ActiveCampaign vs HubSpot Email Marketing
ActiveCampaign and HubSpot Email Marketing are both popular choices in the all-in-one marketing platform space. ActiveCampaign starts at $15/mo billed annually, while HubSpot Email Marketing starts at $20/seat/mo. Their pricing is not measured the same way, so we don't rank them on price. HubSpot Email Marketing offers a free plan (2,000 emails/month), while ActiveCampaign does not. Both tools work well for agencies and b2b.
Quick Verdict
ActiveCampaign wins on deliverability, rating.
HubSpot Email Marketing wins on integrations, free tier.
Best for most users: ActiveCampaign (ecommerce).
ActiveCampaign
Marketing automation that drives growth
ActiveCampaign is widely regarded as having the best marketing automation capabilities in the email marketing space. It combines email marketing with a built-in CRM, making it ideal for businesses that need sophisticated automation workflows and sales pipeline management.
HubSpot Email Marketing
Email marketing powered by CRM data
HubSpot's email marketing is part of its complete Marketing Hub. While the free and Starter tiers offer competitive email marketing, the real power comes with Professional tier and above, where HubSpot's CRM data feeds into sophisticated automation and personalization.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | ActiveCampaign | HubSpot Email Marketing |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.5/5 | 4.4/5 |
| Starting Price | $15/mo billed annually | $20/seat/mo |
| Free Plan | No free plan | 2,000 emails/month |
| Founded | 2003 | 2006 |
| Email Templates | 250 | 80 |
| Integrations | 900 | 1,500 |
| Deliverability Rate | 97.5% | 97% |
| Marketing Automation | Yes | Yes |
| A/B Testing | Yes | Yes |
| Landing Pages | Yes | Yes |
| Segmentation | Yes | Yes |
| Drag & Drop Editor | Yes | Yes |
| SMS Marketing | Yes | Yes |
| Ecommerce Features | Yes | Yes |
| API Access | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-Language | Yes | Yes |
| Web Push Notifications | No | No |
| Live Chat | Yes | Yes |
| Advanced Analytics | Yes | Yes |
ActiveCampaign: Pros & Cons
Pros
- + Industry-leading automation builder
- + Built-in CRM for sales teams
- + 900+ integrations (largest ecosystem)
- + Excellent deliverability
- + Powerful segmentation and contact scoring
Cons
- − No free plan available
- − Steep learning curve for beginners
- − Gets expensive with higher-tier features
- − Reporting could be more intuitive
- − Landing page builder is basic compared to dedicated tools
HubSpot Email Marketing: Pros & Cons
Pros
- + Best-in-class CRM integration
- + 1,500+ integrations (largest ecosystem)
- + Powerful marketing automation
- + All-in-one marketing, sales, and service platform
- + Excellent analytics and attribution
Cons
- − Professional plan is very expensive ($890/mo)
- − Annual commitment required for higher tiers
- − Complex pricing structure
- − Steep learning curve
- − Email features alone don't justify the cost
The Verdict
ActiveCampaign and HubSpot Email Marketing are closely matched — both score within 0.1 points of each other in our overall rating. Your decision should come down to specific needs rather than overall quality. On deliverability, ActiveCampaign reports 97.5% compared to 97% for HubSpot Email Marketing — a meaningful difference if inbox placement is critical for your campaigns.
| Criterion | Weight | ActiveCampaign | HubSpot Email Marketing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | 30% | $15/mo billed annually | $20/seat/mo |
| Deliverability | 25% | 97.5% Winner | 97% |
| Rating | 25% | 4.5/5 Winner | 4.4/5 |
| Integrations | 10% | 900 | 1500 Winner |
| Free Tier | 10% | No | Yes Winner |
Weights determine how much each criterion counts toward the final score. See full methodology
Choose ActiveCampaign if…
- + You're a ecommerce
- + You're a marketers
- + Industry-leading automation builder
Choose HubSpot Email Marketing if…
- + You need a free plan to get started
- + You're a enterprise
- + You're a inbound marketing