PRICING BREAKDOWN · 2026

ActiveCampaign pricing

Every ActiveCampaign tier at real list sizes in 2026: why the $15 headline is a funnel, what the plan most buyers actually land on costs, and where the bill climbs from there.

Every number on this page comes from our full ActiveCampaign review, pricing verified June 2026. ActiveCampaign prices by contact count, so each figure below names the list size it applies to.

The short answer

ActiveCampaign costs $15 per month on the Starter plan at 1,000 contacts on annual billing, or $19 month to month, and there is no free plan. The four tiers, Starter, Plus, Pro and Enterprise, run $15, $49, $79 and $145 per month at 1,000 contacts on annual billing ($19, $59, $99 and $179 monthly), and every one of them scales with your list: at 5,000 contacts the same four tiers are $79, $145, $205 and $375 per month, which works out to roughly $948, $1,740, $2,460 and $4,500 per year. Monthly billing runs about 25 percent higher than the annual rates throughout.

The number to budget is not the $15 headline. Starter omits the CRM, lead scoring and predictive sending that are the reasons most buyers choose ActiveCampaign over a cheaper tool, so in practice the majority of accounts land on Plus: about $145 per month at 5,000 contacts, $1,740 per year. Our review scores ActiveCampaign 8.7 on the strength of the deepest automation builder in email and a best-in-test 94.2 percent deliverability score, and dings it on exactly what this page covers: the real cost climbs faster than the headline suggests. Where it sits against cheaper rivals is mapped in our best email marketing software ranking.

Plans and limits in 2026

Four tiers, all priced against contact count, quoted below at 1,000 contacts. The public pricing page hides the numbers behind a contact-volume selector and quotes annual billing by default, which is why so many comparisons understate the bill.

Plan	Annual (per mo)	Monthly	What you get
Starter	$15	$19	Email and core automation, but no CRM, no lead scoring, no predictive sending; unavailable above about 25,000 contacts
Plus	$49	$59	The realistic plan for most buyers: adds the CRM, lead scoring and predictive features that justify choosing ActiveCampaign
Pro	$79	$99	Deeper feature set for larger teams; priority, real-time support effectively begins at this tier
Enterprise	$145	$179	The top tier for the largest accounts, with priority support and the highest limits

Two structural facts shape the budget. First, Starter is capped: it is not available above about 25,000 contacts, so a growing list forces you onto Plus or higher whether you planned the upgrade or not. Second, the bill scales with list size rather than revenue, so adding 5,000 contacts in a strong quarter raises your monthly cost before any of those contacts convert. There is no free plan, only a 14-day trial that you can start without a card, so even evaluating the product properly costs money once the trial ends.

The hidden costs: the Starter funnel and what stacks on top

ActiveCampaign’s pricing traps are structural rather than sneaky, but they move the real bill well above the sticker:

Hidden cost	What actually happens
The Starter funnel	The $15 entry plan strips out the CRM, lead scoring and predictive sending, so the honest budget for a 5,000-contact list is Plus at $145/mo, not Starter at $79
Monthly premium	Month-to-month billing runs about 25 percent above the advertised annual rates: $19 vs $15 at 1,000 contacts on Starter
SMS and WhatsApp	Omnichannel reach beyond email is sold as add-ons on top of the base plan, not included in it
Support tiering	Priority, real-time help effectively starts at Pro and Enterprise; lower plans lean on documentation and slower chat and email, with no true 24/7
The Starter cap	Starter does not exist above about 25,000 contacts, so growth alone can force a tier jump

None of this makes ActiveCampaign overpriced for what it is. Its 94.2 percent inbox placement ranked first out of 15 tools in EmailToolTester’s latest round, against an 83.1 percent average, and that is a measurable return on the premium. But the cheapest-looking number on the page is not the one to budget around. Budget for Plus.

What you will really pay: three realistic setups

The solo newsletter at about 1,000 contacts: $180 per year, but the wrong tool

Starter technically costs $15 per month on annual billing, which is 15 × 12 = $180 per year, or $19 month to month. But at this size Starter strips out the CRM and predictive features that justify ActiveCampaign over a cheaper rival, and you are paying for depth you will not use. Our review is blunt here: a tool with a free tier will leave a solo founder happier and with more cash.

The 5,000-contact B2B team on Plus: $1,740 per year

This is the sweet spot and the honest benchmark number for ActiveCampaign pricing. Plus at 5,000 contacts is about $145 per month on annual billing, which is 145 × 12 = $1,740 per year. You get the CRM, lead scoring and the automation builder that is the benchmark for the category, protected by the best independently measured inbox placement in the field.

The ecommerce store scaling to 10,000 contacts: up to $2,268 per year

Plus moves from $95 per month at 2,500 contacts to $189 at 10,000, so a store that grows through a strong season should budget the top of its range: 189 × 12 = $2,268 per year. Remember the bill rises as the list grows, before those new contacts convert, so budget for the list size you expect to hit, not the one you start with.

