Adobe Marketo Engage

Short answer: the brands people actually use most are HubSpot, Mailchimp, Klaviyo, Salesforce Marketing Cloud / Account Engagement, Adobe Marketo Engage, ActiveCampaign, Braze, Iterable, Oracle Eloqua, and Brevo. If you want the safest default: HubSpot for B2B/CRM-led marketing, Klaviyo for ecommerce, Mailchimp for simple SMB email + automations, Marketo or Salesforce for enterprise B2B, and Braze/Iterable for high-volume B2C lifecycle marketing.

I’d shortlist these:

My practical recommendation by use case

• Best overall for most B2B companies: HubSpot Marketing Hub
• Best for Salesforce-first B2B teams: Salesforce Marketing Cloud Account Engagement
• Best for advanced enterprise B2B: Adobe Marketo Engage
• Best for ecommerce / Shopify: Klaviyo
• Best simple email + automation for small business: Mailchimp
• Best SMB automation power/value: ActiveCampaign
• Best for consumer apps / mobile lifecycle: Braze or Iterable
• Best lower-cost alternative: Brevo
• Best enterprise legacy/global ops option: Oracle Eloqua

If you’re buying for a real company, don’t choose by “best overall” alone. Choose based on CRM fit, ecommerce platform, database size, channels needed, reporting/attribution needs, and who will actually administer it. For most teams, the wrong platform is usually not “missing features” — it’s buying something too complex for the team or poorly integrated with the CRM.

The "best" marketing automation platform isn't a one-size-fits-all choice. The software a fast-growing e-commerce brand needs is completely different from what a Fortune 500 B2B enterprise requires.

To help you find what people actually use, the top marketing automation platforms are categorized below by business type, size, and use case.

1. Best All-Rounders & Mid-Market B2B

These platforms are the gold standard for lead generation, content marketing, and aligning marketing with sales teams.

HubSpot (Marketing Hub)

• Best for: B2B companies, scaling startups, and mid-market brands wanting an all-in-one CRM and marketing suite.
• Why people use it: HubSpot is widely considered the gold standard for inbound marketing. Its visual workflow builder is incredibly intuitive, making it easy to automate email sequences, track website behavior, score leads, and hand off warm leads to sales. Because it sits directly on top of HubSpot's CRM, your data is always synced.
• The Catch: It gets very expensive, very fast. While they have cheap starter tiers, scaling to "Professional" or "Enterprise" tiers (which you need for advanced automation) can cost thousands of dollars a month.

ActiveCampaign

• Best for: Small-to-mid-sized businesses (SMBs) needing advanced automation without the enterprise price tag.
• Why people use it: For pure automation logic, ActiveCampaign is a powerhouse. It offers a highly sophisticated visual automation builder that lets you trigger actions based on almost any customer behavior (clicks, site visits, purchases). It also includes a built-in sales CRM.
• The Catch: The interface has a steeper learning curve than simpler tools, and because of its depth, setting up complex funnels takes time.

2. Best for E-commerce & Direct-to-Consumer (DTC)

If you run an online store, your automation must be tightly integrated with your product catalog, inventory, and purchase data.

Klaviyo

• Best for: E-commerce stores (especially Shopify, WooCommerce, and Magento users).
• Why people use it: Klaviyo is the undisputed king of e-commerce marketing. It integrates seamlessly with your store to capture granular customer data. You can easily automate hyper-targeted flows like abandoned cart sequences, price-drop alerts, post-purchase upsells, and loyalty programs based on what customers actually bought or viewed.
• The Catch: It is heavily focused on email and SMS. If you need deep B2B sales pipelines or complex lead-scoring systems, Klaviyo is not the right tool.

Drip or Omnisend

• Best for: Budget-conscious or SMS-first e-commerce brands.
• Why people use them: Both are great alternatives to Klaviyo. Drip focuses on highly visual, revenue-driven email automation workflows. Omnisend is highly praised for its omnichannel capabilities, allowing you to seamlessly combine email, SMS, and web push notifications into a single automated sequence.

