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Most buyers should pick AWeber.
Choose AWeber if you want a free plan, lower entry pricing, email tools and landing pages. Choose ActiveCampaign if AI-assisted campaign creation, account audits and deeper automation matter more than the starting price. According to the published pricing details, AWeber starts at $12.49 monthly when billed annually for 500 subscribers or fewer; ActiveCampaign starts at $15 monthly, billed annually, for 1,000 contacts. Both offer a 14-day trial.
01Side by side
| ActiveCampaign | AWeber | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $15/month annually, for 1,000 contacts | $12.49/month annually, for 0–500 subscribers |
| Free plan | No free plan; 14-day trial | Free up to 500 subscribers; 14-day trial |
| Best for | Teams wanting AI-assisted marketing automation | Small businesses, bloggers and creators |
| Core strength | AI campaign drafting, audits and automation | Email, landing pages and ecommerce tools |
| Learning curve | Not specified on the vendor's site | Not specified on the vendor's site |
| Integrations/data | Not specified on the vendor's site | Stripe payments; other integrations not specified |
| Team/seat costs | 1 seat Starter/Plus; 3 Pro; 5 Enterprise | 3 users Lite; unlimited users Plus |
| Support | Not specified on the vendor's site | Priority 24/7 support on Plus |
ActiveCampaign Choose ActiveCampaign if
- Choose ActiveCampaign if AI campaign drafting is a priority.
- Choose ActiveCampaign if you need account audits and automated reporting.
- Choose ActiveCampaign if you want automation limits to rise above Starter.
AWeber Choose AWeber if
- Choose AWeber if you want a free plan for up to 500 subscribers.
- Choose AWeber if landing pages and ecommerce tools matter.
- Choose AWeber if you want free account migration.
02Pricing compared
At the entry tier, AWeber costs less: its Lite plan is $12.49 per month when billed annually for up to 500 subscribers, or $15 month to month. It also has a free plan, though the published pricing details don’t specify its features. ActiveCampaign starts at $15 per month, billed annually, for 1,000 contacts; monthly billing rates are not published. Both offer a 14-day trial.
The plans are not directly like-for-like: AWeber counts subscribers, while ActiveCampaign counts contacts. ActiveCampaign Starter includes 10,000 monthly email sends and five actions per automation; its listed tier scales to 25,000 contacts. AWeber Lite includes three automations and sends up to 10 times its subscriber count monthly. AWeber adds ecommerce transaction fees, and ActiveCampaign lists several paid add-ons with prices not published.
03Features and depth
ActiveCampaign’s main distinction is Active Intelligence. The product says it can draft campaigns and automations from a brief, audit list hygiene, tags, automations and deliverability weekly, and generate reports with suggested next steps. It also lists automatic A/B testing and segmentation, plus drafts for email, SMS, WhatsApp and ads. Starter limits each automation to five actions; Plus and higher list unlimited triggers and actions. SMS, WhatsApp and other add-ons may cost extra, but prices are not published.
AWeber centers on email campaigns and small-business tools. It offers customizable prebuilt automations, landing pages and signup forms, ecommerce pages with Stripe payments in 100+ currencies, an AI writing assistant and web push notifications. Lite caps users at three automations and three landing pages; Plus lists unlimited automations and landing pages. AWeber also offers free account migration. For AI-led campaign operations, ActiveCampaign has the broader stated feature set; for email, landing pages and selling, AWeber covers more of the basics in one product.
04Ease of use and learning curve
AWeber’s customizable prebuilt automations and ready-made landing pages give a smaller team a more guided starting point. Its Lite plan still limits you to three automations and three landing pages, so check those caps before moving a growing program.
ActiveCampaign’s AI features are designed to reduce manual campaign drafting and account checks, but its automation depth comes with more decisions to manage. Starter allows only five actions per automation; Plus and higher remove that action limit. The published product details don’t establish which interface is easier in practice, so choose based on the workflows and limits you need rather than assuming AI means less setup.
Questions people ask
Is AWeber cheaper than ActiveCampaign?
At the listed entry prices, yes: AWeber Lite is $12.49 monthly when billed annually for up to 500 subscribers, compared with ActiveCampaign Starter at $15 monthly for 1,000 contacts. AWeber also has a free plan. The units differ, and prices can rise with list size, so compare your actual subscriber or contact count.
Does AWeber have a free plan?
Yes. The published product information lists an AWeber free plan, but does not specify its limits or included features. Its paid Lite plan covers up to 500 subscribers and starts at $12.49 per month with annual billing, or $15 month to month.
Which platform has stronger marketing automation?
ActiveCampaign lists AI-generated automations, weekly account audits, automatic A/B testing and automated reporting. AWeber offers customizable prebuilt automations, including welcome and abandoned-cart sequences. ActiveCampaign is the broader fit for automation-heavy workflows; AWeber’s Lite plan allows three automations, while Plus lists unlimited automations.
Can AWeber help migrate an account from ActiveCampaign?
AWeber advertises free account migration from another platform, which could include a move from ActiveCampaign. The published details don’t specify exactly what data or setup the migration covers, so confirm its scope with AWeber before switching.