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Email Marketing · head to head

Campaign Monitor vs Zoho Campaigns

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
Zoho Campaigns logo

Zoho Campaigns

Email Marketing

Email marketing tool with a genuine free tier, priced by contact count once paid

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Zoho Campaigns has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: 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.; Zoho Campaigns template design quality and out-of-the-box deliverability reputation tools are less polished than specialist platforms such as Klaviyo or Campaign Monitor.
  • They diverge on capability: Campaign Monitor covers Automation workflows, Zoho Campaigns covers Zoho CRM integration.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Campaign Monitor and Zoho Campaigns actually diverge.

Attributes where Campaign Monitor and Zoho Campaigns differ
AttributeCampaign MonitorZoho Campaigns
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelPer month by contact tier and plan levelPer month by contact tier once on a paid plan
Free tierNoYes

Identical on both: platforms (Web), 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 Campaign Monitor

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

Only in Zoho Campaigns

  • Zoho CRM integration
  • A/B testing
  • Advanced segmentation
  • Send time optimisation
  • WhatsApp and SMS add-ons

Both cover

  • Drag-and-drop email builder

What people use each for

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

Campaign Monitor

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

Zoho Campaigns

  • A small business with under 2,000 contacts wanting a genuinely usable free email marketing tool rather than a crippled trialnot Campaign Monitor
  • An existing Zoho CRM or Desk customer wanting email marketing that syncs natively without a third-party connectornot Campaign Monitor
  • A growing list needing to scale from 500 up to 500,000 contacts within one vendor's pricing laddernot Campaign Monitor
  • A team wanting WhatsApp or SMS as an add-on channel alongside email from the same vendornot Campaign Monitor

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Zoho Campaigns

  • Template design quality and out-of-the-box deliverability reputation tools are less polished than specialist platforms such as Klaviyo or Campaign Monitor.
  • Advanced segmentation and dynamic content are reserved for the Professional tier, so mid-sized lists needing that capability face a real price step up from Standard.
  • WhatsApp and SMS are separate paid add-ons rather than included channels, so a genuinely multi-channel campaign costs more than the base email price suggests.
  • Its main structural advantage, native Zoho ecosystem integration, does not benefit a buyer using a non-Zoho CRM or helpdesk, who gets no more from Zoho Campaigns than from a specialist alternative.
  • Support responsiveness reflects Zoho's broad, lower-touch model across its whole portfolio rather than dedicated email marketing expertise.

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Zoho Campaigns

Free
  • Forever FreeFree
    • Up to 2,000 contacts
    • 6,000 emails per month
    • 5 users, basic templates and reporting
  • Standard$undefined/month
    • Starts at 500 contacts, scales to 100,000
    • Unlimited email sends
    • A/B testing and priority support
  • Professional$undefined/month
    • Starts at 500 contacts, scales to 500,000
    • Unlimited email sends
    • Advanced segmentation, dynamic content, custom roles and webhooks

Which should you pick?

Choose Campaign Monitor if

  • You need automation workflows.
  • You also want list segmentation.
Campaign Monitor review

Choose Zoho Campaigns if

  • You need zoho crm integration.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want a/b testing.
Zoho Campaigns review

Questions people ask

Is Campaign Monitor or Zoho Campaigns better?
Neither clearly leads. Campaign Monitor starts at On request and Zoho Campaigns at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Campaign Monitor or Zoho Campaigns?
Zoho Campaigns has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Campaign Monitor and Free for Zoho Campaigns.
Does Campaign Monitor or Zoho Campaigns run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Zoho Campaigns for free?
Yes. Zoho Campaigns has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Campaign Monitor starts at On request.
What is Campaign Monitor best used for?
Campaign Monitor is most often used for a small marketing team wanting straightforward campaign design and automation without a full martech stack, a business with a list under a few thousand contacts and infrequent sends, where the lite tier's cap is not a real constraint, an agency managing multiple brands wanting enterprise-tier multi-brand account management, a team wanting a bundled website builder alongside email on the premier tier. Of those, a small marketing team wanting straightforward campaign design and automation without a full martech stack and a business with a list under a few thousand contacts and infrequent sends, where the lite tier's cap is not a real constraint are not what Zoho Campaigns is typically brought in for.
What can Campaign Monitor do that Zoho Campaigns cannot?
Campaign Monitor covers Automation workflows, List segmentation, Send-time optimisation, Landing pages and forms. Zoho Campaigns covers Zoho CRM integration, A/B testing, Advanced segmentation, Send time optimisation. Both handle Drag-and-drop email builder.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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.

Zoho Campaigns: Is the free tier good enough for real use, or just a trial?

It is a real, ongoing free tier for up to 2,000 contacts and 6,000 emails a month, not a time-limited trial.

Campaign Monitor: Who owns Campaign Monitor?

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

Zoho Campaigns: Does it integrate with non-Zoho CRMs?

Yes via Zapier and other connectors, but the native, no-extra-fee integration advantage is specific to other Zoho products.

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.

Zoho Campaigns: Are WhatsApp and SMS included?

No, they are separately purchased add-ons alongside the email plan.

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