ActiveCampaign vs Campaign Monitor
We give ActiveCampaign and Campaign Monitor the same GPA: 2.4 out of 4.0. They get the same grade on all five counts.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
ActiveCampaign
Email marketing and multi-step automation priced by contacts
Campaign Monitor
Email marketing for small businesses, nonprofits and agencies
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAActiveCampaignFair | 2.4GPACampaign MonitorFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C$15 a month for 1,000 contacts on yearly billing, or $19 monthly, a little above the middle of what email tools charge. Starter has 1 user and 5 actions per automation, though. Unlimited steps and landing pages need Plus at $49, and Starter is $149 a month at 10,000 contacts. | CLite is $11.70 a month for 500 contacts on yearly billing, or $13 monthly, right around the middle of what email tools charge. It's $117 a month billed monthly at 10,000 contacts, and unlimited sends need Essentials at $27.90. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan at all, but there's a 14-day trial with no credit card needed. Long enough to build an automation or two and see if it clicks. | CNo free plan, but there's a 30-day trial for up to 500 contacts and 500 emails. Long enough to build and send a couple of campaigns, but it's a trial, not a plan you can stay on. |
| Features | BMulti-step automations, a drag-and-drop designer with 250+ templates and A/B tests, segmentation, forms, reports and AI drafting. It covers the whole job. SMS, WhatsApp, transactional email and sales pipelines cost extra on top. | BA drag-and-drop builder with over 100 templates, templates made from your website, journeys, RSS and transactional emails, engagement segments, dynamic content and reports that drop bot clicks. That's the whole job, plus proper agency sub-accounts. |
| Ease of use | CNo App Store rating on record, and this is a web app where the work is building automations and segments. Powerful, but expect a learning curve before it pays off. | CNo App Store rating on record and no phone app. Marketing Studio can draft a branded email from your site, which helps, but there are still lists, journeys and segments to set up. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, but it connects to Shopify, WooCommerce, WordPress, Salesforce, Stripe, Slack, Zapier and Calendly, and has an API. No desktop or phone app is listed. | BWeb only, with Salesforce, Shopify, WordPress, Unbounce, Intercom, OptinMonster, AdRoll and Zapier, and an API. No desktop or phone app keeps it at a B. |
| Best for | long automated email sequences | agencies sending polished emails for clients |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: ActiveCampaign and Campaign Monitor. How we grade
Price against what you get
ActiveCampaign starts at $15 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Campaign Monitor starts at $11.70 a month and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and Campaign Monitor starts $3.30 a month lower. Of the other email marketing and newsletter tools on the chart, 3 score higher than ActiveCampaign for less, and 1 scores higher than Campaign Monitor for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- ActiveCampaign starts at $15 per month for up to 1,000 contacts, billed annually ($19 monthly). Campaign Monitor starts at $11.70 per month for up to 500 contacts, billed annually.
- ActiveCampaign also covers sales pipeline and reports.
At a glance
| ActiveCampaign | Campaign Monitor | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $15 per month for up to 1,000 contacts, billed annually ($19 monthly) | $11.70 per month for up to 500 contacts, billed annually |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial, no credit card needed | 30-day free trial for up to 500 contacts and 500 emails |
| Web | ||
| Made by | ActiveCampaign | Marigold |
| Price read from | activecampaign.com | campaignmonitor.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
ActiveCampaign
- Businesses that run long automated sequences rather than one-off newsletters
- Teams that want email marketing tied to a sales CRM
- Online stores on Shopify, WooCommerce or Square that tie orders to email
Campaign Monitor
- Agencies sending email for several clients under their own brand
- Small businesses and nonprofits with polished newsletter designs
- Teams that want unlimited users on every plan
Worth knowing
ActiveCampaign
- There is no free plan; after the 14-day trial every plan is paid.
- Monthly email sends are capped at 10 times your contact limit on Starter and Plus, 12 times on Pro and 15 times on Enterprise.
- SMS, WhatsApp, transactional email, sales pipelines and extra users are paid add-ons on top of the plan price.
- Starter has one user and stops at 25,000 contacts; landing pages need Plus and conditional content needs Pro.
Campaign Monitor
- Lite caps sends at 5 times the contact tier each month; Essentials and above have no cap.
- Phone support, send time optimization and section locking need Premier, from $153.90 a month billed annually.
