Kartra Vs Clickfunnels 2.0: What Are The Difference in 2025?

Hey there, welcome to my Kartra Vs Clickfunnels.

ClickFunnels’ sales page promises a complete business platform with 16 apps.

However, nearly every review you find on Google, YouTube, and other platforms continues to describe it as a basic funnel builder based on the old version or the problematic 2022 launch.

This outdated information creates confusion for buyers comparing platforms in 2025.

The truth involves three distinct phases:

• ClickFunnels Classic (2014-2021)
• The troubled 2.0 launch (2022)
• and the rebuilt platform (2023-2025).

ClickFunnels Classic pioneered drag-and-drop funnel building after Russell Brunson published Dotcom Secrets in 2014. The platform grew to 100,000+ active users by 2021.

Kartra entered the market in 2018 as a unified all-in-one platform. By 2021, it captured a significant market share with native features including video hosting, helpdesk, and webinars.

In 2022, the much-anticipated ClickFunnels 2.0 launch faced technical issues, missing features, and pricing concerns, causing many users to switch to other platforms.

ClickFunnels transformed the platform through consistent updates, including 199 documented improvements in 2024 (check the changelog here). The platform added CRM, Survey Workflow, Affiliate Center, and AI tools.

At the same time, Kartra has been evolving too, recently launching its own sleek UI and feature updates. The game has completely changed again.

This review compares the current capabilities of Kartra and ClickFunnels 2.0 based on hands-on testing in 2025.

Let’s start with the quick verdict.

Quick Summary: Which All-in-One is Right For You?

Let’s cut right to the chase: the best platform for you depends entirely on your business philosophy.

Choose Kartra if you’re a “Marketing Engineer.” It’s built for those who value surgical precision and control, offering deep customization, advanced automation, and sophisticated features that handle complex business models without needing third-party tools.

Choose ClickFunnels 2.0 if you’re a “Marketing Accelerator.” It’s designed for rapid deployment and scale, arming you with generous contact limits (10,000 on the starter plan), lightning-fast funnel building, and unique sales tools like Countdown Funnels or Pipeline (opportunity) to optimize for revenue immediately.

The detailed breakdown below will show you the hands-on evidence behind this verdict.

What Does Kartra Do Better Than ClickFunnels?

Kartra’s biggest advantage comes from being built as one cohesive system from day one. While most platforms add features over time—creating gaps that require third-party tools—Kartra was designed with a “native integration” philosophy where every component talks to every other component seamlessly.

In addition to this, Kartra offers additional features such as device optimization and agency tools, which further enhance its value as an all-in-one platform.

1. Prevent Costly Mistakes with Kartra’s Funnel Mapper & Simulator 

This is where Kartra separates itself from every other platform.

The Funnel Mapper lets you visually plan your entire campaign on a drag-and-drop canvas—every page, email, tag, and automation is mapped out before you build anything. 

But here’s the game-changer: The Simulate function lets you input hypothetical traffic and conversion rates to forecast revenue before spending a dime on ads.

Why does this matter?

Most entrepreneurs build their funnel, launch ads, and then watch thousands of dollars disappear with poor results. They realize too late that their opt-in converts at 15% but their sales page only converts at 0.5%—making the math impossible. 

With Kartra’s simulator, you can test scenarios: “What if my opt-in gets 20% and sales page gets 2%?” You’ll see immediately whether you need 1,000 or 10,000 visitors to hit your revenue goals.

This prevents the expensive trial-and-error cycle that kills most marketing budgets. You launch with confidence, knowing your funnel math works before you spend your first ad dollar.

This proactive approach allows you to optimize funnel performance and maximize ROI from the outset.

2. Done-For-You Campaigns

These aren’t just templates—they’re pre-wired marketing systems.

You can launch effective marketing campaigns with minimal setup time, leveraging integrated automation and expert design.

When you import a campaign from an expert like Frank Kern, you don’t just get the pages. You get the pre-written email sequences, the specific automation rules (“IF user clicks this link, THEN apply this tag”), and all the pages linked together in the right order.

The hidden cost of DIY marketing is time and missed opportunities.

Most business owners can build a landing page, but they struggle with the complex automation logic: “When should I send the follow-up email? What tags trigger which sequences?”

Without this expertise, leads fall through the cracks.

A hot prospect clicks your sales page but doesn’t buy immediately—then never hears from you again because you forgot to set up the follow-up sequence.

These pre-built campaigns eliminate those gaps. You get proven email sequences that nurture leads properly, automation that captures behavior data, and follow-up systems that recover lost sales.

This lets you deploy a sophisticated, expert-level marketing campaign in hours, not weeks while avoiding the revenue leaks that kill most amateur setups.

3. Video Hosting That Actually Sells

Kartra’s video hosting transforms passive viewing into an interactive sales machine.

You can easily upload or embed video links within their sales pages, making it simple to enhance engagement and drive conversions.

