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Act-On Software vs Pardot comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 3, 2026

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Act-On Software
Ranking in Marketing Automation
15th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
8.7
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Pardot
Ranking in Marketing Automation
12th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Marketing Automation category, the mindshare of Act-On Software is 1.8%, up from 1.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Pardot is 2.7%, down from 3.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Marketing Automation Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Pardot2.7%
Act-On Software1.8%
Other95.5%
Marketing Automation
 

Featured Reviews

it_user82449 - PeerSpot reviewer
Business Systems Manager at a consultancy with 501-1,000 employees
The adaptive nurturing, segmentation, multiple lead scoring rules, and simple CRM integration stood out the most.
The CRM integration with Act-On is better with Salesforce and had more value for sales representatives than it did with Microsoft Dynamics CRM; that was MS CRM's downfall. Act-On Anywhere is a nice feature for general users, but the tracking in CRM is lost, and Marketing team subject lines do not carry over on the email templates.
Vikram Rawani - PeerSpot reviewer
Pardot Consultant at Target
Offers an easy initial setup phase and good ROI
With Pardot, users can do the segmentation based on their requirements. You can segment your prospects based on their interests, locations, companies, or the sales cycle. You can also use the engagement studio to create a journey for the people you have segmented with the help of automation feature of the tool. The aforementioned area consists of the most useful features I found in the tool apart from its out-of-the-box features. The integration between Pardot and Salesforce is beneficial if you know how to share the leads that a company finds useful so that they don't have to invest in manual work or do anything blindly to reach out to leads. Users can segment the leads using the features that the tool provides. I recommend the product to those who plan to use it. If a business is into B2B marketing and can afford to purchase Pardot, then they should buy it. If the product of a company is good, then Pardot can help multiply such an organization's ROI. Based on the product and how the sales and marketing team works, the tool can be useful. In short, the tool can be as good as the person who is using it. I rate the tool a nine out of ten.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"Our organization was operating blindfolded before implementing Act-On."
"It is now much easier for us to send and segment emails, analyze our results and make smarter decisions."
"Act-On is simple to use and it makes campaign development a breeze."
"Act-On has an outstanding customer support team and they escalate issues to their technical teams before the frustration level."
"Before I joined, my company used a larger, more expensive but more popular software, and after switching to this, my team can still do everything it needs to for cheaper."
"For me, the best thing is the Custom Redirect. That's one key thing I like because using that particular Custom Redirect, I can track a link wherever I'm sharing it. I can track how and when people are accessing it."
"It's easy to create email templates and landing pages."
"Pardot directly integrates with CRM, specifically Salesforce, which has an excellent R&D team."
"Pardot's most valuable feature is its B2B marketing capabilities."
"I have not had any issues with the product's stability. Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
"The product is stable."
"The most valuable feature is the customization of the solution."
"Our ROI is huge, not just in cost avoidance, but also in increased sales."
 

Cons

"One area of improvement would be ability to use dynamic content fields. It is available, but not to the fullest extent where it would help me."
"The CRM integration with Act-On is better with Salesforce and had more value for sales representatives than it did with Microsoft Dynamics CRM; that was MS CRM's downfall."
"The price of this solution is expensive. However, you are going to receive good value for money."
"The user interface could be made more intuitive and user-friendly."
"When it comes to integration with third-party tools, Pardot's APIs are not that robust."
"The reporting features of the Pardot system could be improved to provide better and more data."
"​Technical support has been quick and helpful every time."
"Needs to improve list building."
"Pardot needs many improvements in terms of email design and design studio functionalities."
"For new people, the installation of the tool can be difficult."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"​Make sure you do not pay for features that you may not need​."
"We pay about $4000 a month."
"The price of this solution is expensive. However, you are going to receive good value for money. They could improve by reducing the price."
"It is a competitively priced product, considering what it provides."
"In terms of pricing, Pardot is cheaper than Marketing Cloud."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Construction Company
18%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Computer Software Company
12%
Marketing Services Firm
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise1
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise5
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
Earn 20 points
What do you like most about Pardot?
It has no limit for sending marketing emails.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Pardot?
Pardot was somewhat costly for our requirements, nonetheless, the capacities of the item were limited.
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

NYU, Tableau, Xerox, ASPCA, Lego Education, Hoopla, Avery Dennison and SolarWorld.
Arketi Group
Find out what your peers are saying about Act-On Software vs. Pardot and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
908,800 professionals have used our research since 2012.