ActiveCampaign Vs GetResponse – Which Is Best For Your Online Business In 2024?

You’ve probably heard that for every $1 you spend on email marketing, you can expect an average return of $42.

But if you’re like most folks, getting that kind of ROI isn’t as easy as it sounds. Because converting leads into paying customers can be challenging at the best of times.

Thankfully the right email software makes things a whole lot easier.

In this ActiveCampaign Vs GetResponse guide, we’ll cover the ins and outs of each software and help you decide which solution is best to help you grow your business.

Ready to get started? Let’s jump in.

The Main Differences Between ActiveCampaign vs GetResponse

Both ActiveCampaign and GetResponse offer a host of useful features that’ll allow you to level up your email marketing campaigns. 

And on the surface, it can appear they’re very similar – both let you create sign-up forms, send newsletters, segment your audience and perform A/B testing.

However, there are also distinct differences you should be aware of. Sure, some of the differences may seem small. But you’d be surprised at the impact they can have on your email campaigns down the line. 

Without beating around the bush, here are the key points of difference you need to know about:

• GetResponse offers you a landing page builder that’s been around longer than ActiveCampaign’s 
• GetResponse allows you to take payments via landing pages, whereas this is not possible with ActiveCampaign
• GetResponse comes with built-in webinar features, whereas ActiveCampaign doesn’t
• ActiveCampaign comes with built-in SMS messaging, while GetResponse only allows you to contact your mailing list via email (however, this can be achieved via the integration of 3rd party software)
• ActiveCampaign has machine learning tools, while GetResponse has no such feature
• ActiveCampaign’s trial lasts 14 days, while you can enjoy a full month with GetResponse

The impact these differences have on your email marketing will vary depending on your goals and what you’re trying to achieve.

For example, if you’re looking to host regular webinars or sell products via custom landing pages, then GetResponse would be the obvious choice.

However, if one of your primary communication channels is SMS, or you’d like to create automation maps, ActiveCampagin will probably serve your needs better.

Before deciding, It’s essential to be clear about what you’re looking to get out of your software. Once you know that you’ll be in a better position to make the best choice.

With the primary differences out of the way, how do they compare when it comes to performance in other areas?

Let’s start by going back to basics.

Basic Features

Right off the bat, both ActiveCampaign and GetResponse offer users an excellent basic set of email marketing features:

• The ability to send bulk emails
• Drag & drop email builders
• Various list management tools
• Messaging automation features
• Easy integration with your existing software

However, GetResponse has the edge in our book.

It’s got a more intuitive user interface that makes creating enticing emails with its drag & drop builder is a breeze. Plus, it comes with 500+ high-converting email templates plus 1,000s of quality stock images so you can hit the ground running.

GetResponse’s reporting is also incredibly easy to understand for first-time email marketers and solopreneurs. And its ability to automatically scale emails to fit all devices and great customization tools means your emails always look professional.

Of course, none of this is to say that ActiveCampaign lacks in the basic feature department. It is also dead easy to use. It offers all of the standard tools you’d expect from a top-tier email marketing software. But when it comes down to it, GetResponse takes the biscuit by a small margin.

And the winner is…

A cleaner user interface combined with a vast collection of professional email templates means that GetResponse performs slightly better when weighing up both platforms’ basic email marketing features.

Pricing

As you know, running a successful business involves keeping a keen eye on your budget. So, when it comes to email marketing, you need to make sure that you’re getting the best return on your investment.

Both ActiveCampaign and GetResponse charge fees based on how many subscribers you have in your list (this is pretty typical of most providers)

ActiveCampaign offers users 4 tiers of subscription:

• Lite
• Plus
• Professional
• Enterprise

The Lite plan (starting at $9/mo) includes all the basic features and allows up to 3 users to access the account, while the higher tiers allow for 25, 50, and unlimited, respectively. Higher plans also come with greater functionality, such as SMS marketing, lead tag scoring, and predictive sending.

A small pain with ActiveCampaign is that if you’ve got a list above 50,000 subscribers (or email lists that sum up to 50k+), you have to contact them to request pricing (in all tiers except Lite, which clocks in at $239/mo when paid annually)

GetResponse, on the other hand, comes in at a lower price point on each of its 4 tiers:

• Basic
• Plus
• Professional
• Max

Again, each tier offers you an increasing number of features, so it’s important to choose the tier that can deliver the functionality you’re looking for.