Also, you can make a “Buy Now” button appear at the exact moment you mention your offer. If a prospect watches over 80% of your sales video, you can automatically apply a “Hot Lead” tag in your CRM. You can automatically send a follow-up email if a user drops off before the call-to-action appears.

Most businesses treat video as passive content. Smart video hosting transforms viewing into interactive sales opportunities.

Think about it: someone just spent 15 minutes watching your sales presentation, but when they’re ready to buy, there’s no clear next step. Or worse, they watch 90% of your video (showing massive interest) but you treat them the same as someone who watched 10%.

Kartra’s behavioral triggers solve this.

High-engagement viewers get tagged as hot leads and receive immediate follow-up. Drop-offs get re-engagement sequences. Viewers who pause at your CTA get timed reminders. This turns your video content from a passive viewing experience into an automated sales machine that captures every buying signal.

4. Built-in Helpdesk & Calendar

Because Kartra’s Helpdesk is native, when a customer submits a support ticket, their entire purchase history and contact profile are instantly visible to your support team.

This comprehensive view empowers support teams to resolve issues more efficiently and provide a higher level of customer service.

No need to switch between apps. A booked appointment can trigger a unique pre-call email sequence or tag the lead as “Qualified” in your CRM.

The hidden cost of disconnected tools is customer frustration and lost sales opportunities. 

Picture this: a customer emails support about their order, but your support team can’t see their purchase history because it’s in a different system. They ask the customer to provide their order number, transaction ID, and purchase details. The customer feels like just another ticket number.

Meanwhile, someone books a discovery call, but there’s no automated follow-up to prep them for success. They show up cold, unprepared, and you waste 20 minutes of a 30-minute call just getting context.

Kartra’s native integration eliminates these friction points. Support tickets instantly show complete customer context. Calendar bookings trigger smart prep sequences. This creates a flawlessly professional customer experience while streamlining your internal workflow. No more “Zapier duct tape” connecting separate tools that break when you need them most.

Note: The full Helpdesk functionality with live chat is available on Kartra’s Growth plans and higher, while the Calendar is available on the Starter plan.

What Does ClickFunnels Do Better Than Kartra?

After a notoriously rocky start, many people wrote off ClickFunnels 2.0. But behind the scenes, a relentless series of updates has transformed it.

In the following sections, I’ll break down the key ClickFunnels features that set it apart, including its funnel builder, automation tools, integrations, and more.

1. A Cohesive Workflow for Faster Funnel Building

While both platforms feature powerful page editors, ClickFunnels is purpose-built to create and manage funnels as single, cohesive projects, giving it a distinct advantage in speed and intuitive design.

Think of it this way:

In Kartra, building a funnel is like constructing a house by buying lumber, nails, and drywall separately—you build each page individually and then must manually link them together.

In ClickFunnels, it’s like using prefabricated walls. The platform treats a “Funnel” as one entity. All your steps—Opt-in, Sales Page, OTO—are contained in a single visual workflow on your screen. You can reorder them with drag-and-drop, and the system knows to link them sequentially.

This cohesive approach drastically reduces setup time and eliminates the risk of broken links from incorrect URLs.

You can see your entire campaign at a glance, analyze metrics for the funnel as a whole, and duplicate entire multi-page campaigns in a few clicks.

For marketers who value speed to market, this workflow is undeniably superior.

2. Create True Urgency with “Sticky” Countdown Funnels

Both platforms offer countdown timers, but they are not created equal.

ClickFunnels’ “Sticky Countdown” creates authentic, individual scarcity that follows your customer from your page into their email, a feature that would otherwise require a costly third-party tool.

Here’s the key difference: Kartra’s timer is standard—it can count down to a fixed date. ClickFunnels’ timer is “smart.” It uses cookies to create a unique deadline for each visitor.

If you run a 3-day special, Visitor A, who arrives on Monday, will see the offer expire on Thursday. But Visitor B, who arrives on Tuesday, gets their own fresh 3-day window. This allows you to run a truly evergreen scarcity campaign that feels personal and authentic to every lead.

But the most powerful part is that this timer syncs perfectly with your email campaigns.

The time remaining that a user sees in a follow-up email is exactly the same as what was on the page, creating an unbreakable sense of urgency.

This one built-in feature effectively replaces the need for expensive third-party tools like Deadline Funnel (a $49/mo+ value) and is a clear win for ClickFunnels.

3. Go Beyond Marketing with a True Sales Pipeline.

For any business that sells high-ticket products or services, ClickFunnels 2.0 offers a decisive advantage that Kartra completely lacks: a native, fully-integrated Sales Pipeline.

This feature, called “Opportunities,” transforms lead management from a spreadsheet-like list of tagged contacts into a dynamic, visual tool.

Imagine a Trello board where you can create custom columns for your sales stages—”New Application,” “Call Scheduled,” “In Negotiation,” “Closed Won”—and physically drag-and-drop your leads from one stage to the next.

