ActiveCampaign is cheaper, but covers only 3 of 13 compared capabilities
$39/mo (Starter · 2.5k) vs beehiiv Lite · 2.5k at $79/mo — covering 23% of the 13 compared capabilities.
Cheaper. Not the same job.
Comparison scenario
Every cheaper-than claim is tied to a defined scenario — never a bare list price.
2,500 contacts, 10,000 emails/month, monthly billing · USD · prices as observed on official pricing pages.
Lite · 2.5k plan at $79/mo, the cheapest paid plan.
Starter · 2.5k: 468 USD/yearly.
beehiiv costs $79/mo on the Lite · 2.5k plan at 2,500 contacts, 10,000 emails/month, monthly billing. We found 1 assessed alternative that is cheaper in this scenario; 0 of them cover at least 75% of the 13 compared capabilities.
Capability comparison
ActiveCampaign covers 23% of the 13 capabilities compared against beehiiv. ✓ native · ◐ via integration · ✗ not found.
| Capability | ActiveCampaign | beehiiv |
|---|---|---|
| Marketing automation | ✓ | ✓ |
| A/B testing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Audience segmentation | ✓ | ✓ |
| Email templates | ✗ | ✓ |
| Paid subscriptions | ✗ | ✓ |
| SSO (SAML) | ↑ Enterprise | ✓ |
| Referral program | ✗ | ✓ |
| Ads & sponsorship monetization | ✗ | ✓ |
| Digital product sales | ✗ | ✓ |
| AI writing assistant | ✓ | ✓ |
| Custom sending/tracking domain | ✗ | ✓ |
| Website builder | ✗ | ✓ |
| Webinars | ✗ | ✓ |
What you give up
Capabilities beehiiv has that ActiveCampaign lacks.
- A/B testing — Test variations of an email to see which performs better.Missing from ActiveCampaign.
- Email templates — Start a campaign from a pre-built email template.Missing from ActiveCampaign.
- Paid subscriptions — Sell paid subscriptions to your email list.Missing from ActiveCampaign.
- SSO (SAML) — Sign in through your company's SAML SSO.Missing from ActiveCampaign.
- Referral program — Run a referral program that rewards subscribers for sharing.Missing from ActiveCampaign.
- Ads & sponsorship monetization — Monetize a newsletter through ads or sponsorships.Missing from ActiveCampaign.
- Digital product sales — Sell digital products directly to your email list.Missing from ActiveCampaign.
- Custom sending/tracking domain — Send and track email from your own domain.Missing from ActiveCampaign.
- Website builder — Build a website using the same platform as your email campaigns.Missing from ActiveCampaign.
- Webinars — Host webinars from within the platform.Missing from ActiveCampaign.
Price at your volume
The same comparison recomputed at three sizes. Plan caps change who is cheapest.
| Usage | beehiiv | ActiveCampaign |
|---|---|---|
| 1,000 contacts, 4,000 emails/month | $59/moLite | $15/mocheaperStarter |
| 2,500 contacts, 10,000 emails/month | $79/moLite · 2.5k | $39/mocheaperStarter · 2.5k |
| 10,000 contacts, 40,000 emails/month | $139/moLite · 10k | $149/mocosts moreStarter · 10k |
Plans & pricing, side by side
Advertised prices in USD as observed on the official pricing pages — per-seat and transaction-fee plans are marked.
| Starter | $15/mo (billed yearly) |
| Starter · 2.5k | $39/mo (billed yearly) |
| Starter · 10k | $149/mo (billed yearly) |
| Plus | $49/mo (billed yearly) |
| Plus · 2.5k | $95/mo (billed yearly) |
| Plus · 10k | $189/mo (billed yearly) |
| Pro | $79/mo (billed yearly) |
| Pro · 2.5k | $149/mo (billed yearly) |
| Pro · 10k | $375/mo (billed yearly) |
| Enterprise | $145/mo (billed yearly) |
| Enterprise · 2.5k | $255/mo (billed yearly) |
| Enterprise · 10k | $589/mo (billed yearly) |
| Free | Free |
| Lite | $59/mo |
| Lite · 2.5k | $79/mo |
| Lite · 10k | $139/mo |
| Lite · 5k | $109/mo |
| Lite · 25k | $199/mo |
| Pro | $109/mo |
| Pro · 2.5k | $149/mo |
| Pro · 10k | $239/mo |
| Pro · 5k | $199/mo |
| Pro · 25k | $349/mo |
| Enterprise | Contact sales |
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Frequently asked
How much cheaper is ActiveCampaign than beehiiv?
51% cheaper in our scenario (2,500 contacts, 10,000 emails/month, monthly billing): $39/mo on Starter · 2.5k vs $79/mo on Lite · 2.5k. That is $480 a year. But it covers only 3 of 13 compared capabilities, so it isn't a like-for-like replacement.
What does ActiveCampaign lack compared with beehiiv?
A/B testing, Email templates, Paid subscriptions, SSO (SAML), Referral program, Ads & sponsorship monetization, Digital product sales, Custom sending/tracking domain, Website builder, Webinars — 10 of the 13 compared capabilities.
When were these prices checked?
beehiiv: 2026-11-01; ActiveCampaign: 2026-10-28 — on the official pricing pages.
Who switched
Anonymous: no account, no email, no IP stored. Reports are shown once a switch has 3 or more and never change ranking or order — alternatives are computed from prices and capabilities only.
Sources & freshness
- https://www.beehiiv.com/pricing (official_pricing, checked 2026-11-01)
- ActiveCampaign data last verified 2026-10-28