ActiveCampaign vs Constant Contact: Pricing, Automation, CRM
ActiveCampaign is the better choice for automation, CRM, integrations, and lead scoring. Constant Contact is the better choice for ease of use, deliverability, phone support, event tools, and a longer trial. If pricing is the deciding factor, Constant Contact is cheaper for simpler email needs, while ActiveCampaign is better value only when you will actually use its automation depth.
TL;DR
It depends on your needs.
ActiveCampaign wins on power: automation depth, CRM with deal pipelines, lead scoring, segmentation, and a larger integration ecosystem. Constant Contact wins on accessibility: faster setup, simpler campaign creation, phone support on all plans, a 60-day trial, strong deliverability, and event management. Pick ActiveCampaign when email automation drives revenue. Pick Constant Contact when the job is reliable small-business email without a complex setup.
ActiveCampaign vs Constant Contact: At a Glance
| Feature | ActiveCampaign | Constant Contact |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $15/mo (annual) | $12/mo (annual) |
| Free plan | ||
| Free trial | 14 days | 60 days |
| G2 rating | 4.5/5 (14,600+ reviews) | 4.0/5 (5,900+ reviews) |
| Primary purpose | Marketing automation + CRM | Simple email marketing |
| CRM included | Plus+ ($49/mo) | |
| Marketing automation | 135+ triggers, unlimited steps | 3 pre-built workflows |
| Event management | ||
| Email deliverability | High | 88% (independent tests) |
| Best for | Automation-driven marketers | Small businesses and nonprofits |
Which has better automation?
ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign's automation is in a different category. The visual builder supports 135+ triggers and actions, 500+ pre-built recipes, and unlimited steps on every plan including Starter. You can create complex multi-branch sequences with conditional logic, wait conditions, goal tracking, and split testing. Automations can trigger across email, SMS, CRM deals, site tracking, and internal notifications. If automation is what drives your email revenue, nothing in this price range matches ActiveCampaign.
Constant Contact
Constant Contact's automation is minimal. The Standard plan ($35/mo) includes 3 pre-built workflows: welcome, birthday, and anniversary. There's no visual flow builder, no conditional branching, and no behavioral triggers beyond email engagement. Premium ($80/mo) adds a few more templates but still lacks a custom automation builder. If you need anything beyond a basic welcome email, Constant Contact will hold you back.
Winner: ActiveCampaign. ActiveCampaign's automation is in a different category.
Which is easier to use?
ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign has a steeper learning curve. The automation builder is powerful but takes 3-4 sessions to learn properly. The interface is dense with features, and new users can feel overwhelmed. Most teams need a few weeks to get comfortable. The payoff is that once you learn it, you can build automations that Constant Contact users can only dream about.
Constant Contact
Constant Contact is one of the easiest email platforms to learn. You can create and send your first campaign in under 20 minutes. The editor is straightforward, templates are simple to customize, and phone support is available on every plan. For small business owners who don't have time to learn a complex tool, Constant Contact gets out of the way and lets you send emails.
Winner: Constant Contact. Constant Contact is one of the easiest email platforms to learn.
Which is cheaper?
ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign starts at $15/mo (Starter, billed annually) for 1,000 contacts. Plus with CRM is $49/mo. Pro with predictive content and attribution is $79/mo. There's no free plan, and the 14-day trial is short. At 10,000 contacts, Starter costs $79/mo and Pro jumps to $339/mo. Pricing scales aggressively at higher contact counts.
Constant Contact
Constant Contact starts at $12/mo (Lite, billed annually) for 500 contacts. Standard is $35/mo. Premium is $80/mo. There's no free plan, but the 60-day free trial is the longest in the category and doesn't require a credit card. At 10,000 contacts, Standard costs about $120/mo. The pricing is more predictable than ActiveCampaign's aggressive scaling.
Winner: Constant Contact. Constant Contact starts at $12/mo (Lite, billed annually) for 500 contacts.
Which has a better CRM?
ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign includes a CRM starting at the Plus plan ($49/mo). It covers deal pipelines, contact scoring, task management, and win probability. You can track deals alongside marketing automation and see which emails and automations contributed to closed deals. The CRM is basic compared to HubSpot or Salesforce but functional for small sales teams.
Constant Contact
Constant Contact doesn't have a CRM. It manages contacts with tags, segments, and custom fields, but there are no deal pipelines, no sales tracking, and no lead scoring. If you need to track sales alongside marketing, you'll need a separate tool.
Winner: ActiveCampaign. ActiveCampaign includes a CRM starting at the Plus plan ($49/mo).
Which has better deliverability?
ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign has strong deliverability with built-in spam testing, list hygiene tools, and predictive sending. It consistently scores well in independent deliverability tests. The platform enforces list quality standards, which helps maintain high inbox placement rates across its user base.
Constant Contact
Constant Contact has one of the highest deliverability rates in the industry at 88% in independent tests. It has built this reputation over 25+ years and maintains it through strict anti-spam policies and a well-managed sending infrastructure. For businesses where inbox placement is the top priority, Constant Contact has the strongest documented track record.
Winner: Constant Contact. Constant Contact has one of the highest deliverability rates in the industry at 88% in independent tests.
Which has better event management?
ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign doesn't have event management features. You can integrate with Eventbrite or similar tools through Zapier, but there's no native event ticketing, registration, or RSVP management.
