Updated: 20 Oct 2025 · Reading time: ~18–20 min
Omnisend vs ActiveCampaign 2025: which is better for email + SMS automation
If you sell on Shopify or WooCommerce, choosing a single platform for email + SMS directly impacts your revenue and time-to-value. This BOFU guide compares Omnisend vs ActiveCampaign using what buyers need at decision time: real costs by list size, what each plan actually includes, send limits, SMS pricing, and ROI scenarios. The goal: help you decide today and launch revenue flows in minutes.
Both tools are strong. Omnisend is purpose-built for ecommerce (built-in SMS, Shopify/Woo blocks, prebuilt flows). ActiveCampaign shines for advanced automations and CRM workflows. But with BOFU criteria—time to first revenue, total cost of ownership, and repeatable ROI—the differences become practical and clear.
TL;DR verdict
Pick Omnisend if you’re an ecommerce store (Shopify/Woo) and want a simpler “email + SMS” stack with prebuilt revenue flows (cart, browse, welcome), fast onboarding, and transparent pricing (Pro includes monthly SMS credits).
Pick ActiveCampaign if you need deeper automation logic, granular segmentation, and CRM pipelines/scoring (multi-market, complex lifecycle). SMS is an add-on/integration and you’ll spend more time on setup.
Pricing pages change often — confirm live before you decide.
Quick comparison
| Omnisend | ActiveCampaign | |
|---|---|---|
| Primary focus | ✓ ecommerce-first (Shopify/Woo) | ✓ less out-of-box for Shopify |
| Built-in SMS (monthly credits on Pro) | ✓ credits included on Pro | ✗ add-on/integration |
| Prebuilt ecommerce automations | ✓ strong templates | ✓ more setup time |
| Time to first value | ✓ fast | ✗ longer (custom) |
| Price at ~1k contacts (email) | $20 (Standard) | $19 (Starter) |
| Price at 5k contacts | $81 (Std) | $99 (Starter) |
| Price at 10k contacts | $132 (Std) | $149–189 (Starter/varies) |
| Email send limit | 12× list (Standard), unlimited fair use (Pro) | 10× (Starter), 12× (Pro), 15× (Enterprise) |
| Shopify product feed/blocks | ✓ | ✓ more manual config |
| CRM pipelines & scoring | ✓ basic | ✓ strong (Plus/Pro) |
| Attribution/reporting depth | ✓ ecommerce revenue focus | ✓ deeper (higher tiers) |
| Free plan available | ✓ free for testing | ✗ trial only |
| Best for | DTC Shopify/Woo | Advanced automation + CRM |
What each platform includes
| Feature | Omnisend | ActiveCampaign |
|---|---|---|
| Shopify 1-click integration | ✓ | ✓ more setup |
| WooCommerce integration | ✓ | ✓ |
| Built-in SMS (global) | ✓ Pro includes credits | ✗ add-on/integration |
| MMS (US/CA) | ✓ | ✓ add-on |
| Email send limits | 12× list (Std), unlimited fair use (Pro) | 10× (Starter), 12× (Pro), 15× (Ent) |
| Prebuilt ecommerce flows | ✓ cart/browse/welcome/winback | ✓ more config |
| Product recommendations | ✓ AI + rules | ✓ |
| Browse/cart abandonment presets | ✓ | ✓ basic |
| Purchase-based segments (RFM) | ✓ | ✓ advanced on higher tiers |
| Automation A/B testing | ✓ | ✓ (Pro+) |
| Custom Audiences sync (ads) | ✓ | ✓ |
| Landing pages & popups | ✓ | ✓ |
| Deliverability toolkit | ✓ list hygiene & reports | ✓ advanced reporting (higher tiers) |
| Sales CRM/pipelines | ✓ basic | ✓ strong (Plus/Pro) |
| Predictive sending | ✓ | ✓ (Pro+) |
| Integrations | ✓ core ecommerce stack | ✓ large ecosystem |
| 24/7 chat & email support | ✓ | ✓ |
| Free plan for testing | ✓ (500 emails/mo) | ✗ trial only |
| Onboarding/migrations | ✓ free migrations on eligible plans | ✓ guided onboarding |
Pricing
Omnisend
- Free: up to ~500 emails/month (for testing core features).
- Standard: from ~$16/mo (≈500 contacts), typically ~$20/mo at 1k; 12× list email send limit.
- Pro: from ~$59/mo (≈2.5k contacts) with monthly SMS credits equal to your plan price (e.g., $59/mo plan → $59 SMS credits/month).
- SMS price (US/CA): approx. $0.015/SMS; built-in calculator shows per-country rates.
ActiveCampaign
- Starter: $19/mo at 1k contacts; 10× monthly email send limit.
- Plus/Pro/Enterprise: higher limits and advanced features; e.g., ~$99/mo at 5k (Starter), ~$149–189/mo at 10k (varies by billing & promos).
- SMS: purchased as a credits add-on (e.g., 1,000 credits ≈ ~$16–$17) or via third-party integration.
Automations
Out-of-the-box ecommerce flows and email+SMS orchestration drive ROI. Here, Omnisend usually wins on time-to-value: ready-to-launch templates for abandoned cart, welcome, browse abandonment, winback, product review, and more—already mapped to Shopify/Woo data. ActiveCampaign can execute more complex logic (splits, CRM-driven actions, multi-object relationships), but typically demands more solutioning and setup time.
For SMS: Omnisend Pro includes monthly SMS credits (equal to your plan fee), so adding a two-step cart recovery (email → SMS nudge) doesn’t spike costs. In ActiveCampaign, SMS generally requires a credits add-on or a Twilio integration—costs are separate and need their own budgeting.
Automation = revenue while you sleep. Set once, sell daily.
Which one should you pick?
- Shopify/Woo stores, 500–10k contacts: Omnisend. Prebuilt flows, predictable pricing, and Pro’s included SMS credits lower TCO and speed up wins.
- DTC with heavy SMS use: Omnisend Pro (monthly SMS credits + unified reporting for email+SMS).
- Complex lifecycle + CRM: ActiveCampaign (Plus/Pro). Plan for a longer onboarding and separate SMS budgeting.
- Migrating from Mailchimp/Klaviyo: Omnisend offers free migrations on eligible plans and plug-and-play ecommerce flows.
FAQs
Does Omnisend really include SMS with Pro?
How do I compare real costs as my list grows (1k → 10k)?
Which is better if I need a CRM pipeline?
Can I test risk-free first?
Final verdict
For most Shopify/Woo ecommerce brands, Omnisend is the most practical choice: faster onboarding, ecommerce-ready flows, included SMS value on Pro, and predictable TCO as you scale. ActiveCampaign is excellent for teams that need advanced automation plus CRM and can invest more time in design and maintenance.
If you want to validate revenue in weeks, not months, start with Omnisend — connect Shopify/Woo, enable the prebuilt flows, and add a two-step cart recovery (email → SMS nudge). You’ll see results fast.
Read next:
Omnisend Pricing 2025 ·
Omnisend vs Klaviyo 2025 ·
ActiveCampaign Pricing 2025