Best for
Best for teams that want email marketing with deep marketing automation and a built-in CRM, and that will grow into advanced segmentation and predictive sending.
- Small and mid-sized
- Enterprise
Email Marketing Comparison
ActiveCampaign vs. Sender
At a glance
At a glance
Best for
Best for small businesses that want email and SMS together on a budget, with a generous free plan and pricing that scales with the list.
- Freelancers
- Small and mid-sized
- Enterprise
Cataleo does not name a winner. Both statements come from the vendors themselves.
Full Comparison
| Criterion | ActiveCampaign | Sender |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Not stated | From $7 / month Standard plan for up to 1,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails per month; the price scales with the subscriber count. A Free Forever plan covers up to 2,500 subscribers and 15,000 emails per month. |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial, no credit card required | Free Forever plan for up to 2,500 subscribers and 15,000 emails per month, with Sender branding |
| API | Yes, an API with webhooks, plus more than 1,000 integrations | Not stated |
| Hosting | Cloud (SaaS) | Cloud (SaaS) |
| Campaign types | Yes, email campaigns with a drag-and-drop designer and more than 250 templates | Yes, email newsletters and campaigns, plus SMS on paid plans and transactional email, with A/B testing |
| Automation and journeys | Yes, marketing automation, 5 actions per automation on Starter and unlimited on Plus, Pro and Enterprise | Yes, unlimited marketing automation |
| Segmentation and personalisation | Yes, segmentation from limited on Starter to advanced and premium on the higher plans, with predictive sending | Yes, unlimited segmentation for targeted messaging |
| Templates and editor | Yes, a drag-and-drop email designer for plain text and HTML with more than 250 pre-built templates | Yes, a drag-and-drop builder with 1,600+ mobile-responsive templates and a custom HTML editor |
| Deliverability and testing | Yes, a spam check across plans and predictive sending | Yes, with 24/7 IP monitoring and sender-reputation tracking, plus A/B testing for subject lines, content and send times |
| Ecommerce and CRM data | Yes, contact profiles with custom fields, tags and lists, plus premium CRM integrations such as Salesforce on the higher plans | Yes, integrations for Shopify, WooCommerce, PrestaShop and WordPress |
| Integrations and API | Yes, an API with webhooks plus more than 1,000 integrations | Yes, integrations including WordPress, WooCommerce, Shopify, PrestaShop and Zapier |
| AI features | stated Yes | No |
| Deployment | Cloud (SaaS), Browser-based | Cloud (SaaS), Browser-based |
| Support | more entries Email helpdesk, Chat, Community forum | Chat, 24/7 |
| Onboarding | Documentation and knowledge base, Video tutorials, Guided onboarding, Live online demos and webinars | Not stated |
| Company size | Small and mid-sized, Enterprise | more entries Freelancers, Small and mid-sized, Enterprise |
| Integrations | more entries Shopify, Salesforce, Zendesk, Wix, Facebook, Google Sheets, Google Ads, ChatGPT, Claude | WordPress, WooCommerce, Shopify, PrestaShop, Zapier |
Add a tool
Adds a column to the table, from the tools in this category.
Row where the values differ The small markers point at the lower number, the longer list or the stated feature. They describe the data, they are not a verdict.
The short version
Key Differences
- Free trial ActiveCampaign 14-day free trial, no credit card required Sender Free Forever plan for up to 2,500 subscribers and 15,000 emails per month, with Sender branding
- Company size ActiveCampaign Small and mid-sized, Enterprise Sender Freelancers, Small and mid-sized, Enterprise
- Support ActiveCampaign Email helpdesk, Chat, Community forum Sender Chat, 24/7
- AI features ActiveCampaign Yes Sender No
- Campaign types ActiveCampaign Yes, email campaigns with a drag-and-drop designer and more than 250 templates Sender Yes, email newsletters and campaigns, plus SMS on paid plans and transactional email, with A/B testing
Every line is one datapoint from the table above, picked automatically. Nothing here is written text.
The trade-offs
Strengths and Limitations
ActiveCampaign
Strengths
- Marketing automation with unlimited automation actions on Plus, Pro and Enterprise
- More than 1,000 integrations plus an API with webhooks
- Active Intelligence AI features across all plans
- Built-in CRM with contact profiles, custom fields, tags and lists
Limitations
- Starter caps automations at 5 actions each and offers only limited segmentation
- Prices scale with the number of contacts
Sender
Strengths
- Free plan for up to 2,500 subscribers and 15,000 emails per month
- Email plus SMS from paid plans, with unlimited automation and segmentation
- 1,600+ responsive templates and a drag-and-drop builder
- Ecommerce integrations for Shopify, WooCommerce and PrestaShop
Limitations
- The free plan carries Sender branding
- SMS is only available on paid plans
Plans
Pricing
ActiveCampaign
- Starter Not stated Entry plan with the email designer, templates and up to 5 actions per automation. Scales with contacts.
- Plus Not stated Adds unlimited automation actions and standard segmentation. Scales with contacts.
- Pro Not stated Adds advanced segmentation and predictive sending. Scales with contacts.
- Enterprise Not stated Adds premium segmentation and premium integrations such as Salesforce and Microsoft Dynamics.
Sender
- Free $0 / month Up to 2,500 subscribers and 15,000 emails per month, with Sender branding.
- Standard From $7 / month Up to 1,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails per month; removes branding and adds SMS and A/B testing. Scales with subscriber count.
- Professional From $14 / month Up to 1,000 subscribers and 24,000 emails per month; adds advanced automation, more seats and priority support. Scales with subscriber count.
- Enterprise Not stated Unlimited emails, a dedicated success manager, SSO and phone support, quoted by sales.
What users say
Review Scores · opens after launch
ActiveCampaign
- Ease of use
- Not rated yet
- User interface
- Not rated yet
- Onboarding
- Not rated yet
- Support and service
- Not rated yet
- Value for money
- Not rated yet
- Features
- Not rated yet
No reviews yet. Be the first to review this tool. Every review is checked for fairness before it appears, and the vendor cannot have one removed.
Sender
- Ease of use
- Not rated yet
- User interface
- Not rated yet
- Onboarding
- Not rated yet
- Support and service
- Not rated yet
- Value for money
- Not rated yet
- Features
- Not rated yet
No reviews yet. Be the first to review this tool. Every review is checked for fairness before it appears, and the vendor cannot have one removed.
Where this comes from
Where this comes from
ActiveCampaign https://www.activecampaign.com · checked against the official source on 2026-08-19
Sender https://www.sender.net · checked against the official source on 2026-08-22
This table lists factual criteria taken from information the vendors publish themselves. For how we put it together, see the methodology.