ActiveCampaign
Close
| Feature | ActiveCampaign | Close |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | From $15/mo | From $49/mo |
| Free Plan | ✗ No | ✗ No |
| Rating | 4.5 / 5 | 4.5 / 5 |
| Best For | ecommerce-businesses, saas-companies, marketing-agencies, small-businesses | inside-sales-teams, startups, smbs, call-heavy-teams |
| Founded | 2003 | 2013 |
| Email Marketing | ✓ | ✗ |
| Marketing Automation | ✓ | ✗ |
| Crm | ✓ | ✗ |
| Sales Automation | ✓ | ✗ |
| Landing Pages | ✓ | ✗ |
| Sms Marketing | ✓ | ✗ |
| Predictive Sending | ✓ | ✗ |
| Calling | ✗ | ✓ |
| Email Sequences | ✗ | ✓ |
| Pipeline | ✗ | ✓ |
| Sms | ✗ | ✓ |
| Predictive Dialer | ✗ | ✓ |
| Reporting | ✗ | ✓ |
| Workflows | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ ActiveCampaign Pros
- Most powerful automation builder in email marketing
- Combined CRM and email in one platform
- Excellent deliverability rates consistently
- 800+ integrations with third-party tools
✗ ActiveCampaign Cons
- Steeper learning curve than simpler tools
- No free plan available
- Reporting could be more intuitive
✓ Close Pros
- Built-in VoIP calling and SMS
- Powerful email sequences with tracking
- Designed specifically for inside sales workflow
- Fast setup — productive in minutes not weeks
✗ Close Cons
- No free tier available
- Limited marketing automation
- Fewer integrations than HubSpot or Salesforce
The Verdict
ActiveCampaign is built for ecommerce businesses and saas companies, with a focus on email-marketing and marketing-automation. Close targets inside sales teams and startups and leads with calling and email-sequences.
On pricing, ActiveCampaign is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $15/mo compared to $49/mo for Close. That $34/mo difference adds up quickly for growing teams.
Neither tool offers a free plan, so factor the subscription cost into your decision from the start.
This is a genuinely close comparison. If you can, sign up for both free trials (where available) and run a one-week test with your actual team tasks before deciding.