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Email Marketing · head to head

Attentive vs Campaign Monitor

Attentive logo

Attentive

Email Marketing

Enterprise SMS and email marketing for retail brands, sold on quarterly minimum spend commitments

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Campaign Monitor logo

Campaign Monitor

Email Marketing

Email marketing platform priced by contact tier, with unlimited sends only from the mid tier up

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Attentive minimum spend commitments are use it or lose it: if quarterly usage falls short, the shortfall is invoiced anyway, which makes Attentive expensive for any brand whose sending is seasonal rather than even.; Campaign Monitor the Lite tier caps monthly sends at 2,500 regardless of contact list size, so a list of any meaningful size cannot be emailed even once a month without exceeding it.
  • They diverge on capability: Attentive covers SMS-first journeys, Campaign Monitor covers Drag-and-drop email builder.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Attentive and Campaign Monitor actually diverge.

Attributes where Attentive and Campaign Monitor differ
AttributeAttentiveCampaign Monitor
Pricing modelquotePer month by contact tier and plan level
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb

Identical on both: starting price (On request), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Email Marketing).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Attentive

  • SMS-first journeys
  • Two-tap sign-up units
  • TCPA compliance tooling
  • Email channel
  • Revenue attribution
  • Concierge
  • Identity resolution
  • Negotiated order form rates

Only in Campaign Monitor

  • Drag-and-drop email builder
  • Automation workflows
  • List segmentation
  • Send-time optimisation
  • Landing pages and forms
  • Multi-brand management

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Attentive

  • A direct-to-consumer brand where SMS is the primary revenue channel and needs cart abandonment triggered within minutes of a sessionnot Campaign Monitor
  • A retailer capturing in-store phone numbers at the till and needing TCPA-compliant consent records to go with themnot Campaign Monitor
  • A consumer brand running SMS and email from one audience so subscribers are not messaged twice for the same promotionnot Campaign Monitor
  • A high-volume merchant with predictable year-round send patterns that can commit to a quarterly minimum and negotiate rates down against itnot Campaign Monitor

Campaign Monitor

  • A small marketing team wanting straightforward campaign design and automation without a full martech stacknot Attentive
  • A business with a list under a few thousand contacts and infrequent sends, where the Lite tier's cap is not a real constraintnot Attentive
  • An agency managing multiple brands wanting Enterprise-tier multi-brand account managementnot Attentive
  • A team wanting a bundled website builder alongside email on the Premier tiernot Attentive

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Attentive

  • Minimum spend commitments are use it or lose it: if quarterly usage falls short, the shortfall is invoiced anyway, which makes Attentive expensive for any brand whose sending is seasonal rather than even.
  • No rates are published anywhere, so a buyer cannot benchmark a quote before entering a sales process, and the effective per message cost is only visible once an order form is drafted.
  • Contracts commonly run six to twelve months, so a brand that finds performance disappointing after two months still owes the balance of the term.
  • Total cost combines a platform fee, per message SMS and MMS charges and carrier pass-through fees, and MMS at two to five cents per message means image-heavy campaigns cost several times what the SMS rate suggests.
  • It is priced and built for established consumer brands, and the entry commitment puts it out of reach of small merchants that Postscript and similar tools serve on usage-based plans with no floor.

Campaign Monitor

  • The Lite tier caps monthly sends at 2,500 regardless of contact list size, so a list of any meaningful size cannot be emailed even once a month without exceeding it.
  • Unlimited sending only starts at the Essentials tier, so the cheap headline Lite price is not comparable to competitors that offer unlimited sends at their entry tier.
  • Its e-commerce-specific automation (abandoned cart flows, predictive segments) is less developed than Klaviyo's, making it a weaker fit for retail-heavy senders.
  • As part of the Marigold group alongside Sailthru and other acquired brands, product roadmap priority is shared across a portfolio rather than dedicated solely to Campaign Monitor.
  • Pricing multiplies on two axes, contact tier and plan level, so estimating total cost requires checking both dimensions rather than a single number.

Pricing, plan by plan

Attentive

On request
  • Attentive$undefined/year
    • No public rate card; rates are set in an individual order form
    • Platform fee plus per message SMS and MMS charges
    • Contracts commonly six to twelve months

Campaign Monitor

On request
  • Lite$undefined/month
    • Monthly send cap of 2,500 emails regardless of list size
    • Basic campaign and template tools
    • Priced by contact tier from under 500 to 50,000+
  • Essentials$undefined/month
    • Unlimited monthly email sends
    • Priority support
    • Priced by contact tier from under 500 to 50,000+
  • Premier$undefined/month
    • Unlimited monthly email sends
    • Premier-level phone support
    • Drag-and-drop website builder included
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Custom quote
    • Multi-brand account management
    • Dedicated account manager, SOC2 and GDPR-aligned security

Which should you pick?

Choose Attentive if

  • You need sms-first journeys.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want two-tap sign-up units.
Attentive review

Choose Campaign Monitor if

  • You need drag-and-drop email builder.
  • You also want automation workflows.
Campaign Monitor review

Questions people ask

Is Attentive or Campaign Monitor better?
Neither clearly leads. Attentive starts at On request and Campaign Monitor at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Attentive or Campaign Monitor?
Attentive starts at On request and Campaign Monitor at On request.
Does Attentive or Campaign Monitor run on more platforms?
Attentive runs on Web, iOS, Android. Campaign Monitor runs on Web.
What is Attentive best used for?
Attentive is most often used for a direct-to-consumer brand where sms is the primary revenue channel and needs cart abandonment triggered within minutes of a session, a retailer capturing in-store phone numbers at the till and needing tcpa-compliant consent records to go with them, a consumer brand running sms and email from one audience so subscribers are not messaged twice for the same promotion, a high-volume merchant with predictable year-round send patterns that can commit to a quarterly minimum and negotiate rates down against it. Of those, a direct-to-consumer brand where sms is the primary revenue channel and needs cart abandonment triggered within minutes of a session and a retailer capturing in-store phone numbers at the till and needing tcpa-compliant consent records to go with them are not what Campaign Monitor is typically brought in for.
What can Attentive do that Campaign Monitor cannot?
Attentive covers SMS-first journeys, Two-tap sign-up units, TCPA compliance tooling, Email channel. Campaign Monitor covers Drag-and-drop email builder, Automation workflows, List segmentation, Send-time optimisation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Attentive: How much does Attentive cost?

It does not publish rates. Costs are a platform fee plus per message charges set in your order form, with minimum spend commitments commonly around 2,000 to 3,000 USD per quarter.

Campaign Monitor: Does the cheapest plan include unlimited sends?

No. Lite caps monthly sends at 2,500 emails regardless of list size; unlimited sending starts at the Essentials tier.

Attentive: What happens if I do not use my minimum?

You are invoiced for the shortfall at the end of the quarter. Unused commitment is not carried forward.

Campaign Monitor: Who owns Campaign Monitor?

Marigold, a marketing technology group that also owns Sailthru and other acquired email and loyalty platforms.

Attentive: How long is the contract?

Typically six to twelve months, billed monthly or quarterly.

Campaign Monitor: Is there a free plan?

A 30-day free trial with a 500-contact limit is available, but there is no permanent free tier.

Attentive: Does it do email as well as SMS?

Yes, with shared audiences and journeys, though the product was designed SMS-first and that remains its strength.

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