3. Best for Large Enterprises (High Complexity & Scale)

These platforms are built for companies with massive databases, complex sales cycles, and dedicated marketing operations teams.

Adobe Marketo Engage

• Best for: Enterprise B2B companies with complex, multi-touch buyer journeys.
• Why people use it: Marketo is built for heavy-duty demand generation. It handles lead scoring, multi-channel nurturing, and account-based marketing (ABM) at a massive scale. If you have thousands of leads flowing through different sales stages, Marketo provides the granular tracking and enterprise-grade security you need.
• The Catch: It has a notoriously dated user interface, a very steep learning curve, and usually requires a dedicated administrator (a "Marketo certified professional") to run it effectively.

Salesforce Marketing Cloud & Account Engagement (formerly Pardot)

• Best for: Enterprises already fully committed to the Salesforce CRM ecosystem.
• Why people use it: If your sales team lives in Salesforce, using Salesforce's marketing tools is a logical choice. Account Engagement (Pardot) is built for B2B lead generation, while Marketing Cloud is built for large B2C consumer journeys (managing millions of automated touchpoints across email, mobile, and ads).
• The Catch: It is incredibly complex and expensive to implement, often requiring external consultants to set up properly.

Braze

• Best for: Modern, mobile-first consumer brands (apps, streaming services, gig economy giants).
• Why people use it: Braze is the leader in modern customer engagement. It is designed to orchestrate real-time, cross-channel experiences—syncing push notifications, in-app messages, SMS, and emails instantly based on live user data.
• The Catch: It is strictly an enterprise tool with high entry-level pricing.

4. Next-Gen AI & Workflow Integrators

Sometimes, the best automation doesn't happen inside a single marketing tool, but in the "connective tissue" between your tools.

• Zapier / Make: If you use separate tools (e.g., Mailchimp for email, Typeform for forms, and Airtable for a database), Zapier or Make are essential. They allow you to build custom automated workflows between thousands of apps without writing any code.
• Clay / Gumloop: These are modern, AI-powered automation platforms rapidly rising in popularity among growth marketers. They allow teams to automate complex data enrichment, scrape websites, and use AI models (like GPT-4 or Claude) to write personalized outbound emails at scale.

Summary: How to Choose

To narrow down your decision, ask yourself these three questions:

1. What is your business model?
   • E-commerce: Go with Klaviyo or Drip.
   • B2B / Lead Gen: Go with HubSpot (all-in-one) or ActiveCampaign (budget-friendly).
2. What is your budget?
   • Low/Medium: ActiveCampaign, Brevo, or MailerLite.
   • High/Enterprise: HubSpot, Marketo, or Salesforce.
3. Do you have dedicated technical resources?
   • No: Stick to HubSpot or Klaviyo, which are highly visual and require zero coding.
   • Yes: Enterprise tools like Marketo or custom stacks built using Make/Zapier will give you maximum control.

The "best" marketing automation software depends on your business size, budget, and use case (email, CRM, e-commerce, B2B vs B2C). But these are the tools people actually use most, based on market adoption and user reviews.

Top Marketing Automation Platforms

1. HubSpot Marketing Hub

Best for: All-in-one inbound marketing, SMBs to mid-market
Why people use it: Intuitive, excellent CRM integration, email marketing, landing pages, lead scoring, social media scheduling, and reporting. Scales with you via tiers (Free, Starter, Professional, Enterprise).

• Standout: Easiest to learn and use; huge app ecosystem.
• Weakness: Costs can climb quickly as you add contacts/features.

2. ActiveCampaign

Best for: Mid-market B2B/B2C, user experience teams
Why people use it: Powerful email automation, customer journey mapping, CRM, and lead scoring. Massive community and template library.

• Standout: Best price-to-feature ratio for advanced automation.
• Weakness: Not ideal for complex B2B sales funnels; simpler CRM than HubSpot.

3. Klaviyo

Best for: E-commerce / online stores (Shopify, WooCommerce, etc.)
Why people use it: Purpose-built for e-commerce marketing automation: segmentation based on purchase behavior, cart recovery, product feeds, and strong email/SMS.