This isn’t just for organization; it’s a powerful automation engine for your sales team.

Dragging a lead into the “Proposal Sent” column can automatically trigger a pre-written follow-up email sequence.

This automates the sales process, not just the initial marketing, bridging a critical gap that many businesses struggle with. It firmly places ClickFunnels 2.0 as a superior choice for any company with a hands-on sales cycle.

4. Easily Combine Traditional E-Commerce Stores with Powerful Funnels

For anyone selling physical products, this is one of the most significant differentiators.

While Kartra can process a sale, ClickFunnels 2.0 provides the essential, native e-commerce architecture needed to run a proper online store.

In Kartra, you face immediate roadblocks.

There’s no built-in system for Product Variants, meaning you’d have to create a separate product for every single size and color combination—a logistical nightmare.

It also lacks a native Shopping Cart, making it difficult for customers to buy multiple items in one transaction. There’s no native Inventory Management to automatically track stock levels.

ClickFunnels 2.0, on the other hand, was built to handle these challenges.

It includes a full product management system with variants, a customer-facing shopping cart, and inventory capabilities. You can create a legitimate, albeit basic, storefront for your brand and even integrate it with dedicated shipping software.

The true magic is combining this storefront with ClickFunnels’ legendary funnel-building.

You can seamlessly move a customer from a standard store purchase into a targeted, high-converting one-click upsell or post-purchase funnel.

This unique ability to blend traditional e-commerce with direct-response marketing makes ClickFunnels the undeniable winner for physical product sellers. This integration is essential for maximizing online sales and scaling digital storefronts.

5. The Unmatched Power of the Community, Training & Events

To be clear, both platforms have active communities.

Kartra has an excellent official Facebook group for technical and strategic support, along with a helpful YouTube channel full of tutorials. They provide good support for their software.

However, ClickFunnels takes this to a completely different level.

They provide a comprehensive marketing education ecosystem designed to make you a better marketer, not just a better software user. This value is delivered through several key programs included with your subscription:

• Launch a Proven Funnel in 30 Days: With the included One Funnel Away (OFA) Challenge, you get free access to one of the most famous and effective marketing training programs in the world, guiding you step-by-step through a successful launch.
• Get Your Specific Questions Answered by Experts: The weekly live onboarding and strategy calls allow you to solve your unique technical or marketing challenges with guidance from ClickFunnels’ own experts.
• Master Every Aspect of Digital Marketing: The FunnelHacker Library is a massive vault of advanced courses on list building, webinars, selling, affiliate marketing, and more, giving you a complete business education far beyond just software tutorials.

Both new and existing customers can take advantage of these community and training resources to continually improve their marketing skills.

This is the ultimate differentiator. Kartra teaches you how to use Kartra. ClickFunnels teaches you how to market.

For any beginner who needs both the tool and the knowledge to succeed, or any veteran who wants to stay on the cutting edge, this built-in educational ecosystem is an unparalleled advantage.

Clickfunnels Vs Kartra: Features Breakdown

Sales Funnel Builder

Kartra and ClickFunnels take fundamentally different approaches to funnel building – Kartra uses a page-by-page system while ClickFunnels treats funnels as unified projects..

Kartra’s Page-by-Page Approach

Kartra doesn’t treat funnels as unified projects.

You MUST create each page separately and manually link every button and step. This approach requires careful page building to ensure all steps are properly connected.

It’s like building a house room by room, then running extension cords between them.

The Funnel Mapper helps visualize your customer journey by letting you drag icons representing pages, emails, and automations onto a canvas. You can even run simulations to forecast results. Kartra lets users test different scenarios and optimize their funnels before launch.

But here’s the catch—this is only a visual representation. Think of it like architectural software that creates beautiful blueprints, but someone still needs to actually build the plumbing and electrical connections.

Kartra truly shines by offering over 90 done-for-you campaigns. These aren’t basic templates—they’re complete marketing systems created by successful Kartra members and staff.

Fast Fact: Marketing legend Frank Kern has teamed up exclusively with Kartra to provide elite funnels you won’t find anywhere else.

When you import one, you get the entire campaign with emails, pages, and automation rules already connected. It’s like getting the keys to a professionally built model home.

ClickFunnels’ Integrated Funnel Workflow

The ClickFunnels funnel builder streamlines the entire process, allowing users to create, customize, and manage high-converting sales funnels from start to finish with ease.

If Kartra is the architect, ClickFunnels is the master builder with a high-tech toolkit. Its entire platform is obsessed with one thing: launching your funnel as fast as possible.

It starts with battle-tested templates. ClickFunnels provides 14 pre-built funnel types across 5 categories:

1. Lead Funnels (2 types)
2. Unboxing Funnels (2 types)
3. Presentation Funnels (3 types)
4. Phone Funnels (1 type)
5. Other Funnels (5 types)

These sales funnel templates are based on Russell Brunson’s proven frameworks, such as the book funnel, webinar funnel, or product launch funnel. You’re not starting with a pretty picture; you’re starting with a proven, conversion-optimized machine.

