ActiveCampaign Software Reviews

“confusing onboarding process”

Pros

There really isn't anything positive to mention even the onboarding felt confusing and the explanations didn't make it any clearer.

Cons

Using the software was overly complicated. I ended up calling in repeatedly just to get clear guidance on how to use it correctly.

“powerful marketing tool at low cost”

Pros

It feels like a real step up compared to most email marketing tools since it includes a strong marketing CRM plus an automation system. It holds up well when compared to enterprise level platforms like HubSpot and Marketo. You still get most of the everyday features you'd normally need, without the heavy excess and bloat that often comes with the bigger enterprise suites. Setup and building automations/campaigns is simple and the overall marketing automation + CRM approach is very cost effective. It also integrates nicely with other enterprise tools.

Cons

Field management and auto fill don't quite measure up those features feel limited. The email/templates builder works well but it's pretty rigid and tightly tied to the platform so you can't simply reuse builds elsewhere without recreating them inside the system. Documentation is also minimal and there's little support for importing external templates/builds into the platform.

“Stress free setup”

Pros

The onboarding support has been fantastic every step felt guided and the team was genuinely responsive. They were very supportive throughout the setup process which made getting started a lot less stressful.

Cons

I do wish there were more customization options for the CRM features especially around the default display. Right now, the way information shows up out of the box feels a bit limiting.

“easy switch from Mailchimp”

Pros

Switching from Mailchimp initially felt a bit intimidating but this made the move feel effortless. I'm especially pleased with the analytics as being able to see my customers' interactions on my website alongside their email journey is a huge win. It's also nice to monitor performance through the AC app and the inactive contact cleanup is great because it helps improve my open rates.

Cons

Analytics could be more visually friendly and might benefit from fewer clicks to get to the details. The activity stream on the right side of the dashboard is handy but you still end up clicking into individual contacts or jumping to a campaign to see more. I'd also like landing pages included with the Lite plan.

“simple segmentation setup”

Pros

Integrating this into our current workflow was pretty easy and didn't take much effort from the team. Importing contacts, setting up segmentation, configuring automation and drop campaigns and monitoring everything afterward all felt very clear.

Cons

Getting contact details takes a few steps and that part could definitely be simplified.

“solid automations with tags”

Pros

The automations are genuinely powerful and the whole setup is well organized through categories using tags. It also lets you build fairly complex funnels without too much hassle.

Cons

It isn't exactly simple not because the design is bad (it's well done) but because there are so many features packed into it.

“fast support”

Pros

They don't charge setup fees which is a nice change compared to some other providers. Customer care also responds really quickly so if you run into a hiccup, you don't have to stress about it for long.

Cons

nothing significant no major issues came up for me.

“useful email templates”

Pros

Creating polished emails is easy and the templates are reusable so I don't have to keep starting from scratch every time. That alone has saved me a ton of time.

Cons

I haven't dug into the automations yet and from what I've seen, they feel confusing to learn without any guided help.

“organized workflow”

Pros

Super simple to learn and use and I didn't need much help getting started. Integration into my business was easy and I appreciate how cleanly everything is laid out, no extra complexity like some other tools I've tried. It's been working well and I genuinely don't have any complaints.

Cons

One thing I'd change: I wish the mobile app allowed campaign creation. I'm on my phone a lot for day to day business so it would be much more convenient to open the app and send a quick marketing email without having to switch over to my computer.

“built in automations and templates for beginners”

Pros

So many features and templates are built in from the start. If you're just getting into CRM, automations and email campaigns, the templates are already set up and waiting for you and then you can tweak them to match what you need. If you're more advanced, you're not limited either because you can create your own templates and automation flows to fit your exact workflow.

Cons

There hasn't been anything that I've disliked.

“Fair pricing”

Pros

I'm really enjoying how simple it is to use and the pricing feels genuinely cost effective. A big plus is that the cost scales reasonably as you bring on more users so it stays aligned with growth.

Cons

Would be even better if there were built in integration for creating landing pages. The email campaigns and automations work fine and look decent but compared to some pricier competitors, the visuals aren't as polished those tools tend to produce more attractive looking emails.

“Great tool”

Pros

I use it for email marketing and I'm still getting the hang of it. The platform covers what I need and I'm gradually learning how everything fits together. It's helped me move my campaigns forward while I explore the features.

Cons

The workflow feels pretty heavy. Getting even basic tasks done takes too many steps and after a while I sometimes forget where a specific feature is located. Overall, it doesn't come across as simple and that extra friction slows me down.

“simple to work with”

Pros

We were running a study where interviewers approached potential candidates and we needed a fast in person screener that could immediately route qualified people into a longer survey. ActiveCampaign's API was a big help here. Powerful on the back end and simple to work with and so we were able to build exactly the flow we needed.

Cons

Even after spending some time in the product, the distinction between a campaign and an automation still feels a bit unclear. I also haven't figured out how to properly reference or reuse email templates from earlier campaigns or automations.

“steep learning curve”

Pros

This software is capable of a lotand the big core features it offers are great.

Cons

The learning curve is extremely steep when you're working solo as an entrepreneur. I just wish it were more beginner friendly for first time users.

“powerful automations with support”

Pros

Has a ton of useful features and even though I'm nowhere near using everything yet, I'm still learning more every week. My favorite part is the built in support especially the one on one calls, they've helped me get unstuck and move faster. I also leaned into features like Deals and better contact organization while figuring out how to automate. On top of that it integrates well with other tools like Stripe and Thinkific so I was able to set up a fully automated onboarding flow for my program clients.

Cons

Getting answers to every question can be a little tricky at times. Since the operation dashboard is so powerful and packed with options, it's easy to feel a bit lost while navigating. Still, overall it seems worth the price.

“amazing campaign builder”

Pros

Navigation is easy and building campaigns feels simple. There's also a ton of functionality for managing contacts, including keeping all the contact details organized.

Cons

A few buttons occasionally show up in the wrong spot on the screen.

“Tutorials make setup simple”

Pros

Using this as our first email marketing tool was surprisingly manageable. The setup and day to day use felt fairly simple and there are tons of detailed tutorials that help you get comfortable with the platform quickly.

Cons

The part I didn't enjoy was how pricing scales once your contact list grows you end up needing to upgrade your subscription as your audience increases. I also wasn't thrilled about the 2 year lock in period that kicks in when you sign up, it feels pretty unreasonable.

“solid all in one tool”

Pros

Its a solid all around platform even for small solo entrepreneurs. The automation workflows forms and email campaigns make it easy to attract new customers and keep regular contact with them.

Cons

There's definitely a ton of content like tutorials, guides and resources but tracking down the exact answer to a specific question can be a bit difficult.

“advanced automation capabilities”

Pros

Really simple to use and the lead management is excellent. I also appreciate the ability to set up lead scoring and use advanced automation everything feels like it's at a very high level.

Cons

Mobile email handling definitely needs improvement. A few features aren't immediately clear in terms of how to set them up and the A/B testing section would benefit from more development.

“simplifie workflows”

Pros

The automation is really strong once an email comes in, it can automatically populate multiple fields and then trigger additional automations to kick off different workflows.

Cons

Getting started was a bit of a challenge for me. There's a steep learning curve and I honestly struggled with it at first. That said, they've since started running a monthly support call to help with onboarding something I didn't know about early on which might've been more on my side than the tool's.