The Problem
Why teams leave ActiveCampaign
Contact-based pricing increases with list growth
CRM is basic compared to dedicated CRM tools
Advanced reporting only on Professional plan
Predictive sending and attribution on Enterprise only
Email deliverability can be inconsistent
What We Build Instead
Your custom marketing tool
Email marketing and automation with unlimited contacts
Visual automation builder with advanced branching
CRM with deal tracking integrated into campaigns
Predictive analytics and engagement scoring
Transactional email from the same platform
The Math
ActiveCampaign vs. custom build
Based on 10 seats at $49/seat/month, with ~10% annual SaaS price increases.
Keep paying ActiveCampaign
Build with 86 SaaS
3-year savings with 10 seats
-$24,096
-124% less than ActiveCampaign
Pricing Breakdown
ActiveCampaign tier pricing vs. one-time custom build
Compare what you pay per seat across ActiveCampaign's tiers against a single investment in software you own forever.
| Tier | Monthly/Seat | Annual/Seat | Key Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lite | $29/mo | $24/mo | Email marketing, Inline forms, Marketing automation, Site tracking |
| Plus | $49/mo | $41/mo | Landing pages, Lead scoring, SMS marketing, Conditional content |
| Professional | $149/mo | $125/mo | Predictive sending, Attribution reporting, Split automations, Site messaging |
| Enterprise | $259/mo | $219/mo | Custom objects, HIPAA support, Unlimited users, Dedicated account rep |
| Custom Build by 86 SaaS | $20,000–$40,000 one-time | $0/seat | Unlimited users, full ownership, no recurring fees |
Migration Timeline
From ActiveCampaign to ownership — week by week
A structured migration plan to move off ActiveCampaign in 5-9 weeks with zero downtime.
Discovery & Audit
1 weekMap existing automations, contact lists, and campaign performance data
Architecture & Design
1 weekDesign email and automation platform with segmentation engine
Core Development
2-4 weeksBuild email campaigns, automation workflows, CRM, and analytics
Data Migration & Testing
1-2 weeksMigrate contacts, automations, templates and validate deliverability
Deployment & Training
1 weekLaunch platform and train marketing team
Total build time
5-9 weeks
Feature Comparison
What you keep, what you skip, and why
A transparent comparison of ActiveCampaign features vs. your custom-built alternative.
| Feature | ActiveCampaign | Custom Build | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Email Marketing | |||
| Marketing Automation | |||
| Lead Scoring | |||
| CRM & Deal Tracking | |||
| Landing Pages | |||
| SMS Marketing | |||
| Predictive Sending | |||
| Attribution Reporting | |||
| Machine Learning Insights | Custom analytics tailored to your metrics instead | ||
| Unlimited Contacts | No contact-based pricing tiers |
Your custom build focuses on the features your team actually uses — typically 15-20% of what ActiveCampaign offers — built exactly for your workflow.
How It Works
From ActiveCampaign to ownership in 5-9 weeks
Free Audit
We analyze your ActiveCampaign usage and identify exactly which features your team actually uses.
Scope & Build
We build your custom marketing tool with only the features you need. 5-9 weeks.
Deploy & Migrate
We deploy to your infrastructure, migrate your data from ActiveCampaign, and train your team.
You Own It
Full source code, documentation, and optional maintenance retainer. No vendor lock-in. Ever.
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