Look at the page template below; it is identical to the Traffic Secrets funnel that helped Russell become a New York Times bestseller. You’re getting battle-tested frameworks, not pretty pictures.

Note: These templates follow Russell’s direct-response style. If you prefer subtle, corporate designs, you might find them too “salesy.”

AI Funnel Builder takes speed to another level.

Choose your funnel goal, set brand colors, pick image concepts, and add a small text prompt.

Your complete funnel generates automatically.

But here’s what sets ClickFunnels apart: the visual funnel workflow.

When you add pages or reorder steps, the platform understands connections automatically. Button actions are context-aware—no hunting for URLs or broken links.

This single dashboard becomes your command center for building, managing, and tracking live campaign stats.

ClickFunnels also offers Frameworks—complete business solutions you can share or import.

The Frameworks Library provides ready-to-use setups for various industries, each including funnels, websites, blogs, workflows, and emails. You can launch entire business systems, not just individual funnels.

🏆 Winner: ClickFunnels 2.0 for its vastly superior and more integrated funnel-building workflow. While Kartra offers excellent done-for-you campaigns, ClickFunnels’ unified approach eliminates the technical friction that slows down most funnel builders.

Page Builder

Both Kartra and Clickfunnels offer a drag-and-drop editor to help you create landing pages and web pages easily. They’re pretty the same with a slight difference.

Here is Kartra’s page builder.

And here’s Clickfunnels’ page builder

Kartra excels with its extensive library of high-quality templates spanning various industries and design aesthetics.

If you’re looking for a design that breaks away from the typical “internet marketing” look, Kartra’s library is a better starting point.

ClickFunnels, on the other hand, prioritizes proven conversion. 

Its templates are heavily based on Russell Brunson’s high-performance formulas. While there’s less variety, each template is a battle-tested blueprint for sales.

The design aesthetic in 2.0 is clean and modern, effectively shedding the “blocky” look of its predecessor.

On a granular level, the platforms have unique advantages. Kartra’s elements often have built-in, native functionality.

For example, a single Button element in Kartra has pre-built actions to “Download a file” or “Link to a Kartra Survey.” Achieving this in ClickFunnels would require extra steps or custom linking.

ClickFunnels excels in advanced layout control and creative freedom through its “Flex” element.

This feature, which functions like the CSS Flexbox property, allows designers to create highly complex and responsive layouts that are difficult to replicate with traditional section, row, and column builders.

One of the most important differences is that you can add multiple elements directly to the flex container and align them in a row by clicking one button.

With the old sections and columns system, you had to create a separate column for each element, which doubles the number of containers and makes the DOM structure overly nested and bloated.

That means using Flex container probably helps you reduce code, so your page will load faster compared to the traditional way.

For designers who want pixel-perfect control over dynamic layouts, this is a powerful and decisive tool.

When it comes to workflow efficiency within the editor, ClickFunnels has a clear edge with its integrated assistance tools.

“Napoleon” AI copywriter is built directly into the text editor, allowing you to generate headlines and body copy without leaving the page.

Furthermore, its real-time collaboration feature allows multiple team members to work on the same page simultaneously, similar to a Google Doc.

Kartra currently lacks native equivalents for these AI and team collaboration features.

Email Marketing & Automation

With the latest update, Clickfunnels now has built-in email marketing and automation without required 3rd party tools.

While both platforms are powerful, they’re designed for fundamentally different strategic approaches.

Kartra excels at creating deep, synergistic systems where multiple native features work together seamlessly. ClickFunnels focuses on providing powerful, standalone tools and generous AI assistance to drive immediate action.

Kartra’s Most Profound Advantage: BAM + Video Hosting

Kartra’s trump card lies in the synergy between its Behavioral Adaptive Marketing (BAM) and native video hosting – a feature ClickFunnels completely lacks.

This combination allows for incredibly sophisticated, engagement-based automation.

Picture this high-ticket webinar funnel scenario:

• If a prospect watches only 10% of your webinar, you can automatically send them a nurturing email sequence for a lower-priced offer.
• If they watch 50%, they get a different sequence promoting a mid-tier product.
• And if they watch over 80%? You can tag them as a ‘hot lead,’ automatically present them with an application form, and trigger a calendar booking sequence for your sales team.

This is layered on top of Kartra’s native Lead Scoring system, which assigns points for these actions. This ability to automate based on precise video engagement is unparalleled.

But here’s the catch: Video hosting requires at least Kartra’s Starter Plan ($119/month).

ClickFunnels’ Advantage: In-Email Conversion Tools & Massive AI Value.

ClickFunnels doesn’t offer native video hosting or lead scoring. Plus, contacts are primarily organized using tags rather than traditional email lists. Kartra uses both tags and lists, giving you more organizational flexibility.

