ActiveCampaign
AWeber
Campaign Monitor
1. User sentiment: ActiveCampaign wins with a higher rating.
| Feature | ActiveCampaign | AWeber | Campaign Monitor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Rating | 4.5/5 (13K+ reviews) | 4.2/5 (600+ reviews) | 4.7/5 (1000+ reviews) |
| Ease of Use Sentiment | Valued for powerful customization, but has a steeper learning curve as noted in online reviews | Well-regarded for helpful support | Consistently praised as intuitive and user-friendly |
| Customer Support | Chat and ticket support but lacks phone or advanced deliverability assistance | Virtual events, AWeber community, knowledge base | 24/5 global support with phone access (premier plan), email assistance, and deliverability expertise. |
| User Loyalty | High retention among growth-focused businesses | Free migration services | Many users report 10+ years of usage |
| Best for → | Growing businesses needing advanced features | Small and mid-sized businesses | Marketers prioritizing design and support |
ActiveCampaign receives strong reviews for its comprehensive feature set, though some users note a steeper learning curve. The platform is popular among businesses that need decent automation and CRM capabilities. AWeber consistently receives praise from small business owners with simpler email marketing needs.
Campaign Monitor by Marigold strikes a balance between the two, offering powerful features in an intuitive interface. Users consistently praise the platform's design capabilities and exceptional support quality, with many reporting long-term satisfaction and loyalty.
"LOVE Campaign Monitor... it's very user friendly. The support is exceptional. It helps us reach a large audience in a personal way and a format which drives results above industry benchmarks.”
2. Design & user experience: AWeber excels in simplicity, while ActiveCampaign offers advanced customization
| Feature | ActiveCampaign | AWeber | Campaign Monitor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Email Editor | Drag-and-drop builder | Drag-and-drop email designer with content assistance | Intuitive drag-and-drop email builder with auto-branded templates |
| Template Library | A wide range of email templates | Responsive templates with Canva integration | Mobile-optimized templates with auto-branding |
| Customization Level | Deep, HTML customization with conditional content | HTML customization | Balance of simplicity and customization (Deep HTML customization supported) |
| Design Assistance | AI Brand Kit for instant branding application | Global control of fonts, colors, and header/footer elements | Auto-branded templates from website URL |
| Best for → | Multi-industry businesses | Beginners needing AI guidance | Marketers wanting professional design without complexity |
ActiveCampaign provides sophisticated designing and capabilities through its email builder and responsive templates. However, its customization capabilities come with a steep learning curve as frequently noted in online reviews, whereas AWeber offers a drag-and-drop email designer with responsive templates, along with global control of fonts, colors, and header/footer elements, and mobile editor and keyboard shortcuts
Campaign Monitor offers a drag-and-drop email builder, responsive templates, auto-branding capabilities, and HTML customization support to help create visually appealing campaigns. The platform offers the best balance, with users consistently praising its intuitive drag-and-drop builder that delivers professional results without overwhelming complexity.
"Role Models used Campaign Monitor's drag-and-drop email builder to maintain a consistent brand presence across communications, helping them achieve a 23.5% open rate and 12.6% click-through rate, driving a 24% increase in bookings."
3. Automation & journeys: ActiveCampaign dominates automation sophistication
| Feature | ActiveCampaign | AWeber | Campaign Monitor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trigger Options | Contact behavior, purchases, web/app activity | Subscriber actions and wait/delay triggers | Time-based, behavior-based, and event-based triggers |
| Workflow Complexity | Conditional splits | If/else branching | Comprehensive, if/then branching |
| Prebuilt Journeys | 950+ automation recipes | Welcome, abandoned cart, RSS triggers | Welcome series, abandoned cart, anniversaries, events |
| Advanced Features | AI-powered workflow generation | Ecommerce funnels, behavioral targeting | Send time optimization and time zone sending feature |
| Best for → | Businesses requiring sophisticated customer journeys | Ecommerce businesses needing sales funnels | Businesses requiring sophisticated automation |
ActiveCampaign offers 950+ pre-built automation recipes and AI-powered workflow generation. Users can input goals and generate complete automated sequences. AWeber offers prebuilt workflows like welcome series, abandoned cart, onboarding emails and supports workflow automation with triggers like subscriber actions and wait/delay. Campaign Monitor has this as an intuitive built-in feature for users.
With simple branching and prebuilt journeys (welcome series, abandoned cart, anniversaries), Campaign Monitor makes advanced automation easier to implement without sacrificing capability
"Wonderful Union saved 40 hours weekly using Campaign Monitor's automated email campaigns and saw a 13% increase in CTR on automated sequences, generating a 700% ROI from email marketing campaigns."
