FlodeskvsActiveCampaign

Flodesk vs ActiveCampaign

Design-focused vs automation powerhouse

TL;DR

Flodesk is 52% cheaper at flat $38/month vs ActiveCampaign's $79/month for 10k subscribers. ActiveCampaign offers industry-leading automation and CRM. Flodesk has stunning templates and simplicity. Choose Flodesk for beautiful design, ActiveCampaign for sophisticated marketing automation.

Key Differences

The main things that set these tools apart

Pricing
Flodesk wins

Flodesk is 52% cheaper at $38/month vs ActiveCampaign's $79/month for 10k subscribers. At scale, the gap widens further with Flodesk's flat pricing.

Design Quality
Flodesk wins

Flodesk has stunning, modern templates for visual impact. ActiveCampaign templates are functional but not at Flodesk's aesthetic level. For beautiful emails, Flodesk wins.

Automation
ActiveCampaign wins

ActiveCampaign is industry-leading with 850+ automation recipes, advanced conditional logic, and predictive sending. Flodesk automation is basic. For marketing power, ActiveCampaign dominates.

CRM & Sales
ActiveCampaign wins

ActiveCampaign includes CRM on Plus plan with lead scoring and sales automation. Flodesk has no sales features. For sales teams, ActiveCampaign is the choice.

Simplicity
Flodesk wins

Flodesk is intentionally simple - beautiful emails without complexity. ActiveCampaign's power comes with a learning curve. For ease of use, Flodesk wins.

Pricing Comparison

At 10,000 subscribers

Flodesk
$38/month

Flat pricing regardless of subscriber count.

Visit Flodesk
ActiveCampaign
$79/month

Lite plan. CRM on Plus plan ($149/month).

Visit ActiveCampaign
Sequenzy

The SaaS alternative

$49/month

10k contacts, unlimited sends, native Stripe integration.

Feature Comparison

Side-by-side feature breakdown

Feature
Flodesk
ActiveCampaign
Sequenzy
Pricing & Value
10k Contacts Cost
$38/month
$79/month
$49/month
Pricing Model
Flat rate forever
Scales with subscribers
Scales with contacts
Free Plan
30-day trial
14-day trial
None
CRM Included
Plus plan ($149)
Design & Templates
Template Quality
Stunning, modern
Good, functional
Clean
Email Builder
Design-focused
Modern drag-drop
Good
Visual Impact
High
Moderate
Moderate
Brand Consistency
Easy to maintain
Manual
Manual
Automation
Visual Workflows
Basic
Industry-leading
Good
Automation Recipes
Few
850+
SaaS focused
Conditional Logic
Limited
Advanced
Good
Predictive Sending
Sales Features
Built-in CRM
Yes (Plus plan)
Lead Scoring
Sales Automation
Site Tracking
Limited
SaaS Features
Stripe Integration
Via integrations
Native OAuth
Behavioral Events
Site tracking
Native
Transactional

Best For

When to choose each tool

Choose Flodesk if you...
  • Design-focused brands
  • Simple email marketing needs
  • Visual creatives and photographers
  • Users prioritizing aesthetics over automation
Choose ActiveCampaign if you...
  • Businesses needing advanced automation
  • Sales teams wanting CRM integration
  • E-commerce with complex customer journeys
  • Marketers maximizing conversion optimization
Choose Sequenzy if you...
  • SaaS companies needing behavioral automation
  • Stripe-integrated subscription businesses
  • Teams wanting unified marketing + transactional
  • Companies needing native payment integration

When to Consider Sequenzy Instead

SaaS-Focused Features

Neither Flodesk nor ActiveCampaign offers native Stripe integration. Sequenzy is built for subscription businesses with payment-based automation.

Right Balance

More automation than Flodesk but simpler than ActiveCampaign. Sequenzy offers focused SaaS automation without the complexity.

Transactional + Marketing

Sequenzy handles both transactional and marketing email. Neither Flodesk nor ActiveCampaign offers this combination.

Overview

Flodesk and ActiveCampaign represent opposite ends of the email marketing spectrum. Flodesk is a design-focused platform for beautiful emails with flat pricing. ActiveCampaign is an automation powerhouse with CRM and sophisticated workflows.

Price vs Power

Flodesk is 52% cheaper at $38/month vs ActiveCampaign's $79/month for 10k subscribers. But the value proposition is completely different - you're comparing design simplicity against marketing automation power.

Design Quality

Flodesk has stunning, modern templates that make emails look professionally designed. ActiveCampaign templates are functional but not at Flodesk's aesthetic level. For visual brands, Flodesk is the clear winner.