ClickFunnels compensates with powerful in-email conversion tools.

The ability to insert a native Countdown Timer that’s perfectly synced with the ‘Sticky Countdown’ on your funnels. This creates an unbreakable, authentic urgency from your landing page all the way to the customer’s inbox.

Both platforms offer AI copy assistance for writing emails, but their approach differs significantly.

With Kartra’s AI, you just tell it what kind of content you need, select the tone, and output language, and done.

The problem is: Most people struggle with AI because they don’t know what to ask for. With traditional AI tools, you need to craft specific prompts like “rewrite this email to be more persuasive using urgency and social proof.” 

That’s intimidating for most users.

ClickFunnels eliminates this barrier.

Instead of staring at a blank prompt box, wondering what to type, Napoleon analyzes your existing content and suggests exactly what you need.

It’s easy to get started by following the suggestion – no prompting skills required. 

When I create new paragraphs from scratch, the AI recommends helpful prompts like “Write the body copy for a promotional email with [your subject line].”

This makes content creation smoother and more guided. 

You’re not wrestling with “How do I ask AI to write this?” Instead, you’re choosing from pre-built, context-aware suggestions that actually make sense for your specific situation.

Kartra’s AI is limited to 100 generations on its Starter plan. In stark contrast, ClickFunnels includes a staggering 1 million words with its AI tool on the Basic plan.

For businesses planning to heavily leverage AI for content creation, ClickFunnels offers exponentially more value.

🏆 Winner: Kartra for advanced automation and lead score.

The choice is a question of strategy. If your business model revolves around video marketing, lead scoring, and creating complex, engagement-based automations, Kartra’s deeply integrated system is the undisputed champion.

However, if your priority is leveraging powerful AI at scale and using unique, built-in tools like synchronized timers to drive direct conversions, ClickFunnels 2.0 provides a more valuable and focused toolset.

Course & Membership Sites

For course creators, the platform you choose deeply impacts your students’ experience. The most critical difference is that ClickFunnels 2.0 has a dedicated, modern ‘Course’ builder, while Kartra utilizes its more rigid ‘Membership’ feature to host educational content.

This architectural choice directly impacts design options and layout flexibility.

Kartra’s Advanced Access & Content Control Power

Kartra’s membership sites offer 3 basic layouts (Sidebar left, right, left & right) without design freedom.

Here’s the Kartra membership site content builder.

What I love about Kartra is its powerful and granular access control.

Kartra makes it incredibly easy to create multiple membership tiers.

For example, you can create a “Silver” level with access to Modules 1-3, a “Gold” level with all modules, and a “Dimond” level that includes exclusive live coaching calls.

Both platforms offer standard content dripping (unlock Lesson 2 after Lesson 1 after X days), but Kartra also allows you to drip content out on specific calendar days after a member joins, giving you more predictable, time-based release schedules.

This is particularly powerful for cohort-based courses where you want all students progressing through the material simultaneously, regardless of when they joined.

ClickFunnels’ Superior Student Experience & Community Integration

ClickFunnels provides a far superior and more modern student experience due to its design flexibility. You build your course pages using the same powerful page editor as your funnels, giving you complete creative control over the layout.

You can use dynamic elements to place your lesson content, curriculum navigation, and progress indicators exactly where you want. So you can create a unique and branded learning environment.

The true game-changer is the native Community feature. 

You can build your own ‘Circle-style’ community directly on the platform, seamlessly integrating discussion and engagement right alongside your course content.

This eliminates the need for an external Facebook group and keeps your students locked into your ecosystem.

What Both Platforms Are Missing

Here’s something both platforms need to improve: Neither currently offers a native quiz or assessment builder. For creators who rely heavily on testing student knowledge, you’ll need a third-party tool with both platforms.

This is a significant gap that course creators should factor into their decisions.

🏆 Winner: ClickFunnels 2.0 for superior student experience and community building.

If your priority is creating a visually stunning, custom-branded course and fostering an integrated student community, ClickFunnels 2.0 is the undeniable winner. Its dedicated course builder and native community feature are far more advanced.

However, if your business model relies on complex, multi-tiered membership levels and you need precise, time-based control over content access, Kartra’s powerful membership management system remains a very solid choice.

The decision ultimately comes down to whether you value design flexibility and community features over granular access control.

Checkout and Shopping Cart

The checkout is where a lead becomes a customer, and both Kartra and ClickFunnels are masters of maximizing this moment. Both platforms offer robust, battle-tested features like order bumps, one-click upsells (OTOs), and downsells, which are essential for increasing average order value.

The real differences lie in the setup, design flexibility, and international capabilities.

Kartra’s Strategic Advantage: Zero Fees & Global Tax Control

In Kartra, the checkout process is more disconnected from your page design.

You must first create your checkout form in a separate “Checkout” section of the app, and then embed that pre-made form onto your page. 

