AWeber vs GetResponse — two platforms that have been in the email marketing space since 1998, and both have survived long enough to earn genuine credibility. But surviving isn’t the same as winning. Choosing the wrong one means either paying for features you’ll never use or outgrowing your platform the moment your business starts to move. I competed with both of these platforms during my 1ShoppingCart.com days — which means I understand what they do well, where they cut corners, and what small business owners actually need from an email platform. Here’s which one wins for your situation.
AWeber vs GetResponse: Quick Verdict
If you’re in a hurry here’s the short answer:
Choose AWeber if you are a beginner, blogger, or small business owner who wants a simple, reliable email marketing platform with outstanding customer support.
Choose GetResponse if you need a more powerful all-in-one platform with advanced automation, webinar hosting, and ecommerce tools — and you don’t mind a slightly steeper learning curve.
Both platforms are excellent. The right choice depends entirely on your specific needs — and that’s exactly what this AWeber vs GetResponse comparison will help you figure out.
AWeber vs GetResponse: Overview
What Is AWeber?
AWeber is one of the oldest and most trusted email marketing platforms in the world, founded in 1998. It’s designed primarily for small businesses, bloggers, and solopreneurs who want a reliable, easy-to-use platform to build their email list and stay in touch with their audience. Read our full AWeber review for a detailed breakdown.
What Is GetResponse?
GetResponse is an all-in-one marketing automation platform founded in the same year as AWeber — 1998. Unlike AWeber, GetResponse has evolved into a comprehensive marketing suite that goes well beyond email — offering automation, landing pages, webinar hosting, ecommerce tools, and paid ads management. Read our full GetResponse review for more details.
AWeber vs GetResponse: Features Comparison
Email Marketing
Both platforms offer solid email marketing fundamentals — drag-and-drop editors, templates, autoresponders, and list management.
AWeber’s email builder is clean and beginner friendly with over 600 templates. GetResponse offers a similarly intuitive builder with over 200 templates, but adds a more powerful spam checker and inbox preview tool.
Winner: Tie — both are excellent for standard email marketing.
Marketing Automation
This is where the two platforms diverge significantly in the AWeber vs GetResponse comparison.
AWeber offers solid basic automation — welcome sequences, tagging, and simple if/then rules. It’s perfectly adequate for most small businesses.
GetResponse’s automation builder is in a different league entirely. You can build complex multi-step workflows based on subscriber behavior, website visits, purchases, and more. The visual automation builder makes even advanced sequences easy to create.
Winner: GetResponse — by a significant margin for advanced automation needs.
Landing Pages
AWeber includes a basic landing page builder with a handful of templates. It does the job for simple opt-in pages but lacks depth.
GetResponse offers a much more comprehensive landing page builder with over 200 templates, A/B testing, and conversion tracking built in. It’s genuinely one of the better landing page tools available — even compared to dedicated landing page platforms.
Winner: GetResponse
Webinar Hosting
AWeber does not offer webinar hosting.
GetResponse includes built-in webinar hosting for up to 1,000 attendees depending on your plan. This is a unique feature that saves you the cost of a separate webinar tool.
Winner: GetResponse — AWeber doesn’t compete here.
Ecommerce Features
AWeber offers basic ecommerce integration — connecting to Shopify, WooCommerce, and PayPal to trigger emails based on purchases.
GetResponse goes much further with abandoned cart emails, product recommendations, promo codes, and deep ecommerce integrations.
Winner: GetResponse
Deliverability
Both platforms have built strong deliverability reputations over more than two decades — and that’s not accidental. The infrastructure work required to keep sending reputation clean is enormous — managing IP warmup, monitoring blacklists, and staying ahead of spam filter changes. Get it wrong and your emails don’t just underperform — they get blocked entirely. Your paid leads, your organic traffic, your follow-up sequences — all worthless if they never reach the inbox. AWeber has a slight edge in deliverability benchmarks, though both perform well above industry average.
Winner: AWeber — marginally
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AWeber vs GetResponse: Ease of Use
This is one of the most important factors in any AWeber vs GetResponse comparison — especially for beginners.
AWeber wins comfortably here. The interface is clean, straightforward, and designed with beginners in mind. You can set up your first email list and send your first campaign within an hour of signing up.
GetResponse has improved its interface significantly in recent years but the sheer volume of features can feel overwhelming for new users. There is more to learn and more decisions to make.
Winner: AWeber — significantly easier for beginners.
AWeber vs GetResponse: Customer Support
AWeber offers 24/7 customer support via live chat, email, and phone — one of the few email marketing platforms that still offers phone support. The support team is consistently rated as knowledgeable and responsive.
GetResponse offers 24/7 live chat and email support but no phone support. Response times are generally good but AWeber’s support is considered best in class.
Winner: AWeber
AWeber vs GetResponse: Pricing
AWeber Pricing
- Free — up to 500 subscribers, free forever
- Lite — from $12.50/month
- Plus — from $20/month
- Unlimited — $899/month flat rate
GetResponse Pricing
- Free — up to 500 contacts, free forever
- Email Marketing — from $15.58/month
- Marketing Automation — from $48.38/month
- Ecommerce Marketing — from $97.58/month
At the entry level both platforms are similarly priced. However as your needs grow GetResponse becomes significantly more expensive — particularly for the automation and ecommerce features that make it stand out.
Winner: AWeber — better value at entry level. GetResponse wins on value if you need its advanced features.
AWeber vs GetResponse: Integrations
AWeber integrates with over 750 tools. GetResponse integrates with over 170. AWeber wins on the sheer number of integrations though GetResponse covers all the major platforms most businesses need.
Winner: AWeber — more integrations available.
AWeber vs GetResponse: Who Should Choose Which?
Choose AWeber if you:
- Are just getting started with email marketing
- Run a blog, small business, or service business
- Want outstanding customer support including phone
- Need a simple, reliable platform without a steep learning curve
- Are on a tight budget
Choose GetResponse if you:
- Need advanced marketing automation
- Want to host webinars without a separate tool
- Run an ecommerce store
- Need powerful landing pages with A/B testing
- Are comfortable with a more feature-rich platform
AWeber vs GetResponse: Final Verdict
In this AWeber vs GetResponse comparison it’s clear that both platforms serve different audiences well.
AWeber is the best choice for beginners, bloggers, and small businesses who want simplicity, reliability, and outstanding support. It does email marketing extremely well without overwhelming you with features you don’t need.
GetResponse is the best choice for growing businesses and experienced marketers who need a powerful all-in-one platform. The automation, landing pages, and webinar hosting make it exceptional value if you actually use those features.
Neither platform is objectively better — the right choice depends entirely on where you are in your business journey and what you need right now.
AWeber rating: 5/5 ★★★★★ | GetResponse rating: 4.5/5 ★★★★½
Best for beginners and small businesses:
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Best for growing businesses that need automation and webinars: