ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter vs Semrush — Pricing, Plans, and Verified Costs (2026)
ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter starts at $19/mo. Semrush starts at $139.95/mo. ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter is $120.94999999999999/mo cheaper on the entry tier than Semrush.
See price history: ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter · Semrush
How pricing works
These two tools don't price the same way, so the headline numbers below aren't directly comparable until you plug in your own volume.
- ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter (Per Usage) — ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter bills on usage — contacts on top of a paid plan starting at $19/mo. The plan includes an allowance; anything beyond it is metered.
- Semrush (Flat Rate) — Semrush bills on a fixed plan from $139.95/mo, so the listed price is what you pay regardless of volume.
Per-minute, per-credit and per-token rates exclude any downstream model, speech or telephony costs unless the vendor states otherwise.
ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter is ActiveCampaign's entry marketing automation product — email marketing, drip campaigns, segmentation, and basic automation at 1,000 contacts baseline for $19/mo monthly ($15/mo annual). Price scales with contact list size: 10K contacts ≈ $149/mo Plus. ActiveCampaign sells 2 additional products with independent pricing not tracked here: ActiveCampaign Sales (standalone CRM), ActiveCampaign Bundle (Marketing + Sales combined at a discount, Bundle Plus at $93/mo is the sweet spot for many customers). All three products scale with contact count. Popular with SMBs and solopreneurs graduating from Mailchimp.
Enterprise SEO + digital marketing platform, acquired by Adobe for $1.9B in cash (deal closed April 28, 2026) and now part of Adobe's Customer Experience (CX) Enterprise. Formerly publicly traded (SEMR) before the take-private. Positioned as the alternative to Ahrefs for teams that want a broader marketing suite (social media, PPC intelligence, content marketing, and now Generative Engine Optimization / AI Search) beyond pure SEO. Distinctive as the marketing generalist tool (Ahrefs is SEO-specialist), and increasingly as the Adobe-blessed answer to brand visibility across ChatGPT/Perplexity/AI Overviews. Priced $139-$549/mo across four main tiers plus custom Enterprise. Real cost bloat: user seats + Local + Trends + Content Marketplace still charge extra even after Adobe.
All plans compared
| Tier role | Plan | ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter monthly | ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter annual | Semrush monthly | Semrush annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entry paid | Starter / SEO | $19 | $15 | $139 | $117.33 |
| Mid tier 1 | Plus / Starter (SEO + AI Search) | $59 | $49 | $199 | $165.17 |
| Mid tier 2 | — / Pro+ (SEO + AI Search) | — | — | $299 | $248.17 |
| Pro / power | Pro / Advanced (SEO + AI Search) | $99 | $79 | $549 | $455.67 |
| Enterprise | Enterprise | $179 | $145 | Custom | Custom |
Tier names differ across vendors. Rows are aligned by tier role, not name. Full tier structures on each tool's page.
What each is best for
ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter is worth it if… SMBs (500-5,000 contacts) that need email + basic automation + CRM in one tool without HubSpot's price tag. Starter covers most basic email flows; Plus adds sales automation and SMS.
Semrush is worth it if… marketing agencies and in-house SEO teams (5-100 people) that need the full SEO/PPC/content/AI Search stack — keyword research + rank tracking + backlink audit + site audit + content optimization + local SEO + AI visibility (ChatGPT/Perplexity/AI Overview citations). SEO covers small teams doing traditional search; Starter adds AI Search monitoring; Pro+ scales for growing agencies across multiple sites; Advanced adds API + deeper AI visibility for larger orgs.
Bottom line: Choose based on how you want to pay — ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter is per usage, Semrush is flat rate.
Choose ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter over Semrush if…
Choose ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter if…
- You want to pay only for actual usage (per usage, from $19/mo).
- You match the profile ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter is built for: SMBs (500-5,000 contacts) that need email + basic automation + CRM in one tool without HubSpot's price tag.
- You need a general-purpose marketing & email option rather than a vertical-specific one.
Choose Semrush if…
- You want fixed-price predictability (flat rate, from $139.95/mo).
- You match the profile Semrush is built for: marketing agencies and in-house SEO teams (5-100 people) that need the full SEO/PPC/content/AI Search stack — keyword research + rank tracking + backlink audit + site audit + content optimization + local SEO + AI visibility (ChatGPT/Perplexity/AI Overview citations).
- You need a general-purpose marketing & email option rather than a vertical-specific one.
At a glance
| ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter | Semrush | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | No | No |
| Entry price | $19/mo | $139.95/mo |
| Enterprise available | Yes | Yes |
| Pricing model | Per Usage | Flat Rate |
| Verification | Checked October 3, 2026 | Checked October 4, 2026 |
| Full pricing | View full pricing | View full pricing |
Pricing last verified October 4, 2026. Tracked daily.
Frequently asked questions
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Common questions about ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter and Semrush
- How much does ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter cost in 2026?
- Does ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter have a free plan?
- How often does ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter change prices?
- What are the best ActiveCampaign Marketing Starter alternatives in 2026?
- How much does Semrush cost in 2026?
- Does Semrush have a free plan?
- How often does Semrush change prices?
- What are the best Semrush alternatives in 2026?