This gives you less control over the final look and feel, such as customizing text sizes or colors within the form itself.

The product management follows this same pattern. You often have to create separate product configurations for each use case – one for your main offer, another for upsell or downsell.

Kartra Payments on the Starter plan offers 0% transaction fees on all sales.

That’s a massive cost advantage over competitors.

Plus, for businesses selling globally, Kartra offers far more flexibility in handling sales tax and VAT. You can set specific, custom tax rules for any country you need.

This granular control is crucial for international compliance and can save you significant legal headaches.

ClickFunnels’ Streamlined Design But Costly Payment Processing

The workflow for creating and designing a checkout is a clear win for ClickFunnels.

In ClickFunnels, the checkout is a native element directly inside the page builder. You can drag, drop, and customize it with full control, just like any other part of your page.

This streamlined approach extends to product management. You can create a product once and then use it anywhere—as a main offer, an order bump, or an upsell. No need for multiple configurations.

However, ClickFunnels has significant drawbacks.

You can use Payment AI directly, but if you want to use Stripe, you must connect it through the Payment AI app. 

Fast fact: Clickfunnels’ direct Stripe integration is still in beta test.

More importantly, Payment AI takes 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction, which adds up fast.

For international sellers, it relies on TaxJar’s pre-set tax code categories, which work well for the US but offer little customization for specific international tax laws.

On the positive side, ClickFunnels’ Payment AI does allow for Coinbase integration, enabling customers to pay with cryptocurrency for manual invoices, though this isn’t yet available on standard checkout pages.

🏆 Winner: Kartra for cost savings and international tax management.

While ClickFunnels offers superior design flexibility for checkout forms, this advantage pales in comparison to Kartra’s financial benefits. The 0% transaction fees alone can save thousands of dollars monthly for active businesses. Combined with superior international tax handling, Kartra becomes the smarter choice for serious entrepreneurs.

If you’re running a US-only business and absolutely need maximum checkout design control, ClickFunnels works. But for everyone else, especially international sellers or high-volume businesses, Kartra’s cost savings and tax flexibility make it the clear winner.

The design limitations simply don’t outweigh the massive financial and operational advantages.

Helpdesk & Customer Support Tools

Kartra’s Helpdesk is designed for businesses that need a structured, professional customer support operation. When a support agent views a customer’s ticket, they have a complete 360-degree view of that customer right on the screen. 

They can see the full ticket and chat history, review the customer’s complete purchase history, add internal labels to categorize the issue, and even transfer the ticket to a different agent.

This native integration—where a support ticket is directly linked to the CRM profile—is incredibly powerful for providing informed, high-quality customer service.

Your team never has to hunt through different systems to understand a customer’s context.

Clickfunnels doesn’t have the Helpdesk feature. You need to use a separate tool for this purpose. But they have Message Hub, which acts as a Unified Inbox that brings all your customer conversations into one central place. It consolidates messages from email, text (SMS), and social media, allowing you to manage and respond to customer inquiries quickly from a single dashboard.

This is less about ‘resolving tickets’ and more about ‘managing conversations.’ It’s perfect for businesses that prioritize quick, engaging communication over formal support processes.

🏆 Winner: Kartra’s native Helpdesk is the far superior and more professional solution.

Affiliate Management

To access the affiliate management tools, you must be on a higher-tier plan, such as Kartra’s Growth plan ($229/month) and ClickFunnels Optimize Plan ($297/month).

When it comes to setting up the rules of your affiliate program, both Kartra and ClickFunnels are remarkably flexible and powerful.

You’re not limited to a simple percentage.

In both systems, you can create advanced commission structures, including offering a fixed dollar amount per sale, setting different commission rates for different products, and even creating a ‘second-tier’ commission to incentivize your affiliates to recruit other affiliates.

Both also provide a clean, functional dashboard for your affiliates to track their stats and grab their promotional links.

Here is Kartra’s affiliate dashboard.

And here’s Clickfunnels’ affiliate center.

The primary operational challenge is often payouts.

Both platforms natively support manual payouts (where you export a report and pay via bank transfer) or can integrate with PayPal Business for more automated mass payments.

However, it’s telling to look at how these companies run their own massive affiliate programs. In practice, ClickFunnels uses Tipalti to handle their payment, and Kartra manages its affiliate program through PartnerStack.

This real-world usage suggests that while their native tools are powerful for most businesses, managing a very large-scale affiliate program often requires a dedicated, specialized solution.

🏆 Winner: Tie

Analytics & A/B Testing

Kartra provides a comprehensive, centralized hub for deep research across every aspect of your business, while ClickFunnels focuses on delivering real-time, actionable data right where you need it.

If you’re a data-driven marketer who wants one place to analyze everything, Kartra’s analytics dashboard is significantly more comprehensive.