Constant Contact
Constant Contact includes built-in event ticketing, registration forms, RSVP tracking, and survey tools. These features are unique in the email marketing category. For nonprofits, community organizations, and businesses that run regular events, this is a genuine differentiator that no competitor matches natively.
Winner: Constant Contact. Constant Contact includes built-in event ticketing, registration forms, RSVP tracking, and survey tools.
Pricing Comparison
ActiveCampaign
Starts at $15/mo · 14-day free trial
Starter
$19/mo
$15/mo billed annually
Plus
$59/mo
$49/mo billed annually
Pro
$99/mo
$79/mo billed annually
Enterprise
$159/mo
$129/mo billed annually
Constant Contact
Starts at $12/mo · 60-day free trial
Lite
$12/mo
$10/mo billed annually
Standard
$35/mo
$30/mo billed annually
Premium
$80/mo
$68/mo billed annually
Final Verdict
ActiveCampaign is the better choice for automation, CRM, integrations, and lead scoring. Constant Contact is the better choice for ease of use, deliverability, phone support, event tools, and a longer trial. If pricing is the deciding factor, Constant Contact is cheaper for simpler email needs, while ActiveCampaign is better value only when you will actually use its automation depth.
Choose ActiveCampaign if you...
- ✓You need advanced automation with conditional logic and behavioral triggers
- ✓You want a built-in CRM with deal pipelines alongside email marketing
- ✓Lead scoring and sales-marketing alignment are priorities
- ✓You're willing to invest time learning a more complex tool
- ✓You've outgrown Constant Contact's 3 pre-built workflows
Choose Constant Contact if you...
- ✓You want the simplest possible email marketing with minimal setup time
- ✓Email deliverability is your top concern
- ✓You run events and need ticketing, registration, and RSVP management
- ✓You're a nonprofit that needs discounted pricing and event tools
- ✓Phone support and a long free trial (60 days) matter to you
Frequently Asked Questions
If you use automation beyond basic welcome emails, yes. ActiveCampaign's automation builder pays for itself when you're running multi-step nurture sequences, behavioral triggers, and lead scoring. If you only send monthly newsletters and event invitations, the extra complexity adds no value.
Constant Contact has better pricing for simple email marketing because the entry plans are cheaper and easier to understand. ActiveCampaign is better value only if you need advanced automation, CRM, lead scoring, or complex segmentation.
Constant Contact is easier to use. Most small teams can create a campaign quickly without training. ActiveCampaign is still usable, but the automation builder and CRM features require more setup and a clearer contact strategy.
Constant Contact has the clearer deliverability advantage for small-business senders, with a long track record and strong independent test results. ActiveCampaign also performs well, especially for teams that maintain clean lists and use its hygiene tools.
ActiveCampaign has better CRM features. It includes deal pipelines, sales automation, lead scoring, tasks, and CRM-triggered automations on higher plans. Constant Contact is an email marketing platform with contact management, not a sales CRM.
ActiveCampaign has the stronger integration ecosystem, especially for CRM, ecommerce, analytics, and automation-heavy stacks. Constant Contact covers the common small-business integrations but is less flexible for complex workflows.
Constant Contact is better if phone support matters because phone support is available on all plans. ActiveCampaign offers strong support and education, but it is usually a better fit for teams comfortable learning a more advanced platform.
Yes. Export your contacts as a CSV from Constant Contact and import them into ActiveCampaign. ActiveCampaign offers migration assistance on higher plans. Email templates and automations need to be rebuilt. The 3 pre-built workflows from Constant Contact can typically be recreated in ActiveCampaign within a day.
ActiveCampaign. It supports A/B testing for email content on the Plus plan and split testing within automations on Pro. Constant Contact limits A/B testing to email subject lines only on the Standard plan, with no support for content testing or automation testing.
Constant Contact. It offers nonprofit discounts, event ticketing, registration forms, and survey tools built for organizations that run community events. ActiveCampaign has no event management features and doesn't offer nonprofit-specific pricing.
ActiveCampaign. It has 900+ native integrations plus 8,000+ through Zapier. Constant Contact has 300+ integrations. ActiveCampaign connects with more CRM, e-commerce, and analytics tools natively.
Read the Full Reviews
If one of these tools is still on your shortlist, read the full review before you decide. The review pages go deeper on pricing pressure, best-fit teams, and the trade-offs that do not fit neatly inside a side-by-side table.
ActiveCampaign Review
ActiveCampaign is one of the strongest choices for teams that genuinely need deeper marketing automation with a built-in CRM. It is a weaker choice for businesses that mainly want a simple email platform, a generous free tier, or a product that new users can master quickly.
Constant Contact Review
Constant Contact is still a workable choice for small businesses, nonprofits, and event-driven teams that want straightforward email marketing and do not need much automation depth. It is a weaker choice for buyers who care about price-to-feature value, stronger testing, or modern lifecycle automation.
Compare the Pricing in More Detail
If cost is the real sticking point, these pricing guides break down the entry tiers, upgrade pressure, and the budget traps that are harder to show in a simple comparison table.
ActiveCampaign Pricing
ActiveCampaign pricing makes sense if automation is central to your workflow and your list is still in a manageable range. It becomes much harder to justify once contact counts rise or when Pro-level features become part of the real buying decision.
Constant Contact Pricing
Constant Contact pricing can still make sense for small businesses that care most about simplicity, deliverability, and event-related features. It becomes hard to defend when the buyer wants stronger automation, deeper testing, or better overall price-to-capability value.