Overall, GetResponse clocks in significantly cheaper per subscriber at roughly equivalent pricing tiers. In fact, GetResponse is less expensive than most of its competitors. That means you can get more for your money’s worth.

And the winner is…

GetResponse takes 1st place in the email marketing tool pricing battle. Compared with ActiveCampaign, GetResponse gives you a similar level of functionality at a lower price. 

Plus, if you pay upfront for 24 months with GetResponse, you’ll get a 30% discount off the monthly fee, making the platform better value than just about anyone else offering the same service.

Forms & Landing Pages

Growing a valuable list all begins with getting them to sign-up via your forms and landing pages.

Both ActiveCampaign and GetResponse let you build forms to capture new leads.

ActiveCampaigns form builder is straightforward to use and offers you the ability to create four different types of forms.

• Inline forms
• Floating Box Forms
• Modal Pop-ups
• Floating Bar forms

They have a good selection of premade templates to use, which you can customize to keep everything on your site looking consistent. And the floating bar form is a sweet addition that’s sure to help achieve a higher conversion rate.

UPDATE: ActiveCampaign now offers its own landing page tool called Pages!

GetResponse lets you build forms and pop-ups through the platform List Builder Wizard. But where GetResponse comes to the fore is with its in-built landing page creator.

This is a handy feature that allows you to save money on using a 3rd party landing page builder while also skyrocketing your conversion rates.

GetResponse’s page builder integrates with various e-commerce solutions (Shopify, WooCommerce) and payment process (Stripe, PayPal), which makes selling your products or services online a breeze.

The page builder also lets you run A/B tests on your sales pages and landing pages to determine which is converting at a higher rate.

And the winner is…

Being able to construct and test landing pages and take payments and sell products through your email service means that GetResponse comes up trumps in this category.

While ActiveCampaign’s feature-rich form builder with floating bar option deserves an honorable mention, it simply can’t compare to the scope of what’s achievable with GetResponse.

Tagging & Segmentation

How important is segmentation in email marketing?

Well, according to HubSpot, marketers who used segmented campaigns noted as much as a 760% increase in revenue. Yikes.

That means that reliable segmentation tools are vital in email software. Does ActiveCampaign or GetResponse offer better tagging and segmentation features?

Well, one thing is for sure, GetResponse makes it super simple to get started grouping your list into related groups for maximized relevance.

Even if you’re new to email marketing, GetResponse lets you quickly and easily use custom filters based on behaviors and conditions such as:

• Contact custom data
• Geolocation
• Subscription date and source
• Last message date
• Contact engagement (opens and clicks)
• Completeness of autoresponder sequence

One excellent feature is that you use a single screen to locate subscribers and refine them by your segmentation characteristics. As you refine your search, you can immediately view the total number of results on the counter.

However, segmentation and tagging are something that the folks at Active Campaign got very, very right.

The software allows you to combine segmentation with the sales tracking tool.  This means you can tag website visitors based on their behavior on your site and send them hyper-relevant emails.

Throwing this advanced tagging functionality together with Active Campaigns proprietary lead-scoring system will allow you to quickly focus your efforts on converting those subscribers who are most likely to become a customer.

And the winner is…

ActiveCampaign’s more sophisticated segmentation and tagging features mean it edges past GetResponse in this battle. 

Being able to gather insights from your website analytics and your CRM to identify high-value segments is something that GetResponse’s segmentation features don’t handle as well.

Email Automation

It’s no secret that marketing automation features can help you massively increase your business efficiency. Companies that excel in lead nurturing generate 50% more sales-ready leads at 33% lower cost per lead.

So, choosing an email solution that allows you to build compelling email marketing campaign flows to welcome, follow-up, and build relationships with your subscribers is essential.

ActiveCampaign provides a visual ‘workflow builder,’ which makes it easy to visualize and plan your email flows. Using simple ‘if this, then that’ logic means you can build complex autoresponders without losing track of what’s going on.

Combine this with ActiveCampaign’s aforementioned intelligent tagging, and you quickly open up a world of incredible opportunities to build email flows that convert.

Additionally, the sales and CRM offerings with ActiveCampaign provide you with lead scoring features, while machine learning marketing tools allow you to identify your best performing email marketing campaigns.

Plus, with ActiveCampaign, you’re able to seamlessly integrate SMS marketing automation as part of your autoresponder sequences – a valuable feature and something that’s not offered by GetResponse.