It’s designed as a central command center where you can pull detailed reports on not just sales and contacts, but also on email sequences, membership engagement, helpdesk performance, video viewership, form submissions, and more.

And here’s Clickfunnels’ analytics overview dashboard.

While both platforms can track core sales and subscription metrics like LTV and MRR, Kartra’s ability to report on its entire suite of native tools from one place is a major advantage for deep analysis.

But what makes Clickfunnels stand out is the Live View report.

This is a real-time feed that shows you exactly what’s happening across your funnels as it happens—every pageview, every opt-in, every email open. It’s invaluable for monitoring a new launch or spotting engagement trends instantly.

Furthermore, ClickFunnels excels at providing in-context analytics. You can see the core stats for any individual funnel or workflow directly on that page, without navigating back to a separate analytics dashboard.

When it comes to scientifically optimizing your pages, both platforms offer robust A/B split testing for funnel pages and email automations.

However, Kartra offers more flexibility, allowing you to test up to four different page variations against each other simultaneously. ClickFunnels currently limits you to testing two variations (A vs. B).

🏆 Winner: Kartra for comprehensive reporting and testing flexibility.

If you’re a ‘data scientist’ marketer who needs to pull deep, historical reports across every facet of your business and wants the flexibility to test multiple page variations, Kartra’s analytical suite is more powerful.

However, if you’re an “in-the-moment” marketer who values seeing live data, quickly checking stats without leaving your workflow, and taking immediate action, ClickFunnels’ Live View and in-context analytics are more practical and efficient.

Third-Party Integrations

Kartra is designed as a self-contained, “all-in-one” system, encouraging you to use its powerful native features. 

ClickFunnels 2.0, on the other hand, is building a more open ecosystem that embraces connections with other best-in-class tools.

Kartra includes a powerful native webinar hosting platform within its ecosystem (on higher tiers). It’s designed to work seamlessly with its CRM and calendars.

ClickFunnels does not have a native webinar tool; instead, it’s designed to integrate smoothly with popular third-party webinar platforms like Zoom or WebinarFuel.

The story is reversed when it comes to external email service providers.

ClickFunnels offers direct, native integrations with popular ESPs like Getresponse or ConvertKit. This makes it easy for users who love their existing email system to keep using it.

Currently, Kartra only integrates with Sendgrid, Postmark, Elastic Email, and Mailgun.

Want more options? You must use Zapier to connect with them.

Both platforms play nicely with Zapier, which lets you connect Kartra or ClickFunnels to thousands of apps, creating a level playing field.

🏆 Winner: ClickFunnels 2.0 for users who want to integrate their favorite best-in-class tools.

Ease of Use & Learning Curve

No powerful software is truly “easy,” but Kartra and ClickFunnels present very different learning curves.

Think of it this way: Kartra is like a helicopter, and ClickFunnels 2.0 is like a high-performance sports car. Both are incredible machines, but they require different skills to master.

Kartra has immense power and can move in any direction. You can manage a helpdesk, host videos, and build complex automations all from one place.

This interconnectedness means there’s a steeper initial learning curve; you need to understand how all the controls work together.

To help with this, Kartra offers a one-on-one onboarding call right after you sign up.

Each major feature has its own guided tour to walk you through the setup. The learning process involves understanding a complex, integrated system.

For example, the image below is a tutorial for Kartra’s Funnel Mapper feature.

ClickFunnels 2.0 is designed to go forward—fast.

It hides advanced features until you actively add them, making the initial dashboard feel clean and less overwhelming.

You get a checklist to launch your first funnel.

Every app features a video introduction detailing its purpose and usage, making it easy to discover features.

Your subscription immediately gives you access to a treasure trove of training, including the famous One Funnel Away Challenge.

Instead of a single onboarding call, they offer multiple live onboarding calls each week where you can get ongoing help with technical questions.

🏆 Winner: Tie

Neither is “harder,” they’re just different. If you’re the type of person who wants to see all the tools at once, understand the whole system, and benefit from a personalized 1:1 setup call, Kartra’s approach will feel more comprehensive.

However, if you get easily overwhelmed and prefer a guided, step-by-step process focused on getting one thing launched quickly, with access to a massive library of ongoing training and live help, ClickFunnels 2.0 provides a much friendlier and more motivating initial experience.

Kartra vs ClickFunnels: Pricing Breakdown

Kartra has 4 pricing plans that can be billed monthly or yearly (with a 22% discount)

Clickfunnels offers 4 pricing plans consisting of:

Kartra affordable than Clickfunnels on the surface by offering the Essential plan at $59/month for 500 contacts and 10,000 emails/month. Sounds good, right?

The problem is that they limited you to 5 pages, 1 product, and 1 membership or course.

Imagine you try to build a sales funnel for selling your online course. A basic sales funnel requires:

• Sales page
• Checkout page
• Upsell page
• Thank you page

Now, you only have 1 page left.

You can’t launch a second product or build a simple website (Home, About, Contact, Services, Blog).

