Braze vs Salesforce Marketing Cloud
Braze and Salesforce Marketing Cloud are both popular choices in the all-in-one marketing platform space. Salesforce Marketing Cloud has been around since 1999, giving it a 12-year head start over Braze (founded 2011). Both start at custom pricing. Salesforce Marketing Cloud has the edge with landing pages.
Quick Verdict
Braze wins on deliverability, rating.
Salesforce Marketing Cloud wins on integrations.
Best for most users: Braze (enterprise companies).
Braze
Rewrite the rules of customer engagement with AI
Braze is a leading enterprise customer engagement platform that enables brands to orchestrate personalized, cross-channel experiences at massive scale. With AI-powered decisioning and real-time journey orchestration, it is purpose-built for large consumer brands and mobile-first companies.
Salesforce Marketing Cloud
Personalize every moment with the #1 AI CRM for marketing
Salesforce Marketing Cloud is the enterprise marketing automation suite within the Salesforce ecosystem, offering email, SMS, social, advertising, and journey orchestration at massive scale. Powered by Einstein AI, it is the platform of choice for large organizations already invested in Salesforce.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Braze | Salesforce Marketing Cloud |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.4/5 | 4.1/5 |
| Starting Price | Custom | Custom |
| Free Plan | No free plan | No free plan |
| Founded | 2011 | 1999 |
| Email Templates | 100 | 200 |
| Integrations | 170 | 300 |
| Deliverability Rate | 97.5% | 97% |
| Marketing Automation | ✓ | ✓ |
| A/B Testing | ✓ | ✓ |
| Landing Pages | ✕ | ✓ |
| Segmentation | ✓ | ✓ |
| Drag & Drop Editor | ✓ | ✓ |
| SMS Marketing | ✓ | ✓ |
| Ecommerce Features | ✓ | ✓ |
| API Access | ✓ | ✓ |
| Multi-Language | ✓ | ✓ |
| Web Push Notifications | ✓ | ✓ |
| Live Chat | ✓ | ✓ |
| Advanced Analytics | ✓ | ✓ |
Braze: Pros & Cons
Pros
- +Industry-leading cross-channel orchestration across email, SMS, push, web, and WhatsApp
- +BrazeAI provides predictive intelligence and content optimization
- +170+ turnkey integrations including data warehouses
- +Publicly traded (NASDAQ: BRZE) with proven enterprise reliability
- +Real-time data processing supports sub-second personalization at scale
Cons
- −Enterprise-only contracts typically start at $50,000+/year
- −Steep learning curve with complex setup requiring dedicated implementation resources
- −Overkill for small businesses or teams with simple email marketing needs
- −No free plan or self-serve trial available
- −Implementation timeline typically requires months, not days
Salesforce Marketing Cloud: Pros & Cons
Pros
- +Deepest integration with Salesforce CRM and the entire Salesforce ecosystem
- +Enterprise-grade cross-channel capabilities across email, SMS, push, social, and ads
- +Einstein AI provides predictive scoring and send time optimization
- +300+ integrations through AppExchange
- +Native Salesforce CRM integration eliminates data sync issues
Cons
- −Starts at $1,250/month with most features requiring higher tiers
- −Steep learning curve requiring certified specialists
- −No free plan or self-serve trial
- −Impractical for SMBs; value is mainly realized by large Salesforce organizations
- −Admin overhead is high — often requires a dedicated specialist
The Verdict
Braze edges ahead with a 4.4/5 rating compared to Salesforce Marketing Cloud's 4.1/5. The gap comes mainly from ease of use (3.8 vs 3.2) and value for money (3.2 vs 2.8). On deliverability, Braze reports 97.5% compared to 97% for Salesforce Marketing Cloud — a meaningful difference if inbox placement is critical for your campaigns.
| Criterion | Weight | Braze | Salesforce Marketing Cloud |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | 30% | Free | $1250/mo |
| Deliverability | 25% | 97.5% | 97% |
| Rating | 25% | 4.4/5 | 4.1/5 |
| Integrations | 10% | 170 | 300 |
| Free Tier | 10% | No | No |
Weights determine how much each criterion counts toward the final score. See full methodology
Choose Braze if…
- + You're a enterprise companies
- + You're a mobile first brands
- + Industry-leading cross-channel orchestration across email, SMS, push, web, and WhatsApp
Choose Salesforce Marketing Cloud if…
- + You need built-in landing pages
- + You're a large enterprises
- + You're a Salesforce CRM users