MailchimpvsActiveCampaign

Mailchimp vs ActiveCampaign

Ease of use vs automation power

TL;DR

Mailchimp is easier to use with a broader marketing feature set including landing pages and ads. ActiveCampaign offers more powerful automation and built-in CRM. Choose Mailchimp for simplicity; choose ActiveCampaign for sophisticated automation.

Key Differences

The main things that set these tools apart

Automation Power
ActiveCampaign wins

ActiveCampaign's automation is significantly more powerful with advanced branching, goal tracking, and sophisticated conditional logic. Mailchimp's automation is simpler and covers basic use cases. For complex customer journeys, ActiveCampaign excels.

Built-in CRM
ActiveCampaign wins

ActiveCampaign includes a full CRM with deal pipelines, lead scoring, and sales automation. Mailchimp has basic contact management but is not a true CRM. For sales-focused teams, ActiveCampaign eliminates the need for a separate CRM.

Ease of Use
Mailchimp wins

Mailchimp is easier to learn with a more intuitive interface and gentler learning curve. ActiveCampaign's power comes with complexity. For beginners or small teams, Mailchimp is more approachable.

Marketing Breadth
Mailchimp wins

Mailchimp offers landing pages, social ads, postcards, and website building. ActiveCampaign focuses on email and automation. For a full marketing suite, Mailchimp provides more out of the box.

Pricing Comparison

At 10,000 subscribers

Mailchimp
$100/month

Standard plan with automation and A/B testing

Visit Mailchimp
ActiveCampaign
$149/month

Plus plan with CRM, landing pages, and advanced automation

Visit ActiveCampaign
Sequenzy

The SaaS alternative

$49/month

Best for SaaS, Stripe integration, simpler pricing

Feature Comparison

Side-by-side feature breakdown

Feature
Mailchimp
ActiveCampaign
Sequenzy
Automation Capabilities
Visual automation builder
Good
Excellent
Automation complexity
Basic to moderate
Advanced
Moderate
Conditional logic
Advanced branching
Goal tracking
Site tracking
Basic
Advanced
Predictive sending
CRM & Sales
Built-in CRM
Basic
Full CRM
Deal pipelines
Lead scoring
Sales automation
Contact management
Basic
Advanced
Marketing Features
Landing pages
Full builder
Available on Plus+
Social ads
Facebook, Instagram
Facebook only
Email templates
Large library
Good library
Visual builder
SMS marketing
Add-on
Built-in
Forms and popups
Ease of Use
Learning curve
Gentle
Steeper
Gentle
Interface simplicity
More intuitive
Feature-rich
Simple
Free plan
Up to 500 contacts
14-day trial only
14-day trial
Setup time
Quick
Longer
Quick

Best For

When to choose each tool

Choose Mailchimp if you...
  • Small businesses new to email marketing
  • Teams wanting a full marketing suite
  • Businesses needing landing pages and social ads
  • Companies prioritizing ease of use
  • Organizations with simpler automation needs
Choose ActiveCampaign if you...
  • Businesses needing sophisticated automation
  • Sales teams wanting built-in CRM
  • Companies with complex customer journeys
  • B2B businesses with longer sales cycles
  • Teams ready to invest time in setup
Choose Sequenzy if you...
  • SaaS companies and software businesses
  • Founders building on Stripe
  • Teams needing transactional + marketing email
  • Startups wanting simpler pricing

When to Consider Sequenzy Instead

SaaS-Specific Automation

Neither Mailchimp nor ActiveCampaign is built for SaaS. Sequenzy offers Stripe integration with automation based on subscriptions, trials, and MRR - concepts that matter to software businesses.

Simpler Pricing

At $49/month for 10k subscribers, Sequenzy is significantly cheaper than both Mailchimp ($100) and ActiveCampaign ($149). For SaaS, it offers better value.

Unified Email Stack

Both Mailchimp and ActiveCampaign focus on marketing email. Sequenzy handles transactional and marketing in one platform, reducing complexity for software products.

Overview

Mailchimp and ActiveCampaign are both established email marketing platforms, but they serve different needs. Mailchimp prioritizes ease of use and offers a broad marketing feature set. ActiveCampaign focuses on powerful automation and includes a built-in CRM for sales teams.

Your choice depends on whether you need simplicity and marketing breadth, or sophisticated automation and sales integration.

Automation Comparison

ActiveCampaign's automation is its standout feature. You can build complex customer journeys with advanced branching, goal tracking, and sophisticated conditional logic. The visual automation builder handles scenarios Mailchimp simply cannot.

Mailchimp's automation is simpler and covers common use cases - welcome series, abandoned cart, birthday emails. For most small businesses, it is sufficient. But for complex B2B journeys or sophisticated personalization, Mailchimp falls short.

CRM Capabilities

ActiveCampaign includes a full CRM with deal pipelines, lead scoring, and sales automation. Sales and marketing teams can work from the same platform, tracking leads through the entire customer journey.

Mailchimp has basic contact management but is not a CRM. You would need to integrate with a separate CRM like HubSpot or Salesforce for sales pipeline functionality.

Ease of Use

Mailchimp is easier to learn. The interface is more intuitive, and you can send your first campaign quickly. It also offers a free plan to start without commitment.

ActiveCampaign's power comes with complexity. The interface can feel overwhelming, and proper setup takes time. But once configured, the automation capabilities are worth the investment for the right use cases.

Pricing Comparison

At 10,000 subscribers, Mailchimp costs $100/month while ActiveCampaign's Plus plan (with CRM) costs $149. ActiveCampaign is more expensive, but the CRM functionality could replace a separate tool.

When Each Platform Shines

Choose Mailchimp when: You want ease of use, a full marketing suite with landing pages and ads, or you are new to email marketing.

Choose ActiveCampaign when: You need sophisticated automation, built-in CRM, or you have complex B2B customer journeys.

For SaaS Companies

Neither platform is optimized for SaaS. Mailchimp is too general; ActiveCampaign is powerful but not subscription-aware. SaaS companies should consider Sequenzy for Stripe integration and subscription-focused automation.

Frequently Asked Questions

It depends on your needs. ActiveCampaign has more powerful automation and built-in CRM. Mailchimp is easier to use with broader marketing features. Neither is universally better.

ActiveCampaign includes a full CRM with deal pipelines and lead scoring. This functionality would cost extra with Mailchimp. The higher price reflects the additional sales features.

Mailchimp is significantly easier for beginners. It has a gentler learning curve, more intuitive interface, and a free plan to start. ActiveCampaign's power requires more time to learn.

Mailchimp has basic contact management but is not a true CRM. It lacks deal pipelines, lead scoring, and sales automation that ActiveCampaign provides.

For many small businesses, yes. ActiveCampaign's CRM handles deal pipelines, lead scoring, and sales automation. Larger enterprises may still need dedicated CRM platforms.

ActiveCampaign has significantly more powerful automation with advanced branching, goal tracking, and complex conditional logic. Mailchimp's automation is simpler and more basic.

Both work for e-commerce. Mailchimp integrates with Shopify and WooCommerce. ActiveCampaign offers deeper automation for e-commerce journeys. Neither is as specialized as Klaviyo.

Neither is optimized for SaaS. Both focus on general marketing or sales automation. SaaS companies should consider Sequenzy for Stripe integration and subscription-focused features.

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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