Best Email Marketing Automation Software for SaaS

Customer.io is the power tool that marketing teams graduate to when their email marketing automation needs outgrow simpler solutions. It's the platform that product-led growth companies like Notion, Segment, and Codecademy use to orchestrate complex customer journeys across multiple channels.

The workflow builder in Customer.io is genuinely best-in-class. You can create automated email workflows with unlimited branching logic, delays based on user behavior or time, webhook integrations, A/B testing at any step, and goal tracking to measure sequence effectiveness. Want to send an email, wait for a user to perform an action, branch based on whether they did it, then trigger a push notification if they didn't? Customer.io handles this with ease.

Segmentation in Customer.io operates in real-time based on any attribute or event you track. You can create segments like "users who signed up in the last 7 days AND used feature X but NOT feature Y AND are on the Pro plan." These segments update automatically as users meet or no longer meet the criteria, powering your drip campaign tools with always-current audience data.

The multi-channel capabilities extend beyond email to push notifications, SMS, in-app messages, and webhooks for triggering actions in other tools. This lets you create unified customer journeys - send an email, follow up with a push notification if unopened, show an in-app message when they next log in. The catch is pricing: Customer.io starts at $100/month and scales based on profiles, making it expensive for early-stage companies.

ActiveCampaign bridges the gap between marketing automation and sales CRM in a way that few platforms manage successfully. For SaaS companies with a sales-assisted motion - where marketing generates leads and sales closes them - this integration is invaluable.

The automation builder uses a visual canvas where you can create sophisticated workflows triggered by almost any condition: email opens, link clicks, page visits, form submissions, CRM deal changes, or custom events from your product. You can build automated email workflows that hand off to sales at exactly the right moment, updating deal stages and assigning tasks to reps automatically.

ActiveCampaign's segmentation combines marketing data with CRM data for powerful targeting. You can segment based on email engagement, website behavior, deal stage, pipeline value, and any custom fields you've created. This lets you create drip campaigns that adapt not just to what users do in your emails, but their status in your sales pipeline.

Site tracking is a standout feature - ActiveCampaign can track which pages contacts visit on your website, triggering automations based on specific page views. If a trial user visits your pricing page three times, that's a high-intent signal that can automatically notify sales or trigger an email offering to answer pricing questions. The extensive integration ecosystem (850+ apps) makes it easy to connect with your existing stack.

HubSpot approaches email marketing automation as one component of a comprehensive marketing, sales, and service platform. For companies that want everything in one place - CRM, email, landing pages, forms, ads, social, and analytics - HubSpot delivers that unified experience.

The workflow builder in HubSpot Marketing Hub lets you create automated email workflows triggered by form submissions, page views, email interactions, CRM properties, list membership, and deal stage changes. The visual editor makes it easy to add branches, delays, and actions, though the most sophisticated automation features require Professional tier ($800+/mo).

Where HubSpot shines is in its unified data model. Every contact exists in one database with their complete history - marketing interactions, sales conversations, support tickets, and website activity. This lets you create segments and automations based on the full customer picture, not just email engagement.

The starter tier at $45/month offers solid email marketing automation for early-stage SaaS, including up to 5 automations and basic segmentation. However, to unlock advanced features like A/B testing in workflows, custom event triggers, and unlimited automations, you'll need Professional tier. This makes HubSpot expensive as you scale, but attractive if you want a single platform for your entire go-to-market stack.

Drip started in the e-commerce space but has evolved into a capable email marketing automation platform for SaaS companies who want sophisticated event-driven automation without enterprise complexity or pricing.

The visual workflow builder lets you create automated email workflows that respond to any event you track. You can build sequences triggered by signups, feature usage, page visits, form submissions, purchases, or custom events sent via their JavaScript API or Zapier. The canvas-based editor makes it easy to visualize complex flows with multiple branches and conditions.

Drip's segmentation engine supports both static and dynamic segments based on tags, events, properties, and engagement data. You can create segments like "users who signed up in the last 14 days AND clicked a pricing link AND haven't converted" - and these segments stay current as users move in and out of criteria.

Revenue attribution is built into Drip's DNA from its e-commerce roots. You can see which drip campaigns drive revenue, track customer lifetime value by acquisition source, and measure the ROI of specific email sequences. For SaaS companies tracking conversions, this means you can see which automated email workflows actually move the needle on MRR, not just engagement metrics.

Mailchimp has evolved far beyond its newsletter roots into a marketing platform with genuine automation capabilities. While not as sophisticated as dedicated email marketing automation tools, it offers a familiar interface that many marketers already know and solid features for common use cases.

The Customer Journey builder lets you create automated email workflows with visual branching logic. You can trigger sequences based on signups, purchases, website activity, email engagement, and custom events. Pre-built journey templates for common scenarios (welcome series, abandoned cart, re-engagement) make it quick to get started without designing from scratch.

Segmentation in Mailchimp combines demographic data, behavior, and engagement metrics. You can create segments based on email activity, purchase history, location, and any custom fields you've added. The predicted demographics feature uses AI to infer attributes like age and gender from engagement patterns, useful for B2C SaaS.

Where Mailchimp falls short for sophisticated SaaS automation is in the depth of behavioral triggers and workflow complexity. You can't match Customer.io's event flexibility or create the intricate branching logic that advanced drip campaign tools offer. But for teams who need basic to moderate automation without a learning curve, Mailchimp's familiarity and ease of use have real value.