• Standout: Unrivaled e-commerce analytics and personalization.
• Weakness: Not great for non-e-commerce businesses.

4. Adobe Marketo Engage

Best for: Large enterprises, B2B lead management
Why people use it: Deep B2B capabilities: lead routing, multi-touch attribution, account-based marketing (ABM), revenue reporting.

• Standout: Most powerful for complex B2B organizations.
• Weakness: Steep learning curve; expensive; requires admin effort.

5. Salesforce Marketing Cloud (Pardot / Engagement)

Best for: Existing Salesforce users, enterprise B2B
Why people use it: Native integration with Salesforce CRM, unmatched lead-to-account reporting, journey builder.

• Standout: Tightest CRM alignment + AI/personalization with Einstein.
• Weakness: Costly, complex, and definitely requires training.

6. Braze

Best for: Consumer apps, mobile-first brands, B2C enterprises
Why people use it: Real-time cross-channel messaging (push, in-app, email, SMS, WhatsApp) with deep customer lifecycle orchestration.

• Standout: Best for high-volume mobile/consumer engagement.
• Weakness: Overkill unless you need real-time, multi-channel journeys at scale.

7. Mailchimp

Best for: Beginners, small businesses, simple email automation
Why people use it: Low cost, easy setup, templates, and basic automations. Millions still use it for email marketing.

• Standout: Fast time-to-first-campaign.
• Weakness: Automation is limited compared to competitors; can get pricey as audience grows.

8. Customer.io

Best for: Product-led teams, data-driven lifecycle marketing
Why people use it: Developer-friendly event-based automation, great for custom behaviors and product messaging.

• Standout: Extremely flexible with raw data; no unnecessary templates.
• Weakness: Requires some technical setup; not a full CRM.

9. SharpSpring (Constant Contact now)

Best for: Marketing agencies and mid-size businesses
Why people use it: Unlimited contacts for a flat fee; includes CRM, email automation, forms, and social monitoring.

• Standout: Agency-friendly (white-label options, client management).
• Weakness: Interface feels dated; fewer integrations than HubSpot.

10. Drip

Best for: E-commerce and online retailers (like Klaviyo but smaller)
Why people use it: Easy visual workflows, email/SMS automation, revenue-focused segmentation.

• Standout: Great for small e-commerce brands needing automation without enterprise price.
• Weakness: Limited beyond e-commerce.

Quick recommendation by use case

Bottom line: If you only try one, start with HubSpot (free tier + trial) or ActiveCampaign — they cover the broadest range of marketing automation needs for everyday teams. If you’re e-commerce, Klaviyo is the no-brainer.

HubSpot Marketing Hub, ActiveCampaign, Klaviyo, Mailchimp, Adobe Marketo Engage, and Salesforce Marketing Cloud (including Account Engagement, formerly Pardot) stand out as the top marketing automation software that people and companies actually use widely.

These recommendations draw from user review volume and ratings on platforms like G2, real-world market share/usage data (e.g., from 6sense tech stack tracking), expert roundups, and analyst recognition (such as Gartner Magic Quadrants for B2B marketing automation). Popularity varies by business size, focus (B2B vs. B2C/e-commerce), and needs—there is no single “best” tool.

Top Recommendations by Popularity and Use Case

Here are the leading options people actually adopt, grouped roughly by strength:

1. HubSpot Marketing Hub (Often the overall leader in reviews, all-in-one adoption, and B2B recognition)
   Extremely popular with high G2 review counts (around 14,000+). It combines marketing automation (email, workflows, lead scoring/nurturing, landing pages, SEO/content tools) with a strong free/built-in CRM, sales, and service hubs. Excellent for inbound marketing, mid-market to enterprise teams wanting one platform, and ease of use with solid integrations and AI features. Frequently named a Leader in Gartner Magic Quadrants. Pricing starts relatively accessible (free tools available; paid from low tens of dollars/month scaling up) but can get expensive at scale. Ideal if you want CRM + marketing tightly integrated.