- The drag-and-drop website builder costs $10 a month on Lite and Essentials.
- Lists over 50,000 contacts are priced through sales.
Key features
ActiveCampaign
- Multi-step automations
- A visual builder links actions, waits and branches into automations. Starter allows 5 actions per automation; Plus and above have no limit.
- Email designer and AI tools
- Drag-and-drop and HTML designer, 250+ templates and A/B testing, plus an AI campaign builder and AI text and image generation.
- Segmentation and personalization
- Segmentation runs from limited on Starter to premium on Enterprise. Conditional content and predictive sending start at Pro.
- CRM and pipelines
- Every plan keeps contact profiles, tags and custom fields. Pipelines, deals, lead scoring and win probability come with the paid CRM add-ons.
- Forms, landing pages and site messages
- Starter has standard and inline forms only; Plus adds landing pages. Site messages and Google, Facebook and LinkedIn ad audiences are also available.
- Reporting and attribution
- Campaign, automation and contact reports on every plan. Attribution starts at Pro; custom reports are included on Enterprise and an add-on on Plus and Pro.
Campaign Monitor
- Email builder and templates
- A drag-and-drop builder with over 100 templates, custom-coded HTML imports and branded templates generated from your website's URL.
- Marketing Studio and AI tools
- Marketing Studio drafts a branded email from your site and a goal. AI Writer, AI Email Booster and AI Segment Mapper help with copy, review and segments.
- Automated journeys
- Pre-built journeys, date-based Campaign Series, RSS-triggered emails and transactional emails, with volume tied to the plan's limits.
- Segments and personalization
- Engagement segments, dynamic content, custom fields, a preference center and countdown timers; send time optimization comes with Premier.
- Agency accounts
- Client sub-accounts under one admin account, private labeling, a markup on the base price billed through Campaign Monitor, and shared templates.
- Reporting
- Marketing Monitor benchmarks, campaign scores, real-time world-map reporting and a filter that drops bot clicks from results.
Plans
ActiveCampaign
Starter$15
per month for up to 1,000 contacts, billed annually ($19 monthly)
1 user, limited segmentation, 5 actions per automation, up to 25,000 contacts. Price rises with the list: $149 a month at 10,000 contacts, billed annually.
Plus$49
per month for up to 1,000 contacts, billed annually ($59 monthly)
1 user, unlimited automation actions, standard segmentation and landing pages. $189 a month at 10,000 contacts, billed annually.
Pro$79
per month for up to 1,000 contacts, billed annually ($99 monthly)
3 users, advanced segmentation, conditional content, predictive sending and attribution. $375 a month at 10,000 contacts, billed annually.
Enterprise$145
per month for up to 1,000 contacts, billed annually ($179 monthly)
5 users, premium segmentation, custom objects, single sign-on and a dedicated account team. $589 a month at 10,000 contacts, billed annually.
Campaign Monitor
Lite$11.70
per month for up to 500 contacts, billed annually ($13 monthly)
Sends 5 times the list a month, unlimited users, AI Writer, automations and transactional email. Price rises with the list: $117 a month billed monthly at 10,000 contacts.
Essentials$27.90
per month for up to 500 contacts, billed annually ($31 monthly)
Unlimited sends, automated emails and AI features, priority support, inbox preview and Marketing Studio. $182 a month billed monthly at 10,000 contacts.
Premier$153.90
per month for up to 500 contacts, billed annually ($171 monthly)
Phone support, send time optimization, engagement segments, section locking, team templates and the website builder. $300 a month billed monthly at 10,000.
EnterpriseCustom
Custom annual contract, a dedicated account manager, multi-brand accounts, deliverability monitoring and invoice or PO billing.
Ways to pay less
ActiveCampaign
- Annual discount
About 20% off with annual billing
At 1,000 contacts, annual billing brings Starter to $15 a month from $19 monthly, Plus to $49 from $59 and Pro to $79 from $99.
- Nonprofit
20% off for nonprofits
ActiveCampaign's FAQ offers nonprofits a 20% discount on proof of nonprofit status, requested from the sales team or, for existing accounts, from support.
Campaign Monitor
- Annual discount
10% off with annual billing
Campaign Monitor's pricing page takes 10% off Lite, Essentials and Premier billed yearly: Lite at 500 contacts is $11.70 a month instead of $13.