GetResponse, on the other hand, offers ready-made automation workflows. This means getting started is super-easy, even if you’re a beginner.

Just choose your goal, tweak the template, and you’ll have your first campaign ready to send.

Like ActiveCampaign, GetResponse offers lead scoring, which allows you to build individual contact profiles based on your customer behavior by assigning points to visitor actions.

A valuable feature that helps you reach the right people at the right time.

GetResponse’s tagging also makes it easy to send personalized and highly relevant emails based on actions and conditions that your customers do or don’t take.

And if you’re an eCommerce store owner, GetResponse is great for creating abandoned cart flows and product recommendations to increase sales. 

And the winner is…

This one is close. Ultimately, it depends on what you’re looking for.

If you’re looking for an initiative marketing automation software that makes it easy to get started sending emails and nurturing leads into customers, you won’t be disappointed by GetResponse’s performance in this category.

However, suppose you’ve got a more complex sales funnel and customer segments. If you want to leverage the full power of advanced marketing automation, ActiveCampaign is the better choice for you.

A/B Testing & Analytics

A/B split testing is essential to help you understand which email strategies are most effective and allow you to drive leads quicker, conversions, and revenue.

ActiveCampaign offers you a comprehensive suite of A/B split testing options and detailed analytics.

With testing, the platform gives you many options – you can test the form information, email subject lines, CTAs, images, and you can also test the performance of your entire email automation sequence.

The platform lets you determine a winner based on whatever goal you’re looking to achieve. For example, you can evaluate which flow drives the most engagement to your site or which one gets the most opens and reads.

Overall, ActiveCampiagn gives users a lot of control over your A/B testing, which allows you to become a better email marketer and adds heaps of value to your business.

When it comes to analytics and reports, ActiveCampaign certainly doesn’t leave you in the dark. It has plenty of features to offer, including detailed statistics for opens, click-maps, page visits, and geo-tracking.

Ecommerce reports are also available on specific plans for Shopify, BigCommerce, and WooCommerce, which is a nice addition.

Moving on to GetResponse, the platform’s testing features are robust and allow you to test, analyze, and tweak your emails and email flows for peak performance.

You run tests to compare message content, subject line, sent from field, time of day, and day of the week. You can create up to 5 versions for any of the above tests to quickly identify what’s working and what needs editing.

GetResponse also boasts a substantial range of analytics and reporting options. It includes all the basics such as open rate, click-through rate, and unsubscribes – but it also offers some advantageous extra features.

For example, ‘one-click segmentation’ gives you the option to identify folks who didn’t engage with your emails so you can hit them with a different follow-up email designed to get them clicking.

The ‘metrics over time’ feature is also convenient as it allows you to determine when most of your audience is likely to take action on your emails and then plan future mailouts off the data.

Like ActiveCampaign, GetResponse allows eCommerce store owners to calculate their email ROI by installing a purchase-tracking line of code on their site.

Other valuable metrics provided by GetResponse are mobile vs desktop stats, social sharing stats, and activity tracking so you can see your open rate, CTRs, and goals reached in real-time and as they change hour by hour.

And the winner is…

Both platforms empower you to perform A/B testing and provide a slew of valuable metrics to maximize your return on investment.

But ActiveCampaign’s reporting features make it easier to figure out what your audience wants from you – which is what email analytics is all about. For that reason, they take the win in this category.

Ease of Use

When you’ve got a business to run, the last thing you want is to have to spend hours on the phone to support trying to figure out how to use the product you’ve just purchased. 

That’s why ease of use is essential when it comes to choosing an email marketing platform. 

ActiveCampaign was the first platform to pioneer the aforementioned visual automation builder, which speaks volumes about its commitment to simplifying email marketing. Using the platform, you’ll quickly get a feel for how well-designed the user interface is. 

Clicking the ‘Getting Started’ widget will guide you through some of the initial steps required to launch your first few email campaigns – even showing you how to create your first opt-in form. Their premade templates are also great to help you get started.

However, ActiveCampaign’s greater overall functionality means it’s always going to have a steeper learning curve than GetResponse.

GetResponse provides a user-friendly interface with a start-up wizard to help you get to grips with the platform from your very first log-in.

You’ll find it very simple to import your existing contacts and get going in just a couple of clicks. 

GetResponse’s ‘Quick Actions’ interface allows users to create forms, landing pages, autoresponders, and newsletters with ease.