Automation Comparison

ActiveCampaign is in a completely different league for automation. 850+ pre-built recipes, advanced conditional logic, site tracking, and predictive sending. Flodesk automation is basic - simple sequences that can't approach this sophistication.

CRM and Sales

ActiveCampaign includes CRM on Plus plan with lead scoring, sales automation, and pipeline management. Flodesk is purely for sending beautiful emails. For sales-marketing alignment, ActiveCampaign delivers.

Learning Curve

Flodesk is intentionally simple - focused on beautiful design without complexity. ActiveCampaign's power comes with a significant learning curve. For ease of use, Flodesk wins.

For SaaS Companies

Neither offers native Stripe integration. ActiveCampaign has better automation but isn't SaaS-focused. For SaaS companies, consider Sequenzy which offers purpose-built SaaS automation at a middle price point.

Making the Choice

Choose Flodesk for beautiful designs and simplicity. Choose ActiveCampaign for sophisticated automation and CRM. For SaaS, consider Sequenzy.

Frequently Asked Questions

Close to it. At 10k subscribers, Flodesk is $38/month vs ActiveCampaign's $79/month. That's 52% savings. At scale, the gap widens.

Flodesk. Its templates are stunning and modern, designed for visual impact. ActiveCampaign templates are functional but not visually impressive.

Significantly better. ActiveCampaign has 850+ automation recipes, advanced conditional logic, and predictive sending. Flodesk automation is basic by comparison.

Yes, on Plus plan ($149/month for 10k). It includes lead scoring, sales automation, and pipeline management. Flodesk has no CRM.

Yes. Flodesk charges $38/month regardless of list size. Whether you have 100 or 100,000 subscribers, the price stays the same.

Flodesk. It's intentionally simple and design-focused. ActiveCampaign has a steep learning curve matching its powerful features.

ActiveCampaign. Deep integrations with Shopify, WooCommerce, and sophisticated automation for customer journeys. Flodesk has basic Shopify integration only.

Yes. Site tracking triggers automations based on pages visited and actions taken. Flodesk has no site tracking.

Export contacts from ActiveCampaign. Import into Flodesk. You'll lose complex automations and CRM but gain beautiful designs and 52% savings.

Export subscribers from Flodesk. Import into ActiveCampaign. Gain powerful automation and CRM. Expect higher costs and a learning curve.

Not sure which to pick?

If you're a SaaS founder who needs Stripe integration and unified email, try Sequenzy free. No credit card required.

Related Comparisons

Sequenzy - Complete Pricing Guide

Pricing Model

Sequenzy uses subscriber-based pricing. You only pay for subscribers active in sequences (automations). Inactive subscribers are free to store.

All Pricing Tiers

  • 0-100 subscribers: Free (Free annually) - 2k emails/month
  • 101-1,000 subscribers: $19/month ($205/year annually) - 15k emails/month
  • 1,001-5,000 subscribers: $29/month ($313/year annually) - 60k emails/month
  • 5,001-10,000 subscribers: $49/month ($529/year annually) - 120k emails/month
  • 10,001-25,000 subscribers: $99/month ($1069/year annually) - 300k emails/month
  • 25,001-50,000 subscribers: $199/month ($2149/year annually) - 600k emails/month
  • 50,001-100,000 subscribers: $349/month ($3769/year annually) - 1.2M emails/month
  • 100,000+ subscribers: Custom pricing (Custom annually) - Unlimited emails/month

Yearly billing: All plans offer a 10% discount when billed annually.

Free Plan Features (0-100 subscribers)

  • Visual automation builder
  • Transactional email API
  • Reply tracking & team inbox
  • Goal tracking & revenue attribution
  • Dynamic segments
  • Payment integrations
  • Full REST API access
  • Custom sending domain

Paid Plan Features (1,000 - 100,000 subscribers)

  • Visual automation builder
  • Transactional email API
  • Reply tracking & team inbox
  • Goal tracking & revenue attribution
  • Dynamic segments
  • Payment integrations (Stripe, Paddle, Lemon Squeezy)
  • Full REST API access
  • Custom sending domain

Enterprise Plan Features (100,000+ subscribers)

  • Visual automation builder
  • Transactional email API
  • Reply tracking & team inbox
  • Goal tracking & revenue attribution
  • Dynamic segments
  • Payment integrations
  • Full REST API access
  • Custom sending domain

Important Pricing Notes

  • You only pay for subscribers who are active in automations/sequences
  • Storing inactive subscribers is free
  • No hidden fees - all features included in the price
  • No credit card required for free tier

Contact

  • Pricing Page: https://sequenzy.com/pricing
  • Sales: hello@sequenzy.com