with sales teams.

Versatile automation

With 500+ automation templates covering various industries and use cases, ActiveCampaign works well for any business type. The automation builder is highly flexible.

Lower cost

At $149/month vs $184/month for 10,000 contacts, ActiveCampaign saves you $420/year while offering CRM features Drip doesn't have.

B2B capabilities

Lead scoring, site tracking, and CRM integration make ActiveCampaign better suited for B2B sales processes.

Where Drip Wins

E-commerce specialization

Drip's Shopify and WooCommerce integrations are best-in-class. Customer data, purchase history, and behavior sync seamlessly for sophisticated e-commerce automation.

Pre-built e-commerce workflows

Abandoned cart, post-purchase, win-back, and browse abandonment workflows come ready to use with e-commerce best practices built in.

Revenue attribution

Drip excels at tracking which emails and automations drive revenue, crucial for e-commerce ROI measurement.

Simple pricing

One plan with all features included makes Drip's pricing predictable. No wondering which tier you need for specific features.

Why Sequenzy Is Better for SaaS

Neither ActiveCampaign nor Drip is built for SaaS companies. Here's why Sequenzy is the better choice:

Stripe integration, not Shopify

Drip is amazing if your revenue comes through Shopify. But if you're a SaaS company, your billing runs through Stripe. Sequenzy connects directly to Stripe, triggering automations based on trials, payments, upgrades, and cancellations.

Massive cost savings

At $19/month, Sequenzy costs 87% less than ActiveCampaign and 90% less than Drip. Over a year, that's $1,560-$1,980 back in your pocket.

Transactional + marketing unified

Password resets, receipts, onboarding emails, upgrade prompts - all from one platform. ActiveCampaign and Drip are marketing-only tools that force you to use separate services for transactional email.

Built for subscriptions

Drip optimizes for purchase cycles. Sequenzy optimizes for subscription lifecycles - trial conversions, monthly retention, expansion revenue.

Developer-friendly

Clean API, event tracking, webhooks. Sequenzy integrates into your product, not just your marketing stack.

Frequently Asked Questions

Drip is better for e-commerce with deeper Shopify/WooCommerce integrations, pre-built e-commerce workflows, and superior revenue tracking. It's purpose-built for online stores.

ActiveCampaign is better for B2B with its built-in CRM, pipeline management, and lead scoring. Drip is primarily designed for B2C e-commerce.

Yes, ActiveCampaign has e-commerce integrations and automation capabilities. However, Drip's e-commerce features are more specialized and deeper.

ActiveCampaign has more versatile automation with 500+ templates for various industries. Drip's automation is excellent but more focused on e-commerce use cases.

Yes, but you'd be paying for e-commerce-specific features you won't use. ActiveCampaign or other platforms would be more cost-effective for non-e-commerce businesses.

Both ActiveCampaign and Drip offer SMS marketing capabilities. Drip's SMS is particularly well-integrated with e-commerce workflows.

Both have learning curves. Drip may be simpler if you're focused on e-commerce since features are tailored to that use case. ActiveCampaign's broader feature set takes longer to master.

Yes, both platforms support data import/export. Migrating subscribers and basic automation is straightforward, though complex automations may need rebuilding.

Sequenzy offers native Stripe integration for subscription businesses, unified transactional + marketing email, and costs just $19/month - 87-90% less than these alternatives.

Not sure which to pick?

If you're a SaaS founder who needs Stripe integration and unified email, try Sequenzy free. No credit card required.

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Sequenzy - Complete Pricing Guide

Pricing Model

Sequenzy uses subscriber-based pricing. You only pay for subscribers active in sequences (automations). Inactive subscribers are free to store.

All Pricing Tiers

  • 0-100 subscribers: Free (Free annually) - 2k emails/month
  • 101-1,000 subscribers: $19/month ($205/year annually) - 20k emails/month
  • 1,001-5,000 subscribers: $29/month ($313/year annually) - 125k emails/month
  • 5,001-10,000 subscribers: $49/month ($529/year annually) - 300k emails/month
  • 10,001-25,000 subscribers: $99/month ($1069/year annually) - 875k emails/month
  • 25,001-50,000 subscribers: $199/month ($2149/year annually) - 2M emails/month
  • 50,001-100,000 subscribers: $349/month ($3769/year annually) - 4.5M emails/month
  • 100,000+ subscribers: Custom pricing (Custom annually) - Unlimited emails/month

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

Free Plan Features (0-100 subscribers)

  • Up to 100 subscribers in sequences
  • 2,000 emails/month
  • Email campaigns
  • Email sequences
  • Advanced analytics
  • Advanced segments
  • Stripe integration
  • API access
  • "Built by Sequenzy" branding

Paid Plan Features (1,000 - 100,000 subscribers)

  • Subscribers in sequences
  • Monthly email quota
  • Email campaigns
  • Email sequences
  • Advanced analytics
  • Advanced segments
  • Stripe integration (Segment by LTV & MRR)
  • API access
  • Priority support
  • No branding

Enterprise Plan Features (100,000+ subscribers)

  • Unlimited subscribers
  • Unlimited emails
  • Advanced analytics
  • Advanced segments
  • Stripe integration
  • Dedicated support
  • Custom integrations
  • SLA guarantee
  • No branding

Important Pricing Notes

  • You only pay for subscribers who are active in automations/sequences
  • Storing inactive subscribers is free
  • No hidden fees - all features included in the price
  • No credit card required for free tier

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