4. Deliverability & performance: Both platforms deliver strong performance with different strengths
| Feature | ActiveCampaign | AWeber | Campaign Monitor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delivery Rate | Industry-standard delivery rates (the exact number isn’t mentioned on the website) | 99.8% delivery rate | 99% delivery rate with strong reputation |
| Inbox Placement | Dedicated deliverability control | Strong reputation with ISPs | Strong reputation with email providers |
| Deliverability Tools | Omnichannel reporting with attribution models | In-house experts, DMARC/SPF/DKIM setup | Inbox previews, spam testing, access to deliverability experts |
| Performance Monitoring | Deliverability insights and BotSense filtering | Advanced analytics, link tracking | Real-time performance dashboards with bot click filtering |
| Best for → | Teams needing detailed attribution and insights | Businesses needing deliverability expertise | Businesses prioritizing reliable delivery with expert support |
ActiveCampaign offers performance monitoring across multiple channels and BotSense filtering. AWeber on the other hand, offers in-house experts, DMARC/SPF/DKIM setup and advanced analytics.
Campaign Monitor also offers these features as built-in. The platform offers unique advantages with access to deliverability experts, real-time tracking, inbox previews, spam testing, and non-human click filtering that removes bot (non-human) activity from reports. This combination of reliable infrastructure and expert support makes it ideal for businesses that want excellent deliverability without technical complexity.
"We use Campaign Monitor because it is quite easy to use. It is also very reasonably priced. We haven't had any problems with deliverability or in creating the emails."
5. Segmentation & personalization: ActiveCampaign leads in advanced segmentation capabilities
| Feature | ActiveCampaign | AWeber | Campaign Monitor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Segmentation Capabilities | Behavior-based and AI-powered segmentation (e.g., web visits, purchase data, CRM activity) | Segmentation using search criteria, tags, and custom fields | Custom fields and advanced segmentation using demographic and behavioral data |
| Dynamic Content | Conditional and dynamic content blocks | Dynamic content using tags and custom fields | Dynamic content blocks using if/else logic and custom fields |
| Personalization Options | Automatically generated personalization tags | Personalization using subscriber’s info (e.g., name, email) and custom fields | Supports default tags (name, email) and up to 50 custom fields (birthday, country) |
| Predictive Analytics | Customer lifetime value, purchase likelihood | Limited | Send time optimization and time zone sending feature |
| Targeting Precision | AI-assisted audience segmentation using detailed behavioral and profile data | Strong targeting using search criteria, tags, and custom fields | Strong targeting by engagement, behavior, demographics, and preferences |
| Best for → | Complex audience targeting needs | Simpler personalization and segmentation needs | Marketer-friendly yet sophisticated personalization |
ActiveCampaign offers predictive analytics that can determine Customer lifetime value and purchase likelihood. The platform also provides custom fields, dynamic content blocks, personalization tags, and AI-suggested segments with field types (e.g., dropdowns, checkboxes, hidden fields), whereas AWeber caters to simpler needs with segmentation through custom fields (name, email), dynamic content, and a subscriber preference center.
Campaign Monitor provides the perfect sweet spot with segmentation and personalization tools delivered through a structured and user-friendly platform built for marketers. The platform excels with powerful segmentation tools, including custom fields and behavioral data (location, purchase history, etc), dynamic content, and a fully customizable preference center (frequency, topics). It supports up to 50 custom fields and personalization tags (name, birthday, country).
The Australian Red Cross used Campaign Monitor's preference center and smart segmentation to achieve a 68% increase in open rates, a 201% increase in click-through rates, and a 75% increase in conversions from a single personalized email campaign.
6. Integration ecosystem: ActiveCampaign offers broader integration ecosystem
| Feature | ActiveCampaign | AWeber | Campaign Monitor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Integrations | 950+ available integrations | 750+ integrations | 250+ integrations with focus on quality |
| E-commerce Platforms | Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Magento | Shopify, WooCommerce, PayPal | Shopify, WooCommerce, MailSync |
| CRM Integrations | Salesforce, Pipedrive, Zoho CRM | Open API and webhooks | Integrations with various CRM platforms (Salesforce, Zoho, Zapier) |
| API Access | API access for bi-directional sync | API access | Robust API for custom integrations |
| Best for → | Teams needing extensive third-party connections | Extensive third-party connectivity | Marketers working with major platforms seeking quality |
ActiveCampaign offers integrations spread over different industries like ecommerce, reporting and analytics, etc. AWeber also offers a strong integration coverage for the tools most small businesses use, including major ecommerce platforms and payment processors.
