OptinMonster vs Thrive Leads (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, OptinMonster and Thrive Leads share a 1.8 GPA, neither has a free plan, and OptinMonster starts cheaper, at $17.50 a month when paid by the year against $49.92 a month when paid by the year.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
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.
OptinMonster
Pop-ups, floating bars and opt-in forms added to an existing site
Thrive Leads
WordPress opt-in form builder with popups, ribbons and A/B tests
Which one is for you
Pick OptinMonster if
- Fits if you run a blog or shop and want more email sign-ups from it
- Works for agencies running sign-up campaigns across client sites, with sub-accounts from Pro
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want exit intent on a budget, as it starts on Pro at $870 a year
- Not for you if you want to try it first, as there's no free plan or trial, only a 14-day refund
- Pricey if you budgeted on the first year, as Basic goes from $108 to $210 at renewal
- Watch out: going over the impression limit moves the account up to the next plan automatically
- Tight if you want geolocation, retargeting or store integrations, as all need Growth at $1,470 a year
Pick Thrive Leads if
- Fits if you run self-hosted WordPress and want one bundle of Thrive tools
- Works for site owners who build opt-in forms with A/B tests
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you only want Leads, since the page sells Thrive Suite as a bundle
- Watch out: $240 is an introductory first year, and renewals are $599
- Skip it if your blog is on WordPress.com, because it needs self-hosted WordPress.org
- Not for you if you want to try before paying, as no free plan or trial is listed
- Watch out: a standalone Thrive Leads subscription is mentioned but shows no price
How we grade them
| 1.8GPAOptinMonsterWeak | 1.8GPAThrive LeadsWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DGraded on a site with 20,000 visitors, more than Plus's 10,000 impressions a month, so it's Pro: $870 a year at renewal, $72.50 a month, after a $444 first year. That's dearer than most popup tools here. Pro does bring exit intent, which the cheaper plans lack. | DThrive Suite renews at $599 a year, about $50 a month, in the dearest tenth of popup tools ($55 and up is the dearest tenth; the middle is $19); the first year is $240. |
| Free plan and trial | FNothing free and no trial. There's a 14-day refund, but a money-back promise isn't a trial: you pay before you see it on your site. | FNo free plan and no trial on record, so nothing can be tried without paying. |
| Features | BLightboxes, floating bars, slide-ins, full-screen overlays and coupon wheels, 700+ templates, targeting by page, time, scroll and device, A/B tests and revenue tracking. Exit intent and geolocation sit on the dearer plans. | BMany opt-in form types, a drag-and-drop editor, targeting, A/B testing, reporting and email connections. The listing shows no gap in the core work. |
| Ease of use | CNo rating on record. Templates and a drag-and-drop builder help, but you have to add its code to your site, or use the WordPress or Shopify route, and set up targeting rules before anything shows. | CNo rating on record; a WordPress plugin you install, then build forms in an editor. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWorks on any site you can add JavaScript to, with plugins and guides for WordPress and Shopify, and sends sign-ups to Mailchimp, Constant Contact, ActiveCampaign and ConvertKit. Zapier needs Pro. No desktop or phone app. | BWeb only, with eight integrations listed. |
| Best for | pop-ups that grow an email list | opt-in forms and popups on a WordPress site |
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: OptinMonster and Thrive Leads. How we grade
Price against what you get
OptinMonster starts at $17.50 a month when paid by the year and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Thrive Leads starts at $49.92 a month when paid by the year and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and OptinMonster starts $32.42 a month lower. Of the other popup and widget tools on the chart, none scores higher than OptinMonster for less, and 1 scores higher than Thrive Leads 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
- OptinMonster also covers templates and no-code.
- Thrive Leads also covers reports.
At a glance
| OptinMonster | Thrive Leads | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Paid |
| Starts at | $210 per year at renewal, after a first year for $108 (Basic) | $599 per year at renewal, after a first year for $240 |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Retyp, LLC | Thrive Themes |
| Price read from | optinmonster.com | thrivethemes.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
OptinMonster
- It does not build or host pages: it runs on an existing site where you can add JavaScript, with plugins and guides for WordPress, Shopify and others.
- First-year prices are introductory; Basic renews at $210 a year, and monthly billing costs $21 a month.
- Exit Intent, countdown timers and Zapier need Pro; geolocation, retargeting and store integrations need Growth.
- Going over the impression limit moves the account up to the next plan automatically; there is no free plan or trial, only a 14-day refund.
Thrive Leads
- Needs a self-hosted WordPress.org site; it does not work on WordPress.com blogs.
