Best marketing automation tools

Best marketing automation tools

Tools whose primary category is marketing automation. These are the canonical ranked options. 1 listed.

1. 01
   Customer.io

   Behavior-driven messaging platform for product-led B2C and B2B teams.

   • Enterprise tier
   • 3 plans
   From

   $100/mo

   Plans

   3
   Customer.io profile Customer.io alternatives

Also relevant

Tools whose primary category is something else, but which list marketing automation as a secondary fit. They overlap on use case and are worth considering, especially if you have adjacent needs.

• beehiiv primarily email marketing

  Newsletter platform with built-in monetization.

  Free
• Kit primarily email marketing

  Email marketing built for creators.

  Free
• Mailchimp primarily email marketing

  The default email marketing platform for small businesses.

  Free
• MailerLite primarily email marketing

  Email marketing with a generous free tier and clean editor.

  Free
• Omnisend primarily email marketing

  Email, SMS, and push marketing built for e-commerce.

  Free
• Drip primarily email marketing

  E-commerce email and automation built for Shopify and BigCommerce stores.

  $39/mo

Migrations within marketing automation 9 guides

Long-form migration guides for switching tools within the marketing automation category. Each is curated, not auto-generated: cost math, what you lose, what you gain, and the pair-specific gotchas that bite during cutover.

• Mailchimp → MailerLite

  • Cost reduction
  • Tier-ratchet escape
  Read guide
• Mailchimp → Kit

  • Creator-focused
  • Add commerce
  Read guide
• Kit → beehiiv

  • Growth tooling
  • Newer product
  Read guide
• Mailchimp → Omnisend

  • E-commerce native
  • SMS unified
  Read guide
• MailerLite → Kit

  • Add commerce
  • Creator-focused
  • Feature upgrade
  Read guide
• beehiiv → Kit

  • Add commerce
  • Creator-focused
  • Inverse migration
  Read guide
• Kit → Customer.io

  • Feature upgrade
  • Custom data model
  • Multi-channel
  Read guide
• Omnisend → Mailchimp

  • Beyond e-commerce
  • Integration ecosystem
  • Inverse migration
  Read guide
• MailerLite → Mailchimp

  • Brand recognition
  • Integration ecosystem
  • Inverse migration
  Read guide

Common questions

What's the cheapest marketing automation tool?

Customer.io starts at $100/mo, the lowest entry price among 7 marketing automation tools we track. Pricing scales differently above the entry tier; check the full plan grid before buying.

How many marketing automation tools have a free plan?

5 of 7: beehiiv, Kit, Mailchimp, MailerLite, Omnisend. Free-tier limits vary, so the right pick depends on your contact count and send volume.

Which marketing automation tools offer free trials?

1 of 7: Drip (14-day trial). Trials let you test paid features without upfront payment.

Which marketing automation tools ship a custom Enterprise tier?

4 of 7: Customer.io, beehiiv, MailerLite, Omnisend. Enterprise tiers typically add SAML SSO, SOC 2 / HIPAA, dedicated account management, and contract-negotiated pricing. If those aren't load-bearing for your team, the lower self-serve tiers are usually the right pick.

How is this list ranked?

Tools whose primary category is marketing automation appear first, then adjacent tools that also serve this use case. Within each group, free-plan tools come first, then ascending entry price, then alphabetical. No editorial 'best' claims; rankings are derived from verified plan data.