While ActiveCampaign and AWeber offer a broader integration variety, Campaign Monitor delivers a more structured, marketer-focused experience with deeper connections to core marketing tools.
Campaign Monitor offers integrations with strong native integrations to platforms like Salesforce, Shopify, WooCommerce, HubSpot, etc. It also provides flexible API access (RESTful API v3.3) to support custom workflows and third-party apps.
Girls Who Code leveraged Campaign Monitor's Salesforce integration with custom fields for deeper list precision, helping them achieve a 40% email open rate, 22% click-to-open rate, and a 150% increase in student applications.
7. AI-powered features: AWeber dominates AI-powered content creation
| Feature | ActiveCampaign | AWeber | Campaign Monitor |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI Content Creation | Generative AI for emails, landing pages, subject lines | AI writing assistant for full emails and subject lines | Content creation with AI writer |
| Design Intelligence | AI Brand Kit with instant font, color, logo application | Mobile editor and Canva integration | Personalized copy suggestions (adapt your content for specific audiences), auto-branding |
| Optimization Tools | AI campaign builder creates entire journeys from prompts, AI segment builder | Subject line assistant, content optimization | A/B testing with insights & goals (increase open-rates, click-through rates, and visits to a URL) |
| Predictive Features | Win probability, customer lifetime value, churn risk | Limited | Send time recommendation & time zone sending feature |
| Best for → | Teams needing AI-powered workflow automation | Small businesses wanting AI writing assistance | Focused AI assistance for marketers |
AWeber offers an AI writer to generate email drafts and subject lines, link previews, and a mobile editor. ActiveCampaign offers comprehensive automation, predictive analytics, and content generation with tools like AI campaign builder, AI writer, and AI Brand Kit
Campaign Monitor offers focused AI tools for marketers—like the AI writer to create content and refine copy, send time optimization (sending emails when a subscriber is most likely to engage), and a time zone sending feature that adjusts delivery times to match each subscriber’s local time.
While ActiveCampaign offers more AI tools, Campaign Monitor's approach provides practical assistance that integrates seamlessly into the workflow without requiring extensive setup or configuration.
8. Pricing & scalability: Both platforms offer similar entry points
| Feature | ActiveCampaign | AWeber | Campaign Monitor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free Plan | 14-day free trial | 14-day free trial | $0 (500 contacts) |
| Entry-Level Plan | Starter: Starts at $15 USD/month | Lite: Starts at $15/month | Lite: Starts at $12 USD/month |
| Mid-Tier Plan | Plus: Starts at $49 USD/month Pro: Starts at $79 USD/month | Plus: Starts at $30/month | Essentials: Starts at $29 USD/month |
| Premium | Enterprise: Starts at $145 USD/month | Unlimited: $899/month | Premier: Starts at $159 USD/month |
| Best for → | Businesses needing advanced features | Small businesses | Businesses wanting accessible entry with room to grow |
ActiveCampaign, AWeber, and Campaign Monitor offer flexible pricing based on your contact and month send needs.
9. Support & resources: AWeber provides consistent support across all plans
| Feature | ActiveCampaign | AWeber | Campaign Monitor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Support Channels | Chat and ticket support available on all plans | 24/7 support via email, live chat, and phone on all plans; priority support is available from mid-tier and onwards | 24/5 global support via multiple channels (email support on all tiers, phone support on Premium) |
| Response Quality | Generally well-regarded for helpful support, but some online reviews suggest longer response time | Well-regarded for helpful support | Fast response times consistently praised |
| Knowledge Resources | Help docs, training & events | Virtual events, AWeber community, knowledge base | Extensive help center, training videos, and email academy (even on free plan) |
| Onboarding Support | Onboarding assistance on higher tiers | Free migration services | Professional services team available |
| Best for → | Teams wanting guidance | Small businesses needing guidance | Businesses valuing responsive support |
AWeber offers 24/7 support via email, live chat, and phone, along with a knowledge base and personalized account management (premium plan), whereas ActiveCampaign offers chat and ticket support, with guidance delivered through its resource center and training tools.
Campaign Monitor, on the other hand, offers 24/5 global support via email and phone (premium plan), access to deliverability experts regardless of plan tier, onboarding assistance, and extensive resources like training videos and an email academy.
"Been working with Campaign Monitor for 10+ years… Not only does the platform make sending highly-customized emails easy and fun, their support team is phenomenal… Highly recommend."