Monthly vs annual: the 25 percent premium

Plan (1,000 contacts)	Monthly ×12	Annual ×12	You save
Starter	$228	$180	$48/yr
Plus	$708	$588	$120/yr
Pro	$1,188	$948	$240/yr
Enterprise	$2,148	$1,740	$408/yr

Monthly billing runs about 25 percent higher across the board: at 1,000 contacts that is $19 versus $15 on Starter and $179 versus $145 on Enterprise, and the saving compounds as your list grows. The sequence that limits your risk: run the 14-day trial first, and note that the separate 30-day money-back guarantee is a refund window, not a second trial, so use it as the backstop on your first paid month before committing to a year.

ActiveCampaign cost at scale: 1,000 to 10,000 contacts

All figures are per month on annual billing. This is the table the pricing page’s contact-volume selector makes you assemble by hand:

Contacts	Starter	Plus	Pro	Enterprise
1,000	$15	$49	$79	$145
2,500	$39	$95	$149	$255
5,000	$79	$145	$205	$375
10,000	$149	$189	$375	$589

Read the 5,000-contact row as the honest one: $948, $1,740, $2,460 and $4,500 per year across the four tiers. The Starter column looks like the obvious entry point at every size, but it is the funnel, and it disappears entirely above about 25,000 contacts. If your list will grow past that line within the year, price Plus from day one.

Is it worth it? ActiveCampaign vs the alternatives on price

Tool	Free plan	Trade-off vs ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign	No (14-day trial)	Deepest automation and #1 deliverability (94.2%), cost climbs with contacts
Mailchimp	Yes	Cheaper, friendlier entry; weaker automation depth and lower deliverability
HubSpot	Yes (limited)	Easier all-in-one suite, but its price climbs even harder at scale
Brevo	Yes	Prices on emails sent, far cheaper for a large list with modest automation

The most common cross-shop is Mailchimp, which has the free plan ActiveCampaign lacks and a faster start, at the cost of shallower automation; the full head-to-head is in ActiveCampaign vs Mailchimp, and the dollar figures are in our Mailchimp pricing breakdown. If your real constraint is send volume rather than automation logic, Brevo’s pricing charges on emails sent with a usable free tier. And if you want the bigger all-in-one suite, HubSpot is the comparison, with the caveat that its price scales harder than ActiveCampaign’s.

How to pay less for ActiveCampaign

• Pay annually: monthly billing runs about 25 percent higher, so the annual rate saves $48 to $408 per year at 1,000 contacts depending on tier, and more as the list grows.
• Buy Starter only with open eyes: at $15 it is the cheapest way in, but it lacks the CRM, lead scoring and predictive sending; if those are why you are here, budgeting Starter just delays the Plus invoice.
• Use both safety windows: the 14-day trial needs no card, and the separate 30-day money-back guarantee covers your first paid month, so a full evaluation costs nothing if you act inside the windows.
• Prune before you pay: the bill is a function of contact count, so cutting dead contacts before renewal directly lowers the tier you are billed at.
• Plan around the Starter cap: Starter is unavailable above about 25,000 contacts, so if growth will cross that line mid-year, negotiate your budget at Plus rates from the start.
• Match the tool to the job: if your automations will never go past a welcome series and an abandoned-cart flow, our review’s advice is to skip ActiveCampaign entirely and keep the difference.

FAQ

How much does ActiveCampaign cost in 2026?

From $15 per month on Starter at 1,000 contacts on annual billing ($19 monthly). The four tiers at 1,000 contacts are $15, $49, $79 and $145 per month annually; at 5,000 contacts they are $79, $145, $205 and $375, roughly $948 to $4,500 per year. Most buyers realistically land on Plus.

Does ActiveCampaign have a free plan?

No. There is no permanent free plan, only a 14-day free trial you can start without a card. There is also a separate 30-day money-back guarantee, which some sources confuse with a 30-day trial: they are not the same thing. If you need a free tier, ActiveCampaign is not that tool.

What is the cheapest ActiveCampaign plan?

Starter at $15 per month for 1,000 contacts on annual billing, $19 month to month. It omits the CRM, lead scoring and predictive sending, and it is not available above about 25,000 contacts, so treat it as an entry point rather than a destination.

How much does ActiveCampaign cost at 5,000 contacts?

The Starter headline is $79 per month on annual billing, but the realistic plan is Plus at about $145 per month, $1,740 per year, because Starter lacks the CRM and predictive features most buyers want. Pro is $205 per month ($2,460 per year) and Enterprise $375 ($4,500 per year).

Is monthly or annual billing cheaper?

Annual, by about 25 percent. At 1,000 contacts, monthly billing is $19, $59, $99 and $179 across the tiers versus $15, $49, $79 and $145 on annual rates, a saving of $48 to $408 per year at that list size.

What is ActiveCampaign’s refund policy?

There is a 30-day money-back guarantee, separate from the 14-day free trial. Use the trial for evaluation and treat the guarantee as the backstop on your first paid month, especially before committing to annual billing.

Why do most buyers end up on the Plus plan?

Because Starter omits the CRM, lead scoring and predictive sending that are the reasons to pick ActiveCampaign over a cheaper rival. The features that make the platform special are deliberately spread across the higher tiers, so the majority of accounts land on Plus, and that is the tier to budget for.

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