Klaviyo built its reputation in e-commerce but its underlying data model and automation capabilities translate well to SaaS. If your email marketing automation strategy relies heavily on data and you want deep segmentation, Klaviyo delivers.

The flow builder lets you create automated email workflows with sophisticated trigger logic, conditional branching, time delays, and A/B testing. Flows can be triggered by profile properties, events, list membership, or segment membership. The visual builder strikes a good balance between power and usability, making complex automation accessible.

Where Klaviyo excels is in segmentation. The platform can create segments based on virtually any combination of profile data, behaviors, and predictive metrics. Klaviyo's data science team has built predictive analytics that forecast customer lifetime value, expected next order date, and churn risk. For SaaS, you can adapt these to predict expansion likelihood or churn probability.

The multi-channel capabilities span email, SMS, and mobile push notifications, all orchestrated within the same flow. This lets you create unified customer journeys that adapt channel based on engagement. If an email goes unopened, follow up with SMS. Klaviyo's deliverability is excellent, and the platform's data-first approach means you always have the analytics to optimize your drip campaigns.

Marketo, now part of Adobe, is the enterprise-grade email marketing automation platform that large companies use for sophisticated, multi-touch customer journeys. It's overkill for most SaaS startups but becomes relevant as you scale into the enterprise segment yourself.

The engagement programs in Marketo let you create automated email workflows with virtually unlimited complexity. You can build nurture streams that adapt based on behavior, sales stage, account characteristics, and engagement scores. The "Smart Campaigns" system offers granular control over triggers, filters, and actions that can rival any automation scenario.

Segmentation in Marketo combines static lists, dynamic smart lists, and account-based segmentation. You can segment based on any field in your database, any activity tracked, any score calculated, and combinations thereof. For B2B SaaS with complex buying committees, you can create account-level segments that aggregate individual behavior into company-level insights.

The Marketo ecosystem includes landing pages, forms, webinar integration, ad management, and account-based marketing capabilities. If you're running enterprise marketing with multi-touch attribution, sales alignment, and executive dashboards, Marketo provides the infrastructure. The pricing (starting around $895/month for meaningful functionality) and complexity mean it's not for early-stage companies, but it's worth understanding as you plan for scale.

Pardot, now called Marketing Cloud Account Engagement, is Salesforce's B2B marketing automation platform. If your company runs on Salesforce CRM and you need tight integration between marketing automation and sales processes, Pardot makes that seamless.

The Engagement Studio is Pardot's visual workflow builder for creating automated email workflows. You can build nurture programs triggered by form submissions, page visits, email engagement, and Salesforce field changes. The tight CRM integration means actions in your email automation can update Salesforce records, assign leads to sales reps, and trigger tasks automatically.

Segmentation in Pardot uses dynamic lists that update based on prospect data, activities, and Salesforce CRM information. You can create segments that combine marketing engagement (email opens, page visits, form fills) with sales data (opportunity stage, account tier, recent activity). This unified view powers more relevant drip campaigns.

Lead scoring and grading help prioritize leads for sales follow-up. Scoring reflects engagement level while grading reflects fit based on profile attributes. When leads cross thresholds, Pardot can automatically notify sales and update Salesforce. For SaaS with sales-assisted growth, this automation between marketing and sales is valuable. The pricing is enterprise-level ($1,250+/month), making it practical only for companies with significant marketing budgets and existing Salesforce investments.

Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) offers accessible email marketing automation for companies that want multi-channel capabilities without enterprise pricing. The platform combines email, SMS, chat, and a basic CRM in one package.

The automation workflow builder lets you create automated email workflows triggered by contact properties, website events, email engagement, and custom events. The visual editor supports conditional branching, delays, and multiple actions. While not as sophisticated as Customer.io or Marketo, it handles common automation scenarios like welcome sequences, re-engagement campaigns, and lead nurturing effectively.

Segmentation in Brevo uses contact attributes, list membership, email engagement, and website behavior. You can create dynamic segments that update automatically as contacts meet criteria. The platform also offers basic CRM functionality for tracking deals and tasks, which can feed into your segmentation strategy.

The pricing model is email-volume based rather than contact-based, which can be attractive for companies with large contact databases who don't email frequently. The free tier includes unlimited contacts and basic automation, making it good for testing. For sophisticated drip campaign tools and complex behavioral triggers, you'll eventually outgrow Brevo, but it's a solid starting point.

Ortto (formerly Autopilot) approaches email marketing automation with a visual-first philosophy. The canvas-based journey builder is one of the most intuitive in the space, making it easy to design and understand complex automated email workflows at a glance.

The journey builder uses a whiteboard-style canvas where you drag and drop triggers, actions, conditions, and delays. You can create multi-branch sequences that adapt based on user behavior, time, and attributes. The visual nature makes it easy to explain automations to team members and stakeholders who aren't email experts.

Ortto includes a built-in customer data platform (CDP) that unifies data from your product, website, and tools into unified customer profiles. This data powers segmentation and personalization across your automations. You can create segments based on any attribute or event, and these segments update in real-time.

Journey analytics show you how contacts flow through your automations, where they convert, and where they drop off. This funnel visualization helps you identify optimization opportunities in your drip campaigns. The platform also includes built-in dashboards and reports without needing separate analytics tools. For teams who value visual design and want automation + analytics unified, Ortto is compelling.