While Kartra has a lower-priced “Essentials” plan, its severe limitations make it unsuitable for running a serious business. That’s why most people use Kartra’s Starting plan at least.

Round 1: Kartra Starter ($119/mo) vs. ClickFunnels Launch ($97/mo)

For $22 less per month, the CF Launch plan gives you 10,000 contacts compared to Kartra’s 2,500 (a 4x advantage). 

It also offers unlimited funnels and pages, 5 custom domains (vs. Kartra’s 1 at this tier), and a staggering 1M words of AI credits compared to Kartra’s 100 uses. 

While Kartra includes native video hosting, the sheer value packed into the CF Launch plan is undeniable.

For businesses with under 10,000 contacts and less than $10,000 monthly revenue, the Clickfunnels Launch plan provides superior value.

Round 2: Kartra Growth ($229/mo) vs. ClickFunnels Scale ($197/mo)

The value gap widens even further at the mid-tier.

For $32 less per month, the CF Scale plan offers 75,000 contacts—a staggering 6x more than the 12,500 contacts on Kartra’s Growth plan.

At this level, ClickFunnels unlocks its powerful Appointments feature and advanced Conversion Boosters.

To get key features like the Affiliate Center or Helpdesk Live Chat in Kartra, you need this Growth plan, but the contact limit remains a significant constraint compared to the massive allowance from ClickFunnels.

Premium Features: What You Get When You Pay More

You need to know when premium features kick in with both platforms.

Kartra makes you pay more for the good stuff. You must upgrade to their Growth plan ($229/month) to get these features:

• Funnel Simulation
• Webinars
• Advanced Automations
• Quiz & Survey tools
• Helpdesk Live Chat
• Affiliate Management

ClickFunnels also locks features behind higher plans. You need their Scale plan ($197/month) to access:

• Appointments
• Conversion Boosters
• Countdown Funnels

Want the Affiliate Center? You must pay for the ClickFunnels’ Optimize plan ($297/month).

Which premium features matter most to your business? This question will help you pick the right platform at higher price points.

🏆 Winner: ClickFunnels.

This platform gives you more bang for your buck at every level. You get way more contacts and better features for less money. ClickFunnels leaves more room for your business to grow without breaking the bank.

Choose Kartra only if you need their built-in video hosting or international tax features. Otherwise, ClickFunnels wins hands down.

Kartra Vs Clickfunnels Support: Who Helps You Better When You’re Stuck?

Support can make or break your experience with any platform. I haven’t had problems with either platform’s support team. But other users tell a different story.

ClickFunnels users complain about slow help. One person waited over a week and still didn’t get their problem fixed.

Another user said they waited 3 days just to solve a simple task.

Kartra users face similar problems.

The technical support is extremely poor. They take way too long to respond, and the live chat can leave you waiting for days. It’s incredibly frustrating.

– Claudia Donoso

Ben complained that Kartra’s Facebook group deletes comments about these support issues. This doesn’t help anyone understand what’s really happening.

Both have upset customers when it comes to support.

ClickFunnels recently added Priority + Live Chat support for Scale Plan users. Their Dominate plan includes VIP support for faster responses. This might improve things, but we need to wait a few months to see if it works.

🏆 Winner: Tie. Both platforms need to do better with customer support. Your experience will likely depend on luck and timing more than anything else.

Final Verdict: Which All-in-One Should YOU Choose in 2025?

As we’ve seen, the best choice depends entirely on your business model and priorities. Both platforms are powerful, but they excel in different areas and serve different types of entrepreneurs.

Kartra shines as a comprehensive, deeply integrated system that rewards users who want everything under one roof. Its sophisticated automation capabilities, native video hosting with behavioral triggers, zero transaction fees, and superior international tax handling make it ideal for businesses that value depth over breadth.

ClickFunnels 2.0 takes a different approach, focusing on speed, value, and community. Its generous contact limits, superior AI assistance, modern course builder with community features, and streamlined workflow help businesses launch faster and scale without hitting restrictive limits.

Choose Kartra if:

• You rely heavily on video content as a coach, consultant, or course creator.
• You require sophisticated automation based on video engagement and lead scoring
• You operate an international business requiring granular tax control
• You want a professional helpdesk system integrated with your CRM
• You prefer one platform that does everything natively
• You value zero transaction fees and comprehensive analytics

Choose ClickFunnels 2.0 if:

• You prioritize growth and want maximum value at every pricing tier
• You need generous contact limits and unlimited pages/funnels
• You want to leverage AI heavily for content creation (1M words vs 100 uses)
• You sell physical products or need advanced sales pipeline features
• You thrive in active communities and learn from other entrepreneurs
• You want faster setup, modern design flexibility, and streamlined workflows

The decision ultimately comes down to whether you value Kartra’s deep integration and sophisticated features or ClickFunnels’ superior scalability and value proposition.

F.A.Q