Systeme.io or Kartra: two all-in-ones, priced by contacts, at very different levels

Same model, different price per contact

Both platforms bundle the whole funnel under one login and both scale their plans with the size of your contact list. That shared model makes the comparison unusually direct: at each list size, look at what each platform charges and what it adds. Systeme.io keeps its prices low and lets contact capacity do the work, up to an uncapped top plan. Kartra charges more at every level and uses its tiers to add tools beyond the funnel itself: support desk, surveys, video hosting, calendars, team seats.

Systeme.io: free to start, uncapped contacts at the top

Per the official pricing page, the free plan covers 2,000 contacts, 3 funnels and 1 course; Startup lifts that to 5,000 contacts and 10 funnels, Webinar to 10,000 contacts, 50 funnels, 20 courses and evergreen webinars, and Unlimited removes the contact cap. All plans list unlimited email sending, no transaction fees on Stripe or PayPal and affiliate program management. The displayed Startup price may be promotional.

Annual billing is advertised as 2 months free; the pricing page does not itemise annual per-plan amounts. Current amounts: the official Systeme.io pricing page.

The Startup price displayed may reflect a promotional rate.

Full detail: the Systeme.io guide and the plan-by-plan breakdown.

Kartra: four tiers from 500 to 25,000 contacts

Kartra's official pricing page lists Essentials (500 contacts, 5 pages, 1 product, 10,000 emails a month and a 5% transaction fee on sales), Starter (2,500 contacts, unlimited pages, products and email, 0% transaction fees, webinars, video hosting, calendars, 5 team members), Growth (12,500 contacts, automations, affiliate management, surveys and quizzes, helpdesk support, 10 team members) and Professional (25,000 contacts, real-time funnel analytics, helpdesk live chat, 5 custom domains). Annual billing lowers each plan, and a 30-day money back guarantee applies.

Annual billing lowers the effective monthly price. 30-day money back guarantee. Current amounts: the official Kartra pricing page.

Full detail: the Kartra guide and the plan-by-plan breakdown.

Contact capacity, side by side

Amounts come from each provider's official pricing page and can change: the official Systeme.io pricing page · the official Kartra pricing page.

Read the table by list size. Up to 2,000 contacts, Systeme.io is free while Kartra's Essentials stops at 500. At 5,000 contacts, Systeme.io Startup costs $17 per month where Kartra needs Growth at $229 per month. Past 25,000 contacts, Kartra has no self-serve plan listed, while Systeme.io Unlimited at $97 per month has no contact cap. Put your own list size and sales into the cost calculator to see the gap for your case.

Fees and the features that gate each tier

Two points change the real bill. First, Kartra's Essentials plan charges 5% on your sales; Starter and above charge 0%, as do all Systeme.io plans on Stripe or PayPal. On a small launch the fee can outweigh the price gap between Essentials and Starter. Second, the features you need decide the tier, not only the list size: on Kartra, affiliate management, automations and the helpdesk start at Growth, and webinars at Starter. On Systeme.io, affiliate management is on every plan and evergreen webinars start at Webinar.

What Kartra adds that Systeme.io does not list

Kartra's case rests on tools outside the funnel itself: a customer helpdesk with a support portal (live chat on Professional), surveys and quizzes, built-in video hosting, appointment calendars and team seats with access control. If you would otherwise pay for a support desk, a booking tool and video hosting separately, add those bills to the Systeme.io side before comparing. If you would not use them, Kartra's higher price buys capacity Systeme.io already gives you for less.

Verdict by profile

Starting out or building a list on a budget: Systeme.io, because the free plan already beats Kartra's entry plan on contacts and charges no fee on sales. Course creator or coach selling one or two offers: Systeme.io Startup or Webinar. Established business with a support load, bookings and video content it wants under one login: Kartra Starter or Growth. Large list past 25,000 contacts: Systeme.io Unlimited, or a quote from Kartra, since its public ladder stops there.

What the two products actually look like