ActiveCampaign vs Mailvio (2026): which should you pick?

Pick ActiveCampaign if

• Fits if your marketing is mostly automated sequences, like onboarding, nurture and win-back emails
• Works for stores on Shopify or WooCommerce that want email and a sales CRM on the same contacts

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you want a free plan to grow into, as there isn't one after the 14-day trial
• Tight if you're on Starter, since each automation stops at 5 actions, there's 1 user and lists stop at 25,000
• Pricey if your list is big, at $149 a month for 10,000 contacts even on Starter
• Watch out: SMS, WhatsApp, transactional email, sales pipelines and extra users are paid add-ons
• Watch out: landing pages need Plus at $49 and conditional content Pro at $79, both for 1,000 contacts billed yearly

Pick Mailvio if

• Fits if deliverability is your trouble and you want someone to review it
• Works for lists near 5,000 that want cleaning and segments in one plan

Look elsewhere if

• Not for you if you want a free plan or trial, since there isn't one
• Skip it if you want to sign up at once, as it is application based with a required onboarding call
• Pricey if your list is over 5,000, because larger steps are priced by request
• Watch out: billing is run by JVZoo, a partner named on the page
• Watch out: the AI email writer is capped at 9 credits a quarter

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.

Mailvio

• The pricing page quotes only the 5,000-contact step; larger lists are priced up to 200,000+ contacts and over 50,000 by request.
• Signup includes a required onboarding call and the vendor says it is application based.
• Checkout and billing are run by JVZoo, a partner named on the page.
• Yearly billing is offered with about two months free.

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.

Mailvio

Unlimited sending

Plans send unlimited emails to the contacts they cover, with a mass broadcaster for large sends.

Deliverability team

An assigned deliverability expert, a sender reputation guard and built-in deliverability testing.

Real-time email cleaning

Included in the plan, as is a done-for-you domain warm-up service.

RFM segmentation

A segmentation tool that groups contacts by recency, frequency and monetary value.

AI email writer

An AI tool for drafting emails, with a set number of premium credits per quarter.

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.

Mailvio

• Mailvio 5K$197

  per quarter for up to 5,000 contacts

  Unlimited emails, a deliverability review, email cleaning, RFM segmentation and an AI email writer (9 credits a quarter).

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.

Mailvio

• Annual discount

  About two months free with yearly billing

  The pricing page says switching from quarterly to yearly billing gives about two months free.