Both ActiveCampaign and GetResponse are all-in-one marketing platforms. As opposed to just email marketing, both interfaces might be a little overwhelming if you’re just getting started sending your first few emails.

At the same time, it’s unlikely that you’ll need training to use either platform.

As mentioned previously,  both platforms come with a free trial. Feel free to hop over and start mucking about with them to get a sense of what they’re like to use.

• Start Your ActiveCampaign 14-Day trial (No Credit Card Required)
• Start Your GetResponse 30-Day trial (No Credit Card Required)

And the winner is…

GetResponse wins this category thanks to a cleaner, more intuitive user interface that makes it easy to step up your email marketing from day one.

While ActiveCampaign isn’t challenging to get the hang of, its greater functionality necessitates that it’s going to take a little more time and effort to get familiar with.

Unique Features

While we’ve seen that both platforms offer a host of similar features, each also has unique features that the other doesn’t.

Depending on what you’re trying to achieve, these features could be a complete deal-breaker in deciding which software is right for you.

Active Campaign Unique Features

ActiveCampaign’s major unique offering is that the marketing automation tools extend into CRM, so there is a seamless transition from marketing to sales.

The same marketing automation tools that can be leveraged during the marketing process can also automate many tasks during the sales process and event management.

ActiveCampaign also boasts the ability to incorporate SMS marketing into your automated marketing flows.

This is massive because research tells us that SMS open rates are as high as 98% (compare this to just 20% for emails). On average, it takes only 90 seconds for someone to respond to a text where it takes 90 minutes to respond to an email.

So, being able to incorporate SMS’s power into your automated flows is a great way to make sure your customers get your message and drive more of the conversions you’re looking for.

Lastly, ActiveCampaign has an array of machine-learning marketing tools. These powerful algorithms can help you turn your raw data points (sign-ups, leads, sales, phone calls, etc.) into valuable insights that drive real business growth.

Update: ActiveCampaign Now Has a Landing Page Tool!

In mid-2020, ActiveCampaign introduced Pages! Their new drag-and-drop page editor. This is yet another form to build your email contact lists. Better late than never.

GetResponse Unique Features

With GetResponse, you get the ability to build high-converting landing pages directly without leaving the platform.

Using the drag-and-drop builder, you can build your list and send emails all from the same place. There’s no need to code or even be a designer because the stock templates can be edited and deployed in a couple of minutes.

Additionally, you can take payment through the platform landing pages, which means you can build an entire conversion funnel from lead magnet to order confirmation page without spending a cent on a third-party program.

Next up, GetResponse comes with the welcome ability to run webinars, which you can use to connect with your audience, build rapport, and entice them further down your sales funnel.

You can host webinars with up to 1,000 attendees and share the stage with up to 2 other presenters.

You’re also able to store up to 20 hours of recorded sessions, which lets you repurpose and reuse your live content in your email marketing campaigns – especially powerful for reminding and following up with your audience when combined with GetResponses email automation flows. 

Get Response also has a mobile app that lets you create & send emails, track campaign performance, deliverability rates, and manage your contacts on the go. With real-time marketing insights from your email campaigns at your fingertips, there’ll never be a moment when you’re out of the loop.

And the winner is…

We’ll have to declare this one a tie. Neither platform’s unique features outshine the other’s. The winner will be different depending on your marketing goals and how you plan to achieve them.

For example, If you’re looking for an all-in-one sales funnel builder with webinar functionality that’s easy to use, GetResponse might be the best value for money.

On the other hand, if you’re looking to extend marketing automation into your CRM and beef up your sales process with machine learning, ActiveCampaign would be your best bet (they also have a drag-and-drop page builder and landing page templates now).

Customer Support

When a problem arises, you want to know there’s an expert on hand to help you remedy it as quickly as possible. So, let’s compare how both platforms offer support to their users.

ActiveCampaign customers have several options to get in touch with support. They offer a ticketing system to submit requests for help and have a live chat option.

They’ve also got a fairly extensive help center to help you quickly find solutions to problems you’re encountering. Plus, they run regular training webinars to help you get the most from their software.

GetResponse prides itself on its support claiming that 96% of its current customers love them. They offer support in 8 different languages, including Spanish, German, French, and Polish, 24 hours a day.

Customers can get in contact with an agent via email or live chat. And like ActiveCampaign, GetResponse also has a help center where users can search for questions and get solutions to common issues.

