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The core difference between these two tools comes down to scope and price. GetResponse is a multi-channel marketing platform with AI-driven email tools, automation, landing pages, SMS, web push, ecommerce features, and even a course creator — with transparent paid plans starting at $15.58/month. EmailOctopus leads with a free entry point and a low-cost paid tier, and its captured feature set is considerably leaner. If you want a published starting price today, both deliver one; if you want a broader tool set from the data we have, the two aren’t particularly close.
Pricing
Both tools publish their prices openly, which is a genuine plus. Here’s how they stack up side by side:
| Plan | GetResponse | EmailOctopus |
|---|---|---|
| Free / Starter | — | $0 (billed annually) |
| Entry paid | $15.58/month (Starter, billed annually) / $19/month (billed monthly) | $9/month (PRO, billed annually) |
| Mid tier | $48.38/month (Marketer, billed annually) / $59/month (billed monthly) | — |
| Upper tier | $56.58/month (Creator, billed annually) / $69/month (billed monthly) | — |
| Enterprise | Contact sales | — |
EmailOctopus offers the lowest barrier to entry: a $0 plan (billed annually) and a PRO plan at $9/month (billed annually). That’s as affordable as published email marketing pricing gets.
GetResponse starts at $19/month (billed monthly) or $15.58/month (billed annually) on its Starter plan, stepping up to Marketer at $59/month (billed monthly) or $48.38/month (billed annually), Creator at $69/month (billed monthly) or $56.58/month (billed annually), and an Enterprise tier that requires contacting sales. Those higher tiers reflect a substantially broader feature set — though also a meaningfully higher bill.
Some GetResponse users have reported friction around invoicing and payments, as well as price/value concerns — worth keeping in mind as you evaluate the step-ups between tiers. EmailOctopus users have similarly flagged invoicing and payments, along with some friction around ease of use, customer support, and price/value.
Features
This is where the gap between the two tools becomes most visible in the data.
GetResponse captures a wide range of capabilities across its feature set: AI email marketing (including an AI email generator, AI campaign generator, and AI writing assistant), marketing automation with a visual workflow builder, advanced triggering, prebuilt templates, autoresponders, send-time optimization, multichannel engagement (SMS marketing, web push notifications, live chats, popups and forms), AI landing pages, an AI website builder, signup forms, a conversion funnel tool, ecommerce integrations, abandoned cart reminders, product recommendations, paid ads, an AI course creator, premium newsletters, a creator’s profile, A/B testing, and 170+ integrations. Its positioning explicitly spans email marketing, automation, landing pages, and ecommerce tools.
EmailOctopus captures forms & landing pages among its feature items, along with audience-specific positioning for authors, ecommerce users, and affiliates. Its feature data also references a knowledge base, affiliate program, rewards program, API documentation, and savings calculator. Beyond that, the captured feature detail is limited — the fact sheet does not surface the depth of automation, AI tooling, or multichannel capabilities that appear in GetResponse’s data.
To be fair about what we can and can’t say: the EmailOctopus feature capture is thin, meaning we can only speak to what appeared in the data. If you’re evaluating EmailOctopus seriously, digging into their own feature pages directly is worthwhile — particularly around automation depth and list management.
Who Each Is For
GetResponse suits marketers and businesses who want a broad marketing platform — AI-assisted emails, multichannel outreach (SMS, web push, live chat), landing pages, a website builder, ecommerce triggers like abandoned cart reminders, and even digital course creation, all under one roof. The pricing shape (three published tiers plus enterprise) also suits teams that expect to grow into more advanced tooling over time.
EmailOctopus positions itself around simplicity (“Email Marketing Made Easy”) and has specific positioning for authors, ecommerce users, and affiliates. Its $0 entry point and $9/month PRO plan make it a natural fit for individuals or small operations where keeping costs minimal is the priority and where the captured feature set — centered on forms, landing pages, and core email — covers what’s needed.
Choose GetResponse If…
- You need multichannel tools beyond email — SMS marketing, web push notifications, and live chats are all captured in its feature set
- You want AI-assisted email creation, campaign generation, or a writing assistant built into the platform
- Marketing automation with a visual workflow builder, advanced triggering, and prebuilt templates matters to you
- You’re selling products or courses and want ecommerce integrations, abandoned cart reminders, recommendations, or an AI course creator
- You want a website or landing page builder included alongside your email tool
Choose EmailOctopus If…
- Starting at $0 is important — no other plan in this comparison offers that
- You’re an author, ecommerce operator, or affiliate looking for a straightforward email tool with forms and landing pages at the lowest possible cost
- You want to keep your monthly spend at $9/month (billed annually) on the PRO plan
- Your needs align with what “Email Marketing Made Easy” promises and you don’t require the broader multichannel and AI feature stack GetResponse captures
Bottom line: Both tools publish honest, accessible pricing. The decision largely comes down to how much feature depth you actually need. EmailOctopus wins on price at the entry level; GetResponse captures a substantially broader feature set, which comes at a higher price. If you’re on the fence, it’s worth trialling GetResponse (a free trial is listed among its captured features) and exploring EmailOctopus’s free Starter plan directly before committing.