2. ActiveCampaign (Top for advanced automation and SMBs/growing businesses)
   Near-equal high G2 review volume to HubSpot and frequently praised (or ranked #1 overall) in independent reviews for powerful visual workflow builders, segmentation, email personalization, CRM/sales features, and AI/predictive capabilities. Used by 150,000+ businesses; strong deliverability and value. More automation-focused and often more affordable long-term than HubSpot for pure marketing needs. Great starting point or upgrade from basic email tools. Pricing from around $15/month.

3. Klaviyo (Dominant for e-commerce)
   Very high real-world usage/market share (hundreds of thousands of customers). Excels at email + SMS automation with deep Shopify/WooCommerce and other e-com integrations, predictive analytics, segmentation based on purchase behavior, and prebuilt flows (e.g., abandoned cart). Highly rated on G2 for e-commerce teams. Starts around $20/month (based on profiles/emails). Top choice for DTC and online retailers.

4. Mailchimp (Intuit Mailchimp) (Most widely used overall, especially entry-level/SMBs)
   Highest market share by a large margin in broad usage tracking (hundreds of thousands of customers), thanks to its ease of use, free tier, templates, and growing automation/AI features. Good for email-centric campaigns, basic-to-intermediate automation, audiences, and landing pages. Less powerful for complex multi-step journeys or enterprise needs compared to the above, but many start here and stick with or grow into its All-in-One platform. Very beginner-friendly.

5. Adobe Marketo Engage (Enterprise B2B powerhouse)
   Longstanding leader for complex B2B demand generation, lead management, account-based marketing (ABM), sophisticated nurturing, and analytics. Strong Gartner recognition as a Leader. Deep Salesforce and other CRM integrations; highly configurable but steeper learning curve and higher cost (enterprise pricing, often custom). Used by larger organizations needing scale and governance.

6. Salesforce Marketing Cloud / Account Engagement (Pardot)
   Strong for companies already in the Salesforce ecosystem. Marketing Cloud handles broad omnichannel (email, mobile, ads, journeys) especially well for B2C/high-volume; Account Engagement focuses on B2B lead nurturing and alignment with Salesforce CRM. High enterprise adoption and Gartner Leader status. Seamless data/CRM sync is a major plus; pricing is enterprise-level.

Other Strong Contenders People Use

• Braze — Excellent for real-time omnichannel/lifecycle messaging (email, push, in-app, SMS), popular with consumer brands and mobile-first companies. High G2 ratings.
• Omnisend or Attentive — Strong e-commerce/SMS-focused options (Omnisend often praised for value and Shopify integration).
• Brevo (formerly Sendinblue), HighLevel, Customer.io, MailerLite — Affordable or specialized alternatives (agencies, budget, behavioral messaging).
• Others like Oracle Eloqua or Creatio appear in enterprise/Gartner contexts.

Quick Guidance on Choosing

• Small businesses / startups / simple needs: Mailchimp or ActiveCampaign (or Brevo for budget). Many start with free/low-cost tiers.
• Growing / mid-market / all-in-one: HubSpot or ActiveCampaign.
• E-commerce/DTC: Klaviyo (or Omnisend).
• Enterprise B2B / complex nurturing/ABM: Marketo or Salesforce Account Engagement.
• Omnichannel/consumer engagement at scale: Braze or Salesforce Marketing Cloud.
• Key factors: Ease of use vs. power, existing CRM/stack (especially Salesforce), pricing (many scale with contacts/emails and add-ons), integrations, AI features, reporting, and support. Test free trials/demos—usability and implementation time matter a lot. Total cost of ownership (including training) often exceeds sticker price for complex tools.

Market notes: Usage data shows email-heavy tools like Mailchimp and Klaviyo leading in sheer customer numbers (many smaller companies), while HubSpot and ActiveCampaign dominate review volume and mid-market mindshare. Enterprise tools like Marketo/Salesforce have fewer total customers but high value/revenue share. The category is growing with AI personalization, omnichannel journeys, and tighter CRM/revenue alignment.

Check recent G2/Capterra grids, Gartner Peer Insights, or vendor sites for the latest pricing, feature comparisons, and user reviews tailored to your industry/size. Needs evolve, so many companies switch or layer tools as they scale.