And the winner is…

Both the ActiveCampaign and GetResponse platforms offer great support options. GetResponse’s 24/7 support is especially enticing. But rather than base this category on personal experience, let’s look at the power of numbers.

On Capterra, GetResponse has a customer service score of 4.1 out of 5 from 200+ votes. At the same time, ActiveCampaign comes in with a 4.4 out of 5 from 650+ votes. That means, all things being equal, ActiveCampaign takes victory in the customer service category.

ActiveCampaign: Pros & Cons

Let’s quickly round up some of the pros and cons of ActiveCampaign we’ve covered to this point.

Pros:

• High-powered email marketing & sales automation features
• CRM functionality
• Dynamic content designed to help email deliverability
• A huge number of integrations to work alongside your existing software
• Multi-channel communications (including SMS)
• Detailed analytics & machine learning tools
• Top-tier support

Cons:

• Lack of landing page builder
• A limited number of email templates
• No library of stock images
• No ability to host webinars

GetResponse: Pros & Cons

Now let’s turn out attention to GetResponse and what we’ve discussed so far:

Pros:

• Fantastic selection of high-quality email templates
• Super intuitive user interface & drag and drop builder
• Dynamic content based on marketing automation
• Landing page builder & Webinar functionality
• Affordable pricing
• 5000+ stock images
• 30-day free trial

Cons:

• Fewer integrations with your existing software
• Billing dates have been known to change without prior warning
• Tracking options aren’t as powerful

ActiveCampaign vs GetResponse – Which Should You Choose?

Both ActiveCampaign and GetResponse are among the best email marketing platforms you can use today.

As we’ve seen, while the basics are similar across both platforms, they also have significantly different offerings when it comes to other features. Taking everything together, we consider that you should…

Choose ActiveCampaign if…

You’re looking for a feature-rich email marketing platform that also combines powerful elements of customer relationship management. If multi-channel communications, wide integration, and advanced analytics are important to you, you won’t be disappointed with ActiveCampaign.

Choose GetResponse if…

You’re on the hunt for an easy-to-use email marketing tool that’ll allow you to grow your subscribers, create killer automation, and build an end-to-end conversion journey without leaving the program. If you want to use webinars, build landing pages, and create visually stunning emails, GetResponse is the right choice for you.

ActiveCampaign vs GetResponse FAQs

Got questions about ActiveCampaign and GetResponse? Great! A curious mind is never a bad thing. Let’s answer a few of the most common queries people have about both platforms.

How many email templates does ActiveCampaign offer?

Active Campaign comes with 30 email templates that you can customize to match your branding and style.

Can I use ActiveCampaign and GetResponse for free?

Yes, you can get started with a 14-day free trial on ActiveCampaign and a generous 30-day free trial with GetResponse. After the trial period, you’ll have to subscribe to keep using the platform. This is quite standard for any email marketing platform.

Does ActiveCampaign integrate with Shopify?

Yes, it does. However, you’ll need to upgrade to the Plus, Professional, or Enterprise plan to integrate it. Unfortunately, there is no Shopify integration on the lite plan.

Does ActiveCampaign provide CRM tools?

Yes – ActiveCampaign’s Deals CRM empowers your team to utilize this data to track relationship growth and sales stages. Not every email marketing tool offers this.

Can I build landing pages with GetResponse?

Yes – GetResponse allows users to build landing pages and take payments via its drag and drop page builder.

Does ActiveCampaign allow affiliate links?

Yes and no. You can put affiliate links into your emails with ActiveCampaign, but they’re not permitted to be the sole focus of the email.

With ActiveCampaign, It’s probably wiser to forgo putting direct links into your emails. You’ll get better results if you link to a well-designed landing page that contains your direct affiliate link instead.

How much does ActiveCampaign cost?

Pricing starts at $17/mo when paying annually for 1,000 contacts.

How much does GetResponse cost?

Pricing starts at $12.30/mo when paying annually for 1,000 contacts.

Wrapping Up ActiveCampaign vs GetResponse

Email marketing is an essential strategy that’ll help your business grow and reach its maximum potential. And at the heart of it lies your email marketing software.

Hopefully, this guide has been able to help you on your quest for a new email marketing software.

Remember that GetResponse and ActiveCampaign are excellent email marketing tools that can grow your audience, warm up your audience, and pull in more sales.

If you’re still unsure which is best for you, our best advice is to sign up for a free trial with both providers and see for yourself which is the best option for your business.

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