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ActiveCampaign starts at $15/month for 1,000 contacts. Sounds cheap until your list hits 10,000 — then you’re paying $125-250/month depending on your plan. And that’s before CRM, SMS, and transactional email add-ons. We calculated the real cost at every list size and compared it to Mailchimp, Kit, and Brevo to see if ActiveCampaign’s automation power justifies the price.
All pricing verified March 2026 from activecampaign.com.
Every ActiveCampaign Plan
| Plan | 1,000 contacts | 5,000 contacts | 10,000 contacts | Key features |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $15/mo | $55/mo | $95/mo | Email marketing, basic automations |
| Plus | $49/mo | $99/mo | $159/mo | Landing pages, forms, AI, segmentation |
| Pro | $79/mo | $149/mo | $229/mo | Attribution, split automations, predictive sending |
| Enterprise | $145/mo | $259/mo | $399/mo | Custom objects, HIPAA, dedicated rep |
No free plan. The cheapest option is Starter at $15/month for 1,000 contacts. Every tier scales with contact count — and the pricing ramps aggressively past 5,000 contacts.
$1,140 → $2,748 /year
Starter: $95 × 12 = $1,140/year
Plus: $159 × 12 = $1,908/year
Pro: $229 × 12 = $2,748/year
$15/month is the starting price. $229/month is the real price for serious use.
What Each Plan Actually Includes
Starter ($15/mo): Email Marketing Only
Email campaigns, basic automations (welcome series, autoresponders), 150+ templates, drag-and-drop builder. One user. No landing pages, no CRM, no advanced segmentation.
Good enough for: Solopreneurs sending newsletters with basic automated sequences. If email marketing is “send a weekly newsletter + a welcome series,” Starter works.
Plus ($49/mo): Where It Gets Useful
Landing pages, advanced forms, AI content generation, contact scoring, site tracking, basic segmentation, SMS marketing (add-on). Up to 3 users.
This is the plan most businesses need. Landing pages + forms + contact scoring turn ActiveCampaign from an email tool into a lead generation system.
Pro ($79/mo): Automation Powerhouse
Split automations (A/B test entire sequences), predictive sending (AI picks optimal send time per contact), conversion attribution (which campaigns drove sales), conditional content, and 5 users.
Pro is where ActiveCampaign earns its reputation. The automation builder is the best in the category — branching logic, if/then conditions, wait steps, goal tracking. No other tool at this price matches ActiveCampaign’s automation depth.
The CRM Add-On: Another $68+/Month
ActiveCampaign’s CRM is not included in any marketing plan. It’s a separate add-on starting at $68/month. Pipeline management, deal tracking, task assignment, and sales automations.
Pro + CRM at 5,000 contacts: $149 + $68 = $217/month = $2,604/year. That’s approaching HubSpot Professional territory — where CRM is included.
ActiveCampaign vs Competitors at 5,000 Contacts
| Tool | Monthly cost | Automations | CRM included |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brevo | $25 (unlimited contacts) | Basic | Yes (free) |
| MailerLite | $39 | Good | No |
| Kit (ConvertKit) | $79 | Good | No |
| ActiveCampaign Plus | $99 | Best-in-class | Add-on ($68+) |
| Mailchimp Standard | $100 | Good | No |
| HubSpot Starter | $20/seat | Basic | Yes (free CRM) |
ActiveCampaign is the most expensive email marketing tool on this list. The premium buys you the best automation builder in the market. If you use 2-3 basic automations, you’re overpaying. If you run 20+ complex sequences with branching logic, nothing else competes.
Is ActiveCampaign Worth the Price?
It depends on how much you use automations.
- Light automation (welcome series + newsletter): No. Brevo at $25/month or MailerLite at $39/month handles this at a fraction of the cost.
- Moderate automation (5-10 sequences, tags, scoring): Maybe. Kit at $79/month offers good automation with a simpler interface. ActiveCampaign is more powerful but more complex.
- Heavy automation (20+ sequences, A/B split paths, predictive sending, attribution): Yes. ActiveCampaign Pro is the only tool under $300/month that handles this level of complexity.
Who Should Pick What
Automation-first marketers: ActiveCampaign Pro ($79+/mo). Best automation builder in email marketing. Worth the premium if you build complex, multi-step sequences with branching logic.
Small business, need basics: Skip ActiveCampaign. Brevo ($25/mo unlimited contacts) or MailerLite ($39/mo) do basic email + automation at 60-75% less cost.
Need CRM + email in one tool: HubSpot instead. ActiveCampaign’s CRM is a $68/mo add-on. HubSpot includes CRM for free and bundles email marketing from $20/seat.
E-commerce store: ActiveCampaign Plus ($49+/mo). Deep Shopify/WooCommerce integration, abandoned cart sequences, product recommendation automations. The e-commerce automations are excellent.
Content creator: Kit (ConvertKit) instead. Built for creators with simpler pricing and tag-based organization. ActiveCampaign is more powerful than most creators need.
Budget under $30/month: ActiveCampaign Starter ($15/mo) only if you have under 1,000 contacts. Above that, Brevo ($25/mo for unlimited contacts) is cheaper.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does ActiveCampaign have a free plan?
No. 14-day free trial only. The cheapest plan is Starter at $15/month for 1,000 contacts. If you need free email marketing, try Brevo, MailerLite, or Mailchimp Free.
Is ActiveCampaign better than Mailchimp?
For automations: significantly better. For ease of use and templates: Mailchimp is simpler. For pricing: nearly identical at 5,000 contacts ($99 vs $100). Choose ActiveCampaign for automation depth, Mailchimp for simplicity.
Can ActiveCampaign replace HubSpot?
For email marketing and automations: yes, and it’s often better. For CRM, content management, and all-in-one marketing: no. HubSpot’s integrated platform covers more ground. ActiveCampaign is a specialist; HubSpot is a generalist.
All pricing verified March 2026 from activecampaign.com. Annual billing rates shown. Prices scale with contact count.