- The pricing page sells Thrive Suite only, so Leads comes bundled with the other Thrive plugins and themes.
- The $240 first-year price is introductory; annual renewals are at the full $599.
- A standalone Thrive Leads subscription is mentioned on its page, but no price was visible there.
Key features
OptinMonster
- Campaign types
- Lightbox pop-ups, floating bars, inline and sidebar forms, slide-in scroll boxes, full-screen overlays, yes/no forms and, on Growth, coupon wheels.
- Drag-and-drop builder and templates
- Design campaigns from more than 700 templates without code, with custom fonts, CSS and success messages, and an AI Popups option.
- Targeting and triggers
- Show a campaign by page, time on site, scroll depth, device or referrer; Exit Intent detection starts at Pro and geolocation at Growth.
- A/B testing and analytics
- From Plus, split-test campaigns and see full reports; Pro adds revenue attribution to tie campaigns to sales.
- Onsite retargeting and follow-ups
- Growth can show different campaigns to new and returning visitors and follow up after someone has already signed up.
- Email and store integrations
- Sends sign-ups to email services such as Mailchimp and Constant Contact; Growth adds Shopify, WooCommerce and Magento integrations.
Thrive Leads
- Many opt-in form types
- ThriveBox lightbox popup, sticky ribbon, slide-in, inline form, 2-step opt-in, sidebar widget, screen filler, scroll mat and content lock.
- Drag-and-drop editor and templates
- Design forms visually from a library of pre-designed templates, with separate show-or-hide and editing options for mobile.
- Targeting
- Show forms by post, category, tag and more, and trigger them on exit intent, scroll, delay or click.
- A/B testing and reporting
- Test form variations and read stats on which forms and which pages and posts produce the most leads.
- SmartLinks and SmartExit
- Hide forms from, or show different offers to, existing subscribers, and use SmartExit to tailor exit offers.
- Email service connections
- Direct API connections to services such as ActiveCampaign, AWeber, Mailchimp and ConvertKit, or any HTML signup form.
Plans
OptinMonster
Basic (yearly)$210
per year at renewal, after a first year for $108
1 site and 2,500 campaign impressions a month, every campaign type, 700+ templates and page targeting. Advertised as $9 a month for the first year.
Basic (monthly)$21
per month, billed monthly
The Basic plan paid month to month: 1 site and 2,500 impressions a month, with basic marketing integrations.
Plus (yearly)$570
per year at renewal, after a first year for $324
2 sites, 10,000 impressions a month, A/B testing, device targeting and content locking. Advertised as $27 a month for the first year; $57 billed monthly.
Pro (yearly)$870
per year at renewal, after a first year for $444
3 sites, 25,000 impressions, exit intent, countdown timers, revenue attribution, Zapier and 2 sub-accounts. $37 a month the first year; $87 monthly.
Growth (yearly)$1,470
per year at renewal, after a first year for $804
5 sites, 100,000 impressions, geolocation, onsite retargeting, coupon wheels and unlimited sub-accounts. $67 a month the first year; $147 monthly.
EnterpriseCustom
Custom impression volumes with dedicated support, and optional Okta SSO login or custom integrations at extra cost.
Thrive Leads
Thrive Suite Yearly$599
per year at renewal, after a first year of $240
All 8 Thrive plugins including Leads, Theme Builder, 24/5 support, use on up to 5 websites. First year is $240.
Thrive Suite Quarterly$149
per quarter, for up to 5 websites
The same bundle, billed every quarter instead of yearly.
Ways to pay less
OptinMonster
- Other savings
Introductory first year at about half price
New annual plans cost $108 (Basic), $324 (Plus), $444 (Pro) or $804 (Growth) for the first year, then renew at $210, $570, $870 or $1,470.
- Annual discount
Annual plans cost less than paying monthly
Basic renews at $210 a year against $21 a month ($252 a year) on monthly billing, and Growth at $1,470 against $147 a month.
Thrive Leads
- Other savings
First-year Thrive Suite price of $240
The pricing page shows Thrive Suite yearly at $240 as special introductory pricing against $599; annual renewals are at the full price.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, OptinMonster or Thrive Leads?
As of Nov 12, 2026, OptinMonster is cheaper to start with: $17.50 a month when paid by the year, against $49.92 a month when paid by the year for Thrive Leads. OptinMonster starts at $210 per year at renewal, after a first year for $108 (Basic), and Thrive Leads starts at $599 per year at renewal, after a first year for $240.
Which has a free plan, OptinMonster or Thrive Leads?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither OptinMonster nor Thrive Leads has a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.