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Email Marketing · head to head

Attentive vs ConvertKit

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
ConvertKit logo

ConvertKit

News

The creator platform for digital professionals

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only ConvertKit has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • 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.; ConvertKit the free Newsletter plan allows only one basic visual automation, so sequences beyond a single flow require paying
  • They diverge on capability: Attentive covers SMS-first journeys, ConvertKit covers Email marketing.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Attentive and ConvertKit actually diverge.

Attributes where Attentive and ConvertKit differ
AttributeAttentiveConvertKit
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelquotefreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb
CategoryEmail MarketingNews
FoundedUnknown2013

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

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 ConvertKit

  • Email marketing
  • Landing pages
  • Subscriber tagging
  • Automation workflows
  • Digital product sales
  • Broadcast emails
  • Subscriber segments
  • Email templates

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 ConvertKit
  • A retailer capturing in-store phone numbers at the till and needing TCPA-compliant consent records to go with themnot ConvertKit
  • A consumer brand running SMS and email from one audience so subscribers are not messaged twice for the same promotionnot ConvertKit
  • A high-volume merchant with predictable year-round send patterns that can commit to a quarterly minimum and negotiate rates down against itnot ConvertKit

ConvertKit

  • Sending newsletters and email sequences to an audiencenot Attentive
  • Selling paid subscriptions and digital products to a mailing listnot 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.

ConvertKit

  • The free Newsletter plan allows only one basic visual automation, so sequences beyond a single flow require paying
  • The free plan is a single user, and the Creator plan at $33 a month allows two
  • Subscriber signals, engagement analytics and paid recommendations are Pro only, at $66 a month
  • A/B testing is capped at 2 subject lines below Pro, which allows 5
  • Paid pricing is banded by subscriber count, so the published figures apply only at the smallest band

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

ConvertKit

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Up to 10,000 subscribers
    • Unlimited landing pages and forms
    • Unlimited email broadcasts
  • Creator$33/month
    • Up to 1,000 subscribers
    • Unlimited visual automations
    • Email sequences
  • Pro$66/month
    • Up to 1,000 subscribers
    • Everything in Creator plan
    • Subscriber engagement scoring

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 ConvertKit if

  • You need email marketing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want landing pages.
ConvertKit review

Questions people ask

Is Attentive or ConvertKit better?
Neither clearly leads. Attentive starts at On request and ConvertKit at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Attentive or ConvertKit?
ConvertKit has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Attentive and Free for ConvertKit.
Does Attentive or ConvertKit run on more platforms?
Attentive runs on Web, iOS, Android. ConvertKit runs on Web.
Can I use ConvertKit for free?
Yes. ConvertKit has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Attentive starts at On request.
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 ConvertKit is typically brought in for.
What can Attentive do that ConvertKit cannot?
Attentive covers SMS-first journeys, Two-tap sign-up units, TCPA compliance tooling, Email channel. ConvertKit covers Email marketing, Landing pages, Subscriber tagging, Automation workflows.

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.

ConvertKit: How much does ConvertKit cost?

ConvertKit offers a free tier and two paid plans: Creator at $33/month (annual $390/year saving $78) and Pro at $66/month (annual $790/year saving $158). All plans include unlimited landing pages, email broadcasts, and audience management features.

Source
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.

ConvertKit: What does the free ConvertKit plan include?

The free plan supports up to 10,000 subscribers with unlimited landing pages, forms, email broadcasts, audience tagging, and digital product sales. No credit card required to start.

Source
Attentive: How long is the contract?

Typically six to twelve months, billed monthly or quarterly.

ConvertKit: What are the subscriber limits on ConvertKit plans?

The free plan supports up to 10,000 subscribers. Both Creator and Pro paid tiers support up to 1,000 subscribers. This creates a subscriber limit decrease when upgrading from free to paid plans.

Source
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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